I have been submitting a number of one shot stories in an attempt unify my story universe. This is the first multiple chapter story for sometime and only because Ashatanii told me she felt this needed more. Well, Ash, I hope this works and I hope you and all my readers aren't disappointed. Thanks to my beta, bjobsessed, we may never agree on commas.

Turning Lemons into Lemonade

Chapter One

The Chief of Department was looking old, even haggard. 'Good,' Chief of Detectives Dennis Tunney smiled on the inside, 'that means there was probably a retirement coming. Retirement meant replacement and with a force the size of the New York Police Department it meant an exhaustive search for the best man.' Tunney had all the requirements for the job, had the inside pull and the drive. He just needed a little more good will and leverage to get what he wanted. There was no way the other department chiefs could out pace him; except maybe Sanford Hilliard the Chief of Patrol Services. If he got the job Tunney was damn well going to try to turn the title back to Chief of Police, Chief of Department sounded too damn powerless.

Tunney strode into his office at One Police Plaza with the assurance of a Caesar, he smiled and nodded to some and chatted with others. If he acted like the boss, it would be easier to slip into the position when the time came. Seating himself at his desk, Tunney started the day the way he always did and went through his in-box. Unexpected and unwanted information in inter-office memos were what made Tunney hated memos most. Today was the day the results from the department tests came in and these scores gave a good idea of the caliber of the people in his command. Today, however, the results made his stomach drop into his shoes. He got sick every time he looked at the test results. No matter if they graded on a curve or by percentages, James Dunbar had passed the sergeants exam. Still, looking at the bright side, it presented a golden opportunity to get rid of Dunbar.

"I cannot put that man back in uniform." The Chief of Patrol Services Hilliard barged into Tunney's office to deliver his ultimatum. "Maybe he can work with that seeing eye detective Fisk paired him up with, out there is no way he can control a patrol situation. Damn it, Dennis, he doesn't even carry a gun! He is physically unable to lead men."

"I don't know" Tunney looked up and smirked, "Andy Sipowicz, Gary Fisk and Jim Deakins will disagree with that. Every time I think I got Dunbar where I want him, he manages to push my plans ass over apple cart and come out smelling like a rose. So, unless you can think of something to anchor his ass behind a desk, Jim Dunbar is going to stop being my problem and start being yours."

"You would just love that, wouldn't you? Get rid of your headache and shift him to me. Well, we'll just see who comes out smelling like a rose over this." With that Chief Hilliard turned on his heel and marched out of the room. Tunney just smiled, with luck his biggest publicity problem would soon be someone else's.

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Walter Clark was sitting at his office at A. B. and C. Security. He was working late… again, drinking too much coffee… again and working just as hard as he did when he was with the NYPD. The habits if a life time were hard to break, but the fact that he wasn't in the line of fire made his wife feel a bit better. When he managed to get down to an eight hour day she would probably be ecstatic.

The sharp rap at his office door pulled his attention from the extremely dull Jefferson Park Museum alarm system upgrade. "Margie, use the intercom."

"Margie probably went home at five, like normal people," Jim Dunbar said as he and his guide dog, Hank, walked through the office door.

"Jimmy," Walter had his stash of Jim Beam out and ready to pour before Dunbar even got the door shut. "What the hell are ya doin' here? Chair's right in front of ya, kid."

Jim shrugged as he found the leather chair, "I think I might have put myself in the cross hairs again."

Clark put the glass of whiskey down on his desk with enough force to make a loud clink so his boy could find it. "So, what else is new? I never knew of anybody more bound and determined to screw up their career as you. So, you key Tunney's car or TP his house or just let him chew on his foot again. Am I right?"

Jim found the drink and raised it in a toast. "Congratulate me; I have just successfully passed the New York Police Department's sergeants exam."

"Oh, Jimmy, why did you do a damn fool thing like that?"

"And why the hell not; damn it," Dunbar slammed the empty glass down on his hand. "I had always planned to write the exam by now, and I made the bastards transcribe the whole, damn thing into Braille for me."

"The next step usually is to go back into uniform and learn command on the street." Walter shook his head. "I know a lot of guys who would follow you, but all you need is one asshole and the whole squad would fall into chaos and you would be blamed."

"That thought had crossed my mind."

Walter swirled the amber liquid in his glass before he spoke again. "Have you talked to Fisk? Gary's a good man and he's said that you're a good cop."

Jim's eye brows went up, "He told you that?"

"Not me, personally, but the brotherhood is pretty small, all things considered. Nobody gossips more that a bunch of old cops with too much beer in their bellies and too much time on their hands." Walter leaned over and freshened up Jim's glass. "Let's put our heads together and think up something that might make everyone come out looking like they won. Face it, I know a lotta guys who owe me a lotta favors, I bet I can still make things happen."

"And who's gonna be the winner?"

"Why, you are Jimmy… who else could it be." Walter smiled as Jim found his glass again, "Congrats, kid, you'll make a damn good sergeant."

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Tunney reached for his first cup of coffee with one hand as he reached for the Friday morning memos with the other. He was sorting through them when an envelope from the Police Benevolent Association labeled 'Dunbar, James' caught his eye. Opening it carefully he extracted several sheets of paper, grade transcripts from John Jay College, psychological evaluations from Dr. Galloway, the exam test scores and his arrest record. There were letters from Gary Fisk at the Eighth, Jim Deakins from Major Case and Walter Clark, retired from the NYPD. The main point the union had to give was a set of recommendations of how Jim Dunbar could be used to the advantage of the NYPD and still remain on the job where he was. Quickly Tunney scanned the papers and a smile spread across his face. This was good, this was very, very good and if Dunbar would get off his high horse and do some newspaper interviews it would boost the good press the department always needed. And all this would make Dennis Tunney look even better and go a long way to erasing the fact he had opposed Dunbar's re-entry into the force in the first place. This also made Dunbar an asset and Dennis Tunney needed to be able to point out all the departmental assets as he made his bid to become the Chief of Police... Chief of Department for the City of New York. He'd be better at it than Hilliard any day. Just then the phone rang. He shoved the receiver between his ear and his shoulder, "Tunney here. Oh, so it's the office of Chief Hilliard but not the chief himself. No, I don't have time to meet the chief today. Oh, suddenly he's available now… well I might be able to spare a few minutes to talk to him on the phone, put him on."

"Dennis," Hilliard sounded too cheery. "That little problem we talked about four days ago. I think I might be able to take Dunbar off your hands so he can start learning command at the 27th Precinct."

"Actually, I think I will keep Dunbar exactly where he is, unless he wants to move to the 27th, and I don't believe he does." Tunney shuffled the papers with a smirk. "You got the memo too, didn't you, ya hump."

"What memo," Hilliard's surprise wasn't fooling anybody.

"I'll let you know that I have plans for Dunbar. He will be taking courses through John Jay and working towards becoming…" Tunney scanned the suggestions and found one that sounded really impressive, "a hostage negotiator. He's a smart man and a good interrogator; I can see that by the cases he clears. He'll do his best work staying where he is and expanding his knowledge base to more specialized fields."

"And you'll come out looking like the compassionate guy you are. The Benevolent Association sent me the same memo." A hollow laugh came through the receiver. "You know, I could say this was a special case and you were taking advantage of the situation."

Tunney laughed out loud, "Like you wouldn't. And you won't because I got Dunbar and I am gonna use him to get what I want. Besides, possession is nine tenths of the law, so you can just chew on it."

With that Dennis Tunney hung up on Chief Hilliard and started dialing the Eighth Precinct.

tbc

Thank you and I need some suggestions and input to keep going.