Space Ghost
Chapter 22
Kate was ready; she was going to confront Bracken. He was in New York City to do a TV interview from somewhere inside a hotel. She just had to get there.
Their lead on those DVDs had turned up a heroin smuggling team that unfortunately didn't include Bracken so far as she could tell.
What she had to tell Bracken and question him with he would naturally deny. However just asking the questions would get the press moving and doing some investigating. He might be hiding in the shadows at the moment, but after this hopefully that would change.
Kate hadn't told anyone what she was going to do. If she had she was sure someone would try and stop her. But she had to do this. She had a name even if she didn't know how or really why he had ordered her mother killed.
She unlocked the drivers side door and found it was already unlocked. No one was expecting her but she looked the car over and didn't see anyone or anything wrong so she got in and inserted her key.
"You called," a male voice said as she jumped in surprise since she saw nothing or anyone. She reached for her weapon anyway. "You won't need that," the voice told her and in fact the voice was correct. Unless she put the muzzle in his mouth and pulled the trigger she couldn't hurt him. Then suddenly he showed up in her passenger seat. It was Space Ghost.
"GOD, don't do that. You nearly gave me a heart attack." Kate put her weapon back in her holster.
"You weren't home so I figured you would be here. While I could have gone up to you I thought you might not want me there. So I waited here for you to show up," Rick explained.
"So how did you know this was my car? Never mind." How he did what he did was probably something she wasn't going to understand. Now she had a new idea and Space Ghost was perfect for it.
"You're coming with me." Kate started the car and drove off. "So what have you been up to lately?" She was ready for small talk.
"Designing a new home, spending time with my girlfriend and her son, and waiting for the Xindi to show up," Rick replied even if it didn't sound like all that much.
"Xindi? Didn't you say something about them earlier?" Kate queried.
"You mean back when you were certain that aliens didn't exist?" Rick wasn't really trying to rub it in, but it did sound like it.
"Yeah, sorry about that. I was being stubborn and didn't want to believe you. It took a lot of time to get to this point." More time and effort than she wanted to remember.
"I'm sure a vast number of people on the planet are thinking just what you were thinking. Just remember we aren't aliens, we were born here. We just spent a number of years on a different planet. Alexis and Alexandre grew up on different planets," Rick said and watched where they were going.
"Did they speak English there or did you learn another language?" Kate was curious because if he could speak another language that would help her believe.
Rick gave her an example of that language. "We all now can speak fluently in two different languages. I taught Alexis English while she was in school learning the other. I haven't asked but I'm betting Lais did the same with Alexandre." Maybe he would learn that eventually.
"I assume you two are close?" Kate knew her chance had passed her by and she was fine with that. If she found someone, she did, and if she didn't, she didn't.
"We've gotten very close. …So where are we going?" They were still driving.
"I got Coonan into the precinct and recorded his confession about having killed my mother. Then it was stolen right out from under our noses. And everything got worse. Coonan, that guy you helped me with, was murdered while in our holding cell." That part was what scared her the most.
"Interesting." Having someone killed while inside a police building said a lot. "I can promise you it wasn't me." He didn't use his invisibility to get inside and kill him.
"I didn't say you did and we still don't know who did. I need your help with Bracken this time." She proceeded to lay out her new idea. "He's here in the city to do an interview with a local TV station. If you can do to him what you did to Coonan he can tell the truth to everyone around him and while on TV doing his interview. Do you think you can handle that?" Kate took a peek at him and all she saw was his white suit and the hooded side of his face.
"Piece of cake. No one will see a thing." He just had to get in close enough for no one to see his ray.
"Great! And thank you." She almost had him. She just had to get into the room and past the guards she was sure he would have. Her victory was finally in sight and it took a guy from outer space to help her. The irony wasn't lost on her. Granted he might not be an alien but he was from space so that was close enough.
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Kate was stopped. "I'm sorry, Detective, but I can't allow you inside." Though before she could blow up on this guy or think of an excuse to be allowed in she saw something familiar. It didn't last long and it had this swirling feature she had seen before.
"Try again," a very soft voice suggested.
"Stand aside!" Kate ordered and watched him step away. "Where were you when I needed you?" She was too preoccupied at getting inside to ask if she could have one of those. Whatever it was he was using.
Then she ran into another door only this man didn't stop her after she showed him her badge. Kate held the door open just long enough for Rick to slip inside unnoticed.
Bracken was seated in the room with a reporter next to him. There was a camera man, another person, and two more guards. Kate felt her blood boil just looking at the man. She hated him with a passion unrivaled by anyone over anything.
"Senator Bracken." Kate held up her badge, interrupting the reporter who was asking him a question.
"Detective Beckett. I would be happy to help one of New York's finest, however I am in the middle of an interview." He had been expecting her, just not here.
"This won't take long. I only have a few questions for you," Kate told him. She actually had a lot of questions but would start with one of the more damning of them.
"I would be happy to talk with you after this interview." She was out of her element and he didn't understand why she couldn't see that. He was the one with the power here.
Then he saw something. Kate also saw it but everyone else was watching her so they didn't. If the camera caught it she didn't care. Still Kate kept an eye on him and looked to see if he had the same blank face Coonan had had last time.
Then she felt someone touch her and moved her eyes to look but saw nothing. "He's all yours," Kate heard and literally felt the air from his words brush her ear.
She smiled a wicked smile. "Senator Bracken, who killed Dick Coonan while he was locked up in our holding cell?" She was full of questions and he was going to tell her everything.
"Hal Lockwood," Bracken replied.
"Why did he kill Coonan? Who ordered him to kill Coonan?" Granted that was two questions but she was excited. Let's see his lawyers get him out of this, she thought.
"I did."
"How many people have you had murdered, Senator?" Kate asked.
"Eight."
"Does one of those eight include ordering to have me killed?" Was he willing to incriminate himself?
"Yes."
It was now that the room started to buzz. The reporter was making sure her cameraman was getting all this. While the other person had pulled out a phone and was using it. And one of the guards was speaking into something.
"Did you order my mother's murder? Johanna Beckett?" There, her most important question had been asked.
"Yes."
"Why did you order the death of Johanna Beckett?" Why did her mother have to die?
"She was in my way."
"In your way how?" Kate had him but didn't understand.
"She could have stopped me from becoming a senator."
"You murdered your way to being a senator?" Kate asked.
"Yes."
"Why did you kill your way to being a senator?" What was so damn important about being a senator?
"To become president." It was his ultimate goal. He was going to be the greatest president ever. It was his destiny.
Then the doors opened and in rushed two men in suits. "What's going on here?" one of them demanded.
"Senator William H. Bracken is under arrest for murder. Several counts, in fact," Kate informed him coldly.
He saw her badge and knew she was within her rights. But he couldn't allow it to happen. "I'm afraid the senator is under our protection and I can't allow you to continue." He was stretching his authority but he had little choice.
"Turn around, Bracken, and place your hands behind your back. You're under arrest for murder." Kate produced her cuffs and watched as Bracken did as he was told.
"I'm afraid I can't allow this." He literally placed his hand on Kate's arm to stop her. That got her to quickly draw her weapon and point it had his head. Everyone else in the room who was armed drew their weapons, except for this man.
"You are interfering with an officer of the law in her duties. Protecting a murder suspect who has just confessed on camera is also an offense." Kate wasn't sure how this was going to end. But she was arresting Bracken and if she had to shoot her way out of this, this idiot was going to be the first to die.
However, she was rescued when suddenly four uniformed officers came running in and seeing guns everywhere they drew theirs and ordered everyone to lower their weapons.
Kate had no idea where they came from but was glad to see them. But everyone just kept on yelling at each other over who was going to do what. Then something she really hadn't expected was to see Espo, Ryan, and two more officers, all with weapons drawn, come charging into the room.
"Beckett?" Espo had gotten word that Beckett needed help but he wasn't expecting this.
"Bracken has just confessed to eight murders and is under arrest. These men are interfering in the duties of an officer who is enforcing the law," Kate announced again and not just for the benefit of Ryan, Espo, and the officers but also for the cameraman who was still filming all this.
He and the reporter had just hit the jackpot and interview of the century and were going to milk it for all it was worth.
"She's correct. Senator Bracken just confessed to ordering eight people to be murdered," the reporter confirmed.
"Arrest these men," Kate ordered and watched as the four relinquished their weapons and had their hands cuffed behind their backs. That allowed Kate to finish arresting Bracken and reading him his rights.
"Do you understand the rights I have told you?" Kate asked Bracken.
"Yes." Bracken didn't actually understand the words if not their meaning in his present state.
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Kate was watching as Bracken was placed in the back of a police cruiser while the cameraman and the reporter covered it all.
"Guard those two. We're not losing this tape like we lost the last one," Kate ordered, looking at Ryan and Espo. "Make sure you get several copies and find places to hide them."
"On it." Ryan pulled a number of uniforms together and went everywhere the reporter and her cameraman went.
"Why are you here?" She looked at Espo. She hadn't asked for them. She hadn't called for them and certainly wasn't expecting them. Though she was glad to see them.
"We got a message to come here because you were arresting Bracken," Espo replied. Even if he didn't know who had sent the message.
"Space Ghost," Kate whispered. She really did owe that man and didn't have any idea how she was going to thank him.
"Space Ghost?" Espo looked around. "Where?" He didn't see him anywhere.
"I have no idea. He's invisible," Kate responded.
"You believe in invisibility?" That didn't sound like the Beckett he was used to.
"I do now." She believed in a lot of things that she hadn't before. She had gotten here the hard way but somehow that was how she always seemed to do things. Yet as she saw the car taking Bracken away she somehow felt a little empty.
"We need to get back and get a copy of that video. I want several copies and I want guards on the holding cell this time. No one is sneaking in and killing him or those four." She wanted Bracken to go to court, be found guilty, and rot to death in prison of old age.
"Let's move." She had Bracken but she wasn't done yet. Too much had gone wrong already and didn't need for more things to go wrong.
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"What's going on?" Roy was out of his office when he spotted Bracken with his hands cuffed behind his back being escorted to holding.
"I got a confession. He has admitted to murdering eight people including my mother and this time we still have the tape that a local TV station made. Ryan's at the station right now making sure he gets several copies to distribute just in case. In addition–" Kate was interrupted when the four guards were brought in with their hands cuffed behind their backs.
"And those four?" Roy watched the four being taken to holding.
"They tried to prevent me from arresting Bracken after he confessed to murdering eight people," she explained.
"Beckett, my office." He needed to go through this with her.
"Yes, sir, right after if make sure the holding cell is well manned to prevent any of them from being killed while in our custody." Kate followed everyone else and left Roy behind. This was far too important to get it wrong.
Satisfied that there were two officers in uniform that would be on duty in and just outside of holding 24 hours a day she went past Espo on the way to Roy's office.
"Get out an APB for Hal Lockwood. Bracken admitted that he ordered Lockwood to kill Coonan in our holding cell," Kate said to Espo who looked shocked. Nothing had ever come this easily before. Still he believed her and got busy trying to find one Hal Lockwood. "And get that lead prosecutor down here, too."
"Sir?" Kate was at his door.
"Come in and close the door," Roy said.
"I got him, sir. He confessed of his own free will in front of witnesses and we have it all on video. Ryan's making sure there are several copies. The TV station has the ultimate story to put on air." She just didn't know when they were going to do that.
All of this left Roy with a problem and he didn't yet know what to do about it. "I'll call the lead prosecutor." If he could delay him showing up it would give him time to think.
"Espo has already done that, sir. He should be here shortly, I'm guessing." A confession of a killer and having done it in front of witnesses and on a recording that wasn't missing would likely get him here at light speed.
Roy was trapped and knew it. He still needed to plan how to handle this. If Kate knew he was involved in this he would have a weapon being pointed at him if not shoved into his mouth right now.
"Sorry, you wanted to see me, sir?" Kate had been doing all the talking and he had asked her into his office to talk to her.
"If you're satisfied with everything you need to start on your report while it's still fresh in your mind." That should slow her down a little.
"Yes, sir. The second I'm done I'll be in the holding area all night." There was no way she was going home. Not now. She had Bracken right where she wanted him.
Kate was out of Roy's office and went straight to Espo. "The prosecutor's on his way. The APB for Hal Lockwood is out," he reported.
"See if you can contact Ryan at the TV station. We need those copies and find out what you can about what the station is going to do with their copy and when." Then Kate went to her desk to work on her report.
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Kate took her finished report over to the copier and made two copies. One was going on Roy's desk, one was going with her, and one was going to be stashed somewhere in this precinct just as soon as no one was looking.
She glanced at Espo. "Anything?" He was still here as well for which she was thankful.
He shook his head. "No information on Lockwood. Ryan has checked in and says he has three copies. He's going to mail one of them to you, mail another to the chief, and bring the other here. He doesn't know what the TV station has planned. They were still talking about it."
"I need a favor." Kate wasn't sure how he was going to take this.
"Name it." He was willing to do a lot.
Her gaze steady, she said, "I need extra clips for my weapon. I want to see if you can check out a semi-automatic. Get me a thermos of coffee and a sandwich. I'm spending the night in holding. I know there are guards but I'm taking no chances."
"You got it!" Espo got up and headed out to get everything she had asked for.
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"I only need one," Kate protested. Espo had shown up with two semi-automatics, extra clips for everything, two thermoses and two sandwiches, and even two blankets and two pillows.
"I'm staying with you," he insisted stubbornly. "If they get past me it's because I'm dead." He was going to set up shop just outside while Kate was going to be inside.
"I can't ask you to do that." It was kind of him but she could handle this.
"You're not asking. I'm volunteering. So go use the ladies room and let's get started." Espo wasn't taking a no over this.
"Thanks, Espo, and I've already used the restroom." Kate took her weapon and checked it to make sure it was ready to go. Nothing was happening this time unless it was over her dead body.