"INVESTORS DUPED BY FAKE DUPONT"
"Is this one of yours?" Angie passes the paper to him across the breakfast table and he grins with pride.
"NYCEDRIN TAMPERER NABBED"
"Good job!" The Chief of Detectives slaps him on the back, seeming to have forgotten his earlier reservations. He finds himself walking a little taller.
"DRUG GANG MONEY MAN LINKED TO MURDER"
"Glad you managed to keep the Governor out of the papers, you handled that well." The Commissioner takes him to lunch and he's never eaten so well. Full of fine food and self importance, he berates a member of the Support Staff for sloppy work on his return to the office.
"PLASTIC SURGEON CONVICTED – DESPITE NO BODY"
The Quarterly Performance Indicators are published and Major Case shows considerable improvements. Flush with success he sends out a slew of memos highlighting examples of poor procedure, determined not to let the statistics drop.
"ABORTION SNIPER APPREHENDED"
His annual appraisal goes well. He is less forgiving when appraising his staff, wanting to sustain the good reputation he is gaining amongst the higher-ups.
"SABATELLI SCANDAL"
"Major Case has got some balls. You're doing good over there, Jimmy." The DA's words come to him through a cloud of cigar smoke. He puffs on his own cigar and puffs up his ego.
"TUXEDO HILL TRAVESTY"
The mood is mixed in the bar. Several of the guys have lost money they invested, but they are all full of praise, pleased that one of theirs was involved in exposing the fraud. He doesn't buy a drink all night. He's a little bit drunk and strutting when he returns home and Angie mocks him for being pompous.
"SICK CHILD SCAM EXPOSED"
Angie is upset, she had read the book, had believed...But he is too full of tales of how Goren had revealed the deception, too full of righteousness to consider her feelings. He sits, bolstered by the ego boosting reputation of his department and barely notices she has retreated to the kitchen in silence.
"RADICAL MUSLIM TERROR PLOT FOILED"
He and Angie join the Mayor for dinner and he soaks up the schmoozing. Angie is polite but withdrawn.
"This is not who you are, Jimmy." Her words are tinged with sadness.
"MAJOR CASE –MAJOR KUDOS"
The feature article in the Sunday paper and his thoughts turn to promotion.
"How does Inspector Deakins sound?"
Angie's look of scorn feels like a mockery of his achievements. The bitter argument that follows becomes nasty, and for the first time in years, he sleeps on the couch.
"CHARITY COUPLES GREED?" "GREEDY GARCIAS FLEECE WELFARE FOR GOLD PLATED TAPS?"
He's standing in the doorway to his office, speculating on what the papers would say about this latest case.
"EYE DOCTOR MUTILATES MENTALLY ILL?"
The ophthalmologist is led from the interrogation room in cuffs and Goren makes for a phone. He can't hear the content of the call but the detective's distress is evident, as is the consternation on Goren's face as he heads out of the Squad Room. As evident as the worry and concern radiating from Eames and Carver.
Mentally ill... Goren's mother...
A shocking realisation hits him and he retreats back into his office, sinking into his chair.
He had let power and prestige go to his head, had lost sight of the really important people.
Important people like hard working detectives who were committed and worked long hours. Who had personal lives and problems but still got the job done. Who were the real story behind the headlines and the real reason for the department's success.
Important people like Angie, who was loving and loyal and the real reason his marriage had lasted longer than most. Who had given birth to three beautiful daughters and raised them practically single handed. Who believed in him and his commitment to the job.
He had lost sight of who he was; a cop not a politician.
He makes a note to check in with Goren and Eames tomorrow, orders some flowers and knows what tomorrow's headline should read:
"DEAKINS EATS HUMBLE PIE"