"You gonna start this thing up or what?" Ed asked as Joe just sat in the car.

"Oh yeah, I was just thinking," Fontana replied as he turned the engine of his sports car over.

"What about?"

"Your former partner and the lieutenant, not exactly a combination I would have guessed, but then again I can see it happening," Joe answered.

"Oh really?" Ed said skeptically.

"Yeah well, they worked together for a long time didn't they?" Joe asked as he drove toward the ferry.

"Yeah something like 11 years," Ed answered.

Joe went into his 'let me tell you what I learned from a cable TV show mode', "Sometimes people work together for a long time like that, they fall into what's called platonic affairs. They become very intimate in all ways except sexually, usually because there's some big barrier to an actual affair, like the regulations against anti-fraternization, or one or the other of the couple being married and devoutly religious. So when the barriers come down it shouldn't be surprising–"

"You know, I'm not particularly in the mood to hear your amateur psychoanalysis of Lennie and the Lieutenant's relationship, right now," Ed interrupted a bit sharply.

"Ok, let's just work the case then, we'll go back to Levy's and get the DNA sample we need from him, ask if he arranged to get Lennie back on the force and see what he knows about Giletti," Fontana suggested contritely.

"Yeah, let's just do that," Ed said and then remained silent the rest of the trip back to Manhattan.

As Lennie completed the back nine, his mind wouldn't stop worrying over the situation. By the time he'd sunk the putt at the eighteenth, he'd made up his mind that no matter how awkward it was, he had to talk to Anita. He felt sure she regretted being with him; otherwise she wouldn't have left while he was asleep, but it didn't matter. He had to talk to her. He had to make sure she handled things the right way.

The phone rang and Anita van Buren answered it almost reflexively, "Van Buren, oh hi Lennie," she said her voice growing softer and more feminine. She listened for a moment.

"OK, I think I can get a way for lunch. Where would you like to meet?" she asked.

"Oh, all right, I'll stop by the deli and bring some sandwiches over, see you about 11:30, OK?" She waited for his answer then said goodbye.

A street somewhere in Manhattan

Ed and Joe found themselves at a stakeout that Gus was conducting; when the two pulled up to his Cadillac SUV, he was not pleased.

"Did Margie tell you were to find me?" he asked hotly.

"Yes, she did," Joe answered.

"Damn, if she wasn't family, I'd fire her pretty little ass," Gus grumbled, then added impatiently, "What do you two need?"

"Uh, well we need a DNA sample and an answer to a question," Joe said bluntly.

"Well, I'm mad enough to spit, would that work for your DNA sample," Gus replied testily.

"Well, actually I think the lab would prefer you used the kit," Ed said. Gus grabbed the container out of his hand, opened it, scraped the inside of his cheek with the swab and resealed the container with a practiced hand, all before either Joe or Ed could say a word.

"OK, so what's the question? I need to get the two of you out of here before you blow my cover on this stake out," Gus said impatiently.

"Fine, let's get to the point. Did you have something to do with Lennie getting back on the police force, and could that have something to do with Ciello's death?" Joe asked.

Gus shot Joe a look and then furrowed his brow thinking.

"Lennie, tell you guys I got him back on the force?" he asked.

"No, but he said he thought you had, but that he didn't ask you. I got the feeling he wouldn't feel right bringing it up to you. Seems like he feels you really got a raw deal, and well I got the sense that as far as Lennie's concerned you're sort of a hero in his eyes," Joe finished.

Gus harrumphed, "Yeah, well he's kind of like a kid brother to me, and you know how that goes."

Joe and Ed both nodded.

"So did you get Lennie back on the force?" Ed repeated the question.

"Yeah, you see when I was working undercover in the garment district, I found out about this beat cop who was on the take. He was a year ahead of Lennie at the academy and it burned his butt that Lennie had moved up so much quicker than he had. Well, this punk had family who were real high up in the NYPD, but there he was taking kickbacks from the mob. So after they kicked Lennie and me off the force, and tried but failed to convict me, I went to see this cop's old man. I told the guy, either Lennie got back on the force or I'd dime out his kid," Gus finished his story with a bit of a grin.

"Who was this guy?" Ed asked.

"The old man's name was Antonio Gilletti, his son is Daniel Gilletti, currently he's the Chief of Detectives of the NYPD," Gus answered.

Ed and Joe exchanged looks.

"I remember meeting him, when Lennie and me had that case at Raimondo's. He knew the owner really well and said the restaurant was near and dear to him. Turned out the owner hired the guy who killed the producer, although the hit wasn't suppose to go down inside the restaurant," Ed commented.

"You think Giletti could have killed Ciello, or had him killed, and tried to make it look like Lennie did it?" Joe asked.

"Maybe, or maybe he was even trying to throw the suspicion at me. I mean there were guys who knew I was bent out of shape at Danny about him letting them go after the kid like that, though why Giletti would wait so long to do it makes no sense to me," Gus added.

"Boy, does this take things in a new, fun direction," Joe said sarcastically.

"Hey, you guys tell me something?" Gus asked tentatively.

"Sure if we can," Ed promised.

"Does Lennie have an alibi or not?" Gus said in a frustrated tone.

"You mean you don't know?" Joe asked in an almost mocking tone.

"No, he wouldn't give me a straight answer, that's why I'm asking you guys," Gus said, trying to hold back his irritation.

"Well, the answer to your question is yes and no," answered Ed.

"What the hell does that mean?" Levy asked tersely.

"It means he's got an alibi, but he's not willing to use it," Joe supplied and Ed nodded.

"Oh let me guess, he's protecting a woman," Gus said dejectedly.

"You got it in one," Joe said, and then added. "Guess you know your cousin fairly well."

"Yeah, Lennie has this incredible talent for being in the wrong place, at the wrong time, and if being with some other guy's gal would make it worse, well that'd be Lennie's luck," Gus said with a laugh and a rueful shake of his head, and then he added almost as an afterthought, "she's married isn't she?"

"Wish that was all she was," Ed mumbled under his breath.

"What did you say?" Gus asked.

"Never mind, it wasn't important. Look we ought to be getting back. We don't want to stay too long or we might blow your cover, or the person you've been staking out just might slip past you," Ed added.

"Yeah, you're probably right. Guys, figure out who did this, OK? 'Cause I know, and you know, it wasn't Lennie." With that, the three men shook hands, and parted ways.

"Well, let's drop these sample off to Beck and then let's go talk to the boss lady, see how she wants us to proceed," Joe suggested.

"Yeah, that sounds like as good a plan as any, but how about we stop and get some lunch after we stop by the lab?" Ed countered.

"One might think you were putting off having to go question the chief of D," Joe teased.

"Oh really, what makes you think I just don't want to go talk to our boss lady?" Ed asked.

"Yeah, well there's that too. Man, I hope I can keep the picture of her doing the horizontal hula with Briscoe out of my head during briefings, or I could be in big trouble," Joe remarked.

"Oh hell, you could have gone all day without saying that! Just get in the damn car and drive, Fontana!" Ed said with mock anger.