Carter's Cases

by Tom Heaven

  Before the Dr. entered the exam room, Dan asked the nurse, “Will he do an ultrasound today?”

  “No, that won’t be until your wife is four or five months along. Why, are you anxious to find out if you are going to be playing catch with your son, or putting pink ribbons in your daughter’s hair?”

  “No, I will enjoy either one. I just wanted to know that the baby is alright.”

  Annika said, it’s okay honey, Dr. Anderson told me that this exam is for that very reason. He will be able to tell by examining me, and some blood tests that he has ordered.

  He will let us both know if there is any problem.

  When the exam was finished, and Annika and Dan were sitting with him in his office, Dr. Anderson said, “Well folks, everything looks good. If there is any abnormality in the blood test results, I will call you by tomorrow afternoon.

  Do you have any questions for me?”

  “Dan said, “Dr., do you have any information about how the parent’s occupations might affect children?”

  “No, but I am the wrong person to ask about that. You might want to consult with a pediatrician. As far as I know, as a physician and father myself, if a child receives a healthy balance of love and value modeling from his or her parents, it doesn’t matter what their job is.”

  After they were back at home, Annika said, “Honey I think you are worrying too much about our child’s risk of losing you. I can see it has you preoccupied and I don’t want that worry to distract you at work. That would make any risk greater. Please let that go, at least until the baby is born.”

  “Your right babe. Maybe you could give me one of your ‘suggestion massages’ to night to help me forget that concern for now.”

  “You got it honey.”

  Chapter 74

  It was lunch time on Monday. Jerry and Bonnie were sitting at a table at Poki’s, waiting for their Reuben sandwiches.

  Jerry said, “That was some dinner party at Dan’s.”

  “Yeah, lots of revelations. So, what do you think of my girlfriend?”

  “I gotta’ tell you Bonnie, if you hadn’t started dating her I might have. She is one hot lady.”

  “Thanks, but after losing her husband, she is not ready for another man in her life. I am not kidding myself, I know that she and I are just temporary and that when she is ready she will go back to men for a ‘true love’ relationship.”

  “I won’t hold my breath. How was her husband killed, by the way?”

  “She says he was trying to help a convenience store owner who was being robbed by an armed thief. Just as he pulled his gun to confront the robber, an off-duty officer who happened to be in the store shot him by mistake.”

  “Was her husband a cop too?”

  “No, he was a Navy Seal.”

  “Wow, talk about coincidence. Dan was a seal too. I wonder if he knew her old man?”

  “I doubt it. There was too much time between their service terms. Say, how about those announcements Dan made at the dinner.”

  “I know! It’s hard enough to imagine him as a married man, and now he’s gonna’ be a father as well!”

  “Do you know if they’ve set a date yet?”

  “Yeah, they reckon Benji’s restaurant will be in escrow for about 30 days. When that closes they’ll do some remodeling. After that is finished, they’ll be able to hold the wedding reception there. So, that means they should be getting hitched in about six weeks.”

  “Well, I hope Kathy and I are still together then. She would make a great plus one.”

  When they got up to leave, neither Bonnie nor Jerry noticed the short, grey haired man, with the misshapen nose, sitting at the counter behind them. Any witness would have said that the man had the strangest smile on his face. But they couldn’t know what he was thinking…

  “Those idiots deserve a ‘Thank You’ card for helping me plan my next move. I swear, people are always making my job easier by being such idiots. I can’t decide if it’s because everyone else is so stupid or because I’ve been blessed with a superior intelligence. Probably both.”

  Chapter 75

  When Bonnie got home after work, the first thing she did was call Kathy.

  “Hello.”

  Hey gorgeous, you feel like coming over this evening?”

  “You bet. What time?”

  “Whenever you’re ready. I was thinking we could order in some Chinese and watch a couple of soppy movies on tv.”

  “Sounds good to me. I’ll be right over.”

  ***

  When Bonnie opened the door, she saw that Kathy had a carry-all bag with her.

  “What’s in the bag, babe?”

  “Oh just a few toys I thought we might want to play with this evening.”

  “That sounds like fun. Maybe we can have a slumber party after dinner.”

  When they had eaten, they went to the bedroom where both women got undressed and Kathy had Bonnie lie down as she put the bag on the floor next to the bed. The first thing she took out was a very large vibrator.

  “Oh my god! I have never seen one that big. Where did you find it?”

  “Actually, I got it on-line at ‘Dildos-R-Us.com.”

  “You’ve gotta’ be kidding.”

  Next, Kathy took out some satin covered leather straps.

  “Wait a minute,” said Bonnie. “I’m not into much S&M”

  “No, don’t worry, it’s just a little bondage. I’m going to just tie your hands and feet to the bedposts with these. You’d be surprised how much sexier it feels when you have the illusion that you are having sex against your will.”

  “I’m not so sure about that. I don’t like to relinquish that much control.”

  “That’s exactly the point. Giving that much control over to your lover makes the sex a lot more intimate and the sensations much more intense. Please, don’t you know me well enough to trust me?”

  “Yeah, I guess so, just not too tight, okay?”

  “Don’t worry, I just want to restrain you a little. I don’t want to hurt you.”

  As Kathy applied the straps and tied her hands and feet to the bedposts, Bonnie noticed that each strap had some sort of clamp on it. Once all four restraints were applied, Kathy quickly went around the bed, tightening each clamp so the thick leather bonds could not be loosened by pulling on the wrist bindings.

  “Wait, Kathy they are too tight! Take them off. They are restricting my circulation.”

  Kathy said, “Not to worry cop, you’re not going to have any circulation in just a while. You are the bitch that shot my husband in that convenience store. I knew the murderer was from Eastern Division, so I started taking them out one at a time, but then I found out that it was you I should be after. The cop that told me said, “She’s the dyke that transferred to Central. It was then I decided to kill you ‘up close and personal’. Pretending to be ‘bi’ was a perfect cover.”

  “Kathy, that was not a case of accidentally shooting an innocent by-stander. Your husband was about to shoot that store owner. I gave him three warnings and told him to put the gun down. When he suddenly turned and aimed it at me, I had to shoot. It’s all on video from the store’s security camera. Both IAD and the shooting board said it was a ‘clean shoot.’”

  “That’s bullshit. Money may have been tight since my husband got out of the Navy, but he would never stoop to armed robbery. You are lying just to stall. Well, stalling is over.”

  With that, Kathy slipped a ball gag into Bonnie’s mouth and said, “You killed my husband and you are about to die for it.

  But before that time comes, I think I will have a little fun and let you have one last orgasm. Isn’t that a coincidence that the French call an orgasm ‘La petite mort?’ As soon as you finish your last one, you will experience ‘La grand mort.’”

  Kathy then began stroking and
kissing Bonnie’s breasts. Beads of sweat began to form on Bonnie’s forehead as Kathy’s tongue caressed her nipples, then slowly moved downward until Bonnie gasped loudly around her gag…

  Chapter 76

  On their way home from work that day, Frank said, “Aren’t you concerned that either the cop killer or The Assassin might interrupt your wedding?”

  “Yes, I’m concerned, but I am not going to let either of those nut jobs interfere with my life. We will be having the service at my home and the place will be surrounded by police. The reception will be at Benji’s restaurant, and it too, will be guarded inside and out by armed guards. We will take every necessary precaution, but our lives will go on in spite of the threats.

  ***

  After she gave Dan his welcome home hug and kiss, Annika said, “Dan, this is Sophia, our wedding planner. Sophia, this is the wonderful man I have been telling you about.”

  “It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Mr. Carter. I have indeed heard a great deal about you today.”

  “Please, call me Dan. Thank you very much for agreeing to help us put our wedding together. Annika deserves the very best, and I’ve heard you fit that description. Please go on with whatever you were doing when I came in. If you need my input on anything, I’ll be in my den.”

  Since Dan wanted the entire central division to be able to attend the reception, he was going to pay off-duty police from the other divisions to provide security for both events, while central division duties would be covered by one on-duty officer from each of the other eight divisions.

  He spent the next hour compiling and printing the schedules, while Annika worked with the wedding planner.

  Just as the last schedule was coming off the printer, the phone rang.

  “Carter here.”

  “Hey Dan, it’s Jerry.”

  “What’s up Jer?”

  “I was just calling to see if I could give you a hand with anything. I know you have your hands full with everything going on right now. I’m available to do anything you need, run errands, help with invitations, anything at all.”

  “Thanks buddy, I appreciate that, but I think we have everything under control. I’ve hired a wedding planner and they take care of all those things. How are things going with you and your new partner?”

  “Pretty good. We’re at the stage where we can discuss personal stuff. She mentioned her girlfriend at lunch today. Hey, you know her deceased husband was a Navy Seal like you were.”

  “Oh yeah? Did she happen to tell Bonnie how her husband died?”

  “Yes. It seems he interrupted a robbery in progress and got shot in the process.”

  “Did they get the perp who shot him?”

  “No, Kathy says it wasn’t the perp, her husband was killed by mistake by an off-duty officer in the store.”

  “No, I believe Bonnie when she said that it was the perp that she…Jerry! Call for backup and meet me at Bonnie’s now! Bring your weapon, but if you get there first, do not enter until I arrive. Her girlfriend is the cop killer!”

  Chapter 77

  Dan met Jerry in front of Bonnie’s house. Without announcing themselves, Dan tried the handle. Unable to open it, he leaned back and kicked the door, breaking it off the hinges. After clearing all the rooms in the front, the two of them ran toward the back bedroom of the house. Without knocking, they kicked in the door, and found both women naked on the bed and Kathy poised to cut her captive’s throat.

  “You better stay where you are unless you want to get covered with blood when I slice this lovely neck.”

  The cop killer was kneeling on the far side of the bed facing the rescuers.

  “Alright, just take it easy Kathy,” said Dan. “You know you’re dead if you even touch her with that knife.”

  “That’s okay, Dan. Life is not worth living without my husband anyway.”

  When he saw Kathy’s biceps tighten in preparation for plunging the knife, Dan fired. The .38 slug tore through the wrist holding the knife and into Kathy’s knee. He then leapt across the bed knocking her to the floor. She was still screaming obscenities as he stood up and pulled his cuffs out. The bullet had severed her radial artery and it was pumping blood vigorously from her shattered wrist. He was tempted to let her bleed to death but decided to avoid the extra paper work. He took off his belt and used it as a tourniquet while Jerry was freeing Bonnie.

  As backup arrived, Jerry kicked the bedroom door closed and yelled, “Don’t come in here yet. Call for an ambulance and we’ll be right out.” He steadied Bonnie while she got dressed. Dan just made Kathy lie on the bed and threw a blanket over her.

  By the time the chief arrived, Kathy was on her way to the hospital and all three detectives had regained their composure enough to provide a comprehensive verbal report.

  As they were leaving, Bonnie smiled and told Dan, “Thank you.”

  She pulled Jerry aside and said, “Thank you for protecting my privacy ‘Jer,’ if I weren’t gay, I would be in your bed tonight.” She then leaned in and gave him a real kiss on the mouth.

  Chapter 78

  During their pillow talk session that night, Annika was allowing Dan to de-stress from the day’s events. She had noted that encouraging him to de-brief with her each night resulted in his being able to nod off quicker and he would awaken feeling much more relaxed. Today’s events had been a great deal more demanding than usual and she noted the stress creases in his forehead while they lay in bed.

  As she gently massaged the tightness in his neck muscles she said, “That must have been a real frightening experience for you today realizing how much danger Bonnie was in.”

  “Yeah, all the way over to her house, I was thinking about how Karen was killed by The Assassin. I couldn’t stand to have another member of my team killed by a serial killer I hadn’t been able to catch in time. However, it all ended well, so today is not bothering me much now.”

  “Your tight muscles are telling me that you are still anxious about something though. Are you having some pre-marital jitters?”

  “No, I am not concerned about the wedding itself, but I have been thinking a lot lately about what our life together will be like. I love you more than anything in this world, but I know that once we are settled and ready to have children, I am going to have to give up my job. I cannot put myself at risk and ask our children to possibly grow up without me as a father. I love my job a great deal and it just never occurred to me in the past that I might have to give it up some day.”

  “Oh Dan, I know how much your career means to you. I would never ask you to give that up.”

  “I know you wouldn’t, but I have to think about our baby and any future children we might have.”

  “But Dan, men get killed in their jobs all the time. Many of them at high risk occupations like fire fighters, construction workers or coal miners. If they didn’t risk their lives, think of what that would mean for our country. Your record of closing homicide cases is proof that San Diego needs you to help prevent innocent people from being killed. Our children will be much better off if you are happy and I don’t think you will be completely happy if you give up a job that you love so much.”

  “Okay hon, I will continue to think about it and we can talk some more after you have said ‘I do!”

  Annika knew that his deferring any additional talk on the subject meant he had something else in mind. She was proven right as he rolled over on top of her and began kissing her neck. The hardness she felt as she pushed her hand down between their stomachs meant she was right.

  Chapter 79

  The chatter the next morning at the pre-brief coffee convention consisted of multiple topics. There were “glad you are still alive” hugs for Bonnie, much speculation on whom The Assassin would target next, and suggestions for Dan’s bachelor party.

  The guys quietly slipped out of the coffee room, one at a
time and went down the hall so Dan could not hear them. Their conversation was mainly focused on how the stripper should appear. Frank thought she should pop up from a huge cake but, was quickly overruled. The word, mundane, was used during the rejection of this idea. Unfortunately, a final decision had not been made when it was time start the morning brief.

  Chief Gates opened with a “thank you” to Dan and Jerry for rescuing Bonnie.

  “This was a great example of looking out for one another. It demonstrates the value of thinking of your brothers in blue as true ‘family’ and having one another’s backs. We must keep in mind that there is still another killer out there who has threatened us all, so we need to continue our vigilance, stay armed and travel in pairs, on and off duty.

  Another thank you to Dan for that great party. His announcements gave us all some things to be happy about. His upcoming wedding, I am sure, will not only be the beginning of a great life-long relationship with Annika, but will also be a source of free-flowing booze.”

  When the laughter subsided, the chief continued.

  “For security, the wedding will be held at Dan’s house and will be covered by ten off duty uniformed officers. They will position six lookouts outside, around the perimeter of the house and four more will be at windows on the second floor covering all four sides. There will be a briefing with more info on the details, and specific assignments later. Security for the reception will be provided by off duty personnel from the other divisions to allow all our people to attend.

  Chapter 80

  After showering on the evening of his bachelor party, Dan walked in to the bedroom still naked, drying his hair with a towel. When he let the towel slip down around his shoulders, he looked up to see Annika, undressed as he was, but without the towel.

  He said, “No, no, honey. You sure look tempting, but I have to get ready for my party. If you wear that outfit when I get home, I will make it worth your while.”