Tom Dayton is Loose Again

by kaleen1212

Tom Dayton, who was responsible for the death of the woman Ed Brown was engaged to, is once again released. Only this time, the City Council decides Robert Ironside is the only one that can help him. They install him in Ironside's office as his new aide. It doesn't work out well for either of them.

10. Chapter 10

Tom Dayton is Loose Again

Chapter 10

1

Tom was becoming more and more confident as he walked through the police garage. No one seemed to pay him any attention at all. He wondered why he even worried about being discovered. As soon as he exited the police garage, he flagged down a taxi cab.

"Where to, Officer?" the driver asked.

"Take me to a bar with some action. I just got off my shift and I need to wind down before I go home."

"You got it." The driver pulled away from the curb and headed down the street. He looked into the rear view mirror but the police officer had his cap pulled low over his eyes. He couldn't get a good look at him to see what he looked like. Not that it mattered, he picked up cops many times from this location and took them to bars or to their homes.

"I would imagine it is hard to be a police officer in this day and age. With all the complaining and the requests for defunding the police, you guys must wonder why you ever went into the profession in the first place."

Tom really didn't want to talk to the man. He was purposely keeping his head low to make sure the driver couldn't recognize him later on. By talking to him, he was afraid that he would be able to recognize his voice, and he couldn't allow that. So, he didn't bother to answer.

The driver shrugged. Every now and then he picked up a cop who simply wasn't very friendly. Obviously, this guy was one of them. He decided not to try to engage him in conversation any longer, much to Tom's relief.

He pulled the taxi up in front of Eddie's bar. Somehow, the place look familiar to Tom. He wasn't aware that he had been in here before. It didn't matter, he planned to stay away from the people and the bartender.

He walked up to the bar, opened the door and went in. The place was packed; exactly the way he liked it. There was a much less chance that anyone would recognize him later on.

Tom walked over to an obscure corner of the bar and sat down at the table. He waited for a waitress to come over and take his order. He didn't have to wait long as a tall, leggy brunette walked over to him with a order pad in her hand.

"What can I get you?" she asked him.

Making sure to keep his head low, Tom told her to bring him a rum and coke.

"Anything else?"

"No, that'll be all." His voice was short. He just wanted to get rid of her. He didn't want anyone hanging around him that might notice something that would identify him later on.

A little small 5-ft brunette approached his table. "Are you alone?"

"Yeah, I am." Tom answered her. And that was the way he wanted to keep it.

She smiled at him and sat down. "My name is Stacy. What's yours?"

Tom caught himself before he told her his real name. "My name is David."

"Well, David, I see you are a police officer. Which precinct do you work at?"

Dayton certainly didn't want to tell her what building he was in. So he decided to make up an answer on the spot. "I'm what they call a floater. I report to different precincts every night. I end up working in different areas every time I come in."

"Gee, my uncle was a police officer. I never heard of such a thing. Is that something new?"

It was just his luck that he would run into somebody who knew a little about police work. He definitely had to be careful what he said to the woman. "No, not new, just temporary. They have a lot of police officers off right now, and there are just a few of us switching from precinct to precinct to cover for those officers."

The waitress walked over, set Tom's drink down in front of him, and he paid her. Stacy stared at him. It was obvious to Tom that she expected him to buy her a drink. He wasn't about to do that. He didn't have that much money and he wasn't going to waste it on some dumb woman who wouldn't put out after he bought her the drink.

"Aren't you going to buy me a drink?" she asked.

"I'm sorry, but I live on a policeman's salary. I can barely afford to buy myself a drink. I'm new on the force."

"Why do you wear that cap so low on your face? I can't even see what you look like." She reached up to push his cap up, but Tom grabbed her arm. "Let go, you're hurting me!"

Dayton released her. Without looking up, he said, "Don't touch me, don't ever touch me."

Stacy stood up and started to walk away. "I should have known better than to approach a pig. You're all alike." She walked away from his table.

Tom heard the door open and he looked up slowly. To his horror, he saw Lieutenant Carl Reese walk into the room. He had to get out of here. If Reese saw him in uniform, he may very well come over to his table. Tom couldn't chance that. He left nearly a full drink sitting in front of him and headed for the back door of the bar.

Carl walked up to the bar, signaled the bartender, and ordered himself a drink. He spotted Stacy down at the end of the bar. He got up and moved to the chair next to her. "What are you doing in here?"

"Oh, come on, Lieutenant. You busted me for drugs not alcohol."

"Stacy, you know the kind of people that hang out in bars. If you're going to stay out of trouble and leave the drugs alone, you need to stay out of the bars as well."

"What is it with you cops? You're the second one I've run into tonight. You're just a pain in the ass, but the other one was a real creep."

Her words sent up a red flag. "Other one? Was this cop in uniform?"

"Yeah, he was really weird. I went over to his table to see if I could get him to buy me a drink. All I did was try to raise his cap so I could see what he looked like, and he went nuts."

"What do he look like?"

"Are you deaf? Why do you think I was trying to raise his cap? He wouldn't lift his head and the cap was pulled low. I don't know what the hell he look like. I couldn't see his face."

Carl looked around the bar. "Where is he?"

Without turning around, Stacey pointed to the corner. "He's back there in the corner."

"Stacy, the table in the corner is empty."

She turned around and looked. The table was indeed empty. "I guess he must have left."

"He didn't go out the front door or I would have seen him."

"Are you calling me a liar?!"

"No, I am simply saying he did not go out the front door. He must have headed for the back door. Why would he do that? Unless he was afraid I would recognize him. He had to have seen me come in sitting at that table."

"What difference does it make? He's gone now. Good riddance. He was a weirdo anyway."

"I want you out of here. You go home now, or I will arrest you for breaking your terms of probation."

Stacy huffed and puffed, but left the bar as Reese had ordered. Carl glanced at the front door to make sure she went out, and then headed for the back of the bar. There was another entrance into the bar in the back. The parking lot was rather large on three sides of the building. Carl walked out the door and surveyed the parking lot. It was quiet and he couldn't see anyone. Whoever the man was, he was no longer in sight. Reese walked up and down the lines of cars in case the man was hiding, but didn't find anyone.

Walking around to the front of the building, he still didn't spot anyone. He would bring it up to Chief Ironside in the morning. This could be the man they were looking for. Why did he disappear out the back when Carl came in? It could have been innocent as that could have been where his car was parked. On the other hand, Stacy had said he acted strangely and called him a weirdo. Carl couldn't help but wonder if this was the man they were looking for. Unable to do anything else, he got in his car and headed for home. He lost his desire for a nightcap before calling it a day.

Tom Dayton continued down the street. Calming himself, he didn't want to run and draw attention of a passing cop, especially Carl Reese. He continued to keep the police cap pulled low over his face. The important thing was to make sure no one was able to identify him. The funny thing was, he wasn't really sure why.

"You disappeared out of that bar quite quickly. What is your problem anyway?"

Tom turned quickly to see Stacy standing there. "Go away and leave me alone."

"Why was Reese asking so many questions about you?" she demanded.

"How the hell would I know. Why don't you ask him?" Dayton continued down the street, walking away from Stacy.

Stacy followed him despite being concerned that he might harm her. Something was off with this guy, and she wanted to know what it was. "I think you're hiding something, something that Reese is looking for."

"I told you to go away and leave me alone. I suggest you do it, or I will arrest you for harassing a police officer."

"Go ahead, arrest me! I hear they're looking for a man that is killing women wearing a police uniform. If you're really a cop, go ahead and arrest me."

Damn women! There wasn't one of them on the planet that was any good. They should be used for pleasing men and making babies. Otherwise, they didn't belong in society anywhere. Tom was becoming not only impatient, but angry with the woman. "I'm not going to tell you again. Get the hell away from me!" he shouted. Dayton reached out, doubled his fist in backhanded Stacy as hard as he could. She fell to the ground hitting her head on the cement. That should get rid of her. He looked down at her and saw that she wasn't moving. Tom would leave her right there. In due time, she would wake up and go home. She got exactly what she deserved.

His evening had been spoiled. Between Stacy and Carl Reese, he no longer had any desire to go into a bar and enjoy himself. Tom flagged down a cab and went back to police headquarters.

When he arrived, Tom hurried through the police garage and headed for the stairs. He took the stairs two at a time. All he wanted was to get back into his cubbyhole. He wanted to do it before he got caught. He climbed all of the stairs to the top floor. After punching in the code, he opened the door quietly and hurried toward his room. He just got into the room and closed the door, when he heard the door to Ironside's office open. He took off the police uniform as fast as he could, folded it, and shoved it under his bed out of sight. He quickly got into pajama bottoms.

There was a knock on his door. Tom jerked toward the door. No one ever visited his room, including Ironside or his people. He walked over to the door, opened it to find Mark Sanger standing there.

"Hey, Mark, what's up? Is the chief okay?"

"He's fine. I just thought maybe you might like to play a game of chess or cards. I know it's kind of hard on you to be confined here all the time."

"Oh, I'm not confined here. The chief has given me permission and a couple of occasions to go out and enjoy myself. I guess maybe I'm not ready for that yet. I was just lying here reading a book. Would you like to come in?"

Sanger entered his room and sat down in a chair. He looked at Tom who seemed to be perspiring rather heavily. "Are you okay? You're not running a fever, are you?"

Tom laughed nervously. "No, I'm not running a fever. Actually, I feel fine. It is just a bit warm in this room, don't you think?"

Mark didn't think it was any warmer in the room than it was in Chief Ironside's office. Then again, everyone was different. Maybe the room needed to be cooled just a bit for Tom. "I'll mention that to the chief. We can lower the temperature in this room a couple degrees if that would make you more comfortable."

"Thanks, Mark. I appreciate that. How come you are visiting me so late? The chief didn't send you, did he?"

"No, he didn't. It was my idea. I am sorry for the late hour. I'll make sure when I stop by it's at a decent hour. I apologize for coming by so late. I just finished studying and thought about you. All of this can't be easy for you."

"I'm doing okay. I just want to prove to Chief Ironside that I am capable of living on my own. I want to move on with my life."

Mark smiled. "And you will."

"Thanks, Mark. You certainly have made things easier for me. I appreciate it."

"No sweat," Mark said has he got up. "Well, since you don't feel like playing chess or cards, I'll get back to my room and hit the sack. You should probably do the same. The chief expects you in there bright and early."

Tom walked over to the door with him. "Good night, Mark."

Dayton placed his head against the door. All of a sudden, he couldn't remember why he had been so anxious. Why was he sweating the way he was? What was the problem? Sanger was just being nice to him. He looked down at his pajamas. He didn't remember putting them on. All he remembered was coming to his room after his shift with Ironside was over. Tom laid down on the bed and went to sleep.

2

The next morning Tom Dayton got up, got dressed, and headed into Chief Ironside's office. Mark was already up, in the kitchen, and starting breakfast.

"You don't have to do that," Tom told Sanger. "The chief expects me to make his breakfast in the morning."

"I know, but I'm just helping you out. I started the pancakes. You might want to cook some bacon. Make sure the chief doesn't get anymore then a couple slices of bacon no matter how much he grumbles. Believe me, if he gains weight, he'll blame you."

Dayton went over, pulled a skillet out of the cupboard, and placed it on the stove. Reaching into the refrigerator, he took out the bacon and pulled out six slices. That was two for the chief, Mark and him.

Tom heard the squeak of Ironside's chair as he entered the main room.

"Tom, you need to oil these wheels. The squeaking drives me crazy." Ironside pulled his chair up to the table.

Mark elbowed Tom and pointed at the coffee pot. Dayton took the hint, reached into the cupboard and pulled out several mugs. He took one along with the coffee pot over to the table. He sat down the mug in front of Ironside and filled it with coffee.

The door to the office opened; Ed Brown and Eve Whitfield came in, walked down the ramp and joined their boss at the table. Dayton immediately served each one of them a cup of coffee. He went back into the kitchen where Mark had placed the pancakes and bacon on a plate for Ironside. Tom picked up the butter and the syrup, then carried everything over to the table. He served Ironside his breakfast. Mark joined them at the table carrying both his plate and Tom's.

As they begin to eat their breakfast and drink coffee, the door to the office opened, and Carl Reese entered. He came down the ramp and joined Ironside's team.

The chief could tell something was wrong. It didn't take much deduction to tell that from the look on Reese's face. "What's the problem, Carl?"

"There's been another murder." That had the attention of everyone at the table.

"Where and who?" Ironside said.

"In the back parking lot of Eddie's bar," Reese told him.

For some reason that he couldn't understand, Tom Dayton felt a pang of recognition. Why did Eddie's Bar ring a bell with him? Since he didn't know, he decided to remain silent and listened to Carl Reese.

"What does that have to do with this office? Let homicide handle it," Sergeant Brown said.

"I would agree except for one thing," Carl said, turning his attention to Ed. "There was a police officer in that bar last night. The woman that was murdered was Stacy Lomax. She was also in that bar. In fact, she had been seen sitting with the police officer."

"Were there any leads?" Ironside asked. "Who saw the police officer in the bar?"

Carl looked directly at Ironside. "Stacy Lomax saw him, Chief. He was sitting at a table in the corner. It was pretty dark. Before you ask, no, I am not able to identify him. I didn't see him."

"What do we know about Stacy Lomax?" Ironside asked.

"I arrested her on possession of illegal drugs. She was on probation. Her probation included staying away from bars. When I saw her in there, I sent her out. When I turned to look for the police officer, he was gone. He must have seen me come in."

"Who handled the crime scene?" Ironside asked.

"Homicide handled it," Carl answered.

Eve Whitfield was watching Dayton closely. He looked nervous. She's still wondered whether Tom Dayton was cured. It didn't make any sense to Eve. He got extremely defensive every time she gave him an order. She hated to do this in front of the others, but she wanted to know where Tom was last night. She looked directly at him. "Tom, where were you last night?"

Startled by her question, Dayton obviously took offense. "You don't think I had anything to do with this, do you?"

"You tell us. Where were you last night?" Eve asked again.

"Hold on just a minute," Mark said.

Ironside put his hand up to silence Sanger. "It's a legitimate question, Mark. One I am sure that Tom can answer without a problem."

Dayton wondered whether Ironside was confident that he hadn't gone anywhere, or whether he was backing up Whitfield. Tom could feel the headache coming on. Why was it every time he dealt with Whitfield, he started getting a headache?

Suddenly, Dayton remembered where he was the night before. They weren't going to keep him cooped up in this place. That's what the police uniform was for. It got him past the police garage and some freedom for a night. Unfortunately, the cop who came into the room to report the murder was the reason Tom didn't get to stay out last night. One of these days Whitfield was going to get hers. He was tired of the bitch. All she did was ride him every chance she got, unlike Mark, who is trying to help him adjust.

"I never left my room last night. I read quite late and went to bed." He said nothing about the code on the elevator because he didn't want them to know he knew about it.

Mark spoke up. "He's telling the truth, Chief. I stopped by his room late last night to see if he wanted to play a game of chess or cards. He was in his room in his pajamas. Tom had nothing to do with what happened last night."

"What time was this?" Eve asked.

"I went to his room about 1:00," Mark answered her.

Ironside could see that his two staff members were taking opposite sides. Eve still didn't believe Tom was cured, and Mark believed he was. "All right, everyone calm down. It is a legitimate question. Tom, where were you last evening?"

"I was in my room just as I said."

"Eve, where were you last evening?"

Startled by the chief's question, Eve struggled through her words. "Well . . . I was . . . at home all evening."

"Mark, where were you last evening?"

"Right here in this office. I have you as a witness. I did leave long enough to go over to Tom's room. I was there maybe 10 minutes."

"And Ed, where were you last evening?"

Brown smiled. He was not put off by the chief's question. He recognized that the boss was diffusing what could become an all-out argument between Mark and Eve. "I was home as well."

"Now that we have determined where everyone was, can we stop arguing and move on?"

Tom's headache immediately begin to subside. He was having trouble remembering what the conversation was just a moment ago. The only thing he could remember was that he believed Ironside had defended him. Maybe things were going to work out all right after all.

"Ed, you and Eve get over to Eddie's bar and see if there was anyone that saw anything that could help us. Tom, you and I are going to the morgue. I want to see the bodies of the women that have been murdered. Carl, keep working on the aspect that it might be one of our officers." Ironside wheeled his chair around and started heading for the door. Everyone followed him out except Mark who stayed behind.

2

Looking up into the sky, Ironside wondered just how long it would be before it started to rain. The sun could no longer be seen and the clouds were dark. San Francisco desperately needed the rain. Sonoma County was reporting some minor brush fires. If they didn't get rain soon, they would no longer be minor. Ironside worried about Katherine. Her vineyards were in Sonoma County. Thinking about her, he realized he hadn't seen her in over a week. It was a busy time of the year for the vineyards, so he hadn't heard from her either. He made a mental note to himself to contact her when he got back to the office.

Ironside was aware that Tom Dayton was glancing in the rear-view mirror at him every few minutes. Despite Mark's defense of Dayton, Ironside was just as suspicious as Eve. He noticed that Tom seem to be having trouble with headaches off and on. They seem to go away as quickly as they came on. If Mark said Tom was in his room at 1:00, Ironside had no doubt that he was. That didn't mean that he couldn't possibly have been at the bar earlier in the evening. The chief would wait until he received the results of the autopsy. That would make a difference as to whether Tom Dayton could have found a way out of the building and committed the murder.

Dayton had an explosive temper when it came to women, but even before he was committed to the institution, he didn't show any signs of actually having the desire to kill them, not that that meant he wasn't capable of it.

Ironside left Mark behind for a reason. He didn't want Tom to know what he was about to order Mark to do. He reached into his pocket and pulled out his cell phone. The chief was of the old school and did not use cell phones that much. He preferred the van phone and face-to-face contact. This time, however, the cell phone would come in handy. He opened the message application and pressed Mark's name. He typed a message and reread it before sending it.

Mark, I want you to change the code on both the elevator and the stairway door. I cannot dismiss Eve's intuition. It has proved to be invaluable in the past, and she is an excellent officer. If Tom is leaving the building without our knowledge, I want to know it. I'll talk to you when we get back to the office.

Ironside had to admit, if only to himself, that he didn't believe Tom Dayton was completely cured. There were too many signs of confusion and headaches. Something wasn't right, and it made the hair on the back of his neck stand straight up. On the other hand, he didn't want Dayton to know that he didn't trust him. If he was leaving the building and murdering the women, he would realize that Ironside might be on to him, and he would be even more careful. It was time he set Dayton up. The act in the office was to give him a sense of security that Ironside trusted him. If he thought the chief wasn't checking on him, he would be more apt to make a mistake that would allow him to be caught. If Dayton wasn't leaving the building and not responsible for the murders, Ironside didn't want him accused by any member of his staff. He had taught them to deduce, determine and decide. He wanted facts, not suspicions. It was okay to be suspicious, but it was something that you kept to yourself, or at least away from the individual you were suspicious of.

"Chief, we're here," Dayton said when he noticed Ironside had not moved after he parked the van.

The sound of Dayton's voice brought Ironside out of his private thoughts. He nodded at Tom. "Let's go."

Before the detective could maneuver his chair onto the lift, Dayton reached for and set his hand on Ironside's arm. "Chief, I just want you to know that I appreciate you standing up for me in the office. I really did not leave my room as Mark told you. I want this to work out more than you know."

"First of all, Mr Dayton, I was not standing up for you. I simply made a point that everyone in the office could have left and been at the murder scene. I don't accuse people without facts. There weren't any facts pointing to you having left police headquarters last night. I do not tolerate squabbles among my staff. Now, are we going to sit here all day, or are we going to go inside?"

Dayton smiled. "We're going inside." He got out of the van, walked around and met Ironside as the lift lowered him to the ground.

3

Mark Sanger felt his cell phone vibrate in his pocket. He pulled it out and read the message from his boss. Shaking his head, he went over to the computer and booted it up. He wasn't happy about being the one to change the code on the elevator and the stairway door. There wasn't any possible way Tom left the building the previous night. Mark knew it because he was with him. Everybody needed to give the man a break. Mark could tell that he was really trying. Eve had to be wrong.

After changing the code, he wrote the new code down on several pieces of paper to give to his colleagues.

It wasn't long and he heard the whine of the elevator. Tom and the chief were back. Mark had already started lunch. He made sandwiches for the three of them.

The door opened and Ironside wheeled into the room. He was followed in by Tom. "I didn't know when you'd get back so I thought I'd make some sandwiches to help out.

"You didn't have to do that, Mark. I would have taken care of it when I got in," Tom said.

"I didn't mind." Mark carried the sandwiches to the table and set them down. "Tom, why don't you reach into the refrigerator and bring out three bottles of Pepsi?"

"Sure thing," Tom said and headed into the kitchen. Opening the refrigerator, he removed three bottles of the soft drink and brought them to the table.

4

After questioning the bartender and the barmaids, Ed and Eve had not learned much of anything. The case was becoming extremely frustrating. Every time a police officer was seen at the scene of the crime no one seemed to be able to identify him. Despite the fact that the bartender from a previous murder gave a description that didn't come anywhere near close to Tom Dayton's appearance, Eve still wondered about him. She knew that particular bartender was not very friendly toward the police. Had he made up the description to confuse the authorities? Eve still didn't believe that Tom Dayton was cured. Every time she spoke to him, he copped an attitude.

It wasn't that she wanted him not to be cured, that wasn't the case at all. She really hoped he was for his sake. Then he could go on with his life. Unfortunately, what she saw did not justify that conclusion. She knew Mark and Tom seem to have gotten closer since Dayton was assigned to Chief Ironside's office. Dayton could very well be using Mark to convince everybody that he was all right. Eve took her job seriously. She was going to start pressuring Tom even more. Eve was sure that he would break down, and the real Tom Dayton would come out.

"Eve," Ed called out, "I'm going to call the chief. One more barmaid has come in to work. She is the last one that was working last night. You interview her while I talk to the chief." Brown turned and left the bar leaving Eve to her task.

Whitfield went into the back room where the final barmaid was putting on her apron to get ready for the afternoon crowd.

"I'm officer Eve Whitfield of Chief Ironside's office. I would like to talk to you about last night."

The barmaid turned quickly as Eve had startled her. "What would you like to know? It was just a typical night."

"First of all, what is your name?"

"Diana Sanchez."

"All right, Ms Sanchez, can you tell me if you saw a police officer in the bar last night?"

"Carl Reese was definitely in the bar. He quite often comes in after his shift for one drink and then he goes home. He came in last night, but he didn't order a drink. He went out the back door."

"I'm not talking about Carl. I'm talking about a uniformed police officer," Eve told her.

"Well there was that guy that sat in the corner. He was in a police uniform. It is rather dark in that area. I waited on him. He ordered a drink and I brought it to his table."

"Can you describe him?" Eve asked.

"I think so. He tried to keep his head low. He was wearing one of those caps that police wear. Nevertheless, he was a young guy, probably in his thirties. Quite good looking actually. I watched him when he left. He went out the back door. He is about 5'10. Dark hair, with a soft spoken voice."

"Do you think you could identify him if you saw him again?"

She hesitated for a moment and then said, "I think so. Especially, if I heard his voice."

"Could you come down to the police station and describe him to a sketch artist?"

"I can do it after my shift, but it will be rather late. I can't do it before, I have two little kids, and I can't afford to lose the money. The owner of the bar wouldn't pay me if I left to go to the station during work."

"That'll be all right. Either that, or we can bring the sketch artist to you."

She shook her head. "That's not a good idea. He doesn't like the police much. He would dock my pay for the time that I sat with the police artist. Please, don't make me do it until after work. I need the money for my kids."

What could Eve say? If she had two little kids that depended on her income, she wouldn't want to leave her job either. "All right, what time do you get off?"

"It's 1:00 right now and I just got here. I have to work a 9-hour shift. So I will not get off until 10:00 tonight."

"That's okay. I'll come here and pick you up myself. Did you drive to work today?"

"No, I don't have a car. I took the bus."

"I'll save you the money of taking the bus tonight. I'll pick you up and when the sketch artist is done, I'll drop you off at home."

"Thank you! I appreciate you not interrupting my work."

Eve left the bar with the intention of returning to pick up Diana Sanchez for the police sketch artist. She was now convinced that Tom Dayton was the individual posing in the police uniform. The description that Diana Sanchez gave her definitely fit Tom Dayton. She was going to prove it.