CHAPTER 34: 57th PRECINCT BLUES

VIC:

Deb practically begged us to come with her, afraid to see what she would find here. I’ll be honest and say that part of me wanted to leave her to face the evidence of Michael’s perfidy by herself. But the fact that this also involves me to a degree, changed my mind quickly. I remember the day I’d given Deb my will to hold in case anything happened to me. I had contracted pneumonia from God knows where, and it was the first time we really weren’t sure that I would pull through. I told her to contact my former lover and tell him that she needed the will. He tried to pull rank, demanding to see me since I’d pulled my POA out of his name. I nearly died laughing when she told me she hit him in the balls and threatened to call the police, causing him to hurry and hand over my will. My guess is that he was holding something more substantial than his dick, which also would have made him somebody’s bitch in jail.

“May I help you all? You look a little lost,” a kindly looking officer asks us.

“We’re looking for Detective Horvath. He and I spoke earlier on the phone about the box my son removed from my house.”

He smiles at Deb’s bravado, but like Rodney and I, I know he can tell she’s nervous. “Well lucky for me you’ve found him, Mrs. Novotny.”

“What? You?”

“Indeed, it’s me, and a pleasure to meet you.” He extended his hand, which Debbie left hanging. I don’t know if she’s gone catatonic or if she’s practicing for Halloween. I shake my head and extend my own hand.

“It’s nice to meet you, Detective. You’ll have to forgive my sister. Apparently a miracle has occurred.”

“Miracle?”

“Yes. Any day Deb goes both quiet and still should be marked on the calendar as a High Holy Day. It means that God can finally get a word in edgewise.”

He chuckles along with Rodney and I, while Deb’s cheeks burn in embarrassment. “Vic!”

“Don’t Vic me, Deb. The truth is the truth. Now come on and stop acting like you’re posing in Macy’s window. I’m sure the Detective here has some questions he needs to ask us so that he can get back to his regularly scheduled job.”

“Oh… oh yes. Sorry,” Deb stammers.

“It’s no problem. Let’s go into the conference room where your firebox is. Just to let you know, we may request to keep it a little longer. We’ve already extracted some evidence from it…”

“Evidence? What kind of evidence?” Deb asks, just as we reach the conference room.

“Have a seat and we’ll explain what we know so far.” He moves to pull out Deb’s chair for her. She was so startled by his actions that she almost fell into the chair instead of sitting in it. It’s taking a lot for me not to laugh right now. I recognize infatuation on both sides when I see it. But something tells me that he won’t let the mutual attraction get in the way of him doing his job. He motions the other lady in the room forward. “This is my colleague, Detective Joanne Carver. She works in the fraud division and has been assigned this case to work alongside me.”

Rodney asks, “Forgive me, but why two detectives? I thought this was only about the case regarding false reporting and the stolen box.”

Joanne sighs, “There are several factors to this case. If it involved only the other things you mentioned, then the case would solely belong to Carl. However, my involvement came by way of charges of embezzlement and fraud from both Brian and Justin Taylor-Kinney, who are the victims on record for my case.”

“Is this in retaliation for what Michael did on Friday?” Debbie gasps. I can already see she’s getting ready to work herself into a fit without knowing all the facts.

“Deb, remember what we talked about on the way over here? Don’t start with the foot-in-mouth disease. I’m sure they will tell us all we need to know. Right?”

Both Joanne and Carl nod while she answers, “Yes, we will.”

“Am I going to be charged?” Deb asks, and part of me really feels sorry for her. The other part wants to let her stew for a bit. Not entirely mean, but honest.

“That depends on what you tell us. However, it would be best if you fill us in from the beginning as much as you are able. Brian and Justin said that you recently signed some property over to them?”

“Yes,” Deb says quietly.

“Can you tell us about it?” Carl asks, looking and listening intently.

“Well… Well I… I guess I should start from the beginning,” she sighs, while both officers smile at her.

“That would be helpful, ma’am,” Carl tells her.

So for the next hour, Deb actually tells Carl and Joanne the truth. I think what amazed Rodney and me is that she didn’t skim over the parts that didn’t make her look good. She told them about when ‘Operation Get Brian’ started in Michael’s mind, as well as the various roles she played in his schemes. I got the feeling that the detectives knew something she didn’t by how furiously they were taking notes, even though the session was being recorded. I could tell that it was hard for her, but she came through the experience a better person. Well, I’d like to think so at any rate.

“So the property that was in your name, who paid for it?” Carl asks.

“Michael did… or so I thought up until two weeks ago. It was then that I learned my son had been swindling Brian out of money, and outright stealing from Justin.”

“But aren’t you guilty of the same thing?”

She drops her head. “I suppose to a large degree I am, although my reasons were based on some misconceptions I was given at the time. Either way, there is no reasonable excuse I can give for my behavior in all of this. The bottom line is that I helped him.”

He nods. “In some ways I can understand why you did what you did. It was your son and you wanted to help him. But I can tell you that had you not signed over the property to Brian and Justin Taylor-Kinney you could have been charged as a co-conspirator alongside Michael Novotny. As for whether there can be a civil suit filed against you to recoup the money you were wrongly given, that’s entirely up to them.”

“So what happens now?” Deb asks, disheartened.

“We will forward all of the information you’ve given over to the District Attorney Office. From there, you may be called to testify. Whether you do so as a hostile witness or not is up to you, but to not do so if they call you would be considered Obstruction of Justice, which could land you in hot water of your own.”

“So, for right now, I’m free to go?”

‘You are, but I would advise against leaving town for now. Or if you do, please be sure to leave your contact information.”

“Is… is it possible for me to see Michael?”

“It is, although I would advise against it,” Joanna says, kindly. “He hasn’t been in the best of moods.”

“No, I imagine he wouldn’t be,” Deb sighs. “Is there any word yet on when he’ll be moved?”

“Not yet, but I know it won’t be too much longer. He’ll be arraigned and formally charged some time before the end of the day.”

“Will he be offered bail?” Rodney asks, and I have to wonder the same thing. Honestly, to my mind, they would be a fool to let him out.”

“It’s unlikely. Even with his assets frozen pending the investigation, he’s still considered a flight risk due to his connections.”

“What connections?” Deb asks before I have a chance to. It’s not like Michael is the most popular guy in Pittsburgh, except as a chronic nuisance.

“Your son has a widespread amount of friends, both here and abroad. A lot of that is due to the production of the comic, Rage. But even outside of that, we’re learning that Mr. Novotny is very popular amongst collectors of comic and action figurines. Some of those he’s associates with are men and women who are in some pretty powerful positions. Whereas it’s an expensive hobby for them, it’s still serious business as well. People tend to pay tens of thousands of dollars for some of those collectibles, and your son is no different. They would happily help him escape justice, provided he did something for them, or more accurately, if he gave them something they wanted very badly. And believe it or not, the figurines he had in his possession would be just the kind of thing they would look for. This business, like any other, is all about acquisition and bragging rights.”

“You mean that shit is worth a lot of money?!” Deb yells. “That little asshole!”

Carl laughs. “So the personality does live up to the theory about redheads, huh?”

“In more ways than you can imagine,” I tell him. I can tell that he’s interested in my sister, even with everything he’s just found out about her. But I also know that he won’t act on it until this case has died, been fried, and is laid to the side. Hopefully by then, Deb will have straightened herself out real good. “Detective, would it be alright if I went to see my nephew? Unlike my sister, he has no way to get to me. He doesn’t get to tug at my heartstrings, but I know her. She won’t rest easy despite all she knows if she’s unsure that he’s at least well.”

“I don’t see why not, but I have to warn you. Some of the officers guarding him have contemplated quitting the force, entering his cell and beating the shit out of him.”

“Somehow, that doesn’t surprise me,” I tell him before turning to Rodney. “Can you take Deb to the car while I go see him?”

“But I want to go with you, Vic,” Deb argues.

“No, Deb. Just no. Seeing Michael will put you on the defensive, and you have nothing to defend yourself for where he’s concerned. Remember you’re like Ted in a sense. You’re a recovering addict. He’s not going to bars right now because he’s not strong enough, and neither are you when it comes to sticking to your guns where Michael is concerned. Let me deal with him, and I promise I will tell you how he is… at least regarding his health. Okay?”

She nods and I release the pent up breath I wasn’t aware I was holding. My sister can be one of the most stubborn people I’ve ever met, but never more so than when Michael is involved. Part of me expected her to argue further, but I’m glad she didn’t. I watch as Rodney and Joanna lead Deb out of the precinct before following Carl down to the bowels of the place.

“We had to put him down here away from all the others we’ve arrested since Friday. Some actually threatened him if he didn’t shut up his complaining, while others apparently knew him and decided to antagonize him while he was on his tirade about Justin. We have one of the new guys watching him,” he tells me as we reach the bottom of the stairs leading to the holding cells.

When we enter, I can already hear Michael’s voice, full of entitlement and demanding to be released immediately. I have to hand it to the rookie. He’s just sitting there reading “Nothing Special” which is the first book in a series of books by A.E. Via. I have to chuckle a little since Rodney has been trying to get me to read the series about gay cops from Atlanta. Seeing how engrossed he is, I may have to give them a try. I mean, if it helps keep Michael’s chronic complaints at bay, they must be worth reading, right?” When the young man looks up at Carl and me, I have to laugh at the twinkling light blue eyes staring back at me.

“Funny meeting you here, Brandon. I didn’t know you were one of Pittsburgh’s finest,” I say, continuing to chuckle.

“You guys know each other?” Carl asks with no little amount of surprise.

“The world is indeed full of surprises, Vic,” he says. “He and his business partner just finished with my sister’s slumber party.”

The snicker coming from the cell grates on my nerves. “How sweet… Vic and Emmett did a little itty bitty birthday party for a little girl. Wow! What a success!” Michael sneers.

“Well considering that the little itty bitty slumber party as you put it, Michael, was for Marcella Greene, the president and C.E.O. of the Fortune 500 company Marcel Clothing and Cosmetics, I’d say that the slumber party consisting of twelve of her closest college friends, also C.E.Os of successful businesses in their own rights, was indeed a success. And yet, here you are in a jail cell. WOW! How the mighty have fallen,” I answer him before turning back to Brandon. “Please be sure to thank her again for me and Emmett. Thanks to that party, HoneyGrass Elegant Creations is booked well into the beginning of next year. Of course, it will be a tight schedule somewhat because of Michael’s trial and those of his co-conspirators, but we’ll manage. All of us are going to be here to lend our support to Brian and Justin during this trying time.”

“Of course, and I’m sure they will all be grateful. They still can’t stop raving about the job you guys did. As for Brian and Justin, they’re missed at Babylon. Any word on when they’ll return to their palace?”

“Soon, I think. Without having to worry about Brian’s stalkers showing up everywhere they turn right now, I think the King and his Prince will be back on the circuit sooner rather than later.”

Before Brandon has a chance to respond the caged bird starts whining again. “Does that mean he’s getting rid of Justin at long last?! It was a mistake, but now he and I can figure out how to get him away from Justin for good. I knew Boy Wonder was lying!”

“Whatever would give you that impression? Ah, nevermind. It’s that selective hearing again. Perhaps where you’re going they will go on and have that checked out.”

“What the hell are you talking about? I’ll be out of here as soon as I see the judge and tell him my side of the story.”

I turn to Carl and Brandon and ask, “There aren’t any psychedelic drugs in here, are there? I mean there have to be for him to spout the shit he’s saying, right?”

“Fuck you, Vic!”

“Nope. First, I don’t do incest. Secondly, it’s not my year to turn wimps into men. And third, they don’t allow conjugal visits in prison, but perhaps I can mail you a dildo or something. But then again, once Bob or Bubba get ahold of you, it won’t exactly be considered a conjugal visit since they will be there with you, right?” I shake my head. “Do yourself, and the public a favor, Michael, and just plead guilty. Most of all do it for your mother, who has endured enough at your hands.”

“Speaking of which, where is Ma? I’ve been trying to get ahold of her since…”

“Since you slipped up and told her that you were in HER house without her there, and that you had a right to go through her things? Well, you’ll be happy to know that we have her fire-box back.”

“Well that’s good. Now maybe she’ll be able to do a couple of things for me…”

“WRONG, Michael! Aside from the police obtaining a search warrant for the box, Deb has filled in any blanks the police had questions about concerning its contents.”

“WHAT?!!! How could she do that to me?!”

“And that question right there is the reason she did. It’s because you were going to leave her holding the bag of your bullshit while you slithered to wherever the hell you were going to escape to. You were going to have my sister doing time for YOUR crimes, Michael! What kind of son are you?!”

“She owes me!”

“A stiff kick in the ass is what she really owes you!” I take a calming breath before continuing. “But it’s no matter. We’re going to let you get your ass kicked without lifting a finger. I came to tell you to stop calling her. She’s not going to answer you; I’ll see to it.”

“You can’t do that!”

I smile widely. “And you can’t stop me. Enjoy your time here, Michael. I’m sure that by the time the justice system is through with you, this will seem like a resort.”

I nod at Carl, indicating that I am done talking to Michael. Brandon laughs as I pass by and bump his shoulder playfully. “See you later, Vic. Tell Em I’ll see him at the club later.”

“I will. You know, he’s always loved a man in uniform. Try not to spend so much time being the new Stud that you miss really great opportunities. It’s something Brian learned the hard way.”

“What happened?”

“It’s not about what happened so much as what almost didn’t.”

“You mean about Justin?”

“Exactly. Pay attention, kid,” I tell him as Carl and I head back to the stairs.  

BRANDON:

I think my respect for Vic Grassi just went up about a million percent. He’s always seemed so gentle and almost meek in the way he handles people, but the way he spoke to the evil Mickey Mouse in the cage… yeah, he’s a man I would never cross. It wasn’t so much what he said, but the way he did it. All calm menace, only raising his voice when warranted, and not afraid to antagonize the idiot because of that ever present screech.

I’ve only seen one other person handle people like that, and it’s Brian Kinney. Although by all accounts I’ve heard since arriving in this Burgh and moreso on Liberty Avenue, Justin Taylor is cut very much from the same cloth. I remember seeing them in Babylon once before the whole fiddler bullshit happened. Strangely, he was talking to my priest, Reverend Butterfield. I don’t know what was said, but when Brian went to join Justin, I could see why Reverend Tom looked both nostalgic, and happy at the same time. The closeness of the blond and brunet could be felt, not just seen.

On some level, I think we all want that. Yes, even me sometimes. There are nights when the hunt is unfulfilling, and I go home alone. It didn’t used to bother me much. I mean, I’ve always been one to enjoy my own company. But, there are times when I wouldn’t mind waking up to someone instead of the empty spot I’ve sprawled across in my king-sized bed.

“Brandon! I knew I knew that name!” Novotny screeches. Only the good Lord above knows how much I’ve been tempted to rip his vocal cords out! Only the fact that I actually like my job keeps me from doing that. I’ve never been the type to rest on my laurels, or trust fund, but right now, it’s really tempting! “Don’t think that you’re going to take Brian’s place on the Avenue. You simply don’t have what it takes.”

“And apparently, you don’t have what it takes to take Justin’s.”

“What? All he has is a fat ass!”

“And the brain and skills to keep Brian Kinney enthralled. Don’t forget that. As for me, I don’t want to be Brian; I’m happy just being Officer Brandon Greene- a free man with all the rights and privileges that offers. You should probably be working on being happy as Michael Charles Novotny, PRISONER.”

I laugh as the idiot continues to screech, and then whimpers as he hits his head in the middle of a tantrum. Well at least something stunned him quiet… and I didn’t even have to incur a police brutality charge to have finally gotten some peace. I sit back down at the desk and pick up my book. I was at a really juicy part before I was so entertainingly interrupted.