RIPPER'S LONDON
Rating: FR - 15. May go up as time goes on. Summary: Scotland Yard Inspector Leroy Jethro Gibbs takes charge of the investigation of the Whitechapel Murders. He works with the reluctant but loyal Officer Anthony DiNozzo and a rookie PC Timothy McGee. The unusual team of three work their unorthodox methods to apprehend Jack The Ripper. It also stars some other familiar faces. Disclaimer: First off, I must say that I'm not passing off any of the content, thoughts or suspicions as fact. Some of this is content has been researched from what are known as Ripperologists. Must say, that a lot in this story is personal opinion.
A/N: A response to the challenge… Decades and Eras Challenge issued by soundheimmcgeek who is a history buff. She loves trying to imagine our favorite characters in a historical setting, so…
I am not making any sort of profit from this story. This is of course based around the historical year of 1888. Jack The Ripper terrorizes London. It contains graphic violence, depiction of murder. Sexual References and some sexual acts. Well you can't be in The Ripper's London if you leave those out. So be warned…
CHAPTER ONE: 08/09/1888
The murder of Annie Chapman
Whitechapel was never known for being the quiet part of London. Poorly lit street lamps provided ample cover for dealings and unlawful acts. Prostitution was not frowned upon by the lower to middle class population. And occasionally the Officers turned a blind eye if paid enough. But some could be convinced into doing anything by granting them some sexual favors.
With it being the kind of area it was… Stabbings and robberies were nothing strange, considering the workers and dark passages. Lamps' lights only reached so far. Officer Anthony 'Tony' DiNozzo was working well into the night again. The gruesome body of 'Polly' Nichols was discovered on the last day of August. Polly's body was cut up, badly. This was something born of nightmares. Tony wiped his eyes as he put the autopsy photographs down. Every night he studied the photographs intently, almost willing them to talk to him.
His colleagues tried to convince him that it was a jilted lover or may be someone who felt they didn't get their money's worth. Maybe that was true… But, deep down, Tony's gut was turning inside out. Now, he was in no way calling his colleagues incompetent… They were far from it… Maybe a little narrow minded or a little habitual at thinking inside the box.
"Anthony!" Another man banged the wooden desk to wake him up.
Tony mentally scowled the man with the use of that name. Anthony was always too formal. The orange glow was just beginning to break through the windows of the Station. Another day had dawned. Tony wasn't surprised that he fell asleep at work once again, it seemed to happen a lot these days. "What?" Tony grumbled as he began using his hand to brush his hair.
"We got another murder… This time at Hanbury Street," the man said as he put something in his mouth. "Looks like you were right. We got a multiple murderer on our hands. The boss wants us down there right away… And he means now," he added.
"Could you not sound so upbeat about it Gordon," Tony mumbled once again as he grabbed his coat and they made their way to the 29 Hanbury Street. Actually, Gordon was the only one he felt comfortable with at work as well as socially.
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29 Hanbury Street 8/9/1888
By the time they arrived there a crowd of morbidly curious people had formed near the entrance to the house. There were also members of the lodgings house that needed to be questioned. "Hey!" Gordon walked up to the Police Constable who was trying to keep someone unauthorized from getting to the crime scene. "Having problems keeping the crowd under control?" Gordon asked.
"A little," the PC said as he kept an eye on the crowd. He was positive that if they wanted to, they could rush past him in a flash. But it seemed that the uniform wielded much power.
"You're doing good there PC McGee," Gordon assured him. The onlookers seemed noisy but under control at least.
"Thank you, sir," The young man's chest almost puffed out with pride.
"Anthony DiNozzo!" The man shouted. "How 'bout sayin' a few words for the Gazette. Or at least let me come with yas," he almost pleaded with the officer.
"Lewis Roberts… I should've known," Tony shook his head. "I can't let you in… Sorry about that," he walked away smiling with Gordon quickly in tow.
"Wait 'til ya father hears 'bout this. He ain't going to be happy if his own son is blockin' his paper," Lewis shouted at the man's retreating back. He huffed in anger at being ignored. They heard Lewis shout at the two officers but were unable to ascertain what was actually being said.
"What have we got?" Tony pulled out his notebook as he began to listen to what the Doctor was about to say.
"Ah… Young Anthony," The old doctor said. Tony never knew the man's age and never asked. He wasn't sure if it was just the fact of him being a Doctor but he was always reminded of the stage character of Doctor Jekyll.
"How many times do I have to tell you to call me, Tony, Doctor Mallard?" Doctor Mallard had insisted that nobody call him by his title. "You know… You actually remind me of a young Irish lad who came over in '74… A good man, but…,"
Tony waved his hand for him to stop. "The victim," Tony prodded the older man to stay on track. It sometimes had to be done or he was sure that Doctor Mallard would go on endlessly about people he met. They were interesting stories, but they just seemed to go on and on.
"Yes, the victim," Doctor Mallard got him self back onto the subject. "One deceased female… Identified by lodgers as Annie Chapman… A regular -," Mallard was interrupted once again.
"Dark Annie," Tony mouthed. He was familiar with some of the whores that roamed Whitechapel. Though he didn't know them in a client sort of way. This earned him raised eyebrow looks from the two other men. "Hey… I know what you two are thinking… So stop it," he said with a laugh.
Mallard sighed heavily. This wasn't the first time he'd seen a victim like this. "One deceased female… According to eyewitness reports when I got here… Annie Chapman's age varies from thirty five to forty five. A working girl with the name of Dark Annie as young Anthony pointed out," Mallard said, causing Tony to blush a little before getting back to it.
"Can we look through the pockets now?" Tony asked.
"I've done all I can here. Once I get this woman to the mortuary, I'll be able to tell you more then," Mallard responded with a nod.
Gordon bent down to the body to begin going through the pockets. "So she's wearing a long black coat," he began to list the clothing so Tony could write it down. "Black skirt… Oh," Gordon grimaced a bit as he noted the stickiness from the blood as Tony began to sketch the body's position. "Brown Bodice… Guess we know how she kept her figure intact," Gordon smiled a bit but nobody took any notice of it. "Nothing on the inside pocket of the skirt… Excuse me," he said as he withdrew his hands from beneath the skirt. "Two petticoats… She was really prepared for anything," Gordon said.
"Gordon!" Tony shouted to make sure Gordon knew that there were just things that were inappropriate.
"Sorry… Lace up boots… Laced up. Red and white stockings. White with a wide red border neckerchief, knotted in front of the neck. Some muslin material," he laid the contents out in the yard. "One small comb. One case containing one comb. A bit of envelope," Gordon rubbed his blonde hair and showed that that was all the contents.
"Right. We should interview witnesses and then search the lodge," Tony said as he finished sketching the area.
"Think we should tell that Gazette man. Get a statement out. You know, maybe in tomorrow's paper could help us," Gordon suggested.
"No… We go to them with nothing. Then every man that has a grudge against or one that owes the wrong person money, sleeps with someone's wife or girlfriend or one that doesn't pay for 'services' will be brought in as the killer or even killed," Tony said flatly. He didn't want things to get too out of hand. Not yet anyway. Tony and Gordon walked to the front of the lodging house.
"Now…," Gordon said with hands open. "We're going to be speaking with a lot of you, so we'll be needing your co-operation on this matter. We would also like to bring in some people to search each of the rooms in this house. Of course we'd like your consent in doing so," Gordon continued on.
"Hey!" Lewis walked along the group of people. "Anthony DiNozzo. In ya opinion, was it the same one who killed Polly Nichols? Come on," Lewis pleaded for something from the officers.
"We're not making a statement right now," Tony said. "You'll all be informed when we will make an official statement," he added. He was sure that he'd hear from his father about this.
"So that a yes then?" Lewis asked. They didn't deny that. "It's a yes?"
Tony stopped walking suddenly and turned around quickly. "If you print that Lewis Roberts, claiming any Officer has told you that, I'll have my father fire you. And he'll make sure you never work for another paper again," Tony said with his eyes narrowed. It would be something he'd do if he was pushed far enough by a reporter. But he'd rather limit his contact with his father unless necessary.
"What about Martha Tabram?" Lewis asked. "Connected ta her in any way?"
Tony raised his eyebrows. "Who?" He asked.
"You were away those few days," Gordon said. "Martha Tabram's killer was caught and he's still serving time for that murder. So it couldn't be the same one," he corrected. That part was factual.
"Hey… Hey!" Lewis shouted to get their attention once again. "What if yas got it wrong?" He asked seriously. Lewis had often seen mistakes on the officers' side of things even if they didn't want to admit it. He followed their conduct and investigations closely.
Mortuary
Tony and Gordon watched Doctor Mallard scrub his hands. He hadn't yet had time to change from the bloody gown he had on. "What have you found out, Doctor Mallard?" Tony asked.
"Can you not call me that?" Mallard sounded mad. "I keep thinking that you're talking to my father, not me," he explained.
"Well, Donald sounds so formal and it just is… Well Donald," Tony shrugged.
"Call me Ducky then," Ducky suggested and went on to explain about how he acquired that nickname from when he was a young lad.
"Alright, alright… Ducky it is then," Tony said as he stifled back a yawn. The hours of endless testimonies, frantic eyewitness accounts and hysterical women filled the day. Last thing the two wanted was to hear a story about a lake they've never heard of, including people they'd never meet. "What have you got, Do-, I mean Ducky," Tony quickly corrected him self.
"Right. Annie Chapman," Ducky lit up an oil lamp so that he could look over some of his notes. It was already reaching night time. "I haven't managed to fill out a detailed report yet. But I'll give you what I have so far. "The poor girl was under nourished and had little water. But she was in poor health even at the best of times. She was afflicted with diseased lungs and of the brain. She may have been a sickly girl but it wasn't at the stage where it would kill her. There were new bruises and older bruising on the temple. The newer bruises were located on the jaw of Annie Chapman which suggests that the killer held her like this before slitting her throat," Ducky held Tony with his left hand across the younger man's jaw and chin and made a slicing motion with the right.
Tony flexed his jaw. He always wondered why he was the one used in these physical demonstrations. He was thankful when the Doctor stopped using props since Tony almost went into self defense mode when Ducky held a knife near him.
"That's not all… After the throat was cut… That was when the real misery began I'm afraid," Ducky said solemnly.
"I felt the blood beneath her clothing when I was going through her pockets… I know it was pretty bloody," Gordon said.
Ducky shook his head slowly. "What you saw was only the surface. You see, a lot of it was underneath the coat. I couldn't perform any more than a preliminary examination on site with so many people wanting a look," he gave the reason for not giving the details earlier. Ducky explained the state of the body. As his detailed explanation about the innards becoming outards became more graphic, he saw the two faces turning pale.
"Excuse me," Gordon said as he dashed for the sink where violent retching could be heard. "Oh that means… Eww. God," he furiously washed his hands. It was difficult to fathom at how close he had been to touching guts. The thought of it was just sickening.
"Have some water, Mister Cale," Ducky suggested after he was sure the man was finished.
"Thanks, Doc," Gordon said, just managing to smile. "There's still some time left. We should see if they've finished searching through 29 Hanbury Street," he added. Tony nodded to Gordon and they turned to leave.