DISCLAIMER: I do not own these characters, except for Matthew and Moxie. The rest of them belong to James Duff and the Major Crimes franchise.

Chapter 3

Wes Peterson was sitting in his office in the Chase Bank building in downtown Los Angeles. As he was sipping on his coffee, he read the newspaper and flipped it to the crime section of the LA Times. His eyes skimmed over the paper until something caught his attention. Randy Grey was found dead in his house. "Son of a bitch" Wes Peterson muttered to himself as he read the brief blurb. It didn't say much other than '45 year old Randy Grey, stockbroker, was found dead in his home yesterday morning. Police are investigating his death'. Wes Peterson put his coffee cup on his desk and closed the paper. "Samantha!?" he called out to his secretary. "Yes, Mr. Peterson" Samantha walked into his office. "Can you get me all of the reports of our investments with Mr. Randy Grey please" Wes Peterson said to her. "Yes sir" Samantha said to him and then went back to her desk. All of a sudden, Wes Peterson felt a little antsy about the recent death of Randy Grey as he sat at his desk.

Back in the Murder Room, Andy looked over the financials of Randy Grey as he sat at his desk. He had run three reports and so far, only two of them came back. Sharon walked out of her office to join her team and she ran her hand over Andy's back as she passed him. Andy glanced over at her but she didn't skip a beat as she headed over to the Murder Board. "Okay, do we have anything new to add so far to this case?" Sharon said as she turned around to face them. Julio rose his hand. "The Lieutenant and I are going over the client list from Randy's work, but so far we haven't come up with anything yet" Julio said as he nodded to Provenza. "I'm currently going over Wally Parker's financials and this guy has no debt, whatsoever" Amy said as she held up a piece of paper. "Hmm, that's odd, isn't it?" Sharon said as she walked over to Amy's desk and looked at the paper herself.

"It's as if all of his debt got wiped away somehow" Amy said to Sharon as Sharon read the report. She handed the report back to Amy. "Anything else?" Sharon said to them. "Yeah, I've been going over Randy Grey's financials a little further and there's something in them that's not adding up" Andy said to Sharon and the rest of the team. "Like what?" Sharon asked him. "Well, for starters unlike Wally, his life partner, Randy did have a lot of debt. Student loans, house mortgage, credit cards, I mean you name it, it's here" Andy said to them. Sharon looked at him and then back at the board. She wondered why Wally's financials would be so different than Randy's. "But that's not what's so strange about it" Andy added as he walked over to the Murder Board and started writing some figures down on the board.

"There are three names that kept popping up as deposits in the bank statements of Randy Grey. Wes Peterson, Cheryl Scott, and Travis Martin. All three of these people gave Randy some sort of money as an investment several times a month because according to these statements, Randy deposited their money into three accounts, all under his name" Andy explained to the team as he turned around from the board to face them. Sharon moved over to look at the report Andy was holding and he handed it to her to read. "I thought there were no big deposits that showed up yesterday?" Sharon asked. "That was a preliminary report" Mike said to Sharon. Andy stood there and watched her. "Lieutenant Provenza, are any of these names on Randy's client list" Sharon said as she handed the report to Provenza. He compared the list of Randy's clients and then looked up at Sharon. "Yes Captain, all three of them" Provenza said.

"I would like us to research these three people and find out what we can on them" Sharon said as she started to walk back to her office. Sharon sat down at her desk and was looking over the report that Andy had regarding Randy's financials and then she looked at the report regarding Wally's financials. 'If the two of them were together, what's with the huge discrepancy here?' Sharon thought to herself. She then looked over the report from Doctor Morales again.

"Tao, were there any fingerprints found at the crime scene?" Provenza asked Mike. Mike looked away from his computer and found the report on his desk. "No, it seemed as if the crime scene was wiped clean of any prints of any kind" Mike said to Provenza. "Hmm, so are we dealing with a professional hit man here? I mean why would there be no prints?" Provenza asked. "Easy, perhaps our killer wore gloves the whole time" Mike stated to him. "If our killer went to Randy's house with the intention of killing him, then how would that explain the killer catching Randy off guard as Morales stated in the morgue" Provenza asked them. "Perhaps Randy knew our killer" Andy stated as Julio was putting up the three pictures of the people who made deposits to Randy.

Sharon stepped out of her office again. "Amy, Julio, I think we should go pick up Wally Parker and bring him down here for some questions regarding his financials" Sharon said to them. "Will do Captain" Amy said as she stood up and looked across the way at Julio. Julio stood up and followed Amy out of the office to go pick up Wally and bring him back to the PAB. "While they go out to bring Wally here, let's run a background on him. I want to make sure that he doesn't have anything in his file" Sharon said. "I'm on it, Captain" Mike said in reply and started typing away on his computer.

A half hour later, Amy, Julio, and Wally Parker walk into interview room 3. "Am I under arrest?" Wally asked them. "No, Mr. Parker, like we explained to you earlier we just have some questions that only you can answer, that's all" Amy explained to Wally as he took a seat at the table. "Okay, sure. What do you want to know?" Wally said as he sat there looking at Julio and Amy. Sharon, Andy, and Provenza were in the electronics room with Buzz observing the interview of Wally when Mike walked into the room. "Here is your background check on Wally Parker. He's a school teacher at Brundy Middle School in South L.A. Never been arrested" Mike said to Sharon as he joined Andy and Provenza at the back of the room and looked onward at the monitors.

"Wally, you and Randy both owned that house, is that correct?" Amy asked him as he sat across from them. "Well, technically Randy was the owner on the mortgage, but we paid it together" Wally said to them. "Was Randy in some sort of financial trouble?" Julio asked him. Wally shook his head. "No, we had money" Wally answered as he sat there. "We ran your credit report, Wally, and you have no debt, but Randy's report shows debt, a lot of it. Why is that?" Amy asked him. Wally just looked at the two from across the table and paused. "Oh, it's always the partner?" Provenza said out loud in electronics. Andy glanced at him. "Really?" he said to Provenza as they continued to watch the screen.

"Randy paid for my expenses. We've been together for 15 years and when we got together, he wanted to help me with all of my debt, so he gave me the money to pay off all of my loans" Wally stated to them. "So if Randy gave him the money to pay off all of his debt, why didn't Randy pay off his own debt?" Sharon asked as she watched the interview. "That doesn't make sense" Andy stated as the interview continued before them. "Why would Randy pay for everything for you, Wally?" Julio asked Wally. Wally shifted in his chair. "We were in love, he wanted to show me how much he truly cared about me" Wally said but then sat forward and leaned his hands on the table. "Look, he wanted to be the provider in this relationship. He didn't even want me to continue working as a teacher but I told him that it was my passion to teach these young, amazing kids at the school" Wally stated to them.

"Did the two of you ever get in any arguments?" Amy asked him. "No, not really. I mean there were a few, but we always made up" Wally answered her. "How long again were you in New York?" Amy asked him. "Just for the weekend. I flew out Friday night and returned Monday morning, on the super early flight" Wally said. "And Randy was okay with you going to New York?" Julio asked him. "Yes, he encouraged me to go" Wally replied. Julio and Amy sat back in their chairs and then Amy looked up at the camera.

Sharon watched the interview end as she sat in electronics. "Something doesn't make sense here" she said out loud. "This whole case doesn't make sense!" Provenza stated as he leaned up against the wall. "You are correct on that, Lieutenant" Sharon said as she turned around to face her three Lieutenants in the room. "I think we can officially scratch off Wally Parker from our lists of suspects, again, and concentrate on our trio of investors" Sharon said to them and they agreed.

They exited the electronics room and headed back to their desks. Julio and Amy both showed Wally Parker where the exit was and joined the rest of the team minutes later. "I want to know everything about Wes Peterson, Cheryl Scott, and Travis Martin" Sharon said to the team as she walked towards her office and closed the door behind her. Andy watched her walk away and then glanced at Provenza who was also watching her. "Did you mention Chief Davis to her yet?" Provenza said to Andy. "Are you kidding me? I'm not going to mention that to her, especially right now in the middle of this investigation" Andy said to Provenza and then went to sit down at his desk.

Meanwhile, halfway across town in Hollywood, Cheryl Scott was showing a house that she was the listing realtor on to a couple when her phone rang. She looked at it briefly and saw Wes Peterson's name flash on her screen. "Excuse me, I need to take this" she said to the couple and then walked towards a hallway in the house. "Wes, is everything okay?" she said as she answered her phone. "Did you see in today's paper?" Wes said to her. "What do you mean?" she said over the phone as she glanced up to make sure the couple was still where she had left them. "Randy Grey was found dead this morning" Wes said to her and her face dropped. "Well something finally caught up with that swindler" Cheryl said to Wes. "You didn't have anything to do with this, did you?" he asked her. "Of course not, did you?" she said to him. "No" he replied. "The police are investigating his death" Wes said. "So, let them do their job" Cheryl said. "Look, I'm showing a house and I can't talk right now, perhaps later if you want to call me" Cheryl said to him and then she hung up her phone. Rejoining her clients in the same room she left them in. "Sorry about that, now where were we" she said to the couple and continued showing the house.

An hour later, the team was gathering around the Murder Board again, discussing the three investors. "Wes Peterson is the CEO of the Chase bank branch here in downtown L.A. He's married, two kids, both of them in college looks like" Julio said to Sharon as she leaned on one of the empty desks near Mike's desk. "He's in debt but what parents aren't with two kids in college?" Amy said as she read off his financials. Sharon smirked at that, knowing that her and Andy were currently helping Rusty through college. Andy glanced over at Sharon as he folded his arms across his chest. "How much money did he give our victim?" Sharon asked Amy. "It looks like he invested over a hundred thousand dollars over the years, Captain" Amy said to her. "And how much of that did he lose?" Sharon wondered as she looked at the Murder Board. "Half a million, ma'am" Julio answered. "Do we know where he's at right now?" Sharon asked. "He's currently at work, located at the Chase Bank at 9th street and Hill street" Julio stated.

"Okay, what about the other two?" Sharon asked as she walked over to the Murder Board. "Cheryl Scott, is a millionaire realtor. She's partners in a real estate firm, specializing in million dollar homes in the Hollywood Hills area" Andy said to the team. "She invested her money with Randy here, starting a couple of years ago, and she got good returns" Andy added as he handed Sharon a piece of paper. "But, recently, as in a couple of months ago, her returns didn't do so well, and looks like Randy was pocketing her money along with Wes and our other guy, Travis Martin" Andy said as he leaned up against the desk behind Amy. "So, she could have motive to want to see Randy pay for his carelessness with her money" Provenza stated to them. "Yes, Lieutenant, however, so could Wes and this other guy, Travis Martin" Sharon said as she glanced at the board. "Do we know where Cheryl Scott is?" she asked. "Her secretary at the real estate office said she's out showing a house in Hollywood right now" Andy said to Sharon.

"Okay, what's going on with Travis Martin?" Sharon asked as she looked over at Mike. "Travis Martin appears to be a millionaire according to his bank statements, however he resides at a house on 83rd street and Harvard Boulevard" Mike said to Sharon and the rest of the team. "That's what in South L.A?" Buzz asked them as he sat at his desk. "Around that area, Buzz" Mike answered him. "Not where your typical millionaire would be living" Provenza added and then turned around in his chair to face the Murder Board.

"What do we know about him?" Sharon asked Mike. "Well, there's not much to say. He's retired looks like, used to work in Long Beach as a longshoreman, his wife passed away three years ago, and according to Randy's phone records, he was the last person to speak with Randy" Mike stated. "When did he call him?" Sharon asked. "Nine o'clock Saturday night" Mike answered. "Why would you call your investor on a Saturday night?" Andy said as he shook his head. "How much money did he lose?" Sharon asked. "Well, can't really say for certain" Mike said and Sharon walked over to him. Mike showed the figures on his computer screen to her. "It looks like he lost a lot, but there's all of these deposits every week to another account, but I don't know what that account is for" Mike said to Sharon. "Do we know where he's at right now?" Sharon asked as she moved away from his desk. "No Captain" Mike answered her as he sat back in his chair.

"Okay, let's talk to Wes and Cheryl and see what they can tell us. We'll worry about Travis Martin later" Sharon said to her team. "Do you want us to bring them down here, ma'am" Julio asked before Sharon entered her office. "Yes, that would be fine" Sharon said as she entered her office and sat down at her desk. "Alright, Julio, Amy, go with Mike to pick up Cheryl Scott at her place of business. Meanwhile, Flynn and I will go to the Chase Bank on 9th and pick up Wes Peterson" Provenza said to them as he put on his suit jacket. The team left, leaving Buzz in the office as well.

Provenza drove him and Andy over to the Chase Bank where Wes worked. They pulled up in front of the building and headed inside. As the approached the security guard, they flashed their badges to him. "We're looking for Wes Peterson, could you tell us what floor his office is on?" Provenza said to the security guard. "He's on the tenth floor, second door on the right from the elevator" the security guard told them. "Thank you" Andy said and then they walked towards the elevators to take them up to the tenth floor. As they rode up in the elevator, Andy couldn't stop pacing inside. "What is your problem?" Provenza asked him. "Nothing, just why did you have to tell me what Winnie Davis told you this morning? Now I feel like I'm keeping something from Sharon and I don't want to do that" Andy said to Provenza as the elevator doors opened on the tenth floor. "So then tell her" Provenza said as they turned right down the hallway over to the office. Andy looked at him and stopped before they entered the glass doors.

"Can I help you gentlemen?" Samantha, Wes Peterson's secretary said to Provenza and Andy as they entered the office space. "Ah, yes, LAPD, Lieutenants Flynn and Provenza, we're here to see Mr. Wes Peterson" Provenza said to Samantha and smiled at her. "He's in his office, please wait right here" Samantha said to Provenza and then walked towards Wes's office. Andy smacked him on his left arm. "What are you doing?" he hissed at Provenza. "What does it look like I'm doing?" Provenza asked him. "You're flirting with her" Andy said to him. "No, I'm not" Provenza protested and then Wes Peterson walked out of his office with Samantha. Wes was not very tall, definitely shorter than their victim as he walked over to them.

"Lieutenants, what can I do for the LAPD?" Wes Peterson asked them as he approached the two standing at the front desk. "Uh, we have some questions for you, if you could come down to our office, and answer them there, that would be greatly appreciated" Andy said to Wes as he stood there in front of them. Wes opened his mouth but didn't say anything, instead he turned to Samantha. "Samantha, hold my calls, and move my meeting to tomorrow morning instead of this afternoon" Wes stated to her and then turned towards Andy and Provenza. "Lead the way, Lieutenants" Wes said as he followed them out of his office and then down the elevator.

Meanwhile, in Hollywood at the real estate office where Cheryl Scott works, Julio, Mike and Amy were waiting for Cheryl to come back from her showing earlier. As she walked into her office she was surprised to see three people waiting. "Oh, hello, are you here to sell or buy a house?" she asked Mike as she approached him first. "Uh, neither" Mike said to her as he glanced at Amy and Julio. "LAPD" Mike said as he showed his badge to her. Cheryl looked at him with trepidation as she placed her bag on the floor next to her. "We were wondering if you could come down to our office and answer a few questions" Amy asked her. "What is this regarding?" Cheryl asked in return. "Randy Grey" Julio said to her and she turned to her secretary. "Lisa, I'll be out of the office the rest of the day" Cheryl said to her and then picked up her bag. "Okay" Cheryl said to them as she walked out with Amy. Mike and Julio followed them outside to their car.

Sharon looked up from her desk and saw Andy and Provenza walk into the room with Wes Peterson. Andy waved to Sharon as they passed her office and she stood up and walked out. She saw them lead Wes into Interview room 1 and she walked over to electronics with Buzz. Buzz had all of the equipment set up so they were ready when the team came back with their suspects. Sharon sat down at the table next to Buzz and listened in on the interview.

"Gentlemen, I have nothing to hide" Wes said as he sat down at the table across from Andy and Provenza. "Well, that's good news because we hate when people hide something from us" Provenza said to him as he looked at Wes. Wes's smile quickly turned into a concerned look. Andy shuffled some papers around on the table until he found what he was looking for. "Mr. Peterson, do you know a Randy Grey by any chance?" Andy asked Wes. "Uh, Randy Grey?" Wes repeated as he thought about it. "Um, no can't say that I know him" Wes said nervously. "Hmm, that's funny because according to this bank statement, you gave him money in the form of a check for this amount" Andy said to Wes, chuckling as he showed him the bank statement. Wes took a look at the statement and swallowed. "Oh, that Randy" Wes said to them. "Is there another Randy Grey that you know?" Provenza asked him. "Um, no. Sorry, I got confused" Wes said to them as Provenza and Andy both looked at each other.

"This interview should be fun to watch" Buzz said to Sharon as both of them watched on the monitors. Sharon smiled and continued to listen and watch Wes Peterson. "Look, we know that you invested money with Randy Grey and that you lost a half a million to him and his investment" Provenza said to Wes as he sat there. "He promised me great returns. My wife and I have two kids in college at the same time, do you know how expensive that is?" Wes said to them. "Sir, you're the CEO of a bank, surely you not hurting for money" Provenza said to Wes. "I just wanted to be able to provide for my family, and I met Randy Grey a couple of years ago at a party. He spoke to me about his investments and said I could get lots of money in my returns from his plan. At first, my wife and I were thrilled with the investments. Later on, I wasn't getting the great returns like Randy promised, until lately when he lost almost all of the money I gave him to invest" Wes Peterson stated to Andy and Provenza. Provenza looked at Wes as Andy looked up at the camera, sending Sharon a silent conversation.

Sharon watched the monitors and silently agreed with Andy. Wes Peterson was not their killer. Provenza and Andy walked out of the interview room with Wes Peterson and they thanked him for cooperating with them. As they were walking him out to the hallway, Mike, Amy, and Julio were walking in with Cheryl Scott. "Cheryl" Wes said to her in a surprised tone. Cheryl just looked at Wes, caught off guard at the meeting. "Wait a minute, you two know each other?" Provenza asked Wes and Cheryl. "Only through our investments with Randy" Wes said to them. Sharon saw the whole exchange between the two of them and as Andy turned around, she motioned for them to bring Wes back into the interview room. "We can't hold him indefinitely but now that we know they know each other" Sharon said to Andy and Provenza as two patrol officers were called over to escort Wes back into the interview room. Andy shook his head as the three of them went back into electronics to listen to the interview with Cheryl.

TBC