Till Death Do Us Part-A Blue Bloods Story
***A young bride is murdered just a couple months after her wedding. Jamie's on the case***
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Jamie and Anna's house-Sunday Morning
The family was getting ready for Mass.
Jamie was just buttoning Joey's shirt and he stood the little boy up on the bed so he could tuck it in. And Joey wasn't being tremendously helpful.
"Joey, will you hold still for one minute…please?"
Joey looked up at him…as if to say 'who're you kidding?'…
He'd just turned two…and already, he was living up to his age.
Anna was getting Mary Elizabeth ready…the little girl would be three in another month…and she still hadn't grown out of her 'terrible two's'.
And baby Maggie wasn't about to be forgotten.
The little girl had fiery red curls coming in…and she was developing the personality to match.
Anna finished with Mary Elizabeth's hair and lifted her down from the bed.
She was so tired these days…and she felt like she was fighting off a stomach bug.
That was the last thing she needed right now…to be sick.
Jamie finished with Joey and set him on the floor beside his big sister.
He cast a worried glace over at his wife…who looked a little pale as she leaned against the footboard of their bed.
"Are you okay, Baby?" he asked, putting his hands on her shoulders.
Anna leaned back against him.
"I'm just tired…" she said.
Jamie was about to tell her to stay home and rest…he'd take the kids to church and then come back and get her later…when his phone rang.
Both their hearts sank…because they knew it meant he was getting called in to work.
"Reagan…" he said as he accepted the call. "I'm on my way…"
He ended the call and looked down at Anna.
"I gotta go, Baby…"
Anna sighed.
"I know…" she said with a sigh.
He leaned down to kiss her.
"I'll try to get there for dinner…" he told her.
He took a minute to hug and kiss the kids…then he took the stairs two at a time.
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Once he was out the door he pulled out his phone again.
"Hey, Jack…" he said when his nephew answered. "It's Uncle Jamie. Listen, I need you to do me a favor. Anna's not feeling too good…so can you drive her and the kids to church and then over to Grandpa's?"
He didn't need to ask the teen twice. Jack had just gotten his license and jumped at any opportunity to drive. Even if it meant driving a mini-van carrying his aunt and cousins.
"Thanks, Buddy…I owe you." Jamie said as he ended the call.
One more reason to be thankful that Danny and Linda only lived two blocks away.
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The Crime Scene
Jamie turned the corner and headed down the hall.
The second floor walk up was fairly typical for this area. It wasn't all that dissimilar from his old apartment…where he and Anna had lived before they got married.
He saw a familiar face posted right outside the open door with yellow crime scene tape spread across it.
"Officer Candelario…" he said. "Long time, no see…"
"Yeah…we gotta quit meeting like this, Detective…" she replied.
Jamie signed the log, then crossed the tape.
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He looked around…typical starter apartment…furnished primarily from IKEA.
A man in his mid to late twenties sat on the sofa…two officers were trying to talk to him…but the poor guy was totally distraught.
Jamie noticed he was wearing a uniform…EMT, maybe a paramedic.
He motioned to one of the uniforms…who crossed the room to brief him on what was happening.
"Detective Jamison Reagan…" Jamie introduced himself.
"Officer Tom Delich…"
"What do we know?" Jamie asked.
"Victim's Natalie Albreit…24…newlywed. Her husband Roger came home from work after a double shift…he's an EMT for a private ambulance company." Delich began. "He found the front door ajar…things in disarray…and his wife in the second bedroom. He claims to have checked her for vitals, determined she was deceased…came out here and called 911."
Jamie nodded.
A very common story, unfortunately.
"Okay…thanks." Jamie said. "I'm gonna poke around…let me know if the husband calms down any."
"Will do…" Delich replied.
Jamie moved toward the back of the apartment.
He couldn't help but notice wedding photos lining the hallway…and the glass on the frame containing the bride and groom was shattered.
He also noticed the cross hanging on the wall of the room with all the activity.
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It was a small room done up like a sitting room. There was a nondescript couch that probably opened into a hide-a-bed…with a patchwork quilt folded over the arm. There as a TV on a stand…and a table by the window.
A portable sewing machine was set up on the table…and the ironing board was out.
There was a man's white dress shirt laid out and a pair of grey wool slacks waiting to be pressed.
The vic lay face down on the floor and as Jamie stepped closer he could see her light brown hair was matted with blood. She was wearing a pink satin robe…with a long white nightgown that was bunched around her knees. And she had "Hello Kitty" socks on her feet.
"If I'd a known you were gonna be here…I woulda hitched a ride." Danny said as he walked into the room.
"What're you doing here?" Jamie asked. "I didn't know you were on this weekend."
"I guess somebody doesn't know the difference between "Reagan, D." and "Reagan, J." Either that or somebody thinks you need checking up on…" Danny said.
Jamie gave his brother a dirty look.
"What's going on in here?" Danny said.
"I just got here myself. Looks like a single GSW to the back of the head." Jamie said as he stood up.
As he did, he nearly bumped into the ironing board in the crowded room. He put out his hand to steady it…and he felt heat emanating from the iron.
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The Reagan brothers stepped back to let the crime scene guys do their thing…and made their way back to the front room to try and question the husband.
Roger Albreit was still coming apart at the seams.
Jamie and Danny looked at each other…there was no way to predict how a grieving spouse would act…but Jamie, at least, thought someone trained as a first responder might be able to pull it together.
Something just felt weird.
"Mr. Albreit?" Danny said. "I'm Detective Danny Reagan…and this is my brother, Detective Jamie Reagan. We need to ask you a few questions."
Albreit gasped and hiccupped as he made a great show of trying to pull himself together.
"Can you tell us what happened?" Danny asked, pointedly ignoring the dramatic display.
"I came home from work…" Albreit began. "I was late…we got a call an hour before the end of my shift…I'm an EMT."
He puffed out his chest to show them his uniform.
The Reagan brothers both nodded tersely.
"I was hurrying, 'cause we don't like to be late for church…Natalie and I teach a Sunday school class…and I saw that the door was open. I came in…and I called for my wife…but she didn't answer. Everything was a mess…and I went back toward the bedrooms…and I found her!"
He lost it again…leaning forward and burying his face in his hands…rocking himself back and forth.
The crime scene tech came out of the sewing room…and he motioned to the two detectives. He held out a plastic evidence bag containing a spent 9mm casing.
"The entrance wound is consistent with a 9mm…" he told Jamie and Danny.
Danny took the evidence bag.
"Mr. Albreit? Do you have any firearms in the house?" he asked.
"No!" Albreit said emphatically. "Natalie hates guns! She's terrified of them. And I've never touched a gun in my life!"
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The Reagan Home-Sunday dinner
Danny and Jamie arrived just in time to sit down with the family.
"Daddy!" Joey cried happily as Jamie came into the dining room.
"Hey, Buddy!" Jamie said with a smile as he messed up his son's hair.
He rounded the table to kiss each one of his daughters…Mary Elizabeth sitting in her pink booster chair beside her Aunt Linda…and Maggie in the high chair next to Nikki.
He looked around.
"Where's Anna?" he asked.
"She's upstairs in your old room." Erin replied. "She said she wasn't feeling well."
Jamie headed for the stairs and went to see what was going on. He was worried about Anna…
He gently opened the door…and slipped into the room. As he approached the bed he heard her soft, even breathing…that let him know she was fast asleep.
Deciding to let her rest, he leaned down and kissed her gently before slipping back out of the room to join the family at the table.
Everyone looked up expectantly as he took his seat beside Joey.
"She's sleeping…" he said. "I didn't want to wake her."
"What's goin' on?" Danny asked.
Jamie shrugged.
"Anna hasn't been feeling well…she's been tired…hasn't had a lot of energy. I'm gonna see if she's willing to go to the doctor."
Erin and Linda shared a knowing look between them.
"Daddy? I hungry!" Joey piped up.
"Let's say Grace…" Frank said.
Jamie took Joey's hand and helped his son to make the Sign of the Cross.
"In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit…"
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Major Crime Unit
Danny came in and stowed his weapon in his drawer.
"Anything from the ME?" he asked Jamie.
Jamie looked up from the file on his desk. He'd been going over the husband's statement…and he had just decided he needed to talk to the guy again.
"Nothing too unexpected…" Jamie said. "Single GSW to the back of the head…it was a close contact wound."
"What in that woman's life would point to her being gunned down execution style?" Danny said.
"She was pregnant." Jamie said. "ME says about twelve weeks."
Danny shook his head.
"Jeez…" he said with disgust. "Just keeps gettin' better by the minute…"
Jamie was looking at a search he'd just done on the computer.
"Danny? Didn't the husband say he never touched a gun before in his life?"
"Yeah…yeah, he was pretty emphatic about that."
"Yeah…I got that. But don't you think it's a little weird that a guy who's never touched a gun before's had a FOID card for the last six years?"
Danny came around the desk and looked over his brother's shoulder.
"I'd say that's more than a little weird." He said. "Did they do a GSR test on him at the scene?"
Jamie glanced at the report.
"Yeah…negative." He said. "But I think this is worth at least a conversation."
"Absolutely…" Danny agreed. "Let's get him in here."
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Interrogation Room
"Come on in, Mr. Albreit…" Jamie said as he lead the grieving widower into a room. "I apologize for the accommodations…but at least it's somewhere quiet we can talk."
Albreit looked around nervously.
"Do I need a lawyer?" he asked.
"I don't know…" Jamie said. "I just want to know a bit more about your wife…her habits, her routines…and I'm still a little fuzzy on the time line. Do you feel you need a lawyer for that?"
Albreit shook his head and sat down cautiously.
"No, I guess not…" he said. "What do you want to know?"
Jamie glanced at his notes.
"You'd only been married a short time." He began.
"Four months…" Albreit said.
Jamie could see he was gearing up the waterworks.
Oh, brother…
"And where did you meet?" he asked.
"At church…her father's our pastor."
"What church is that?" Jamie asked.
"New Life Christian Church…" Albreit told him.
That was one of those big, non-denominational Christian churches…they had a huge membership…
Jamie nodded.
"And did you date long?"
"We didn't date…we courted."
"What's the difference?" Jamie asked.
"When you're courting…you don't have any physical contact…no touching, no hand holding…no kissing…" Albreit explained. "And all your outings are chaperoned."
Jamie raised his eyebrows in surprise. It seemed kind of archaic for this day in age.
"So you courted…how long?"
"About three months…before we got engaged…then we were engaged for about a year."
"And all this time you never…had any contact?" he asked.
"No…we believed in saving ourselves for marriage." Albreit explained.
Jamie nodded tersely.
"I see…and I assume you knew your wife was pregnant?"
"Yes…but we hadn't really announced it yet…just to our families."
Jamie decided to shift gears.
"And can you think of anyone who might have had a reason to want to harm you or your wife?"
"No…no one. Natalie was an angel. She was a beautiful person…inside and out…a fine Christian woman." Albreit stated emphatically.
"How about you…you're out, working with the public on a daily basis. Any chance you rubbed somebody the wrong way?"
Albreit shrugged.
"I suppose…I deal with shady characters all the time. Drug addicts, alcoholics, gang members…" he said. "It's possible someone had a beef with me. I've saved hundreds of lives…maybe someone wasn't too appreciative."
Jamie fought the urge to roll his eyes. Talk about tooting your own horn…
"Let's…move on to Sunday morning…" he began. "Actually…let's go back to Saturday. I want you to take me through your day…from the time you woke up."
"I got up around six. Natalie got up with me…made my breakfast…packed my lunch…she wanted me to eat healthy…not all that junk you get around. She wanted me to have a good, home-cooked meal."
"Yeah…my wife's into that too…" Jamie said. "What then?"
"I went to work…I was supposed to be on twelve hours…but I picked up an extra shift." He continued. "With the baby coming…I needed every dime."
"I hear you…" Jamie told him.
It was working…he was gaining the guy's trust….he could tell.
"Did you see anything suspicious around your neighborhood? Either while you were coming or going?" Jamie asked.
"Just the usual kids…punks…hanging around the corner bodega. I told Natalie to stay out of there. That's no place for a woman like her to be."
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Major Case Unit
The interview with Albreit wasn't as fruitful as he would have hoped. All Jamie had really learned was the guy was really full of himself.
Now it was time to talk to some people who knew the couple. Maybe somebody who didn't have such a high opinion of them…
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Jamie and Anna's house.
Jamie walked in a little after eight…
He could smell dinner on the stove…and Anna was just setting the dining room table.
He went into the dining room and came up behind his wife.
"Hey, Baby…" he said as he wrapped his arms around her. "How're you feeling?"
Anna sighed and settled back into his arms. Now all was right in the world again.
"Tired…" she answered. "Joey and Mary Elizabeth were poking at each other all day…and Maggie must be cutting a tooth."
"Isn't it a little early for that?" Jamie asked.
"Not really…the first one takes forever to come in." she told him. "Maggie's been out since seven-thirty…and I just put the other two down right before you came in. You might be able to catch 'em awake."
Jamie turned his wife in his arms and leaned down to kiss her.
"I'll go check on 'em…" he said. "I'll be down in a few minutes."
"I'll get dinner on the table."
Jamie trudged up the stairs. The entire day…the entire case…hit him like a ton of bricks.
Something felt off about Roger Albreit. Jamie just couldn't stand the guy…he came off like such a pompous ass.
He had interviewed the victim's family…her parents were devastated beyond belief. Her two older brothers and her two sisters-in-law were heartbroken. They had no idea who could have wanted to harm Natalie…
Roger Albriet's parents were more of the same. Roger was the oldest of six…and the first to marry and start a family. They were shattered over the loss of their daughter-in-law and their grandchild.
But Jamie couldn't shake the feeling that he was missing something…something glaringly obvious.
Oh well, tomorrow was another day. Right now he just wanted to hug and kiss his kids and spend some alone time with his wife.
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Jamie and Anna's house-late at night
The phone buzzing woke Jamie.
He groped blindly along the bedside table to grab it before it could wake Anna.
"Reagan…" he said sleepily.
There was a lot of background noise coming through the phone. Jamie quickly got out of bed and went out into the hallway…before it could wake Anna.
"Reagan." He said again.
"Detective Reagan?" a female voice said. "I'm so sorry to call you this late…"
"Who is this?" Jamie asked.
"It's Teresa Candelario…"
Officer Candelario.
"I had central dispatch put me through to you." She said. "It's about the Albreit case."
Jamie was wide awake now.
"Where are you?" he asked.
"I'm on an assignment…" she said cautiously. "At Tipton's Pub…"
Ah…made sense now. NYPD frequently sent younger officers into local establishments in plain clothes to see who was serving alcohol to minors. He had done an assignment like that once…and it had led to his going undercover with the Capasari crime family.
He shuddered at the memory.
"Where exactly are you?" he asked.
Candelario was taking a huge risk by calling him…she'd probably already blown her cover.
"I'm in the ladies' room." She said. "Listen…you remember how broken up Roger Albreit was at his apartment?"
"Yeah…that was an Oscar winning performance…" Jamie said.
"Well…I think he's managed to get over his grief." Candelario told him. "I just saw him at the bar with this blonde chick…she was wrapped around him like a contortionist and he had his tongue so far down her throat…"
"I get the picture…" Jamie cut her off.
"So did I…" Candelario said. "I can send it to you if you like."
"Yeah…do that…" Jamie replied.
"Do you want me to do anything else?" Candelario asked.
"No…" Jamie told her. "I'll deal with Albreit in the morning. Get back to your assignment. Hopefully no one heard you on the phone and your cover's still intact."
"Will do…" she said.
"And Candelario?" Jamie said. "Thanks…this is the first good lead we've got."
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Major Case
Jamie had printed out the picture Candelario sent him…and TARU had cleaned up the image…so there was no mistaking…it was definitely their guy.
He handed it across the desk to Danny, who studied it carefully.
"She's very…flexible…" Danny said. "You know who she is?"
"Not yet…" Jamie replied. "I'm gonna go down to the ambulance company where he works. Guys talk…and Albreit likes to brag."
"Yeah…somebody forgot to tell him 'the meek shall inherit the earth'." Danny agreed. "Let's roll."
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The Ambulance Company
Jamie and Danny met with the shift supervisor, Hollis Roarke.
"We're all just heartbroken over Albreit's wife…" she said. "Whatever we can do to help…"
Jamie and Danny shared a look.
"Actually, ma'am…" Jamie began. "If I could ask you to look at a picture…"
He took out an isolated image of the blonde…one Candelario had snapped when the pair came up for air.
Roarke took the photo…and she studied it carefully.
"That's Kelsey Forbush. She's a paramedic…Albreit's partner, in fact."
The plot thickens…Jamie thought.
It wasn't unheard of…a man and a woman…long shifts…confined spaces.
"We'll need to speak to her…" Danny said.
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Major Case
Jamie was gearing up for round two with Roger Albreit. He had Candelario's photos…blown up to 8x10 glossies…he had a copy of the paperwork for Albreit's FOID card…and he had video from a Manhattan gun club showing Albreit taking target practice with a 9mm.
He led Albreit back to the interrogation room again.
"I can't tell you how grateful I am you were able to come back down here…" Jamie said.
He was trying to make the guy feel comfortable…so he wasn't so much on his guard.
"Anything I can do to help find the man who murdered my wife and child." Albreit replied.
Jamie gestured to a chair.
"I want to go over your account of the events one more time." Jamie began. "Now you worked seven to seven, you said?"
"That's right. I pulled a double…"
"Been there, done that…" Jamie sympathized. "And on an average, how long does it usually take you to get home?"
"About forty minutes…tops." Albreit said quickly.
"And you were running late?"
Albreit nodded.
"We got a call about five-thirty…an old man having a myocardial infarction. When we got there he was in full arrest…PEA's…that's pulseless electrical activity…right before the heart stops beating entirely. But we managed to bring him back…"
Jamie was mildly surprised Albreit had at least shared the credit with his very flexible partner.
"So you got home when?"
"About eight fifteen. Natalie and I taught a Sunday School class…we had to be at church by nine-thirty."
"And tell me again what you found? What was the state of your apartment?" Jamie asked.
"It was a mess…the door was half open…stuff was everywhere. Somebody was obviously looking for something."
"Was anything missing?"
"No…not that I could tell."
"And you found your wife in the spare bedroom?"
Albreit let out a moan…and the tears welled up in his eyes.
"She was on the floor! I ran to her…I thought I could revive her! But then I saw she'd been shot! I reached out to touch her…to check for a pulse…She was like ice!"
Bingo. Jamie had him.
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"And did you see anyone…in the apartment…in the hallway?"
"No…there was no one...poor Natalie…lying there…all alone!"
"The coroner put TOD at about nine a.m." Jamie said. "Your 911 call came in at nine twenty six. We arrived on scene at nine thirty one. I got called in at ten after ten. I know…because I was helping my wife get our kids ready for eleven o'clock Mass."
He looked down at his notebook…
"You said you got home at eight fifteen."
"That's wrong! I must have gotten home later!" Albreit back-pedaled. "We were on that call for a long time! We really had to fight to bring that man back…we worked on him for over an hour!"
Another lie…Jamie couldn't think of one instance where the medics had worked on a patient in that condition for over an hour before transporting him. They'd have pretty much scooped and ran.
"Even if that were true, Mr. Albreit…that still puts you in the apartment at TOD. Five thirty call…I'll give you an hour at the scene…your run sheet shows you transported the patient to Bellevue ER at five fifty nine. And your time card shows you punched out at seven oh five."
He carefully removed the FOID paperwork from his manila folder.
"Another thing…you told me and my brother that you'd never handled a firearm before. So why would you need a FOID card?"
"I was thinking about getting a gun for protection! There's all kinds of evil lurking out there! I wanted to protect my family!"
"You didn't even know your wife when you were issued the card." Jamie said…looking Albreit square in the eye. "What family did you need to protect?"
He took out the photographs…and slowly laid them out one by one.
And with each picture he laid down Albreit got paler and paler…till Jamie thought he was gonna fall right on the floor.
"Here's my theory…" Jamie said. "You were having an affair with your co-worker…and you decided you wanted to be with her…so you worked your shift…came home…and shot your pregnant wife in the back of the head."
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Major Case
Jamie walked out of the room with a signed, ten page confession.
Once confronted with the evidence, Albreit had hung his head and spilled the whole story.
He had fallen in love with his partner…she was beautiful, and exciting…but he couldn't divorce his wife. Their faith forbid it. He couldn't disgrace his family. They were so proud that he'd married the pastor's daughter…
He had purchased a gun and a silencer off the street…but it wasn't the first time he'd handled a weapon. He came home from work…Natalie was ironing his shirt and slacks…and he came up behind her…and shot her.
Then he'd removed the rubber gloves he'd brought home from work…tossed the gun down the trash chute…silencer and all…and ransacked the apartment to look like a robbery.
Jamie headed back to his desk to wrap up the paperwork before he transported Roger Albreit to Central Booking.
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Jamie and Anna's house…
He came in late that night…and the house was quiet.
He slowly climbed the stairs…
His bedroom door was open…but the bathroom door was partially closed.
"Anna?" he said.
He was worried about her.
He had the next day off…and he was going to insist she make a doctor's appointment.
"Anna?" he said again, as he tapped lightly on the door with his knuckles.
Anna was standing at the sink…holding something in her hands…looking like she was in a trance.
"Anna? What is it? What's wrong, Baby?" he asked…thoroughly alarmed now.
Anna turned to him…and wordlessly handed him what she had been holding.
Jamie looked down…at a home pregnancy test.
It was positive.