Cagney and Lacey fan Fiction
"The Roommate"
Cagney and Lacey are now working at the DA's office. Lacey and Harvey have downsized their house and have a small walk-up for them and Alice. Michael and Harvey Jr. are out on their own.
Christine was able to keep her townhouse from the divorce. She sold it and bought another loft in a building with a doorman.
The air is crisp and cool on Christine's way to work. She pulls her Ford Explorer into her parking spot at the courthouse and begins to gather her things. She locks the car and is walking up the steps of the courthouse when Mary Beth joins her side.
"Morning, Lieutenant. Have a good weekend?" Mary Beth smiles at her partner.
"Yes, it was ok. Got some shopping done, had some Chinese food. The usual. ". Christine still had Chinese food every now and then when she was thinking about her dad, Charlie. In some ways it felt like forever since she lost him, in others, just yesterday.
They walk in to Christine's office and get coffee together. As they are walking back to their desks, a detective comes in and hands Christine a case file.
"Missing persons. Female. 26 years old. Blonde hair. Green eyes. Slim build. Gee, I sure hope we find her in this city, but it's not like she is gonna stand out."
"Guess we oughta start interviewing witnesses. Let's go to her work since that's the last place she was seen. Then we can go to her apartment building."
Cagney and Lacey are in Cagney's car. Mary Beth is reading the case file for more info.
"Says she was an actress, and also worked as a waitress. One of those all night bars. Bartended sometimes, mostly waited tables. Lived alone until recently, just got a roommate a few months ago, according to her coworkers.. Not from around here".
"well, this ought to be interesting. Did you call the missing persons unit and see if they had any bodies lately that could be a match?" Cagney was always thinking one step ahead….
"Yes I did. They did not have anyone who could possibly match our missing person on anything". Lacey was always very thorough in her detective work. Always. It was part of why she and Cagney had gotten along so well all these years. She was the first to notice little details in a case, she also kept track of when Cagney wasn't herself and was the first to tell her she needed AA after Charlie died.
Cagney and Lacey pull up to the bar where the missing person had last been seen. They walked inside and asked to speak to the manager. He motioned to a table and they all sat. Cagney pulled out the missing girl's picture and showed it to him.
"Do you recognize this girl? Our sources tell us she worked here. One of her friends reported her missing. What can you tell us?"
"Yeah, I know her. Ashley something or other…. Davis, I think. Really good waitress. I didn't have any troubles out of her. They all know I support the arts here, so when they tell me they have an audition, I let them go. Then they come back, and we make up the shift."
He pulled out her employment file and began to look at her time card.
"She punched in on Thursday at 3. Worked till midnight. Told me she had an audition Friday at 11, and would be back in at 4 on Friday. She never showed. I left a few messages and told her to call me when she was ready to come back. I figured she didn't get the part and was upset and just needed a few days".
Cagney and Lacey begin to gather their things. "Thank you for your time, sir." Lacey extended her hand to shake his. They shake.
"My pleasure. And please let me know if you find out where she is. We are real worried." Cagney nods and hands him her card.
"If you hear from her, please call".
They leave the bar. As they are standing on the street, Cagney turns and looks up at the sign. Charlie's. She gets a little misty eyed, and they start to walk towards the car. Mary Beth pats her on the back with silent reassurance.
"I'm good. Long time ago…" says Cagney and they get in the car.
Cagney and Lacey drive to the apartment building where Ashley lives. The plan is they are going to interview the neighbors and hopefully get the landlord to let them in her apartment to look around. As they pull up, Lacey gets a big girin on her face.
"Well I don't believe this!". The building they are at is Cagney's old building, where she lived in her loft for several years.
"Love what they did with the place" says Cagney. They get out and go inside. It's a little different now. Cagney was the last owner to own her place instead of renting it. When she moved out, the landlord bought it and now the building is 100% rentals. Unlike when Christine lived here, there is a landlord on site and one of the apartments on the bottom floor is now a leasing office. Cagney and Lacey go inside and ask to speak to the manager. She ushers them into her office.
"We are investigating a case of a missing person, one of your tenants. Ashley Davis." Lacey shows her the picture. "Do you know her?"
The manager nods. "Yes, she's a lovely girl. Perfect tenant, always on time with her rent. Never has a noise complaint on her at all.".
"Great. Well if you don't mind, we are going to ask the neighbors if they know anything about where she might be and then later on, we would like to check out her apartment."
"Ok that's fine. She lived with roommates, top floor, 4th on the left. If they aren't home, I can come let you in with a key." Cagney couldn't recall the last time she and Lacey had found a manager to be so accommodating.
"Ok thank you. Have a good day, if we don't see you". Lacey and Cagney head to the door of the leasing office and down the hall towards the elevators. They had a pattern they always used; take the elevator up a floor, and Cagney knocks on doors on one side, Lacey on the other. This building was kind of small, only 4 apartments on each side, so they could just stay together on this one.
They go up one floor and get off when the doors open. They start with 201. From 201-207, nobody is home. 208 says she just moved in last weekend and hasn't gotten to know anyone. Floors 3 and 4 don't fare much better. They finally get to the top floor and they start with the same pattern.
501 says she is a "great, awesome, bubbly girl, and she hopes everything is ok because she wants them to do yoga together". 502 has no idea where she is or where she could be. "We only see each other in the hall or the laundry room". 503 is not home, and 504 doesn't speak English.
The duo gets to 505. Christine's old apartment. Lacey looks at Chris.
"You ready for this?" she asks.
"Just another place. No big deal".
"I for one can't wait to see what they've done with the place". Lacey knocks on the door.
The door opens and neither Lacey nor Cagney can believe their eyes. The person on the other side of the door is no other than Cagney's niece, Bridgit!
"Bridgit! What on earth are you doing here?" Cagney asks her.
"Hi Aunt Chris!" They hug. She invites them in. As Lacey and Cagney walk to the couch to sit, Lacey notices tears in Cagney's eyes.
They sit down, and Bridgit sits right next to Chris. Chris looks around. "Did you know this was my old place? Seems only fitting that you rented it too.". Bridgit smiles a huge smile.
"No, I didn't know it was yours. I guess the people who rented it before me had changed it to the point where I didn't make the connection".
Changed it they definitely had. They had enlarged the bathroom, and put in a bigger shower. They knocked down the bar and put in a lower counter. They put in a wall in the bedroom and made it two smaller bedrooms and added a closet for the second one. They put a window in the second bedroom, and moved the fire escape to that window. Where the fire escape had been off the living room was now a terrace. The kitchen had been updated with new appliances and unlike when Cagney lived there, the refrigerator had an icemaker. Cagney was officially jealous, although she had that and then some in the place where she was now.
"How long have you lived here? And when were you going to call your Aunt and tell her you were in town?" Chris and Bridgit had always been close, from the moment they met, but Chris and Bridgit both had a rocky relationship with Chris's brother Brian, Bridgit's dad.
"Just a couple of months. I came out here to audition for a play and when I didn't get it, I got embarrassed. So I got a job, a place to live, and I was going to call you when I knew you could be proud of me".
"Bridgit, I am always proud of you. You know that. And I am always here for you, regardless of the circumstances".
Lacey decides to start asking about Ashley. "Bridgit, is Ashley your roommate?"
Bridgett nods. "She rents the room to me for real cheap. When I get back on my feet, we are going to split the expenses. I wanted to get on the lease, but didn't have anyone to sign for me so this was the only way".
They chat about the last time she saw Ashley.
"She said she would be home after midnight. I went to bed when I got home at 11 or so, and when I woke up the next morning, I assumed she had already gone out before I woke up. We sometimes don't see each other for a couple days at a time, so I didn't get too worried until I came home again later that night and realized that she hadn't come home still. When her friend Stacey came by the next morning to pick her up for Yoga, I told her that I thought something was wrong. I went and looked in her room, even though I swore I would never do that and on her nightstand, I found her medicine container. You know, the kind that has the days of the week on it? She hadn't taken her meds since Thursday night. She always took them right before bed. It was now Monday morning, and she hadn't had her medicine since Thursday. I told Stacey something must be horribly wrong, and that's when she called the police. So they came out, and said that she would probably turn up and told us not to worry. But she hasn't. And I'm really scared. I really am, Aunt Chris. This isn't like her at all".
"Do you know anything about her family, or where she is from?" Chris just knew she had to solve this case so that Bridgit wouldn't be upset. She loved her niece so much and would do anything for her.
"Just that her parents live in Pennsylvania and she has a cousin in Jersey. I called them though, and they all said they hadn't heard from her".
"Ok, we will find her or find out what happened to her. It will be ok, Bridgit. I promise you that".
Lacey looked at Bridgit. "We are dedicated to this, Bridgit, and we will be in touch. You can count on that.".
Chris took a final look around her old place, and then picked up her purse. She grabbed her checkbook and wrote a check to Bridgit. "This should cover your expenses for a couple of months. When we find Ashley-and we will- you guys can settle up. Would you like to have dinner tonight? I would love to show you my place".
"Yes I would love that! And thanks, for the money. I am trying so hard to not call my dad." Bridgit put the check in her pocket and threw her arms around Chris.
They hugged for a minute, and then Cagney and Lacey stood up to leave. "So it's settled then. 7 p.m tonight, my place. We can order in whatever you want." They laugh as Cagney hands her a card with her address on the back.
Just then the phone in the apartment rings. Bridgit walks over to it, and says "I don't recognize that number".
"Just see if they leave a message" says Cagney. It rings a few more times, and then the message machine picks up. After the beep, a man's voice starts speaking.
"Hey Ashley, I see your car is still here at The Purple Diamond. I was hoping you could give me a ride home later. I don't see you in the club though, so that's why I called you.. I hope this is your cell phone number. Call me when you get this, babe. Bye".
Cagney looks at Bridgit. "Bridg, was Ashley dating anyone that you know of?"
"Not really. This guy Mark Andrews calls a lot for her, but she always said they were just friends. I wonder what she would be doing at the Purple Diamond".
"Lacey, what do you say we go to the Purple Diamond?" Lacey nods. "After you, Lieutenant". Bridgit and Chris hug one last time, and agree to see each other that night for dinner.
Cagney and Lacey leave the apartment building and head for the car.
"What a day already and it isn't even half-over. Reminders of Charlie everywhere and then Bridgit is in town. I still can't believe she didn't call me, but I can't wait to see her tonight". They ease on down the road and head towards the Purple Diamond.
Cagney and Lacey pull into the parking lot and spot Ashley's car. A white Jeep Cherokee 2009 parked all alone in the farthest spot from the door. Lacey notices that there are several employee's only spots next to a fence and inside the gated area just adjacent to the building. So if the employee's had designated spots, then why would she have parked all the way at the very back? Cagney is calling for backup and requesting permission from the DA to pop the lock and search the car. A few minutes later, she gets permission, and backup arrives. The young officer jimmies the lock, and they open the door. Right off, Cagney notices that there are several things that don't add up.
"Lacey come look at this. You have her file, what does it say her height is?".
Lacey opens the file. "5' 8". Cagney retrieves a tape measure and measures the distance from the gas pedal to the driver's seat. 72 inches. "Whomever was driving this car is at least 6' tall. So we know it wasn't Ashley".
She looks over to the glove compartment. All the contents are spread out on the passenger seat, indicating it had been rifled through. No way to tell if anything was missing though.
Cagney looks at the young officer. "Open the trunk please". He opens it, and immediately looks as though he wants to throw up.
There in the back cargo space of her Jeep, was a blue tarp. At the end of the tarp, a hand was sticking out. Ashley Davis was dead.
"Lacey, call Feldberg. This is now a homicide".
Later that night, Bridgit gets to Chris' apartment. The doorman lets her in, and a few minutes later, she is at Chris' door. They hug and then she goes and sits on the couch.
"I ordered a spread from the Chinese place down the block. It's great, you will love it. Chinese spare ribs, fried rice, lo mein, the works.. What can I get you to drink?"
"Just water is fine. I am so glad you found me today. I have really been missing you, Aunt Chris".
"Me too, but I wish you had let me know you were here. We could have hung out months ago. You remind me so much of your grandfather Charlie".
The two women sit on the couch and Christine tries to figure out how to tell her about Ashley.
"Bridgit, I have to tell you something. I just don't know how to say it". She hesitates and then just says it. "We found Ashley today. She was murdered. I'm so sorry".
Bridgit looks away, as her face crumples into a mess of tears. "I was hoping it wouldn't end that way. How did it happen?"
Chris reached out to soothe Bridgit. "We are thinking she was strangled but the coroner will have to be the one to tell us for sure. Her body was found in her Jeep at the Purple Diamond. I promise you, we are tracking down every lead".
Bridgit nods. "She was so pretty and such a lovely girl. I am really gonna miss her". She wipes her tears and drinks some water. She looks at Chris. "Guess I have to find a new place to stay".
Chris looks at her. "You will. We will find you the perfect place". Just then, the buzzer rang, and the doorman said "food's here". The women got up and Bridgit went to the kitchen. Chris answered the door and got their Chinese. The rest of the evening was eating and laughing, and Bridgit trying to not be sad over Ashley and trying not to panic about finding a place to live.
***the next day in Cagney's office****
Cagney is sitting at her desk looking over the case file. She has sent the answering machine to have the message analyzed. She ordered a subpoena for the phone company to find out the phone number of the person who called so they could interview him. She also requested a copy of the surveillance tape that would hopefully show the person who parked Ashley's Jeep in the parking lot that night.
Lacey walks in and puts her purse down. She sets a fresh cup of coffee on Cagney's desk.
"Morning. How did it go with Bridgette last night?"
"Morning. As well as could be expected, I suppose. The Chinese food helped and I think just being able to chat with someone helped too". Cagney fills her in on what she had requested. The only thing left was to go and tell her family that they had found her. Bridgit had volunteered to call them, and when she did, she found out they had come to New York to help look for her. They were staying at a hotel near Bridgit and Ashley's place.
"Wanna go with me to tell the parents?"
"No, but I will". Lacey grabbed her purse and Cagney grabbed hers too and off they went.
***coming out of the hotel where the parents are staying***
Cagney and Lacey are walking towards the car.
"I hate doing that. I am glad you were there with me and knew what to say, because I sure didn't. "
Lacey looks at her. "It's never easy. But it has to be done. I just say to them what I would want someone to say to me if it was my child who had been found dead, God forbid".
They get in the car, and drive back to the office.
Lacey punches out to go to lunch with Harvey, and Cagney decides to order in and work through lunch. She is about ½ way done with her salad when she gets a phone call.
"Lieutenant Cagney".
"Hello, Chris, it's Brian".
"Brian- hi! How's my brother?"
"I am fine. I just talked to Bridgit, and she told me that her roommate had been murdered. Is she safe living there, Chris? I am really worried about her".
"She is fine, Brian. I am running the investigation into Ashley's murder, and she was murdered at a club, not at their apartment. Did Bridgit tell you she was renting my old loft? I had dinner with her last night, and told her about Ashley myself. She took it as well as could be expected. I told her she is welcome to stay with me if she doesn't want to be alone. I also told her I would help her find a new place. I really do think she is fine".
"Ok. I believe you. But will you please let me know if she's not? I told her to call me if she needs absolutely anything, but she's my daughter so I know she will probably come to you first. I don't want to push her or boss her around, I just want to help if she needs it".
"I will Brian. I promise you. And if at any time during this investigation, I feel that she is in danger, I will make sure she is protected. You have my word".
They exchange pleasantries and hang up. She calls Bridgit but doesn't get an answer. She leaves a message and goes back to work until Lacey returns.
A few minutes later, a uniform officer brings in the subpoena and the phone records. "Here is what you asked for Lieutenant".
"Thank you". She divies up the phone records and hands some to Mary Beth.
"Here is the number we are looking for- 212-654-3207. I am going to call the phone company right now and ask them to tell me who it belongs to. Will you look through these and see how many times this number called Ashley's apartment?" She hands the rest of the records to Mary Beth while she dials the phone company.
A few minutes later, she hangs up from talking to the phone company and tells Mary Beth excitedly that she knows who the caller was. She calls uniforms and has them go pick him up and bring him in for questioning.
"His name is Matthew Evans, aka Mark Andrews., and we are going to see what he knows about Ashley and her final moments, or at least her habits".
"Good work Partner" says Mary Beth.
*** the next day, at the office***
Cagney and Lacey are discussing the newest developments since the afternoon before. The video tapes revealed that Matthew was the one who drove Ashley's car to that parking lot. Under intense questioning, he admitted to following her from Charlie's bar and asking her on a date. She turned him down, they argued and he snapped, and killed her accidentally. He panicked and put her in her own car. Then he drove to his house, and got the tarps, and then wrapped her in them and put her in the trunk of her Jeep. Then he drove the Jeep to a nightclub and parked it where he thought it wouldn't be noticed for several days, wiped down his prints on the inside and left. He didn't count on the tapes picking up his likeness. He called Ashley's apartment and left that message just to throw off suspicion. Suspicion that wasn't on him in the first place, but he didn't know that. And even though according to him Bridgit was never the target or in any danger, Chris wanted to make sure. She drilled that point over and over during questioning. He was telling the truth on that.
Feldberg cut him a deal and agreed to charge him with manslaughter in exchange for a sentence of 12 years. He had 48 hours to have his lawyer relay what his decision was.
"So that's it. I am taking Bridgit to lunch today and will fill her in. I think we might make lunch together a weekly thing. I love having her here".
"That's great! You two will have a wonderful time together".
Cagney picks up the phone and calls Brian to tell him that it's over.
***At the restaurant. Cagney and Bridgit are enjoying a nice Italian meal***
"Your father called me yesterday and I told him the same thing. You were never in danger, you were never the target of this guy. You were and you are safe. So, how are you doing?" Chris looks at Bridgit.
"I'm ok one minute and then I am a basket case the next. The apartment is so lonely without her there. I tried sleeping in her room, but it didn't help. I don't know how much longer I can stay there, Aunt Chris. I can't get an apartment in my name and I can't legally have a roommate move in unless the apartment is in my name. I am trying but I just can't figure this out".
"What if I co-sign for you, and then you find a roommate, would that help?"
"You would do that for me? Really?"
"Well of course, you are family. I will do anything to help you, Bridgit. I mean that".
"You are the best Aunt Chris!".
They enjoyed the rest of their lunch and then they went to the leasing office in Bridgit's building. After signing the papers (Chris even negotiated a lower rent for Bridgit), she took Bridgit shopping. Bridgit had mentioned that Ashley's parents had said they would be up next weekend to pack up her things. Bridgit was going to move into that room when they cleared it out. She got a new mattress pad, a new comforter set, and some new pots and pans and dishes. She promised to have Chris over one night for dinner cooked in the new pots and pans.
And as Chris settled into to her apartment that night, she grabbed a glass of hot tea, and her cellphone. She reflected on the events of the past week, which of course led to reflecting on the case. She came to the realization that Charlie led her to Bridgit. It was no coincidence that she was investigating a case where the person worked at a place called Charlie's and the person's roommate turned out to be Bridgit. Growing misty-eyed, she finished her tea and picked up her phone. She sent a text to Brian explaining that she co-signed for Bridgit to stay in the apartment and that she was going to find a roommate once Ashley's parents had moved her things out. She ended the text with a phrase that was perfect for not only how she was feeling, but how Bridgit's life was and Chris' life too.
"All is well".