Charlie-316

by Colin Conway

  “Do you think this is funny, Cody?”

  “No, sir. Not in the least. Two men versus one doesn’t sound fair, does it? I’d like to know the rest of the story. I can’t handle what I don’t know and there’s no reason getting upset until I do. These two men are in the hospital?”

  “Yeah. One of them has a broken leg and the other has a concussion and a broken nose.”

  “Who knew? Ty Garrett is Bruce Lee,” Lofton said with a smile.

  The mayor picked up the stapler to throw, looked at it, and put it back down on the desk.

  “Is that all that happened today?” Lofton asked.

  The mayor dropped into his chair. “No. They also found drugs at his house.”

  “Drugs?”

  “Am I stuttering?”

  “I don’t think so.”

  Amanda shook her head, appalled at what she was witnessing.

  The mayor ran his hand over his mussed hair. Lofton realized that the affectation was meant to take after the one Jack and Bobby Kennedy used to do. Problem was, it wasn’t even close. “You’re mouthy tonight, Cody. I don’t like it.”

  “I understand.”

  “What are we going to do about this?” His voice was more subdued now, almost petulant.

  Cody took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “Employees are a renewable resource.”

  “What’s that mean?”

  “It means maybe we should sacrifice Garrett now,” Lofton said, being careful to plant the seed, but not make the final call. “We tried to use him for a higher calling, but it never panned out. Maybe we should find a new purpose for him.”

  “Which is?”

  “Food for the wolves.”

  “How does that help us?”

  “I’ll figure that out. Now, we just have to show that he was a man out-of-control in his life before he ever got to the shooting.”

  “He’s still a city employee. How much will the lawsuit cost us?”

  Lofton shrugged. “That’s a worry for another day and didn’t you figure the city would have to pay something?”

  “I did, but then there’s the fact that Garrett’s a man of color. That makes this more delicate.”

  “It does,” Lofton admitted, “although, let’s not get caught up in that. I mean, the man shot a guy in the back. Even if it was good, it still looks bad. I tried to spin it as much as I could, but it’s clear Garrett wasn’t willing to work with our agenda.”

  “Didn’t you just give the Spokesman information to help change his story?”

  “Yes, but by the time it comes out it will be yesterday’s news. We’ll have moved on. Tomorrow’s news will be something different.”

  Sikes watched him briefly before asking. “Doesn’t this get to you?

  “What?”

  “This. Always looking for new angles.”

  “No. It’s what I do. It’s how you got that chair.”

  Sikes sat up straight and pounded his finger on the desk. “I got this because of me. Because of my message.”

  “Yes, sir.”

  The two men stared at each other. Lofton knew the time would arrive at some point in his career where he would stand toe-to-toe with Sikes. He figured it would be over some political benefactor, or maybe when he decided to run for political office, but never over an officer-involved shooting.

  Sikes leaned forward and rested his elbows on his desk. “We’re done, Cody. You can go.”

  Cody looked up at the clock. It was almost 5 p.m.

  “Are you working late tonight, sir? I can stay if you need me.”

  “No need. I asked Amanda and she volunteered.”

  Amanda looked up at Lofton and there was a moment of embarrassment in her eyes.

  The phone on the mayor’s desk buzzed. He pressed a button and said, “Yes?”

  “Sir, your wife is here to see you.”

  “What?”

  “Your wife,” the receptionist repeated. “She said she’s here to see you.”

  Sikes made a face at the phone. “Tell her to wait.”

  A couple seconds later the door to the mayor’s office opened and Emily Sikes walked in with three small children. She wore a perfectly coordinated ensemble of shorts, T-shirt, and Converse tennis shoes. She had on a Spokane Indians baseball hat. The kids were dressed just as impeccably. “Drew,” she said, “Why were you keeping us waiting at the receptionist’s desk?”

  She didn’t wait for the mayor to answer before stepping inside. The three children ran to their father and hugged him.

  Emily walked over to Lofton and kissed him on the check. “Cody, thank you for the tickets.”

  “Anytime,” Lofton said.

  When they broke their embrace, Emily faced Amanda. It took less than a second for her to give the new assistant a head to toe assessment. Lofton saw it coming, but the sheer coldness that the mayor’s wife exuded toward Amanda made him feel suddenly uncomfortable. She was a woman not to be crossed. Emily smiled and held out her hand.

  Amanda’s eyes flicked to Cody before resting back on Emily. She stood and walked over to the mayor’s wife, extending her hand. She winced from the firmness of the handshake.

  “I’m Emily Sikes, Drew’s wife. Cody’s told me all about you.”

  “Yes, ma’am,” Amanda said. “It’s nice to meet you.” Emily held on to Amanda slightly longer than polite company would dictate. When they released hands, Amanda quickly returned to her chair. She didn’t look up from her notebook.

  Emily then turned back to Mayor Sikes. “Grab your jacket, dear. You’re taking us to the ballpark. Cody got us box seats. I have a change of clothes for you in the car.”

  The mayor’s eyes slanted at Cody. “I can’t,” he said. “I’ve got work.”

  “Nonsense. Cody told me how much stress you’ve been under and this was a surprise as much for the kids as for you. Besides, you know what will happen if you don’t do what I want.” The playfulness in her voice failed to hide a slight hint of maliciousness.

  Mayor Andrew Sikes watched his wife for a moment before nodding his head. He grabbed his suit jacket and followed her out of his own office without another word.

  When the Sikes family was gone, Amanda looked to Lofton. “He’ll get you back for that.”

  “He’ll try.”

  Amanda’s eyes ran up and down Lofton’s frame. “Now that my night is free, would you like to have dinner?”

  Lofton smiled. “I don’t do seconds.”

  “Seconds?”

  “I’m not going where the mayor has been.”

  Amanda smiled. “He wants to be with me, but I’ll never be with him. He’s kind of gross, actually.”

  “Then why lead him on?”

  “I don’t lead him on,” Amanda said, watching Lofton intently.

  “Yeah, you do. You’re doing it to me now.”

  “Doing what?”

  “You watch me with those doe eyes like I’m the most important man in the world. You listen with your mouth slightly open, like my thoughts are leaving your breathless.”

  She closed her mouth and slanted her eyes.

  “That was the game you played with Baumgartner last night at the restaurant. Seeing you do it to someone else nearly sent the mayor over the edge. Maybe you don’t want to get into bed with him, but you’re definitely getting to him. I’m sure Baumgartner was feeling something, too. I’ve seen you pull the same stunt with some of the council members.”

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” she said.

  “We all play games, Amanda. I’m on to yours.”

  She searched his eyes before standing and leaving without a word.

  Tuesday

  Men are only clever at shifting blame from their own shoulders to those of others.

  —Livy (Titus Livius), Roman historian

  Chapter 25

  It was shortly after seven when he arrived at the department. Captain T
om Farrell was an early riser, preferring to get a morning bike ride along some of the back trails when the weather was warm. Unfortunately, he had to forego that activity this morning due to an early meeting scheduled with the chief.

  Farrell knew what had occurred with Ty Garrett, but he didn’t expect so much heat from city hall.

  He kept a watchful eye on the news, both local and national, up until he went to bed. It seemed as if the story was calming on the national level. There were bigger, more pressing things to worry about. Presidential squabbles with Congress had turned ugly, the stock market was wobbly, and pressure in the Middle East continued to build. A terrorist attack in a small European city Farrell couldn’t pronounce got the most attention last night, even more than the candlelight vigil in Philadelphia for the man shot by police the previous week. Spokane and Officer Ty Garrett seemed to get a reprieve.

  The local news was something different. They continued to poke at the story. Short pieces on several of the local news broadcasts were designed just to keep viewers engaged. Like a storyline in a soap opera, Farrell thought.

  Then there was the article in this morning’s Spokesman-Review. Normally, he read the paper in his office. However, this morning he scanned the front-page article while sitting in traffic and then finally pulled into a parking lot to read the entire thing.

  Reporter Kelly Davis wrote an article filled with rumor and undisclosed sources. It was filed as an opinion piece allowing her to fill it with all sorts of conjecture disguised as journalistic queries. It suggested that there was strife between city hall and the police department on how they were protecting Ty Garrett. The article didn’t fully state it, but it intimated that the PD was dangling Garrett out in front of the media as a distraction while they pursued another investigation. Is this the age-old magician’s trick of misdirection, she finished the article, getting the population to watch Garrett’s supposed downfall while SPD does what it wants? When they’re done, will they clear Garrett’s good name and expect us to all go about our business, none the wiser?

  Farrell thought about the article while he walked into the department. She also had some interesting information on Todd Trotter’s juvenile arrest record. That information wasn’t released to the press. Legally, it couldn’t be, so how did she come across it?

  The only good part about reading the hard copy of the article instead of the online version was that he didn’t have to see any of former police sergeant Sam Gallico’s snide observations in the comments section. Gallico was pretty worthless on the job, so Farrell wasn’t surprised that trend continued after he retired. How that guy had any credibility was beyond him.

  The chief had scheduled the meeting at 7:15 a.m. in the briefing room. Baumgartner was notorious for quarter hour start times to meetings and Farrell had grown to accept it over the years. He walked in and the chief was sitting in one of the big, soft leather chairs watching the television hanging on the wall.

  “Morning, boss,” Farrell said as he entered the room.

  Baumgartner lifted his chin toward the television. Farrell turned his attention to it as he sat down. The banner on the bottom of the screen read Six Seconds of Brutality.

  The commentator, Carolyn Saunders, was an attractive woman with long brown hair. She stared at the camera and said, “For our viewers seeing this for the first time, please be prepared. It is extremely violent. This is amateur video taken yesterday of Spokane Police Officer Tyler Garrett assaulting two men.”

  The screen changed to footage that appeared to be from a cell phone, but the quality was very clear. Someone had taken it from their front porch as a lawn was seen in the foreground.

  Garrett wore red running shorts and a gray tank-top. Two white men stood opposite Garrett. The big one wore a British flag shirt with its arms cut off while the shorter man wore a camouflaged shirt and carried a club.

  The video started just as Garrett stepped between the two men and punched the shorter man twice. He then kicked backwards into the big man’s groin. Garrett grabbed the shorter man’s head and brought his knee up to it with such force that Farrell cringed. As the small man crumpled to the ground, Garrett stepped to the side as the big man stood there, his hands still cupping his groin. Garrett side-kicked him in the knee, folding it at an unnatural angle. When the big man hit the ground, Garrett leapt on his chest, and punched him twice in the face.

  When he stood, he leaned over the big man and screamed partially censored profanities down at him.

  Despite the bleeps, Farrell knew exactly what he had said.

  CNN switched back to the reporter who said, “I’m now joined by former Los Angeles Detective Jason Eckhart. Jason, what can you tell us about what you’ve seen here?”

  Eckhart, a well-dressed white man in his early fifties, smiled and said, “First, Carolyn, we don’t know the story leading up this confrontation. Was this a provoked response or an unprovoked action?”

  Saunders said, “But, Jason, we now know that Garrett was arrested yesterday afternoon for both this assault and possession of drugs. Doesn’t that lead you to believe this was an unprovoked action?”

  Eckhart’s smile didn’t fade. “No, Carolyn. It doesn’t. His response still might have been provoked and that really does change how certain elements of this should be viewed.”

  “By what you’ve seen, do you think he responded appropriately?”

  “That’s a different question. It appears to me that he may have responded with too much force. It’s clear by his tactics that Officer Garrett was well trained. He dispatched those two men very quickly, but his level of aggression was off the charts. I believe he could have easily walked away without the final kick to the leg and he definitely didn’t need to jump on the man to punch him twice more after he was incapacitated. At that point, his level of response was no longer warranted.”

  The video of the assault came back on the screen in slow motion with the banner and warning. Saunders and Eckhardt continued to talk, but Baumgartner reached for the remote and switched it off.

  “What do you think, Tom?”

  “That looks horrible.”

  “As the guy said, it doesn’t tell the whole story.”

  “It tells enough. He coldly kicked that big man in the leg and then jumped on him. None of that is acceptable.”

  “He went too far,” Baumgartner said, “but what took him there? What happened right before?”

  “I don’t know. Hopefully Talbott and Pomeroy can find out.”

  Baumgartner rubbed his chin, thinking. “Do you remember Rodney King?”

  “How could I forget? I was in college at the time.”

  “What did he do to get that beating?”

  “Wasn’t it a traffic stop? He didn’t follow commands or something?” Farrell said, embarrassed that he didn’t fully know the answer.

  “King was driving intoxicated,” Baumgartner explained. “He failed to stop and then led the officers on a high-speed pursuit. When he finally pulled over he didn’t obey commands. He threw off several officers who tried to control him, and a sergeant even Tasered him, but it didn’t work. Finally, he charged one officer who struck him with his baton. That’s when things went too far and really looked bad.”

  “It was bad,” Farrell remembered. “No one deserved the beating I saw on TV.”

  “You’re right. My point is this: the press had the entire video and could have shown the full story of the conflict, not just the end. However, they didn’t, because it wasn’t good for drama, which isn’t good for ratings. The complete video came out in court later, but by then, the damage was done. No one remembers the whole truth, they just remember what they saw on TV.”

  Farrell thumbed toward the blank TV screen. “Do you think there is more to Garrett’s video?”

  The chief shrugged. “If there is, we’ll find out soon enough. Task your guys with getting a copy of the full video.”

  Farrell nodded.

  “Can you
imagine how bad this would be if Garrett picked up that club and hit one of those guys?” Baumgartner said, shaking his head.

  “How do you think city hall is going to respond?”

  Baumgartner smiled, wryly. “Worse than yesterday. Sikes is already distancing himself from me.”

  “They’re going to blame you for Garrett.” Farrell didn’t say it, but he wondered if the mayor would ask for the chief’s resignation. He didn’t like the idea, as Baumgartner had been a strong chief. Besides that, Farrell didn’t see anyone in the line of succession who could do a better job. He definitely didn’t want the mayor going outside the department for a new chief.

  The chief pointed at the newspaper. “You read the article?”

  “Yes.”

  “Their plan is in there. They’re mapping it out for us.”

  “Do you think the mayor is behind this?”

  Baumgartner shook his head. “Not anymore. It’s that sneaky fuck, Lofton.”

  “Huh.”

  “What else did you see in that article?”

  “A leak,” Farrell said.

  “That’s right. We’ve seen this problem even before the Garrett situation. Find it and plug it.”

  “What are we going to do about Garrett?”

  “Has county interviewed him on the shooting yet?”

  “No,” Winter said. “Still on his seventy-two.”

  “This is has gotten out of hand really fast. Got any suggestions?”

  Farrell nodded. “The way I see it, there’s two choices: we either stand with our guy or we take a step back until the dust settles.”

  “I never thought you to be a man of political expediency, Tom.”

  “I hate the idea of political motivations affecting the career of any officer, but this is different. Garrett might not have gotten himself into this mess intentionally, but he sure as hell is making it worse.”

  “You think the fight was his fault?”

  “I don’t know, but he went too far. We can agree on that.”