by Alec Peche
Jill and Trixie were to stay in the conference room. All officers were ordered to return to the station and were advised to be careful in their approach. The Sheriff had his clerk and 2 deputies with him there. He would have liked to move Jill’s car to a vacant lot, but he was afraid to risk an officer doing that.
Officer Davis returned with rifles, ammunition magazines, bullet proof vests, smoke bomb grenades, helmets, and riot shields. She wrapped a spare vest around Trixie. Doors were locked, and a third deputy returned inside the building with the news that a helicopter could be seen in the distance.
Jill’s job was to maintain the connection with Agent Ortiz in San Francisco and report in. In 20 minutes, the friendly helicopters should arrive. Sheriff Arstand hadn’t wanted to call for help from outlying cities for fear that he just put their officers in harm’s way, and he thought it would take them 40 minutes to mobilize and arrive at the station. The incoming force from the FBI should be enough manpower and it would arrive sooner. Each officer had a window to gaze out of, and there were cameras on the outside of the building.
Time was now 19 minutes to the arrival of the CHP and FBI helicopters.
A single black helicopter approached the Palisades Valley looking for a place to land having spotted Jill’s car. Aleksandra must have reported a description of her vehicle at some point to Lott or Lark. The copter set down in a vacant field about 3 blocks from the Sheriff’s station. Time was now 17 minutes. Three people got out of the copter. The 3 appeared to be heavily armed, dressed in all black, wearing body armor. The pilot stayed inside. It was unknown if any additional personnel were onboard as they couldn’t be seen through the tinted windows of the helicopter. Jill indicated to San Francisco that Lark’s helicopter had arrived and the 3 people that exited looked ready to wage war, couldn’t the FBI and CHP fly faster!
Agent Ortiz responded “Good news was the FBI copter had been able to speed up, and the ETA was now 14 minutes.”
The Sheriff relayed through Jill where they could put the copter down close to the building. One copter would put down immediately, and the other planned to disable Lark’s copter from the air before landing. She used a radio and the intercom to keep everyone inside the building informed and the 4 deputies relayed information back to her to transmit to Agent Ortiz in San Francisco and then on to the incoming copters.
The Sheriff used a megaphone to speak to the approaching group of people. “You are under arrest. Throw down your weapons and lay face down on the pavement.”
No one listened to him.
Meanwhile, Jill stated over the intercom, “Helicopter ETA 12 minutes”
Deputy Davis, a supreme markswoman, studied the approaching group and determined which hand was their primary hand for shooting a gun. She took aim and shot 2 of the approaching team in their shooting hands, and followed that with a shot to their ankles. The 2 dropped their guns, but their boots had protected their ankles. The third person responded by spraying bullets at the station. Jill heard glass breaking and bullets pinging inside the building. The shots had slowed down the 2 men, and forced them to use their non-dominant hand for firing. Davis hadn’t been able to get a decent shot at the third person.
Jill announced, “Helicopter ETA 9 minutes”.
Another Deputy hurled a smoke bomb through the broken window at the 2 men. They changed course and avoided that approach to the building. The original 3 had separated, and 1 person went along the side of the building, avoiding the smoke.
“Helicopter ETA 8 minutes”, said Jill.
In the far distance the approaching helicopters could see the smoke coming from one side of the building.
The Sheriff announced the now-visible approach of the copters and spoke to Lark and her accomplices. “Throw down your weapons, and lie face down on the sidewalk.”
Again they ignored him.
Jill’s voice droned on over the intercom. “Helicopter ETA 7 minutes.”
Deputy Davis had swapped positions with another deputy and was well positioned to take aim at Lark. She hit her in the hand on the gun’s trigger, which caused her to drop her weapon. The 2 remaining deputies, who had been unable to return to the station before Lark’s copter arrived took aim at the copter. A bullet pierced the gas tank, causing gas to leak out.
Jill continued the countdown. “Helicopter ETA 6 minutes.”
With 5 minutes remaining, Lark and her cohorts made a run for their copter. Shots rang out at them until they were out of range of the Sheriff’s station. The other 2 deputies remained behind cover of the building, well aware that they were outmanned and outgunned. The deputies had observed on Lark’s employees the grenades, smoke bombs, the numerous ammo clips on their belts, and what appeared to be semi-automatic assault weapons. The helicopter blades whirred and it prepared to lift off with the fuel tank dripping gasoline.
Lark’s helicopter rose in the air as the helicopters from the FBI and the California Highway Patrol approached the Palisades Valley. The FBI copter gave chase while the CHP‘s copter landed. Jill heaved a sigh of relief that she and the deputies would make it to the evening. Agent Ortiz in San Francisco was relieved that re-enforcements had arrived in time to save the Palisades Valley Sheriff station and all its occupants. The clock had been running out. Thank God for the quick actions and precise marksmanship of one deputy.
Chapter 28
The FBI copter gave chase to Lark’s company copter. The pilot had to know that gas leaked out of his copter at an alarming rate. One of the occupants aimed a rocket propelled grenade launcher and fired at the FBI copter. It took evasive action, and the missile missed. A self-timer in the missile exploded it harmlessly a few seconds later. Lark’s copter started to lose altitude, but it was still a controlled descent to the ground. It got about 100 feet from the ground, lost power then nose-dived to the ground, landing in a cornfield.
The FBI copter prepared to set down at the edge of the field, not wanting to get too close to Lark and her rocket launcher. Unfortunately, the copter burst into flames after the hard landing. The agents waited to see if anyone exited from the explosion. The last thing they wanted to do was walk into gunfire. No one appeared to be moving, and they cautiously approached the blaze. It was too hot to get closer than about 6 car lengths. Jet fuel burned at a very high temperature.
Fire truck sirens could be heard, and the agents tried to put out the flames with the 2 fire extinguishers that they carried on board the FBI copter, to no avail. The farmer who owned the land approached the agents on his tractor. The Agents explained the situation and suggested he tell his insurance company to seek reimbursement from Lark’s company. The farmer had his San Francisco Giants cap off and stared in amazement at the burning copter.
During this conversation, the fire truck had arrived, and the fire was extinguished. Four corpses had nearly been cremated by the heat. An FBI agent arranged for a cleanup crew to clear the mess in the field. The agents returned to their copter, landed close to the CHP’s copter, and exited to join the others at the Sheriff’s station.
Inside the station was one very relieved Jill. She thought to herself that she was proving hard to kill and that was good. She took Trixie outside for a quick nature break and then returned inside. She wondered if she had a home to return to or if Lark and company had destroyed her home. She asked if anyone in the group knew. Everyone shook their heads responding that they hadn’t gotten close to her home in the previous hour. She couldn’t ask Nathan since he was en route to Seattle. Thankfully he hadn’t been around for this latest crisis of Jill’s. She thought that he might dump her, tired of the drama defining her life at the moment.
They all sat in a large conference room and were joined by members of police forces from surrounding municipalities. Once the station was secure, Sheriff Arstand notified those police forces of what had happened and the scheduled debrief. The Sheriff felt it was important to learn from any situation and he wanted an objective review of his decision not to request aid from those polic
e forces. Someone at the SFPD and Agent Ortiz had initially been connected by telephoned, but given the size of the group, the conversation volume was too hard to maintain, so Lieutenant Chau and Agent Ortiz would debrief later when they arrived in the Palisades Valley in another hour. In the end, the Sheriff had so many people needing to participate that he moved the meeting across the street to the city council chambers.
The media was also on the Sheriff’s door step given the savage shootout. The Sheriff’s station had the appearance of a building in a war zone in Baghdad. Fortunately, one of the FBI agents took the media lead, as the Sheriff doubled as the department’s media representative. The mayor and other city heads were also at the debriefing. At the very least, significant repairs were required to the Station, and the jail itself was out of commission until repairs were made. The neighboring town had a mutual aid agreement with the Palisades Valley for exactly this kind of disruption to the jail. That town would handle any custody needs until the repairs could be made. First, the Sheriff, the FBI, and the CHP needed to have a large but private debriefing about the events of the day before anyone spoke to the media.
The Sheriff started by requesting Jill introduce herself and tell her story.
With the faithful Trixie sitting at her side, she spoke. “I’m Dr. Jill Quint and the cause of all this mess at the Palisades Valley Sheriff’s station. I spent 15 years in the county crime lab as a forensic pathologist. Now I’m growing grapes and consulting with families who wish to have a second opinion on the cause of death of a loved one. I never had any kind of criminal go after me until this case.
“I retired to quietly grow grapes here 5 years ago, but kept my hand in my old profession by doing consulting work. Family members hire me to confirm a cause of death as determined by their local medical examiner or physician. I work on cases across the nation. I also work with 3 other women who provide investigative research into the deceased’s life, and they turn up some interesting details.
“As you can imagine, I usually have to rush to a new job, as I need to evaluate the deceased before the burial process begins. So my work is unpredictable, and in fact, I hope I don’t catch another case before repairs are complete at the Sheriff’s station.
“Before I tell you about this case, I would like to thank the Palisades Valley Sheriff, as well as the California Highway Patrol and the FBI. Trixie and I are alive and well thanks to their collective skill. I watched the Sheriff mobilize resources in about 4 minutes and Deputy Davis is the most amazing markswoman.”
Jill turned and applauded the Sheriff and the team that rescued her. The whole assembly joined in with her embarrassing the humble Sheriff. Once the applause died down, she began her story.
“About 3 weeks ago, I was hired by a client from the San Francisco suburb of Woodport to investigate the death of her fiancé, Graeme St. Louis, a young attorney, shortly after a scuba diving misadventure in Puerto Rico. He seemingly died of septic shock caused by necrotizing fasciitis.”
She took a minute to explain the disease in layman’s terms to the assembled group.
“Through microbiology studies of his body and the amputated leg, I was able to convince the San Francisco medical examiner to revise the cause of death to homicide by infection, and the SFPD opened the case, as the death was in its jurisdiction. The original killer in this case was Jeffery Lott, who had been a research assistant in college and knew how to obtain and cultivate the bacteria that caused the infection. You may recognize that name from 3 to 5 years ago when a Bay Area city he managed was investigated by the Attorney General for extortion and racketeering and misuse of taxpayer funds.
“He hired someone in Puerto Rico to pose as a fake dive master. That dive master first made an attempt to send the victim into the water with a tank that appeared full but was probably close to empty. When that failed, he shoved the victim into the coral, thus causing a wound that required antibiotic ointment from a first aid kit aboard the dive boat. That ointment was intentionally inoculated with bacteria. The victim cut short his trip to Puerto Rico because his leg was red and swollen. He went right from the airport to University Hospital in San Francisco. He had turned the corner and was improving when, in the middle of the night before he was due to be discharged, we believe Mr. Lott entered his room and injected him with another dose of the bacteria. I identified this by the biomarker of the bacteria. This could not have been an accident or a case of unwashed hands on the part of hospital personnel. The bacterial DNA and growth pattern could only point to something intentional like homicide.
“While I could prove that this was a homicide, I didn't know who or why. So my team and I went to work and investigated the deceased’s law practice, his family, his friends, his whole life. Our investigation eventually led us to one of his clients, Jeffery Lott. One of my team members is an amazing whiz with finances and another is brilliant at locating personal information about anyone. Meanwhile, in San Juan, 2 people connected to this case turned up dead. That was followed by a series of sniper attempts at my home, including one from an Albanian sniper from whom Deputy Davis was able to protect me. The FBI entered the case based on the wide geographies in which connected crimes were being committed as well as the federal law violations.
"For my own safety I was relocated to a safehouse with FBI guards in San Francisco. The Albanian sniper was apprehended but committed suicide while in FBI custody. Lott himself came after me at the safehouse as well and was arrested by the SFPD. He was poisoned soon after he arrived in jail by his fake attorney, who arrived to represent him. Lott’s fake attorney happened to be the CEO of a security and black ops training company named Lark Sumac. After she finished off Lott, she and her associates were suspected to have taken off in a helicopter for the Palisades Valley to end my life. When I heard that Lott had been murdered at the jail, I knew that my own safety was at risk. So I got in my car with my dog and drove to the Sheriff’s station.
“The FBI and the California Highway Patrol put helicopters in the air to chase the black ops helicopter they believed to be heading in this direction. We had somewhere between 10 and 15 minutes to survive an assault by the black ops team. Those were the longest minutes of my life. We barricaded ourselves in the station. The Sheriff was able to call 2 deputies in from the field before the copter arrived. We suffered a barrage of bullets to the station. Deputy Davis accurately shot all 3 assailants in their dominant hands. These actions held them off long enough for the re-enforcements, in the form of 2 helicopters, to arrive. The company helicopter took off, and the FBI followed it while the California Highway Patrol assisted us inside the Sheriff’s station.
“There are more details about the suspects in this case, but I think those are the highlights. I would again like to thank Sheriff Arstand, Deputy Davis, and indeed everyone in this room for helping me stay alive long enough to watch the sunset tonight.”
Jill was finally overcome by emotion and had to kneel and hug Trixie while she regained her composure. Agent Ortiz, Lieutenant Chau, and Detective Carlson arrived just as she finished her story. Now it was time for Sheriff Arstand to discuss what could have gone better today and what could be done in the future. In the back of his mind, a small voice told him that Jill Quint might require the same level of protection sometime in the future. Although he had just met her, he much appreciated her passion for the truth and the justice system.
Jill sat down with Trixie in the back of the council chambers. A headache burned in the back of her eyes, and surprisingly she was hungry. She looked around the council chambers and decided that there were 40 to 50 people there. She knew the owner of the bakery down the street. She hurried to the bakery and asked the woman behind the counter what could be delivered for 50 people. After negotiating the price, she expected a delivery within 30 minutes of cookies, muffins, bread, cold cuts, cheese, and cold drinks. The bakery would close for the day after she bought it out.
She returned to the chambers and the discussion centered on the Sheriff’s dec
ision not to request the help of other local law enforcement agencies. In the end, members of those agencies agreed that small contingents of officers would have resulted in additional injuries. If the 2 copters hadn’t been so close to arrival, then a different strategy would have been required. The assembled group moved on to a discussion of defending the station.
Just then the food was delivered and a quick break was taken before the debriefing continued. With food on board, she felt her brain cells returning and tuned back in to the discussion. She hoped that she would never need the Sheriff to perfect this operation, but she somehow thought that the publicity would bring new cases and new maniacs into her realm.
She came to the conclusion that her presence was no longer required. She would make sure she took plenty of opportunities in public to thank her local Sheriff and his staff. She whispered to Agent Ortiz that she was leaving to go check on her home.
Chapter 29
She went outside to discover that her beloved ‘56 Thunderbird had suffered from the flying bullets. Just as Lark and her men had fired many shots at the station, her car had also got caught in the crossfire. She could have cried at her beautiful car looking so damaged. All of the windows were shattered, the convertible roof had holes in it, and the paint was chipped. But the tires were still good.
She got on her cell phone and made arrangements to have a rental car delivered to her at the Sheriff’s station, then phoned her mechanic in town to explain the situation. Her insurance would cover the damage, or perhaps a crime victim fund would, but first she wanted the car protected while her insurance worked on getting the repairs authorized. Her mechanic would collect the car and store it for her until she could move ahead with repairs. He loved the car nearly as much as she did.