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Golden Shields ( Katy1008 & CrimsonMaster )

The house was pretty impressive. Panoramic and unobstructed views of the Bel Air Country club and located on Lower Perugia Way, it had a grand 2 storey entry hall with a sweeping double staircase which opened onto a vast living roam with an open fireplace and parquet floors. The entirety of Tom's boat could probably have fit inside the room with room to spare. The household butler led them through the entrance lobby and into the lounge. Mrs. Reynolds was standing near the fireplace. She turned to look at them was they were led in. When she told them where her daughter was, the butler then led Evie out. From the lounge, opposite the entrance from the entrance lobby were a pair of double glass doors which opened onto an expansive terrace. From there, steps led down from both the left and the right to an outdoor pool and patio area set out with a table and chairs and sun umbrella. Unseen by both Tom and Evie were the formal dining room, the would panelled library and the gourmet kitchen with top of the range appliances. There was also a screening room with a bar, a gyms, a sauna and a steam gower plus and oversized guest suite. A master bedroom with dual marble baths, two other bedroom suits and a large staff room. All of it was set in a little under a acre of land with, in addition to the pool had a tropical waterfall a koi pond and a full putting green. Evie was looking around picking out those she could see as she walked down the steps to where Britney Reynolds was just climbing out of the pool. By the time Evie reached her, she was drying herself off with a large white towel. She seemed relaxed enough, but Evie wouldn't exactly have called her happy and when she introduced herself and showed the girl her badge, the girl certainly seemed to gain something of an attitude. Evie didn't react. She asked her about how well she knew Lauren, did they spend any time together, would she describe her as a friend. Britney's answers were short and sweet. Not very. Not at all. Definitely not.

"She worked for my dad... some junior grade staffer who answered the phone. She wasn't exactly a member of the family... I mean... what happened to her is pretty bad... but... " She shrugged as she poured herself a lemonade and sat herself down in one of the loungers.

"I heard that... that you got into a bit of argument with her at the party last night."

"What. No. Who told you that?" Evie couldn't help but laugh a little. "Just about everyone at the party."

"No. It.. it wasn't an argument. She ... she was just... she... I wasn't really listening that much... it was something about some campaign strategy that she thought Dad should run but my mom and Ron Shipman thought it was a pretty stupid idea. She wanted Ron or my mom to ask my Dad about it but... but they said they wouldn't. Ron was in charge of my Dad's election strategy and they had things pretty much decided."

"And then what happened?"

"Nothing. She went and got another drink. I didn't see her again all night."

"Okay... well... thank you for your time Ms Reynolds. I'll let you get back to your... whatever is was you were going to do today." And with that Evie headed back towards the house and up the steps where the butler was waiting for her.
 
Tom entered the study just behind June Reynolds. He stopped the doorway for s look around. June continued to walk acrossed the room to where s bar cart was parked. Tom looked at the shelves of books on the wall to his right. He looked left and saw a wall of trophies and guns. This wall had two large glass cases hanging from it. The first case held trophies of all types. Football, baseball, gymnastics, softball & horseback riding. Tom walked over to the case for a look while June asked if he'd like a drink. This offer was declined. Tom said he was on duty and never drank on the job. June poured herself a double scotch whiskey. Tom slowly turned seeing June replace the cap on the bottle. He noticed the time of day. It seemed very early for anyone to be hitting the sauce. Tom asked June how long she knew Lauren? June's reply was " Too Damn Long". Her attitude seemed very short now. Tom then asked what Lauren did for Councilmen Reynolds? June got very defensive after Tom's question. She seemed to take it the wrong way. June wouldn't claim down until Tom explained how the question should have been taken. For the next few minutes, June spoke of Lauren's job. It seemed rather normal for someone who worked for a campaign. However, Tom guessed that there was something Mrs. Reynolds didn't say. Her actions before had set off an alarm in the back of Tom's head.

Tom continued to ask questions which made June drink more. There was little doubt that June knew some dark family secret. Whether that secret was a motive for murder was another question. Tom walked along the glass trophy case, he stopped about half way down the case which held the guns. Chris Reynolds had an impressive collection of firearms. One that caught Tom's eye was a chrome plated snub nosed .38 Police Special. Tom asked if he could see the pistol. June didn't care since the questions about Lauren had stopped. Tom opened the case, carefully reached in and pulled the pistol out. He was careful on how he handled the weapon. Tom never touched the pistol grip. He looked down the barrel and noticed how dirty it was. Tom asked if Mr. Reynolds enjoyed shooting? June said yes, but never with the weapons from the case. She said Chris never fired them. They were bought then hung up. Tom took a sniff from the barrel. Clearly this weapon had been fired. The smell of gunpowder was still there. Tom placed the gun back into the case and closed the doors. He then turned and asked June why she was seen arguing with Lauren. June again went on the defense. She claimed the argument wasn't an argument. June said they were talking over some ideas Lauren had for Chris to go on some local tv talk shows. She spoke of how the idea seemed a bit to much. Tom thought that this answer was nothing more then a coverup. Everything about June said she was lying. Tom then asked June about the other persons seen arguing with Lauren. June said that one was Ron Shipman and the other was Miles Glass. Tom pulled his note pad out and wrote down the second name.

Tom noticed Evie had come back. He nodded to her before telling June that was all he needed. Tom thanked June for her time. " I'll leave you to dry out Mrs. Reynolds. " Tom said while walking out of the room. He joined Evie at the door while June kicked back her drink in defiance of what Tom said. On the way out, Tom told Evie to call James. He wanted James & Kim to drop what they were doing and head down to the coroner's office. Tom needed the report on the slug that killed Lauren Holden. After getting into the car and pulling out, Tom told Evie about the recently fired .38 in Reynolds gun case. Tom also said that June was as terrible lair, but one hell of a drinker. Tom said she could drink Steve under a table. He then handed Evie his note pad with the name Miles Glass on it. Tom asked her to call dispatch and see if there was anything on Glass. It was possible that the man had unpaid parking tickets, or had jaywalked at some point in time. Tom was hoping for an address on this suspect. He told Evie there next stop would be the office of Ron Shipman.
 
Evie walked out with Tom listening to what he was saying. She confirmed that what Lauren said about the argument at the party matched what June had said. They were either telling the truth or they had rehearsed their stories beforehand. Evie had already got her cellphone out of her pocket when, as she climbed into the car, Tom told her about the gun.

"If we don't get that into custody as soon as, it's going to disappear. If it is the murder weapon, whoever used it is surely going to realise that hiding it in plain sight is not really a good idea. And if they know you were interested in it..."

She pushed James' number on speed dial and he answered quickly. She told him about the gun and asked him and Kim to get the coroner to do a rush job and to get the ballistics report. After that she called dispatch on the radio and asked for the details on Glass. Whilst she was waiting, she thought about Tom's comment on Jenny's drinking and the comparison with Steve. Her brother had quite the reputation around the station. He could hold his alcohol better than just about anyone. But even he didn't start drinking scotch this early in the morning. Then the radio sparked into life. The dispatcher was obviously reading from either a computer screen or from a page of notes they had scratched out. Miles Glass. Born 1990. 34 years old. Political analyst with some website. Three arrests for prostitution. Tom and Evie looked at each other in surprise. Evie wondered whether James knew of him from his time in vice. A number of other arrests including public lewdness and solicitation. Finally dispatch gave them an address from the probation record.

"Why would a politician seeking reelection associate himself with someone who definitely has a questionable past? The voting public tend to forgive a lot when it comes to sexual indiscretion. Not sure they would forgive this much." Tom agreed and said Glass would be their next port of call after Shipman.

They met Shipman at the election office. Nothing was going to get in the way of the campaign least of all the death of a support worker. Publicly everyone expressed their shock and their sorrow but everything went on as normal. Even the sorrow and the regret was politically motivated. At least that was what Evie thought. Tom asked Shipman about the party, about the argument. Shipman gave broadly the same tale of the argument that both Janet and Lauren had given. But Ship also provided two other bits of information. The Councilman had had an affair with Lauren. And he had also had an affair with Mikes Glass. Evie was surprised at the revelations. She couldn't understand why he would have done that... Particularly with regard to Miles Glass. Evie was still thinking about it as Shipman suggested that maybe Miles should be the prime suspect. He'd argued with Lauren too...he'd seen then. Probably jealousy he had suggested.

None of this made sense to Evie. He hadn't even appeared hesitant in giving the information; he was providing the police with information which would almost certainly see the Councilman's reelection chances blown out of the water. There had to be some reason...something that was more important to him.
 
Shipman wasn't overly worried about Chris Reynolds. He knew how the public thought and could easily spin this to make Chris look like as victim. Chris was the favorite to win his seat in November and Shipman had enough time to get the best spin doctors money could buy on making Chris appear innocent. Shipman wanted Miles Glass gone because he wasn't in favor of Chris's sexual adventures. He also wanted to keep Briney out of the police radar because they were having their own affair. Shipman was a master of dirty tricks. Once Tom & Evie left, he called Miles Glass. Shipman told Miles that the police were here looking for him. He said someone from the party had fingered Miles as the possible killer of Lauren. Shipman suggested Miles get out of town before the police picked him up. Miles didn't understand what the hell was happening, but Shipman made it sound like the police would arrest him on sight. In a state of panic, Miles hung up the phone. He quickly started to pack a few bags. Not for one moment did Miles stop to think that he was innocent. Shipman pointed out that Miles had a police record and that was enough to cloud his mind.

Miles grabbed his bags and started for the door. He opened the door of his apartment and stepped out into the hall. Just then Tom & Evie appeared from the elevator. Miles saw them and went white with shock. Tom pointed at Miles and his bags. This didn't look good, but that's what Shipman wanted. Miles left his bags in the hall, running into his apartment and closed the door. Tom & Evie moved quickly to the apartment door. It was quiet inside. Tom pounded on the door while telling Miles to open up. A crash was heard from inside. Tom stepped back and kicked the door open. The crash came from a flower pot sitting on the window ledge. The window was open and Miles could be seen out on the fire escape. " We've got a runner! " Tom said before telling Evie to head downstairs and try to cut him off. Miles looked in before staring down the fire escape. Tom entered the apartment and moved to the window. He had his weapon out and ordered Miles to stop. Miles continued down the fire escape. Tom couldn't fire because Miles was unarmed. He stepped out onto the fire escape and started down after Miles.
 
Evie talked through her thinking as Tom drove them from Shipman's office to Miles' place. It wasn't that she was particularly making an argument either way; instead it was simply thinking out loud, bouncing thoughts and ideas off of Tom. Miles' apartment was in Sherman Oaks. The building offered updated studio, one bedroom and two bedroom apartments with convenient access to the 101 freeway and Ventura Boulevard. It was a very nice complex and the man was obviously getting very well paid for what he was doing. They showed their IDs at the security desk and were given directions to the elevators.

As they stepped out and turned left to head down the corridor, time seemed to stop for a moment or two. All three people on the corridor stopped in their tracks. Tom and Evie looked at the man further down the corridor who had been heading in their direction. He similarly looked back at them. It was as if the same thoughts were going through all three heads... 'Is that....?' As soon as Miles dropped his bags, turned and started to run in the opposite direction, Tom and Evie had their questions confirmed. They both set off at a sprint, Evie a pace or three behind Tom, both of them coming to a stuttering half at the now closed apartment door. Without saying a word, Tom used the 'key' which he always carried with him and opened just about every door in the City. When he told Evie that Miles was running, she turned on her heels and ran back out the way she came. Sprinting down the corridor, she ran past the elevator and found the stairwell door about 20yards further down the corridor. She burst through the door and began running down the stairs conscious that she was now moving much slower than she had been but that her progress was still quicker than the elevator would have been. She burst out of the door in the hotel lobby a minute or so later and kept running across the marble floor and out the glass door onto the street. She turned right, and then right again into the alley way between the apartment building and its neighbour. As she reached the back of the building and turned, it opened up into a huge courtyard oasis in the middle of which was a twinkling blue pool surrounded by chairs, tables and umbrellas. She saw Tom on the far side of the pool and slowed. He was walking back towards her holding onto Miles' upper right arm. Miles was clearly cuffed and was looking pretty sorry for himself.
 
Miles was running like a scared rabbit. He was quick, but not experienced in getaways. Miles moved down the fire escape with Tom hot on his heals. He reached the final ladder and started down. Tom came down the final set of stairs while miles was half way the ladder. He stopped just for a moment. This was long enough for Tom to form a plan. Tom knew Miles would have a big edge once he reached the ground. Somehow, Tom needed to reach the ground at the same time. Tom looked to his right and just below the fire escape sat a table. Around this table sat four girls who took no notice of the scene playing out just above them. That all changed when Tom leaped from the final platform and landed on the table. There was a loud crash from the drink glasses which had been on the table when Tom came down. The girls all screamed out as one. Tom just smiled as Miles reached the ground. Miles stopped to look up, but no one was behind him. Tom, from a crouched position on the nearby table leaped into the air. Miles brought his head down just in time to see Tom coming straight at him. Tom connected with a tackle which would have made any defensive lineman in the NFL proud. The two men rolled for a moment while people around the pool looked on. Tom ended up sitting on top of Miles who was face down. " You've got some explaining to do Mr. Glass. " Tom said while slipping a cuff onto the right wrist of Miles. He slowly stood up, then reached down and pulled Miles to his feet. The onlookers watched in silence as Tom walked Miles from the back to the front of the courtyard. " You're getting a bit slow in your old age partner. " Tom joked with Evie as he passed by her. He gave her a wink while leading Miles out front to where their car was parked.

Once at the car, Tom spun Miles around and backed him up against the rear door. " You better have a damn good explanation for why you ran........Or the next place you'll be staying is a cell down town. " Tom said while keeping Miles against the car. Miles by now, knew he shouldn't have run. It was crazy to think he could get away from the police. Miles said he would tell Tom & Evie everything. He told them how Ron Shipman called him and said the police were coming to arrest him for the murder of Lauren Holden. Miles said Ron talked him into running. Ron had said the police would use the prier arrest record Miles had as enough to take him in. Miles said he knew running was stupid, but Ron sounded so logical with what he said. It sounded to Tom like Ron Shipman knew more about this murder case then he admitted too. Miles had been manipulated into running. Perhaps Shipman thought Tom & Evie would end up shooting Miles? Tom figured that would be a good enough reason for Shipman to have called Miles and talked him into running. Miles getting shoot & killed while escaping from the police would get rid of a nasty skeleton in Chris Reynolds closet. It would also put the murder investigation squarely on Miles.

Tom asked Miles why he argued with Lauren at the party? Miles sighed before saying the argument was over Chris Reynolds. Both Lauren & Miles were involved in affairs with Chris. Miles said he believed Lauren was just using Chris for her own gains. The two secret lovers didn't care for each other. Miles said he wanted Lauren out of Chris's life, but he didn't kill her. There was something in the way Miles spoke which told Tom he was speaking the truth. Tom then asked if Miles knew what the other arguments were about? Miles nodded his head to the question. He told how he was close enough to hear everything that was said. Miles told Tom & Evie how June Reynolds threatened Lauren. June was tried of Lauren sleeping with her husband. She wanted the cheap tramp gone for good. Lauren just laughed at the treats. She called June a dead fuck and said Chris wanted a real woman in bed and not some walking refrigerator. Miles said June told Lauren that she'd make her pay one way or another. Tom then asked about Britney Reynolds. Miles said that argument was pretty much the same as the one with June. Britney knew about Lauren sleeping with her father and she felt Lauren would end up destroying her father's career. Miles said Britney told Lauren that she would see her dead before any harm could come to her father's career.

Miles was beginning to shed some light onto this case. So far he put a lot of doubt on the stories told by June and her daughter. Tom then asked about Ron Shipman & Lauren. Miles said that took place just after Ron stepped in and broke Lauren & Britney up. He told how Ron hated Lauren being involved with Chris's campaign. She was always trying to get Chris to do things against Ron's wishes. Miles talked about the rumor of Lauren replacing Ron. While it was only a rumor, Miles said it bothered Ron. As the argument between Ron & Lauren heated up. Ron was heard to say that Lauren was nothing more then a slut. Who was trying to sleep her way into power. Miles said this plus the fact that Ron offered Lauren money if she'd go away pissed Lauren off. Lauren then made a threat about taking her affair with Chris Reynolds public. Miles admitted he couldn't be sure if she'd really have done that. He added that it drew dirty looks from Ron & Britney. Miles said that Britney had been standing with Rom during the argument. He told how Britney swore Lauren wouldn't live long enough to make good on that threat.

Tom removed the cuff from Miles. He told him not to leave town, they may have more questions later. Tom then said Miles could go. Once Miles went back into his apartment building, Tom leaned against the car. " I don't know about you.......But I think Mr. Shipman is playing us for fools. " Tom stashed his cuffs back into the holder on his belt. He then looked at Evie asking what she thought? It was possible that one, or more of the suspects which Tom & Evie interviewed were hip deep in this murder case. A missing piece of this puzzle would come once James & Kim got the bullet from the coroner's office.
 
Evie couldn't help but smile as Tom walked past her and questioned her speed. Truth was, as fit as she was, Tom was hardly unfit - despite the fact that he seemed to do no training whatsoever (it was one of the few things that she hated about Tom - in a playful way of course) and Tom's height was always going to give him an advantage in any sprint. She figured that over any decent distance she could take Tom out but in a straight sprint - probably not. But in this particular case, he had definitely gotten the easy run. Down one fire escape and then pretty much a straight line. She had had a few more obstacles to negotiate inside the building and then the building itself. But she said nothing. As Tom and Miles walked passed, she smiled, shook her head and then turned to follow. A few of the residents who were out around the pool were watching what was happening but she took no notice. It would be something for them to tell their friends and family about.

Tom led Miles to the rear door behind the driver and as Evie walked around to the passenger side, Tom had spun Miles around and backed him up against the door. Evie lifted her arms and rested them on the roof of the car, leaning forward a little. Watching Tom and listening to Miles' answers. Not that she realised it, but standing like that showed her shape off very well to anyone who happened to look over. The curve of her ass as her lower back was a little hollowed. The smooth line up from her hips, over her stomach and up to the underside of her tits. Then a new curve which was perhaps a little obscured by her open jacket. But Evie was oblivious.

She listened to Miles, assimilating the information and trying to structure it into something logical which fitted in to what they already knew. When Tom eventually uncuffed him and told him not to leave time, she watched him walk away not really that concerned at the fact that Tom wasn't going to take him in. She wasn't convinced any more than Tom appeared to be.


So... we have two lovers... one adulterous and one homosexual... either one could ruin the Councilman's career. But he does seem to care about that risk. We have a wife and a daughter who know about the affair with our victim. We have lovers knowing about each other. And we have a Campaign manager who knows about both relationships and who has to be thinking that its only a matter of time before the voting public find out about one or other of them. Four possibilities then."

She climbed into the car, still thinking out loud. "Miles killed Lauren our of jealousy. He public rowed with her just before she was killed. He admitted to the fact that he didn't like her. But, as far as I can see - based on that little exchange, he doesn't have the balls to kill anyone." Evie turned in her seat a little as Tom fired up the engine.

"Then we have the wife and the daughter. On my reading, tat's definitely a more likely scenario. Maybe they did it together. Get rid of the cheating husband/father. Britney looking after her mother maybe... or protecting her father... or both. I don't buy the looking after her dad's career. More likely looking after herself and her mother. Looking at that house, politics is a lucrative business. Then we have Mr. Shipman. The loyal agent. Worried about his own position as well as Ryan's chances of winning. Get rid of the lovers... but why pick the Lauren. I might be wrong but I would have thought that having a homosexual affair is more of a problem that an affair with a good looking, younger woman. Unless... unless there is something personal in it... like being scared of being replaced. Shipman has a clear motive here - as does the wife and daughter. And through that party we have Ron with the family. With June and Britney..."

Before Evie could say anything else, her cellphone rang. She pulled it out of her pocket. The screen was illuminated with a picture of James. She pushed the button, said hello and then listened. Then she looked at Tom and listened again before ending the call. She hesitated for a moment.

"Your ballistics evidence is in." Evie smiled and paused. "Our vic was killed with a .38... So... she was having an affair with the Councilman. She was seen arguing with Councilman's wife a few hours before she was killed. It seems the wife was very much aware of the affair. And the wife has access to .38 which has ben recently fired and which the wife lied about having been recently fired. I guess we're heading to the Courthouse for search warrant and lets hope that June Ryan hasn't realised how stupid it is keeping the murder weapon on display." Evie couldn't help thinking that maybe they were going to have their arrest by the end of the day.
 
Tom & Evie went to the courthouse for another visit with Judge Hardcastle. They told Milton about their case and their need for a search warrant. The judge was fascinated with the current MCU case. It was a classic case of sex & politics. Something that the press would have a field day on when it got out. Judge Hardcastle signed the search warrant before handing it to Evie. He spoke of how messy these cases can get. Down & dirty courtroom action could be expected. Tom thanked Judge Hardcastle and said there was a poker game coming. He invited Milton to sit in if he wanted. Judge Hardcastle liked the idea, but he needed to check his schedule before accepting. Milton said he'd call Tom and let him know. Jack was planning on having a poker game at Tom's boat. So far, Jack, Tom and Doctor Jennifer Lee would be playing. Jack wanted at least two more. He was sure that ether Steven, or James would play if they were asked. It was Tom's idea to invite Judge Hardcastle. The judge was known as a notoriously bad poker player, he however still enjoyed playing. After leaving the judge's chambers, Tom laughed wickedly. " It's like leading a lamb to slaughter. " Tom believed that Judge Hardcastle wouldn't pass up the chance at a poker game. He & Jack were known as the best poker players in the LAPD. They always teamed up for the annual poker game which featured players from other departments in the city and county. As a poker team, Tom & Jack were called "The Sharks." They were hard to beat and almost always won big for the LAPD. Tom continued to laugh as he walked down the hall. He & Evie returned to their car and headed for Bel Air.

Ron Shipman had many friends in the press corps around Los Angeles. He fully expected for Miles Glass to be shot and killed by the LAPD. One of Ron's friends in the newspaper business returned his call. Ron had asked the man to listen in on the police radio for any shootings in the area of Miles Glass's apartment. The reporter called back and told Rom no shootings for that area where called in. Ron then called Miles at his apartment. When Miles answered, Ron hung up. He wanted Miles out of the way, the LAPD let him down. Ron would need a new plan for taking care of Miles. Just then Britney walked into his office. She moved over to his desk and sat down the edge. Britney could see something was bothering him. She asked Ron what the trouble was? She figured it had something to do with the police. Ron said the police failed to take care of another problem they had. Britney was confused at what other problem they had. She only knew of Lauren. Ron then told Britney about her father & Miles Glass. He said that Miles needed taken care of, or Chris would be in danger of losing his job. Ron told Britney that Miles couldn't be trusted not to speak about the affair. Britney was sickened by this news. As bad as hearing her father was screwing around with another woman. Hearing that he was also screwing a man was worse.

Rom asked Britney what she did with the gun that killed Lauren. Britney, still disgusted by her father's actions just sighed and said it was back where she got it. Ron was confused as to what she meant. He then asked her where it was? Britney said it was back in her father's gun case. Ron turned white as a crisp, clean sheet. He couldn't believe his ears. Britney had taken a gun from her father's gun case and used it to kill Lauren. Ron told Britney that was a stupid move. Britney yelled at Ron not to be so nasty. She didn't know where else to get a gun from. Ron sighed while shaking his head. Britney was a smart enough girl, but had no street smarts. Ron told her they needed to get that damn gun. Britney had no idea that Tom had seen the weapon already and knew it had been fired. Neither her, nor Ron knew that Tom & Evie were on the way back to the Reynolds house. Ron & Britney left his office heading for her parents home. The couple reached the house first. Ron grabbed Britney by the hand and ran into the house. They did this just as Tom & Evie pulled up. Tom said it was odd too see Shipman & Britney together like that. Him almost dragging her into the house. Tom & Evie left their and entered the house. They didn't knock on the door since Shipman was acting so strangely. Tom & Evie walked to the study's doors and opened them. Their eyes found Shipman & Britney standing in front of the case with the gun in Ron's hand. " Drop that weapon!.....We have a warrant! " Tom's order made Ron & Britney turn their heads, They were shocked too see the police standing there. Ron looked at the gun for a moment. He then pointed it at Tom & Evie. " You two have caused me a lot of pain!........You couldn't just kill Miles Glass!.....Oh no!......That would be too damn easy! " Ron growled out. He had the drop on both Evie & Tom. Britney looked at Ron in total disbelief. Killing Lauren was one thing, but killing two police officers was just nuts. She however knew something that Rom didn't. The gun he was holding was unloaded. Ron squeezed the trigger and only heard the click. There was no gun shot, no loud crack. It just clicked. Britney shook her head while telling Ron she didn't leave the gun loaded. She said this loud enough for Tom & Evie too hear. Tom walked up and knocked the gun from Ron's hand. He spun Ron around and pushed him into the case. " You two are under arrest. " Evie searched Britney while Tom searched Ron. They then placed the two in cuffs.
 
After picking up the warrant, Evie started thinking about what she could do on the night of the poker game. She was no gambler - not with cards for sure. She had no poker face particularly when playing against her family. They all seemed to know exactly when she was bluffing and when she wasn't. So they could have their game and Evie would find somewhere else to be - otherwise she would just finish up fetching them beer and peanuts all night. If Steve didn't want to play maybe he could take her to his gym and they could have a training fight with the winner buying dinner. She'd give him a call and find out whether he wanted to play poker.

Tom put his foot down on the way to the Bel Air mansion. He didn't have the lights and sirens on but he weaved between the traffic making good progress downtown before getting out into the suburbs. As he pulled into the drive, both he and Evie recognised Shipman's car. Looks like the first family have got some company. Tom didn't knock; he simply turned the handle and walked in. Halfway through the entrance hall, the butler appeared and both detectives simply showed their badges and kept on walking straight to the room where Tom had seen the gun in the display case. Neither Shipman nor Britney seemed to be aware of their presence a few dozen paces behind them. Opening the door to the study everyone seemed to freeze for maybe a second or two but it seemed longer. It was Tom who spoke first and got the expected aggressive response from Shipman. When he raised the .38 and pointed it at them, Tom took a pace forward, hands up at maybe chest height. Open. But before he had said anything in an attempt to talk Ron out of what he was doing, there was the distinctive click followed by silence. Again time seemed to stand still. It was as if they all needed a second or two to process the fact that there had been no explosion, no muzzle flash, no shout of pain and falling body. When Britney explained to a clearly confused Shipman that it wasn't loaded, Tom moved quickly. Evie followed suit and within a few seconds both were cuffed and being led back out of the room and towards the waiting car.

As Evie moved out in the entrance hallway, June Ryan appeared. She became flustered very quickly demanding to know what was happening. Evie gave a brief explanation as she was walking, the councilman's wife on her heels as she went. Only when Britney was placed securely in the rear of the car did she turn and explain what had happened. What they had heard. And how as a result, her daughter was under arrest for murder and conspiracy to commit murder. Shipman was under arrest for conspiracy to commit murder. Evie suggested that she call her husband and the family lawyer - but not necessarily in that order. And then she climbed into the car. In truth she felt a little sorry for June Ryan. She had in some ways already lost her husband - to both another woman and another man. And now she was about to lose her daughter. As Tom drove out of the driveway, Evie wondered whether in a few days time, there would be a local TV broadcast... husband and wife next to each other on some fancy sofa in the drawing room... June Ryan standing by her man and the Councilman apologising to the people of California.
 
The Reynolds family lawyer didn't waste anytime in getting to the Central Station. He was there quickly after getting a judge to post bail on Britney. By the time Britney was released, the press had swamped the front entrance to the station. Britney may not have been street smart, but her father's lawyer was. Mr. Preston told the girl to act like the innocent victim of an evil mastermind. He would paint Ron Shipman as a cruel man who used and abused poor little Britney. Shipman's lawyer would argue that Britney was a willing part of the plot to kill Lauren Holden. Both lawyers would be going head to head while also taking on the district attorney office. When Britney finally left the station, she played the part of the innocent little girl for the press. Tom, Evie, James & Kim stood out front watching as Britney passed by. Unseen by the reporters, she flashed Tom & Evie a smile. It was one of those, I'm rich and you can't touch me smiles. " She could get away with murder. " Tom said to his team as they looked on. He said Preston was a master of dirty courtroom tricks. If anyone could get her off, he'd be the one. Tom said Shipman would go down for the murder. Even though he didn't pull the trigger. Preston was already smearing him in the press. Tom doubted that Britney would ever see the inside of a prison. He knew Chris Reynolds would spend his last dollar to keep his daughter free and on the streets. Just to add some drama. Britney pretended to faint once she reached the limo. The members of the press all gasped as one while Mr. Preston, June Reynolds and Chris Reynolds helped her into the car. Tom & his team returned to their squad room. On the way each of them commented on Britney's acting job. She could have won an academy award for the performance she just pulled off. There would surely be more seen during her trial.

The night of Jack's poker game came. Tom wanted Evie to stay, even though she didn't want to play. She didn't have too, they had enough people. Along with Jack & Tom, Doctor Jennifer Lee, Judge Hardcastle, Steve. The final member of the group ended up being Alyssa. James had plans and Kim decided to hang out with Evie. Tom didn't want his daughter playing, but Jack thought it was a great idea. Jack had lost to Alyssa at the Taylor family barbecue a while back. in fact, Alyssa had cleaned everyone out that day. Jack figured it was just beginners luck on her part. There was no way she could win again. Not with four of the best poker players in the city at the same table. The game started at around 6 pm. By the time Evie & Kim came back from what they did, the game was over. Alyssa was just leaving the boat counting a huge wad of cash. She was counting the money as Evie & Kim came walking down the dock. " You know......I learned a lot of things while living on the streets in Chicago. " Alyssa was smiling brightly as she spoke. " They're such easy marks. " Alyssa said while walking away giggling. Inside the boat, around the table sat four very befuddled people. They had been taken to the cleaners by girl who was not even a full year out of the police academy. Empty beer bottles and half smoked cigars littered the table. Steve was bitching up a storm about who's idea it was to invite the street shark into the game. Jack just sit there holding his head in his hands. He couldn't believe how easily Alyssa thrashed them. Even Jennifer didn't understand what happened. She had a huge stack of money at one point, then like magic, it was all gone. Alyssa had it all, along with everybody else's money. Tom sat there drinking down the last of his beer. He told Jack they shouldn't have invited Alyssa. Steve was still bitching because he had to write Alyssa a check to cover his IOU. The only one who didn't seem to mind losing was Judge Hardcastle. He found it funny that some of the best poker players in the city were beaten so badly.
 
When Evie had eventually gotten around to calling Steve about the training session, he told her that he had already agreed to play poker; their father had asked him days before on a promise of some easy money from Judge Hardcastle and the opportunity of some revenge against Alyssa's lucky night at the barbecue. Evie had just laughed not entirely sure that Tom's daughter was quite as lucky as they all seemed to think! They agreed to try and arrange the session at the gym for another time and so in the end Evie had stayed on the boat. While the game took place below deck, Evie and Kim sat topside drinking wine and eating cheese and biscuits and grapes and talking cases. At the end of their second bottle they took a walk around the dock and returned to the boat just as the game was breaking up.

They couldn't help but smile as Alyssa headed passed then commenting about easy marks. Evie suspected that what they were going to find below deck wasn't going to be pretty ... But she thought it would be funny. She was right. She put the coffee on while Steve continued to rant at his father about promises of revenge. Jennifer and Judge Hardcastle left before coffee but only after they thanked Tom for a good game and some good company. Jack and Steve had a coffee before getting a cab...still arguing. They gave Kim a ride back to her place. That then just left Tom and Evie who had still said nothing. She just wore a permanent grin. Tom started clearing up, waiting for her to say something. When nothing came he finally promoted it.

"Come on then. Say what you gotta say." Evie started laughing.

"What?" She held her hands up in a sign of surrender. "I got nothing." Tom stared at her and then carried on cleaning...

"Except... You got taken by a kid... By a 19 year old girl. The two greatest players on the department payroll... And you got taken."

"I thought you said you had nothing?"

"Yeah, well.. I thought of something...how much did she take off you?"

"Enough... But not as much as she took from your old man and your brother." Evie laughed again. It was the final straw for Tom. Suddenly he moved to where Evie was and grabbed hold of her. Evie tried to break free but was laughing too much. Eventually the play fight ended up with them both falling onto the couch in a heap. Tom trying to get Evie to apologise for taking the piss; Evie refusing. Once Tom had Evie pinned in just the right way to allow him to start spanking her, she quickly gave in but was still laughing until eventually what had started as a mock fight became a make out session.
 
A days had passed since the poker game. Steve was inconsolable over his losses. He just couldn't understand why Alyssa played so well. It was like the girl had been born with a deck of cards in her hand. Tom & Evie tried to explain that Alyssa spent a lot of time living on streets. She had to use her wits to survive. Doing that made Alyssa a great bluffer, which helped out during poker games. Steve believe it was a conspiracy again him. Evie told him to meet her at the gym the following morning. Steve could workout his frustration while helping Evie to train. When the next morning came, Steve & Evie were at the LAPD Gym. This gym was just off from where the locker rooms were on the first floor of the Central Station. James & Kim were busy catching up on paperwork that. With Evie busy at the gym, Tom had nothing pressing to do. Jack asked his old partner if he wanted to do an early lunch? Tom agreed and they left the station. Jack was hungry for a taco so they stopped at a Mexican restaurant not far from the station. The old partners talked about days gone by while eating. Tom enjoyed days like these. It was like the old times when he & Jack rode around together. During their lunch a man walked up to the table. He stood there staring at Tom. His eyes showed signs of hate. Tom finally asked if he could do something for this man. This made the man laugh. " You don't remember me!?.......You don't remember how you wrecked my life!? " Tom looked over at Jack. Both of them just shrugged their shoulders. Tom said he didn't remember how the man was. " My name is Jerry Sanders.......Does that remind you? " Tom thought for a moment before saying no. Had he thought longer, Tom would have remembered. Sanders however wasn't going to let Tom forget. " I spent 15 years in prison because of you!.......15 years of my life gone because you were playing super cop! " As Sander spoke, Tom finally remembered who this man was. Tom dropped his napkin on the table and slowly rose to his feet. Jack watched Tom move from the table and stand facing Sanders.

" 15 years?........That's all you served?.......You should still be in prison!......Scum like you doesn't deserve to be out on the streets! " With the raised voices, the other customer had stopped what they were doing to watch the scene playing out. " YEAH!.....I'M FREE!.....WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO DO ABOUT IT COP!!?? " Sander's yelled out as he leaned closer to Tom. In a quick second, Tom grabbed Sanders by the shirt and shoved the man against a nearby wall. Jack jumped from his seat to grab Tom's arm. " I'll tell you want I'm gonna do about it!.......I'll hound you ever damn day and when you step out of line!.......I'll be there to make sure you never see the light of day again! " Tom screamed out in Sander's face. Jack was pulling on Tom's arm while telling him to cool down. He finally pulled Tom away from Sanders. Jack stood between the two man. He told Sanders to get lost! Jack then told Tom to calm down, take it easy. The two detectives sat down after Jack asked what that was all about. Tom explained that he was a rookie cop, just weeks out of the academy. He said how Sanders was the prime suspect in a series of rapes. These rapes were of nuns which made it worse. Tom said how Sanders had been spotted after raping a young nun. He was on the run and Tom ended up spotting him. The case was on and ended once Tom made a leap from a car and tackled Sanders. During the trial, only two rapes could be pinned on Sanders. There were 8 rapes total. The detectives believed that Sanders was a copy cat rapist, but Tom felt differently. He believed Sanders did them all, it was just that they couldn't link him to each rape victim. No one would listen to Tom because he was just a rookie cop.

Jack remembered that case when Tom spoke of the details. He had been working the streets as a beat cop at the time. It would be a few more years before Tom & Jack hooked up as partners. First in uniform and then as detectives. Jack excused himself and went to the restroom. Tom sat there disgusted by the fact that Sanders was out. He noticed a piece of paper laying on the floor near where Tom had Sanders against the wall. Tom stood up, walked over and picked the paper up. He returned to the table and sat down again. Tom opened the paper to find a note for him written by Sanders. The note read. " We can end this today.......Meet me in 30 minutes in the back parking lot in the laundromat on W 6th st.....I'll be there waiting for you. " Tom's anger which had been on a slowly boil, finally burst. He dropped the paper on his plate and left the restaurant. Tom took his car and headed for the meeting with Sanders. Deep down, Tom knew he shouldn't be doing this. He should have waited for Jack, but Tom was thinking clearly at this point. The laundromat wasn't far from the restaurant, only a few blocks. By the time Jack returned from the restroom, Tom was long gone. He found the piece of paper and swore a blue streak while pulling out his cell phone. Jack called Evie & Steve at the gym. They were done and on the way to the locker rooms. Jack told Evie what happened at the restaurant and about the note. He wanted her & Steve to pick him up quickly. They needed to stop Tom before some terrible happened. Jack then called James & Kim. He wanted them on the road also.

Tom pulled into the rear parking area and found Sanders waiting as the note said. With Sanders grinning, Tom stepped from his car. He walked over to where Sanders stood. " Okay!.......I'm here!......Now what!? " Tom said while holding his arms out at both sides. Sanders smiled then leaped at Tom. The two men struggled as Tom was pushed back into his car. his head struck hard against the hood. Punches were exchanged before Sanders found himself down on the ground. Tom stood above Sanders looking down on the man. Suddenly, the lights went out and Tom laid on the ground. Tom was hit from behind by an unknown person. " Well.....It's about time......He's damn strong. " Sanders said as he looked up into the face of his twin. The man Tom had fought was Terry Sanders, the twin brother of Jerry Sanders. Jerry who was wearing gloves, knelt down and reached into Tom's coat. He pulled Tom's Desert Eagle from the shoulder holster while Terry asked what's next? Jerry just looked at his twin and said Tom's gonna kill you. He then fired Tom's gun twice, hitting Terry in the chest. Jerry slipped the gun into Tom's hand. He then moved to where his brother laid dieing on the ground. " Sorry brother......But to get my revenge.....I had to die. " Jerry laughed as he walked away free as a bird.

Tom slowly woke moments later. The real Jerry Sanders was gone, but his unknown twin laid dead just feet from where Tom now sat. Tom struggled to his feet. The sound of sirens was heard growing closer. Evie's car along with James's car pulled into the parking lot along with a couple of black n whites. Tom now stood with his gun in his hand looking down at Sanders. He couldn't believe what he was seeing. Sanders was dead and Tom was holding his gun. Tom couldn't remember what the hell happened?
 
When Evie walked into the gym, Steve was already there working with a hanging bag. There were a couple of other guys in there but they didn't particularly take much notice. Evie said Hi to Steve and then went and got changed. 10 minutes later she re-emerged in gym gear and a pair of fingerless training gloves. She loosened up and warmed up whilst a couple of detectives from the Vice Squad finished their sparring session in the ring and then Evie and Steve took their place. Truth was Steve was a pretty good teacher. He made Evie work but like Sam had said when she had first started doing this, he didn't quite have the killer instinct when it came to his kid sister. There was always a little something which he held back and, if she was honest, Evie was glad about that. Even holding back a little, Steve packed a pretty solid punch and kick. Sometimes he would bark out instructions on how she needed to move. Sometimes he would show her a particular move in slow motion with no force and then proceed to show her at full speed. They spent almost an hour working out, unaware of what was happening a few blocks away. When they finally called it quits, Evie knew that she was going to have a few new bruises but she wasn't going to let Steve know that. She showered and changed into jeans and a t-shirt. She came out of the gym with her hair still damp, her bag slung over her shoulder and her jacket hanging over the gym bag. They were heading into the MCU when they literally bumped into James on his way out. He was a man on a mission.

"I was just coming to get you. Something has happened with Tom. We need to get across to that taco place Dad always raves about." He moved passed Evie and Steve heading for the stairs.

"Why? James. JAMES... what's happened." James was at the top of the stairs and he turned to see Steve and Evie following on his heels. "I don't know... I don't understand... " He took a breath and looked at his siblings. "Tom shot someone." It took a second or two for the words to sink in. Evie stared back in shock and then she started moving. The three of them ran down the stairs and into the parking garage. James took his car; Steve drove him and Evie in the Mustang. It took them five minutes to reach the parking lot. Two black and whites were there moments before them together with a dark blue Crown Vic. As Evie climbed out of the passenger side, she saw Tom stood in the middle of the lot. There was a body lying on the floor about 15 feet away from him. Webb and Pierce were flanking Tom. From where she was she couldn't hear Webb reading Tom his rights. She saw him taking out his cuffs and moving behind Tom.

"What the...." she moved towards them as Pierce saw her and moved quickly to intercept. "You can't get involved in this Taylor... "

"Get out of my way." Evie said as she attempted to move past him. He moved to block her again. "I said... you can't! This isn't gonna be an MCU case. Robbery Homicide is taking this."

"You gotta be kidding me. I want to talk to him." Pierce predicted Evie's forward moved, raised his hands and pushed her back hard as she moved forward. Evie clenched a fist but before she had time to do anything, her Dad pushed between her and Pierce.

"Not the time Evie. Let it go." She looked at her Dad surprised by his intervention in support of Pierce. "We need to get Tom a lawyer and a PBA rep."

"Dad. We need to find out what the hell is..."

"Yes we do! But we're not going to do that here."
 
It didn't take long for the indecent which tom found himself in, had spread through the LAPD like a Southern California wild fire. Webb & Pierce wasted no time in reaching the scene of this crime. Tom was talking with a couple of uniformed police officer when the detectives arrived. Webb took control of the scene. He questioned Tom for a bit before reading him his rights and placing him under arrest. Once Tom was placed into the back of a black n white. Webb looked around and spotted the Taylor family gathering. He approached when Jack was talking with Evie. " You had better listen to your old man sweet cheeks......I'm runnin this show. " Webb wore a grin on his face while walking to where Evie & Jack stood. " In case you haven't heard.......The MCU is closed out of this case.....It's robbery/homicide.....Which means it's my case......And I've got the killer so you and your family can go home. " Webb looked around at each member of the Taylor family and at Kim. He never liked Tom Reed and he was no fan of the Taylor's. Webb did however enjoy fucking Evie. He didn't have to like her to enjoy banging the department whore. He told them that they were intruding on a crime scene. Just then, another black n white pulled up. Alyssa leaped from the car and made a mad dash towards the car which held her father.

Webb quickly noticed who it was and where she was going. He side stepped the Taylor's and grabbed Alyssa by her right arm. " Where the fuck do you think you're going!? " Webb gruffly said as he jerked Alyssa. She groaned out while her body was forced backwards. " Let me go Jerk! " Alyssa snapped out at Webb. " You got a lot of sass in you girl......To much for your own good! " Webb twisted Alyssa's arm until it was behind her. He then pulled her close wrapping his free arm around her neck. " Your daddy is going down for murder!.......And there isn't a God damn thing you or anyone else can do to save him! " Webb was quite gruff in the way he was treating Alyssa. Part of her wanted to knock the shit out of this asshole. But her training kept that from happening. Webb was after all a sergeant and Alyssa only a patrol officer.
 
What happened next happening quickly. Suddenly there were a lot of raised voices and lot of pushing and pulling. James, Kim and Jack went for Alyssa to break her out of Webb's hold. Steve and Evie both moved on Webb with exactly the same intent. Webb wouldn't have had the stomach to face any one of them in a straight fight. The prospect of all of them coming towards him made him let go of Alyssa fairly quickly. Kim and Jack focused on Alyssa who was rubbing at her shoulder having had it nearly twisted out of hits socket. Evie had stopped her onslaught but was shouting at Webb asking him what the fuck he thought he was doing and how Alyssa could have him up on charges for assault. Steve hadn't stopped; he had kept moving forwards grabbing hold of Webb's shirt and was pushing him back and away from the others. James followed Steve but his only intention was to stop Steve from doing something that at some time later he might regret. Whilst he was pretty sure that Alyssa wouldn't take things any further and Webb would - officially at least - get away with what he had just done. James were equally as sure that if Steve threw a punch - as satisfying as it might be - Webb would have Steve up on every charge going. In the end James didn't need to say anything. A hand on Steve's upper arm and a little bit of pressure was enough. Steve let Webb go with a final push. Webb half stepped, half stumbled back.

"Last I check, even Robbery Homicide carried out an investigation before closing the book. How about you do your fucking job Webb... you must have picked up something about good policing in the years since you barely made it through the academy." Steve might have let Webb go but he wasn't backing down.

"Very funny. Just 'coz I ain't winning medals and promotions every five minutes doesn't mean I don't know what Im doing. In fact most of the fucking promotions you Taylor's have got is based on the work of cops like me." Steve laughed - for effect rather than because he genuinely thought what Webb said was funny.

"You have to be kidding me..."

"Steve... Let it go."

"This piece of shit thinks..."

"STEVE... Its not going to help us get Tom out from under any quicker." James looked at his brother with an "is it?" stare. He felt Steve relax and in turn relaxed his own grip.

"I told you. This is my case. And its already closed. Go home." Everyone was glaring at Webb. He stared back but quickly started to become a little nervous. He was definitely outnumbered. At that moment, Pierce called his partner over and that gave him the excuse to walk away.
 
Webb would put a good show and make it seem like proper police work had been followed through. He knew that the ballistics report would show that Tom's weapon did the killing. Webb would have the people at the restaurant questioned. This would be enough to hang Tom for murder one. Jack told everyone that they needed to regroup on this. The MCU had been shut out from the case, but that didn't mean they couldn't work on it behind the scenes. It wouldn't be the first time Jack had worked a case after being told to stay out. Jack gathered everyone together and said they needed to meet back at the station. They all had work to do. Tom needed a lawyer and someone needed to call Rick Reed. Alyssa said she'd call her grandfather and tell him the news. With word of Tom's arrest hitting the tv, radio and newspapers. It wasn't long after the group arrived at the station that visitors and phone calls were coming in. Evie was contacted by Callen who said the NCIS team would help if Evie needed them. Perhaps 10 minutes later, Evie received a phone call from Steve McGarrett in Hawaii. He also said his 5-0 team could be in LA if Evie wanted them. The calls of support and offers to help continued. Lieutenant Mike Stone of the San Francisco Police Department said he and Inspector Steve Keller would come down if Evie wanted. Kim's uncle from the San Diego Police added his offer of help. Chief of Detectives Robert Ironside in San Fransisco added his voice to those who wanted to help Tom.

Beside the different police officers and department which wanted to help clear Tom's name. Another group which would surprise Evie came to Tom's aid. During the last afternoon, some visitors stopped at the MCU Squad room. The first was Cody, Nick & Murray of the Ripe Tide Detective Agency. They were followed by Frank Cannon, Joe Mannix, Barnaby Jones, Matt Houston and Jim Rockford. All private detectives who had crossed paths with Tom during his career. Each of them knew that Tom couldn't kill anyone in cold blood. These detectives offered their help if the MCU wanted someone on the outside to do something they couldn't do. Not everyone wanted to help Tom. There were some who wanted to keep Tom out of the picture as long as possible. Damien Kane was one of these. He was amused after hearing the news about Tom. " The white knight has his amour tarnished. " Kane laughed while looking out his office window. He then spoke about keeping Tom on ice for as long as they could. It didn't matter if Tom was guilty or not. Kane saw a chance to ether get rid of a future problem, or at least keep him out of action. Kane turned to Ron Reed. " We need to keep your cousin off the streets......I've got a big arms deal going down and we can't have the MCU finding out. " Kane went over to a small cart and poured himself a whiskey. " It's time we flex our muscles at the courthouse......Who do we own down there? " Kane asked before taking a drink of whiskey. He would make sure that Tom would get no bail. It didn't matter how much money it cost. Kane stood to make a $50 million on his weapons deal. Nothing could be allowed to interfere with this.
 
Evie watched as Webb went back to Pierce and both of them climbed into the Crown Vic. As Webb drove out of the lot past where Evie was standing, Pierce made no attempt to hide the long leering look her gave to her as they passed. He winked at her before turning to Webb and saying that they had to find a way of getting a little more action with 'that piece of ass'. Webb laughed and said with Tom out of the picture, she would be in need of some attention.

Evie heard her Dad calling her name and only then did she break her look from the rear of the Crown Vic as it left the lot and turned the corner at the end of the alley.

"I need to go see him. Get the Sergeant to let me talk to him."

'Evie, you're not going to get anywhere near him. The desk sergeant would lose his stripes if he let you in. Its not an MCU case." Evie opened her mouth to object to Jack's comments, even though she knew he was right. But Jack wasn't finished. 'Officially. Unofficially however... we need to do this right. And we need to do it quiet."

Thirty minutes later, the Taylors, Kim and Alyssa were all sat in the MCU. Without any words being spoken, Jack had assumed command and no-one was objecting. There was a natural order about things. Steve was used to it; Jack had effectively been his ranking officer for a large part of Steve's career. But neither James nor Evie had gave it a second thought. And of course Jack was the ranking officer - although this was hardly official as Jack had made clear.

Just as Jack had finished giving out assignments, Evie's phone started ringing. And it barely stopped. Steve joked that clearly Evie was on PR duty; fielding calls from friends rather than the press. Evie just glared at him as she picked up the phone again. Whilst she was touched by all the calls of support, she really wanted to be doing something to get Tom out of the cell he was in downstairs. And then just as the calls stopped, the delegation arrived. Evie couldn't help but laugh as James said that the volume of adultery must be at an all-time peak with all these private detectives standing around the MCU. In the end it was agreed that the guys from the RipTide would take the lead and ask for help if they needed it. They were close to hand, probably knew Tom better than any of the others and certainly knew more about Tom's life over the last 10 years. After some discussion it was agreed that they would dig up everything they could about the victim. No stone unturned.

It was getting late by the time they had sorted out who was doing what. Jack suggested that Evie go home with him until they got Tom out but she declined. She wanted to go through everything at the boat - computer and paperwork - and see if there was anything there about their victim and the original case. It was strange going home on her own after all this time. She couldn't help but laugh a little as she drove the mustang back to the harbour - it wasn't that often that she got to drive it these days. When she got home she opened a bottle of wine, ordered a Chinese take-out, and set herself down at Tom's computer to start a systematic search.
 
Alyssa called her grandfather Rick, only to find out that he left town on business. He was visiting Japan & South Korea. Rick was planning on building casinos on those countries. He was currently out of touch and would get Alyssa's message when he checked in. This was troubling news for Alyssa. She didn't like the fact that her grandfather was out of touch. Her father was locked up on murder charges, her grandfather was away on business. It all seemed like a bad sign. Alyssa finally texted Evie telling her the news about Rick. They couldn't count on him for help anytime soon. The only one who knew Rick would be away was Tom and never had the chance to tell Evie, or Alyssa. Tom was sitting in a cell at the Central Station. He had a big lump ob the back of his head. Despite what Webb & Pierce said and thought, Tom knew that lump didn't come when his head struck the car. He knew someone had hit him from behind. Someone else had been there before Sanders was killed. Tom had no one who would listen. That was until his attorney showed up. Jack had called in some favors and got the best criminal defense attorney in Los Angeles. The one man who never seemed to lose when he was on a case. His name, Perry Mason.

By now Mason had been semi retired, but he was still active as an attorney. Perry was an older ma, well into his late 60's. He still showed the same fire which made him well known as the best attorney in the country. Mason listened as Tom told him everything he knew. It all sounded to Mason like a set up. He couldn't be sure of course, but it was possible. Tom asked Perry if he could go see Evie. Mason agreed and before he left, Tom wrote out a quick note too Evie. The note told Evie that Tom was sorry this happened. He spoke of being innocent and said the someone hit him from behind. Tom finished the note by saying he knew Evie and their family & friends would get him out of this fix. Perry slipped the note into his briefcase and left. He arrived at King Harbor a short time later. Perry stepped onto the boat and looked around. He then leaned over and knocked on the door which led down below the deck. Evie appeared at the door and found the older man standing there. " Sergeant Taylor.......I'm Perry Mason.......I'll be representing Tom in court. " Perry introduced himself then told Evie Tom gave him a note to give to her. He reached into his briefcase and handed over the note. Perry then asked if Evie was having any luck in her research?
 
Evie heard someone on deck and then she heard the knock. She climbed up the stairs fully expecting to see another friend of Tom's. She knew it wasn't one of the Taylor's or Kim or Alyssa; they would have called out and headed down without waiting to be asked. For the same reason she guessed it wasn't the guys from the Rip Tide. Perry Mason was someone she didn't expect to see. She tripped over her words for a second or two before she finally managed to get her mouth and her brain working together and invite the man downstairs. She offered him a coffee but he declined and handed her the note. She read it and smiled.

"Tell him he doesn't have to be sorry. Tell him we all know he didn't do this and we'll get him out. And tell him every PI in the City and beyond is working on this." There was silence for a moment and then Evie put the note away. She took a breath and looked back at Mason.

"When is bail hearing? Do you think you can get him released." Mason shook his head. "I doubt it. Judge Hardcastle should recuse himself and no- one else will let a coo accused of murder out on bail." Evie knew it would be too much to hope. When Perry then asked her whether she had found anything, she also shook his head. "Not that I've found yet. And I'm not sure there will be anything. Most of this stuff is open cases. Historic cases which are still open. The other cases that Sanders didn't get convicted for are here but there is little in them that's knew. I think Tom was right though. There are too many similarities for them to be someone else. Victimology is the same. MO is the same. I think the cops and the DA's office at the time were just lazy." Mason had come across that before. If,you've got some one on a few counts then why keep going on the rest? Evie then interrupted his thinking.

"Mr Mason. You have to try and keep him out of general population. Wherever they send him, if he's put in general population he's as good as dead." Perry nodded. He knew the position and he promised Evie that he would do everything he could to make sure he was held in isolation from other prisoners.it was going to be jail rather than prison, but even so there would be plenty of detainees who would be looking for a shot at fame by taking out Tom Reed.

When Mason left, Evie went back to the files but knew that there was probably nothing there. Then she heard someone else upstairs. She listened for a few more seconds and then retrieved her Glock from the drawer. She nearly made it to the door but then she heard the call of her name. It was Steve and James. They both appeared below deck, with James carrying a six pack whilst Steve carried the large pizza box.

"Your favourite." Steve proffered when he saw the gun in hand. Evie grinned and then put the Glock away whilst James cleared a little space. For the rest of the night they went through some of it whilst munching pizza and drinking beer. Both men stayed on the boat claiming they'd drunk too much to drive but they really wanted to make sure Evie was okay. She knew what they were doing and she was touched.
 
Jerry Sanders sat in what had been his twin brother's motel room. He like the Taylor's was drinking beer and eating takeout food. Sanders watched the evening news and roared with laughter. His revenge was complete. He had setup Tom Reed for murder and it worked like a charm. The homicide detectives spoke about the good cop gone bad. They said how it was a shame that such a great career was now over because Tom was to much of a cowboy. The detectives saying this was of course, Webb & Pierce. They had become the new darlings of the police department. Every reporter wanted an interview with the city's top cops. There was even one reporter who suggested that Webb get promoted to Lieutenant and takeover command of the MCU. On camera, Webb acted all humble, off camera was a different story. He already planned on pushing for just such a promotion. Webb could see himself in command of the MCU and Evie. He make her his office whore. That's a role she was better suited for. Webb planned on kicking James out and replacing him with Pierce. He decided to keep Kim on board. Having another pussy around would only add to the fun. It was all premature at this point, but Webb didn't want to wait. He wanted his plans in place once his promotion came down.

Jerry Sanders switched off his tv. He then laid back on his bed. Sanders was a completely free man now. As far as anyone knew, he was Terry Sanders. There was one small detail about his brother that Jerry did know. This detail would come back to haunt Jerry in time. The next day came and rumors of Webb's promotion and his taking over the MCU ran through the Central Station. Nothing was confirmed by the Chief, who at this time had no plans for replacing Tom. Right now, James was in command of the MCU and it would stay that way. However, a change in command could also come from the Governor's office. The Governor had no comment about any change within the MCU. It was business as usual for now. While James was in command of the MCU. Jack was in charge of getting Tom freed from the murder charges. Every bit of information on the Sander's case and the case of the nun rapist had been brought to the MCU Squad room. Some was on the computers, but most was still on paper in boxes. Jack called in a favor from a friend downstairs in records. He got the information without a request form. It was done under the table as they say. Jack told everyone to read every report, every note, every scrap of paper inside the four large boxes. He believed that somewhere in there was a key over looked by detectives working the case back then. Jack found an interesting fact when he began reading. He told everyone that the rapes stopped after Sanders was in custody. Had Sanders been a copy cat, it would be unlikely that a deranged person who was torturing & raping nuns could have just stopped themselves. Not unless they had been busted for something else, or died for some reason. Jack however, didn't believe either of those happened. He was sure Jerry Sanders was indeed the nun rapist.
 
"If Webb takes over, then I'm going back to Vice" James said as he worked his way through one of the boxes. Kim said that she would probably look for the same transfer. Both of them looked over at Evie.

"Webb isn't taking over so there's nothing to discuss. We are gonna get Tom out and clear his name; and if Webb and Pierce aren't prepared to do the investigation then we'll have to." The others exchanged glances.

"Okay. So just hypothetically... if the MCU shut down... where would you go?" Evie thought for a moment. "Organized crime maybe. Or Narcotics." Both James and Steve spoke out at the same time; both surprised by Evie's choice to go in to a division headed up by her oldest brother.

"You couldn't take him as a C.O for more than 5 minutes."

"We have high standards... she might not get in."

"Well they let you stay and they promoted you so they can't have standards that are that high." Steve screwed up a piece of paper and threw it across the room at James. At least they had managed to get a slight smile out of Evie. As James picked up the ball of paper and tossed it in the waste paper basket next to his desk, Evie's phone rang. It was Nick Ryder from the Riptide. Evie commented every now and then and she scribbled some notes down. She looked puzzled for a moment, then not so; all the time writing and responding to what Nick said. The others waited expectantly. When Evie hung up the phone, the room was silent for a moment.

"Where's the autopsy report on our victim?"

Kim rooted through some files on her desk and pulled out a beige folder from the Coroner's Office. Evie got up and walked over to Kim's desk and at the same time asked her to read out the initial Coroner's statement about the state of the body... distinguishing marks... obvious visible injuries. Kim started reading. There wasn't much beyond the gunshot wound and an appendix scar. Evie looked at the notes she had written down.

"That was Nick. Him and Cody have been following up on our victim Mr. Sanders. He was healthy man. Took care of himself. Prided himself on it. Even in prison. And even in prison... never unwell. Didn't even need to see the prison medic."

"So where did the appendix scar come from?" Steve asked.
 
Alyssa remained silent while the Taylor's did their best to ease the tension in the room. She understood the reason for the good matured joking, but couldn't bring herself to join in. Alyssa still felt uneasy with her grandfather being out of touch. This was a terrible time for him to be on a trip. Alyssa knew her father was sitting in a cell downstairs. In the basement of the same building she was in and she couldn't do anything about it. Alyssa, like the others was going through a box. She pulled a file and began reading it. The report inside said Sanders had family who lived in Seattle, Washington. It listed a mother, father, sister and a brother. Alyssa stood up and walked over to Evie's deck. " Evie?......Check this out. " Alyssa said while placing the file down. She pointed out the members of Sanders family. Alyssa asked if perhaps someone should go to Seattle and make contact with the family? Perhaps they had some information not listed in the files, or papers in these boxes. Alyssa was sure if her idea was worth a try, or not. That's why she came to Evie. James, Steve & Kim sat nearby watching Evie while she looked over the file. Jack looked over waiting to hear what his daughter had to say. He'd leave the decision up too her.

Damien Kane had reached out from his power base and without anyone in the MCU knowing. He used some cash to make things worse for Tom. Someone had made the decision to have Tom moved from the city jail where he was safer, to the county jail. This move would put Tom in greater danger. Tom was picked up by sheriff's deputies and transferred by van to the Los Angeles County Jail. The LAPD officer had no power to stop this since all the paperwork was done properly. That didn't stop one officer from calling James with the news that Tom was taken away. This transfer came so quickly and without warning. It carried the smell of a payoff at a high level. The clock was ticking on this and the Taylor's were running out of time.
 
Evie looked at Alyssa, looked at the file she had and then looked around the room. Suddenly everyone seemed to be waiting for her - even her Dad.

"So... we have a body which seems to have acquired a scar at some point whilst he was in prison but no record of any medical procedures or even first aid. Nothing. Other than that pretty much everything points to a vigilante killing by LA's finest. A detective annoyed that a killer didn't get a longer sentence; annoyed that a killer got out of jail earlier than he should have. Goaded into a fight maybe. Fight got out of hand. And the cop is found standing over the body literally with the smoking gun."

"But we know for a fact that Tom didn't kill anyone." Kim added.

"We do. But because two lazy cops can't be bothered to do their job we have to try and do the impossible and prove a negative." Evie replied, the frustration evidence in her voice.

"Not necessarily. The best way to prove Tom didn't do it is to find who did." James said.

"Easier said than done." Evie took a breath, sighed and looked back at the file Alyssa had shown her. She made a decision. "Okay. Why don't you and Dad go up to Seattle. See what the family has to say. See if they know where the scar came from and find out whether they knew of any enemies who might have wanted Sanders dead." Jack didn't need another invitation. He picked up the phone and booked two return flights. They would be up in Seattle in a little under 3 hours. He got them flights out that evening with a return the following day. Jack and Alyssa left to get home and pack an overnight bag. The rest of them kept going through the files for another few hours, but there was nothing there other than Tom's arrest record which if you believed it gave the explanation of how it could have happened. He had been examined by a doctor when he had arrived at the station and report indicated the blow on the back of the head and the mild concussion. Tom's statement said Sanders had asked to meet in the lot. They'd gotten into a fight and Tom had finished up putting Sanders down then the next thing her remembered was waking up on the ground, Sanders' body a few feet from him and sirens going. Someone else had taken advantage of the fight, surprised Tom and taken out Sanders. Maybe it was a little thin. Maybe it was the kind of story that they had heard cons tell before. But they knew Tom. They just needed to know who wanted Sanders dead.

By mid afternoon, they all called it quits and went home. There was nothing else they could check and any attempt to get other police records or investigate beyond the papers would draw attention from Webb and Pierce and they wanted to avoid that. Evie went back to the boat, although finished up having dinner on the Riptide. Her Dad phoned her when they arrived in Seattle and said that they were seeing the family first thing. Surprising they had agreed to see him and Alyssa.

The following day would bring good news. News of a brother. News of a case of mistaken identity.
 
Jack went home, packed his bag, then headed for Alyssa's apartment. She had done the same and was waiting for Jack. Alyssa jumped into Jack's car and they left for LAX. After making it through the security check points. Jack & Alyssa waited for their boarding call. When that came, they left the terminal. They walked together down the boarding ramp and onto the plane. Jack & Alyssa found their seat and got ready for take off. Once the plane lifted off, it took about 3 hours to reach Seattle. Jack called Evie to say they were on the ground. Alyssa was busy getting them a hotel room for the night. Jack & Alyssa rented a car and headed for the hotel. They hung out in the room eating take out and trying to relax. It wasn't easy to relax with a close friend & family member facing murder charges. Jack & Alyssa chit chatted before sleep finally came. The next morning found them getting ready for their meeting with the Sanders family. Jack drove them to the Sanders family house. Upon arriving at the house, Jack identified themselves as LAPD police officers as they showed their badges. They were welcomed into the house and showed to the living room.

During the sit down with Jerry's parents, Jack & Alyssa asked their questions. They found out that Jerry was always a troubled child. His mother said he could be very mean, controlling and cruel at times. She said Jerry was very controlling of Terry. This sparked Jack's attention. Jack asked if he could meet Terry? Mrs. Sanders said, Terry had gone to Los Angeles to be with his brother. She expressed concern as to why he hadn't called them since a few days before meeting with Jerry. Mrs. Sanders got several pictures of Jerry & Terry of various ages. Jack looked at the pictures before passing them to Alyssa. Mrs. Sanders pointed out who was who. She said no one could tell them apart, but she could, She knew her boys inside and out. Alyssa held one picture of an older Jerry & Terry in her hand. They were late teens, mostly summer vacation. The brothers weren't just that, they were twins. Identical in every way, except one. Alyssa then asked Mrs. Sanders whether Terry had any scars which Jerry didn't have. Mrs. Sanders nodded her head while saying Terry had his appendix taken out while Jerry was in prison. She even had a picture of Terry proudly showing off this scar. Jack asked if they could take a few photographs with them? He promised to send them back once the investigation was over. Mrs. Sanders said they could use the pictures if they could help with anything. Jack smiled and thanked Mrs. Sanders for her help. He & Alyssa quickly left the house and headed for the airport. Alyssa called Evie and told her to have everyone meet at Jack's house. He didn't want to chance that Webb & Pierce would find out what Jack & Alyssa found in Seattle. Jack wanted Evie to have the trill of crushing them with the new evidence. The went straight to the airport, boarded their plane and head back to Los Angeles.
 
When Jack told them all the news it seemed to take a moment for it to sink in for everyone. And then the room was suddenly filled with laughs and claps. They all knew what it meant. Kim and Alyssa were all for going to Webb and pierce now. Ramming it down their throats and getting them to drop the charges but Evie said there was a better way. She pulled out her cell phone and called Perry Mason.

Over the next few hours, Evie and Jack met with Perry and laid out their evidence. Perry then went to the prosecutor to get him to drop the charges on the basis that they were charging Tom with killing a man who wasn't dead. And he had no motive to kill the man who was dead. There was a significant reasonable doubt and it wasn't in the prosecution's interest to pursue this. At the same time, Steve, James and Kim were looking for 'Terry Sanders'. 'Terry' wasn't making any attempt to hide -why did he need to. 'Terry' had never done anything wrong. And there was no prohibition on the MCU investigating Terry. It took them no time at all. They got the arrest warrant from Milton Hardcastle and picked jerry up at the hotel. Jack and Evie were back in the booking room when Steve led the man in. Compared to how it had been when Tom had been brought in, it was very quiet.

With Jerry booked for an assault on a police officer at this point, Evie headed upstairs for the robbery Homicide office. When she walked in Webb was sat at his desk leaning back in his chair with his feet up on the desk. Pierce was standing next to him.

"Well well. Detective Taylor. What brings you here? Not that it isn't always a very real pleasure to see you in the flesh." Evie smiled as she waked to the desk but said nothing. She looked from one to the other. Pierce leaned down and spoke quietly to Webb but loud enough for Evie to hear and still looking at Evie.

"With Reed being gone, cupcake needs a little attention just like that night we had together and so she's come to us." Still Evie said nothing. Webb took his feet off the desk and sat up, leaning forward a little. "Don't worry baby. When I'm in charge of the MCU and Pierce is there instead of your brother, we'll keep you satisfied. You and Gonzales. I bet the two of you look great together." Webb reached out a hand and placed it on Evie's thigh, caressing it a little. Squeezing it. Evie couldn't stop her mind drifting back to that night. Images flashed through her head but she fought to push them out. In truth of course they all knew how much she had enjoyed that long night.

Evie looked down at Webb's hand on her leg and then looked back.

"Whether I need some attention or not is not the reason I'm here. I thought you should know that the MCU just arrested Jerry Sanders." She waited a moment, saw the confusion on their faces as they tried to understand. Webb took his hand off her leg. "The ADA is in court right now getting the charges against Tom dropped and Perry Mason is making the arrangement for Tom to get out of County lock-up." Evie put her hands on the table and leaned down, bringing her face close to Webb's. "Your case has just been blown out of the water by a cop who is barely out of the academy." She spoke quietly and for a change neither man was looking at her curves or taking the opportunity to look down the front of her shirt. "And your chances of getting anywhere near the MCU are actually worse than they were before you arrested Tom. You might be lucky to get a job in traffic after this." She looked up at Pierce. "And as for me needing attention... You should check the temperature in hell before expecting me to come looking for it from you two"

The rest of the day was a rush. Jack decided that there needed to be a party. They agreed it should be at the boat. While Evie was phoning all the people who had called after Tom had first been arrested to let them know, James was getting set for the press conference where he was going to break the news. As soon as the court dropped the charges against Tom, the same charges were laid against Jerry and James was able to include this in the statement. Steve, Jack and Kim ordered beer and food for the boat and decked it out in welcome home banners. Everyone was invited. Perry Mason arrived at the MCU to pick Evie up and he drove her to the County jail to meet Tom on his release. They took fresh clothes with them, decent soap and clean towels so that Tom could get cleaned up before he left. With Perry there the reunion was a relatively muted one. A long hard hug, a long kiss, but anything else needed to wait. On the journey back Evie told Tom everything that had happened and warned him that there were going to be a few people at the boat when they got back. Drinks. Food. Give everyone the chance to see him back safe and then they'd have their own more private celebration afterwards.
 
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