Return of the Crown Prince

Chapter 14

Phillip York raised his gun and pointed it at Eve Whitfield while staring intently at Robert Ironside. "What will it be, Chief? Are you going to tell your boys to back off or do I shoot Miss Whitfield?"

"Get one thing straight right now, York. If anything happens to either Eve or the crown prince, there is nowhere on this planet you will be safe from me," Ironside said with a deadly tone to his voice.

"I believe you. Now what do you say we avoid such a scenario." York picked up the receiver on the phone and reached out toward Ironside. "Call them."

Ironside looked from Eve to the crown prince and back to York. He stared at the man for a moment and then wheeled his chair over to the phone. He jerked the phone out of York's hand.

"A very wise decision for all concerned, Chief Ironside."

"Don't do it Chief," Eve called out.

"Shut up, Miss Whitfield," York said, pointing the gun at Ironside's policewoman. Eve backed off.

"This is Ironside. Patch me through to Lt. Reese."

York turned the gun quickly at Ironside. "Reese? Where's Brown?"

"I had to send him out of town to pick up a prisoner," Ironside answered.

York was shaking his head. "No, I don't believe that. You would not send your number one man out of town right now." He jerked the phone from Ironside's hand and hung it up. York immediately picked it back up and dialed the operator. "Please connect me with police headquarters." He waited a moment.

"San Francisco Police Department," a voice answered.

"I need to speak with Sgt. Brown," York told the officer.

"I am sorry sir, but Sgt. Brown was sent out of town on assignment. If you would like I can connect you with Chief Ironside's office. He is not in either but you could leave a message for Sgt. Brown or Chief Ironside."

"No thank you. I will call back." York hung up the phone. He stared at Ironside. "I can't believe you would send Brown out of town. No, you have something up your sleeve, Ironside."

"You have a suspicious nature, Mr. York."

"It keeps me alive."

"Lt. Reese has been on this case from the beginning. He is a very capable officer and works with my office all the time. He can handle anything that Sgt. Brown can," Ironside insisted.

"You better be telling the truth if you value Miss Whitfield's life. Alright, get Reese on the phone."

Ironside once again picked up the phone. He dialed police headquarters and said, "This is Ironside. Patch me through to Lt. Reese. He waited a moment and Reese came on the line. York reached over and hit the speaker button.

"Lt. Reese here, Chief."

"Carl, listen very carefully. You are to stand down and leave immediately."

"Chief, you know I can't do that. It's a hostage situation."

York interrupted Ironside. "Listen to me and carefully, Lieutenant. Unless you want your chief, Officer Whitfield and the prince to die, you will not storm this house. If you do, I will kill them immediately. Here is what you are going to do. I want twenty million dollars in unmarked bills brought to me. Once I receive it, I will release the crown prince in good faith. You will have an Air Force jet plane, fully fueled at San Francisco International Airport. I want a military pilot ready to fly myself, Chief Ironside and Officer Whitfield out of the country. I will tell him where he is going when he needs to know. There will be no negotiating my demands. If you do not meet them the San Francisco police department will be short two officers and the crown prince's country will no longer have a prince. Is that clear Lt. Reese?"

"Yes, Mr. York that is clear. Let me talk to the chief," Reese requested.

"Go right ahead Lieutenant. He is listening."

"Chief, how in the hell am I supposed to come up with twenty million dollars?" Reese asked.

"Contact Sergeant Robert Brown. He knows exactly how to handle it. He can contact and get through to the president. Call me back when you have talked to him," Ironside said and hung up.

"Very good Chief. Now who is Sergeant Robert Brown?"

"He works at headquarters. He will be able to contact with Artie Hinson at the White House."

York picked up the phone and again and called police headquarters. "I want to speak with Sgt. Robert Brown."

"One moment sir and I will put you through," the officer said.

One moment later, a voice came over the line, "Sgt. Brown."

"Sgt. Edward Brown?" York said.

"No sir, you have the wrong one. I'm Sgt. Robert Brown. Ed Brown works for Chief Ironside. I can switch you to his office if you would like but I don't think there is anyone in the chief's office at the moment. You could leave a message though."

"Never mind. I will contact him later." York hung up the phone. "Okay Chief, it seems you are playing it straight. Now we wait."

14.2

"Who the hell is Sgt. Robert Brown," Carl said in confusion. I don't know of anyone in the department by that name."

"You have to learn to figure out what Chief Ironside wants. He almost talks in code," said one of the detectives on the scene.

"Figure him out? I have never been able to figure that man out," Carl grumbled in exasperation. Reese reached into his car and grabbed the police receiver. "This is Lt. Reese. I need to talk to a Sgt. Robert Brown."

"Sgt. Brown," a familiar voice said.

"Duffy? Is that you?" Reese asked.

"Hi Carl. I figured you would be calling. I just got a call from the guy who is holding the chief."

"Why would he call you?" Carl asked, confused.

"He didn't. He asked for Sgt. Robert Brown. The officer at the desk did not know what to do with the call so he thought the man made a mistake. He called the chief's office. Mark had returned by then. When he told Mark about the call, he told the officer to send the call to Ironside's office. I was there at the time and posed as Sgt. Robert Brown."

"Why did he pick that name?" Carl wondered.

"It goes back to the Kinney case. You know how he was killing people with Robert as part of their name. Well he had attacked Ed if you remember. Ed's middle name is Robert. Mark knew immediately what the chief was trying to do. He wants you to contact Ed Brown. Whatever has come up involves Ed."

"But why didn't the chief just contact Ed directly?" Carl asked.

"Because he would have told York that Ed was sent out of the state to pick up a prisoner. He already has Ed working on another aspect of his plan."

"Why didn't he tell me all this before he went in there?" Carl complained.

"He couldn't. There wasn't time. He and Artie changed the plan. He knew you would figure it out and you have," Duffy said.

Carl rolled his eyes. "Thanks, Duffy. I better call Ed." He cut off the call. "Patch me through to Sgt. Ed Brown."

14.3

"What is taking so long for the chief to call?" Artie Hinson said.

"Relax, Artie. The chief knows what he is doing. This will work. Quit worrying," Ed said.

"Don't you think you would worry if you had to answer to the president of the United States if something goes wrong? You only have to answer to Chief Ironside," Artie said.

Ed looked at Artie and smiled. "That's right; I will have to answer to the chief. Quite frankly if anything goes wrong, I would much rather have to answer to the president."

Artie and Ed looked at one another and both men started laughing. "Okay, I concede the point," Artie said with a grin.

The phone in Brown's car began ringing. Ed picked it up and said, "Sgt. Brown."

"Ed, it's Carl."

"Carl, what's going on?" Ed asked him.

"Do you ever feel like the chief is speaking another language?" Carl asked.

Ed started to chuckle. "All the time. What's up?"

"York wants twenty million dollars in unmarked bills. Then he wants an Air Force jet at San Francisco International with a pilot to take him, the chief and Eve out of the county. He will release the crown prince as soon as the money arrives. He says he will release Eve and the chief later when he is safely away."

"He has no intention of releasing the chief," Ed said.

"How do you know that?"

"Artie and I have found out who his Washington contact is. York plans on turning the chief over to the Iranians to torture and murder to get back at the president."

"God, what a mess. The chief sure called this one wrong," Carl said.

"No he didn't, Carl. He had that information before he went in there. That is when the plan was changed. Don't worry, the plane will not be going anywhere. I'll get Artie on the phone. We'll make the arrangements. I'll get back to you," Ed said and hung up the phone.

"What's going on?" Artie asked. After Ed brought him up to date, Artie said, "Give me the phone. He dialed the White House in Washington DC. This is Artie Hinson. Put me through to the president. This is an emergency."

A moment later, President James Whitmore came on the line. "Artie, what is it?"

"York wants twenty million dollars and an Air Force jet out of the country."

"I will have the money wired immediately. Is everything else in place?"

"Yes, Mr. President. Everything is in place. I checked with the base and they said they are ready. They were able to do what you asked. The chief is going to try to get Eve out of there as well but I doubt York will go for it. He will use her to try to control Chief Ironside."

"He's in for a surprise then. No one, including Dennis Randall has ever been able to control Bob Ironside."

14.4

The ticking of the clock seemed louder that a freight train as Ironside sat waiting in his chair. It had been two hours and there had been no word regarding York's demands other than they were working on it. The chief kept a close eye on York. He had been looking for an opportunity to use the gun that was under his right leg. Unfortunately, York was watching him just as closely. There had not been even a second that Ironside could pull out the weapon and use it.

He would prefer to end this right here but he was prepared to see this through to its conclusion if it became necessary. He felt a little uneasy about Ed not being the one outside running the operation but he needed him elsewhere. He had to trust Carl to figure it all out. Carl was a good cop and he was completely loyal to Ironside. He knew that although Carl could be hotheaded at times, his instincts were every bit as good as Ed's. The only thing that bothered him was Ed had worked for him for many years. He knew and understood him better. Ed could figure out any puzzle Ironside would put together.

He had purposely given Carl the name of Sgt. Robert Brown. Carl had been professional enough and … smart enough not to question him as to who Robert Brown was. He knew he was taking a chance using that name. He was sure that it would send up a red flag to York … and it had. Thank god, whoever answered the phone at heard quarters had been discreet enough not to say there was no such detective in the building. Whomever the call ultimately went to must have been aware of this situation and answered it with Robert Brown. Ironside had dodged a bullet.

Carl obviously had been able to figure out his meaning as arrangements were being made. Ironside could only surmise that Carl himself had called the police department to find out whom Robert Brown was. If he had been able to get through to Mark, he would have known immediately what his boss wanted done.

Even if Lt. Reese did not know immediately what Ironside had wanted, he was smart enough to know how to go about finding out. At any rate, the plan was right on schedule.

York was watching Ironside. He did not like the look in the man's eye. What was it he did not like? He really did not know. The man was impossible to read. He just could not believe that Ironside came in here completely unprepared. What was he up to? His reputation had certainly been earned and anyone who ignored the deductive ability of this man found themselves behind bars.

York had to be certain that he did not underestimate him. He had already done so one and the result was Ironside's entire police force sitting on his doorstep. How did he do it? A man who was walking on the cuffs of his pants was all Ironside needed to figure out the man York had sent to his office was an imposter. How many detectives would have suspected a man who obviously knew what he was doing, of being an imposter? The man was brilliant and York could not afford to underestimate him again, not even for a minute. If he did, he would never get out of this country.

The United States had been his most lucrative country. He had made more money in this country than any other. Thanks to Ironside, he would never be able to step foot on American soil again. Not even the CIA or the FBI had been able to find out who he was. One man had destroyed his ability to operate here.

He hated Ironside. The sight of him made him want to put a bullet in his head. He had to resist the temptation to do so. Ironside was worth another five million dollars when he turned him over to the Iranians. Although, he would not be around to watch Ironside's fate, he knew what it was going to be. He would have to be satisfied knowing the man got what he deserved and that he was the one who brought it about. The only thing that would have been more satisfying is if he could have be the one to kill him. It was too late for that now. The deal had been made and he would keep his end of the bargain.

The crown prince sat with his arm around Eve Whitfield. It seemed to him that Chief Ironside had grossly underestimated this man. Even if the man kept his word and released him when the money had arrived, he planned to hold Eve Whitfield. That was unacceptable to the crown prince. He had made a pact with himself to protect her. He could not do that if he was not with her. Yet, it was clear Ironside wanted him to leave as soon as the money had arrived. He did not know how he was going to accomplish it but he was not leaving Eve behind. Either she left this house with him or he stayed with her.

Eve did not understand what was going on. This was not what the chief had planned at all. What was he doing here? He walked into a trap on purpose. It was bad enough she had to worry about Miguel but now another person she loved was in danger. She had to protect him. How could she successfully protect him and Miguel with no weapon against two men who were armed? The chief had something up his sleeve, but what? She looked over at her boss. What was he up to? Then Eve noticed that his right leg was slightly elevated above his left one. It was barely noticeable. He was armed! It was a trick that he had used successfully before. He was just waiting for the opportunity to do so.

Eve had to help him. She knew that York had not taken his eyes off her boss since he had gotten here. He was obviously worried about what Ironside was capable of … and rightly so. Eve knew the chief had gotten himself out of many a dangerous situation by using his wit rather than his brawn. She would have to keep an eye on him and be prepared to assist him. That is what he would be expecting.

The phone rang. Phillip York kept his gun pointed at Ironside. His eyes never left him as he stepped over to the phone. "Tell me what I want to hear, Lieutenant."

"The money is here. The state department has provided it. The Air Force jet is landing as we speak," Reese told York.

"Very good, Lieutenant. You have just kept your friends alive. Send someone in with the money. And, Lieutenant, don't do anything stupid. If you do, you are going to be minus a boss. Do you understand?"

"I understand," Carl said. Oh, how he would like to take this guy apart himself. "It is on its way in now."

"You have a very efficient police force, Chief." York told him.

Ironside said nothing. He did not change his expression. He just stared at York.

"Cat got your tongue?" York said with a grin. Still Ironside remained silent.

The doorbell rang. York looked at Mario. "Watch those two. If they even blink, shoot them." He turned to Ironside. "You come with me, Chief."

Ironside wheeled ahead of York to the front door. When he arrived at the door, he grabbed the handle and opened it. He wheeled backwards to give the messenger room to enter. Carl Reese came in the door carrying a suitcase. He glanced down at Ironside and looked back up at York.

"Welcome Lieutenant. Take the suit case down the hall, first door on the left."

Carl did as he was told. Ironside followed him in. York placed his gun barrel at the base of Ironside skull as a reminder to Reese not to try anything. When they got back into the office, Carl set the suitcase down on the desk. "Open it," York said, still holding his gun to Ironside's head.

Carl did as he was instructed. When he opened the suitcase, it was full of money, all hundred-dollar bills. "Such a beautiful sight," York said. "Did you see what you wanted to see Lieutenant Reese?"

"What?" Reese said.

"You are Lt. Reese? You came in to access the situation yourself, didn't you? Well, now you know. Let me be very clear. I will not hesitate to kill your boss if you try anything at all. No sharp shooters. I want you to see something, Lieutenant. Come here." Reese walked over to York. I have the trigger on this gun rigged. If my finger lets up the pressure, it will fire. I will have the gun pointed at Ironside's head. So if you were thinking about placing sharp shooters out there to shoot me, you had better think again. If you kill me and the pressure is lessened, Ironside dies. Do you understand, Lieutenant?"

"Yes, I understand," Carl growled. He felt helpless. He had hoped to find a way to help the chief while he was in here but he now realized it was out of the question. How were they going to stop York from taking Ironside and Eve out of the country?

"Now, take the prince and get out."

The crown prince looked look up. "I am not leaving. I will not leave Eve behind."

"You will do as you are told," York said.

"York, let Eve go with him," Ironside suggested. "You will still have me."

"No!" He shouted. You will be far more cooperative if her life is in danger. Now get out Your Highness."

"No! I am not leaving!" He shouted.

"Lieutenant, I suggest you get the prince out of here before I shoot him."

Reese walked over to the crown prince who tried to fight him off. He overpowered him and put handcuffs on him. With the crown prince complaining and yelling at him, Reese shoved him toward the door. He looked back at Eve and Chief Ironside. "Later, Chief."

Ironside nodded. Carl forced the crown prince out of the house.

"Now for the next stage. We are leaving for the airport, Chief. Officer Whitfield, you will be driving the van. Mario, you will cover Officer Whitfield. If she doesn't do exactly as she is told, shoot her. I will watch Ironside. You have behaved yourself so far, Ironside. I suggest it continue if you want this young lady to live."

"Eve, you do exactly as you are told to do," Ironside ordered his officer.

Eve wheeled Chief Ironside out of the house. She could not figure out what the chief was waiting for. If they got aboard that plane, they were both dead. Why did he just order her to do exactly what she was told to do? He often met the opposite. You had to know how to read the chief. His eyes told her he meant it. She was not to try anything. She just did not understand.

The ride to the airport was done in silence. When they arrived, York immediately spotted the Air Force jet plane. Without any problems, they boarded the plane. He began to laugh. Shortly, they would be in the air and Ironside was finished. He had outsmarted the famous Robert T. Ironside.