Impressions

by Barbara Winkes

  “Well, that was enough. Whether he brought any of them outside or not, Torres did have enough reason to shoot him.” And secretly, Ellie was glad she had. She wanted whoever was out there with Jordan to have her back. Atwood’s words sprang to mind, and she shivered.

  “Yes, she did.”

  “You don’t think…?” They knew each other’s mind well enough so that Ellie didn’t have to finish the question. Or perhaps she wasn’t comfortable saying it out loud.

  “I think she knows her stuff. And even so, we had no record whatsoever of those two men after they were released from prison. They’re dead for five minutes, and Torres is on the scene. It’s just…odd.”

  “It’s not like we don’t have enough other candidates. This Hank guy had his business up and running, and someone else is coming to town. He doesn’t like it, sends a message. Isn’t that more likely?”

  “I suppose it is.”

  “But you’re not convinced.”

  “I am convinced we still need to do a ton of grocery shopping before the party. Did Sam get back to you?”

  “Yes, she’ll be there,” Ellie confirmed. “I really hope knowing that she has friends here will help her.”

  “Atwood still giving you trouble? I know you’re doing fine, but allow me at least the fantasy of what I might do.”

  Ellie couldn’t help laughing at that.

  “What’s funny about that? I’d love to put that bigot in his place.”

  “I think that’s what Bristol did already. Chris is giving me dirty looks across the room, but that’s all. Bristol has always run a tight ship. He’s not going to let one guy screw this up.”

  “Still, be careful. It only takes one guy.”

  “I’ll be fine. Now if we can get Valerie and McKenzie to agree that Gilbert needs some protection, and Owens’ lawyer doesn’t mess with us too much, this could be a good day.”

  Jordan didn’t disagree.

  * * * *

  Lieutenant Carroll had advised everyone to help Ellie, should she need it. Jordan thought she was doing an even better job without Waters’ interference. She’d always known Ellie was ambitious and eager, but she also had the focus and skills to back it up. It made Jordan irrationally proud to watch her—or perhaps she was entitled to be proud, after finally making good choices in her life.

  Still, she knew it wouldn’t be easy to make her case to Valerie.

  They got a bit of a lucky break an hour later. Jordan and Ellie had retreated to the briefing room with Valerie to bring her up to date, when Derek came inside.

  “It’s on,” he said without preamble. “I made contact.”

  “Did anyone mention Ray?” Esposito asked.

  “Oh, it’s better than that. They guy I’m meeting with is looking to replace Ray, because he’s becoming too chummy with the police. How’s that for a bargaining chip?”

  “That’s awesome,” Ellie commented. “Works for me. Counselor?”

  Valerie didn’t quite share her enthusiasm yet. “Let’s see what the lawyer has for us.”

  * * * *

  Jordan stood with Valerie in the observation area while Ellie went to sit across from Owens and his attorney.

  “Mr. Owens, I hope you made a decision. There seems to be word on the street that you’re talking to the police, so I think it would be best for all of us if we could work together.”

  She was cool, calm, not giving anything away. Jordan almost envied her. She remembered her early days in an interrogation room, and what it felt like having to keep a façade when there was so much at stake. Push aside the emotions, anger, disgust at what some people were capable of doing to others.

  “I want a deal,” he said.

  “That’s not up to me. You have to give us something first.”

  “What if I can give you the big boss? Will you get me in a witness protection program?”

  “Son of a bitch,” Valerie muttered.

  On the other side of the glass, Ellie asked, “What do you mean by the big boss?”

  “Detective, you made it pretty clear that you’re interested in the escort service,” the attorney explained. “Mr. Owens is ready to give you names of clients, and associates. You could make multiple arrests within the next few hours. I’d say it’s in your best interest to get someone from the D.A.’s office in here, and quick.”

  “Whatever that other guy told you, he’s wrong. He’s dealing in garbage, and Hank doesn’t run garbage.”

  Jordan felt her stomach churning as she silently translated his words. She was certain Ellie felt the same way. It was something she’d never get entirely used to, Ellie having to be in the same room with low-life like that—even if it was part of the job, Ellie’s choice.

  “You’ll have to do a little better than that.” Ellie picked up the thread. “Why should we take your word over his? So far, we have him on kidnapping and rape, but you could be charged with murder.”

  “If you’re smart, you’ll go with me, and you know it. I can give you everything you want.”

  There was clearly a different connotation in this. Ellie kept her cool nonetheless.

  “I’ll get the A.D.A. Don’t waste her time.”

  Chapter Eleven

  “Is it okay to feel sick?” Ellie wondered out loud when they left the precinct that night. With the right kind of leverage, Owens’ testimony had been proven to be a gold mine for them, though it didn’t come for free. In Brandi Gilbert’s story, the pieces finally came together to form the complete picture. Owens had threatened her, coerced her into shooting his boss Robertson. The stress and violence of the situation becoming too overwhelming, she’d been triggered into a state of dissociation that affected her memory, all the while threats from Owens and Hank had been real.

  “You didn’t give up on her, and now she will finally get help. That’s something to be glad about.” Jordan touched her shoulder gently before she unlocked the car. “McKenzie is singing your praises, and he’s right.”

  “I don’t know. There are so many others. It seems like a bad compromise, depending on where you stand.”

  “From where I stand, I can see all of them are going down soon. Derek’s got a way in, we’re going to stage the fake after game party, and that will be it.”

  “Let’s hope so.”

  They made a stop at the grocery store to buy food for the upcoming party. As they were carrying their bags to the front door, there was a surprise waiting for them.

  “Guys,” Natalie who sat on the porch steps, said apologetically. “I’m so sorry, but I need to ask you a favor.”

  * * * *

  Ellie was on the phone ordering dinner for the three of them, while Jordan put away the groceries.

  “This is awkward, right? I am really sorry. I should have never said anything.”

  Silently, Jordan agreed to everything, but her mind was still on the magnitude of the case, and to some extent, the expanding guest list of their party. For Ellie’s sake, and to be pragmatic, she could be forgiving. Natalie would likely be around. She had made a mistake, and they could all move on from that.

  “It’s okay. I swear.”

  “I wouldn’t have come here if my friend was in town. My apartment is a mess, and so I was hoping you could harbor me until they’ve taken care of the worst.”

  “It’s not a problem,” Jordan said, well aware of her own resistance. She hoped it wasn’t showing. It had taken her a long time to be comfortable with friends in close proximity, the person she loved most, even. So, no, she wasn’t too happy to share this space with a stranger, but she’d get over it. A few days.

  She remembered when they had thought Ariel might come live with them, and the guest room would be hers, but that would have been different.

  Natalie was family, though. She’d have to get over herself.

  “Dinner will be here in forty-five minutes,” Ellie said. “Come on, I’ll show you the guest room. There are fresh sheets, towels, and a new toothbrush. If you need anything,
let me know.”

  “I guess then I’ll go freshen up.” Natalie hugged Ellie and gave Jordan a smile over her shoulder. “This is so kind of you. It’s been a shock—I mean, the landlord is going to pay for it, but I’ll still have to clean up.”

  “I can help you, if you like,” Ellie offered.

  “Oh no, you don’t have to do that. You are so busy, and you’re already throwing this party. Once I have an idea what the damage is, and what the landlord is paying for, I’ll hire someone to do the rest. If anything, it’s a good opportunity for some updates, right?”

  If money was not a problem, Jordan wondered, why didn’t she just go to a hotel? In fact, there was one located in the Mason tower and the surrounding area where Natalie lived. But that might be just her. Moving in with Kathryn in case of water damage would not have been her first idea. However, Ellie and Natalie had none of that baggage between them. It might give them a good opportunity to get to know each other better—and Natalie, to avoid any more gross misperceptions in the future.

  * * * *

  “It’s a good day. We’re moving forward, and someone thought to give me a high profile assignment,” Derek remarked as he put a coffee in front of Jordan, and took the lid off of his.

  “Yeah. Good for you.”

  “Come on, you have no reason to be cranky. Case just gained speed, and besides, you got married not long ago.”

  “Being married is great,” she said wistfully. “I’m not cranky. Thanks for the coffee though.”

  “You seem to be getting along well with Torres? Ellie is doing an excellent job—so what’s the problem?”

  Jordan hesitated for a few seconds. “Can you keep a secret?”

  “It’s almost insulting when you make that a question.”

  “All right. This was supposed to be for the dinner party. We haven’t been telling anyone so far, but…Ellie actually has a sister.”

  “Really? I thought there were no living relatives.”

  “Yeah, we thought so too, but apparently her father had a child he never new about from an earlier relationship. The mother recently died, and she told her daughter about her father. She did some research, and found Ellie.”

  “Wow.” He perched on the edge of her desk. “That’s quite the story.”

  “Almost too good to be true.”

  “What, you think she’s not for real?”

  “Well, she hasn’t asked for money or run away with the family silver yet.” Jordan sighed. “I don’t know. The background check came back clean. Ellie’s happy. Natalie made quite an impression on her. For such a long time, she thought there was no one, and now…”

  “Something’s still bothering you,” he concluded.

  “She had some water damage at her apartment, so now she’s going to stay with us for a bit.”

  Derek chuckled. “I see.”

  “You see what?”

  “Am I wrong to assume this is about…space issues?”

  “No, it’s not just that. She saw me and Torres at the Night Shift, and called Ellie to tell her that I might be cheating on her.” That still stung. Natalie had no idea about Jordan’s past mistakes that could still make her insecure in the present.

  “Seems like she got ahead of herself. I think you’re not wrong to keep an eye on her. It doesn’t sound like she’s a criminal mastermind, but I assume that if this doesn’t work out, it’d be a big disappointment for Ellie.”

  “Yeah. Thanks.” Jordan took another sip of her coffee. “You’re a good partner.”

  “Don’t I know it.”

  “Carpenter, Henderson. My office.”

  Neither of them was sure what this was about, but given the lieutenant’s serious tone, they followed swiftly. Nina Torres and Ellie were already there, and Carroll tossed the newspaper he was holding onto his desk.

  “Please tell me that we’ll soon make headlines other than this.”

  The headline on the front page read – Sexual Harassment And Bullying In The Police Department. A second accuser has come forward in the case of—

  A bit further down the page, Isabel Combs mother was quoted.

  Why can’t they find my daughter?

  * * * *

  Derek was meeting with his contact later that night to finalize the details of the after game party while Jordan spent the time with Nina Torres in a van nearby, listening in. Everything looked and sounded to be on track: The two men Derek was talking to confirmed that as long as the payment was swift, their boss would provide any sort of “entertainment” he wished for. Jordan was certain that the implications were making him just as sick, especially with the other issues surrounding the department at the moment. The other woman who had accused Waters of harassing her was an officer from the 9th division she had briefly met regarding another case. This was all happening much too close to home.

  “This has to stick,” she said. “Otherwise, none of us can justify Owens getting a deal out of it.”

  “I agree,” Nina said. “Well, look at it this way…Oswald and Dinkins didn’t get a deal.”

  “Yeah. Let’s hope we’ll be able to make some arrests soon and figure out who killed them.”

  The agent didn’t answer to that, so they both went back to listening in. There were two men in the building. They had come in separate cars.

  “There’s just one problem,” Derek said. “How do I know you won’t run away with the money? I don’t know your boss. You could be trying to rip him off. I need some insurance.”

  The two men laughed, and there was some rustling. “None of us here has a death wish. As for insurance…boss will give you a chance to sample the merchandise. Here’s everything you need to know. Fifty percent now, we get the rest if you’re satisfied.”

  “All right, but again—how do I know you won’t rat me out to the cops, and they arrest me the minute I walk through that door?”

  “Business wouldn’t be what it is if we didn’t deliver.”

  “I suppose. No other bad surprises? I read about the guys who ended up with their brains blown out.”

  “None of your concern. Take it or leave it.”

  “No, that’s okay. Fifty percent. Anything goes, and you’ll clean up afterwards.”

  “That’s the deal.”

  “I get everything I asked for. That’s important. My friends have very specialized tastes. You disappoint them, this is the last time we do business.”

  “There won’t be any problems. Those girls are trained to cater to specialized tastes if you know what I mean. But if you enjoy breaking them in, we can arrange that too.”

  Jordan caught Nina’s glance. Her expression was impassive, but her fingers were clenched in a fist.

  “Party favors?” Derek was too experienced to give himself away. Jordan was quite sure the other men didn’t even detect that small trace of impatience.

  “Sure. Only high quality. Gotta check it all off the list, right? That party will be unforgettable.”

  “ Great. Then we have everything we need,” Derek said, the signal for back-up to storm the building. The two men never knew what hit them, and by the time they had a few choice words for the cops, they were already in handcuffs.

  “Great job,” Torres commented. “It would have been nice to have a confession regarding Dinkins and Oswald.”

  Derek handed her the folder the men had given him.

  “There’s something we need to take care of first.”

  * * * *

  The package included the address of a four-star hotel, and the picture of a woman who looked terrified. Not Isabel Combs. There was a key card as well, but the men had warned Derek not to use it right away, but knock instead. There was a guard with her who would open the door and wait outside.

  “I’m so glad we don’t have to deal with these cases on a regular basis,” Derek commented as they were on their way. “Give me a cut and dried murder over this any time.”

  “Yeah. I know what you mean.”

  “We put away some
pretty bad folks. I don’t know if it can get lower than that.”

  Jordan wasn’t sure what to say to that—in any case she couldn’t come up with anything that might ease his mind.

  Once at the hotel, they took the elevator to the eighteenth floor. It made her wonder how they could have set up camp in these surroundings, and if some employee had looked the other way.

  Room #322 was at the end of the hall, which was a relief—it potentially made the situation easier to contain. Once they reached the door, Derek knocked firmly.

  “It’s Henson. I just met with Tripp and Brenner. They said you’re expecting me.”

  Jordan stayed in the background when the man on the other side of the door opened, a knowing grin on his face.

  “Come on in, Mr. Henson. We’re ready for you. I’m going to step outside and—” He broke off when he found himself face to face with Jordan who was training her gun on him.

  “And take a little trip downtown, how about it? You’re under arrest…”

  They ushered the loudly complaining man back into the suite. Derek stayed with him while officers that had come with them, picked him up. Jordan went into the bedroom.

  “It’s okay. We’re the police. You’re safe now.”

  Her presence barely registered with the naked woman on the bed whose wrists were cuffed to the headboard. Jordan reasoned that she had likely been drugged. In one of the closets, she found a blanket to cover her with, and checking her pulse with one hand, she called for the paramedics to come up.

  “You’re safe. We’re going to get you to a hospital now.”

  She focused on the woman’s pulse under her thumb, making sure her mind wasn’t going to slip into a memory or nightmare. In any case, Jordan was grateful that Ellie wasn’t here.

  * * * *

  Ellie had set up a safe place for Brandi Gilbert, a task much more rewarding than the negotiations with Owens—but both had to be done. Everyone met with the lieutenant for a briefing before the arrested men would be interrogated. She and Nina stood on the other side of the glass while Jordan and Derek went into the room to question Terry Stone, the man who had been guarding the hotel room.