For the People Chapter 51

"Neighspec has officially named us their agent in the North Bronx," Brown Rock CFO Lenny Felsher announces to CFO Horace Shuck.

Shuck pulls open the bottom drawer of his desk and affectionately retrieves a bottle of 12-year bourbon and two whiskey tumblers. "Excellent!" He begins filling the two glasses. "We can proceed with the first stage of our operation. What's our initial target?"

"It's the structure closest to the lot Nick and Teach are finishing with. The building has one of those stores that buy odd lots of crap, and a bodega at street level. There are four floors of apartments above that."

"How many units and what's the square footage?" Shuck inquires, handing Felsher a drink.

"Two units per floor, 785 square feet each, so that totals out at 6280 square feet in the apartments and we could add another 1570 if we convert the stores to residences," Felsher replies.

"No," Shuck considers, "instant access to upscale shopping will be part of the attraction of the new units. We'll turn them into a gourmet market and a boutique. Get our people started on obtaining permits to gut the building for renovations and have the management decline to renew any leases coming due. When does the last one expire?"

"A tenant on the top floor just signed on for another year three months ago, so nine months."

"That should time out about right to get all the contracts lined up and the permits approved. And will we be employing the usual methods to encourage tenants to vacate?"

"Of course," Felsher confirms.

"Very good. It's about time a blighted neighborhood began to get a new face. Neighspec will be improving the lives of North Bronx residents – or at least that's what we'll tell the press when the protests start coming in."


"I rested today," Kate reports as she unloads her cooler into the loft's fridge.

"You let Itzen question the witnesses backing up Graupel?" Rick inquires.

"No, I mean I rested the prosecution's case. Lowell begins presenting his side tomorrow."

"What has he got he can use to dispute all your evidence?" Rick questions.

"I'm guessing that he'll attempt to portray Brooks as a fine upstanding dedicated public servant and Gates as a jealous underhanded sneak. And he'll probably accuse Graupel of being jealous of his boss and turning on him in spite."

"In other words, he can't dispute the evidence, so you think he'll try to discredit the witnesses."

"With a case this solid, I don't know what else he can do. If the jury looks like it's wavering, he may push for a deal, claiming he's created reasonable doubt."

"Would you cut him a deal?"

"Shapiro would have to OK it, and I don't see him giving in on a case that's taken this long to develop. And it would look like the DA's office is giving special treatment to a top cop. I don't see Shapiro liking that either."

"I get attacking Graupel. He is slime. But what kind of mud could Lowell sling at Gates?"

Kate shrugs. "As far as I know, she's as clean as a whistle, by the book all the way. If there's a skeleton in her closet, I don't know about it. Discovery goes both ways. I had to show my cards to Lowell and the defense has to reveal all their witnesses and statements."

"So much for Perry Mason."

"Perry Mason was in LA, not New York. And Erle Stanley Gardner wrote the books before the reciprocal discovery laws were passed. In most places, Perry couldn't get away with springing his startling courtroom revelations anymore.

"If Lowell has documented information damaging to Gates' credibility, then I would have it too. But he could ask Gates about something for which there wasn't a statement. I should talk to her again before court resumes tomorrow, just to make sure."

"Do you want to invite her to dinner? I could serve my pasta carbonara."

"If I feed Gates your pasta carbonara, Lowell would scream undue influence. And he'd have a point. No, I'll see if she's willing to meet me at my office after we get Lily settled for a while."

Rick's shoulders slump. "I was hoping we'd be getting in some snuggle time tonight. Rain check?"

"Absolutely."


Kate waves Gates to her office's most comfortable chair. "Victoria, I appreciate you coming in this late."

"Kate, you did me a favor," Gates confides. "My in-laws are visiting, and my mother-in-law was regaling us with her adventures as a pilot – for the 20th time. If I hear her story about rescuing stranded hikers after an earthquake again I'll…well, never mind. What part of my testimony did you want to revisit?"

"It's not really a matter of revisiting," Kate explains. "I was wondering if there is anything in your background that I don't know, however minor, that Lowell could seize on to try to impeach you."

Gates blows out a slow breath. "Kate, when you were a rookie, how many mistakes did you make?"

"Too many. I lost track of the number of times my FTO, Mike Royce, had to save my ass," Kate admits. "Did something happen when you were a rookie, Victoria?"

"I had my share of stumbles, but I did one thing that was really stupid. It didn't have much to do with being a cop, at least I didn't think it did at the time. It was about protecting my sister, Elizabeth. She was dating a guy who just radiated scum ball if you know what I mean."

"I know the type."

"But Elizabeth couldn't see it."

"Blinded by the love haze?" Kate asks.

"I guess you could call it that. But anyway, my FTO dragged me to a bar. It wasn't a cop bar, but he was big on playing darts, and he said it had the best tournament in the city. He wanted me to cheer him on. I was OK with that, but then I noticed the guy Elizabeth was dating, sitting at the bar. He was getting drunk and hitting on every woman that came close. I don't know what I was thinking, but when I saw him slip a twenty to a woman who sat next to him, I arrested him for soliciting. As it turned out, they worked together, and he was paying off a twenty she spotted him for coffees for a meeting, when he hadn't had time to hit the ATM. Anyway, the whole thing was straightened out before any paperwork was filed. I got a lecture from my FTO about being sure of my facts and not getting personally involved. And the jerk broke up with my sister."

"It sounds like a happy ending. I may have done a lot worse. I flashed my tits at a suspect as a distraction. And I offered Royce up for sex once. But none of that was written up. So if there wasn't any paperwork for your slip, it wouldn't go on your record. How would Lowell know?"

"Because my sister was furious. She really liked the guy and wasn't interested in my side of the story. It took a long time before she realized what a mistake it was getting serious about the guy. She told a lot of people what a bitch her sister was. Lowell could have heard Elizabeth's version from any one of them."

Kate digs her teeth into her lip. "And Lowell could claim you made a false arrest because you didn't approve of your sister's choice in men. Then he'd ask what other false accusations you made out of spite. It's too late for me to have you tell your story on direct. But Lowell could call you as his witness and ask something along the lines of have you ever arrested an innocent person. So you'd need to immediately admit to what happened and tell your version. Lowell will probably try to cut you off before you can get any sympathy from the jury. But the door will be open enough for me to ask you to finish the story on cross. I'd hate to put you through that, but we have to pull Lowell's teeth."

Gates' eyes flash. "Just hand me the pliers."