Chapter 11:
"We've got the leadership of the Bloods and Latin Kings in protective custody," said Mike Stack. "We're working on tracking down leadership of some of the other top street gangs." Commissioner Williams thanked him. That could have gone much worse than it had. With the Plumbers' help, they'd managed to slip most of the bodies out of the area undetected by the news-media. Stopping the assassination of the other gang leaders would prevent a second disaster, and they'd even scored bonus points rushing that injured kid to the hospital.
"When can we go on the offensive, officer," asked the Chief? "We've checked them, but they're still selling their poison." Mike replied, "we've got three of the principal locations under surveillance right now. We're trying to confirm which ones have Rillec's men inside and which ones don't. NYPD SWAT will get the ones without..." "I have a plan to maybe help the odds with that," announced Lucy. "Out with it," demanded the Chief!
Shaking his head in mild irritation, Mike explained, "Officer Mann wants to use the gangsters as bait for a trap." Frowning, the Commissioner asked, "explain?" Lucy answered that with, "they don't really know how many of the gangs we've already rounded up. They have to assume we got to the Bloods, but they don't know we snagged the Latin Kings or the Gangster Disciples. We drop word on the street through one of their people just where the gang leadership can be found. The frogs move on that spot. We move on their trap-houses and distro network. We have Molly and the Alphas waiting on the frogs. You get your punks. I get my frogs. Everybody wins... Except the frogs..."
The two top cops thought about that long and hard. Chief Bolton found himself more than a little queasy. For the Commissioner, it was almost a desperate play. "No," said he. "Too much risk. I don't want a firefight. I just want these guys rounded up." "Fair enough," agreed Lucy. Taking up the thread of the conversation, Mike said, "we'll be ready to move in a couple of days. I've got an officer out at the meadowlands working with SWAT to pick a spot to take down the truck with the drugs. I've got another guy working on a plan for the trap-houses. We'll get this done." "Good work," announced the Commissioner. "Keep me posted."
The two senior cops headed out, leaving Lucy and Mike alone. Lucy came over to Mike and gave him a hot kiss that seemed to promise she would be pretty frisky tonight. Having missed her the past few nights, Mike couldn't resist slipping his arms around her. Before they got too far with that, Helen coughed and Nick Luchini announced, "get a room!" Blushing, the two separated. "What's up," asked Mike?
Grinning, Nick announced, "Fergi's cracked the encryption on those hacked iPhones. She's working on a gadget to tap their communications..." Helen added, "we've also started cataloguing every female member of the NYPD. I should have a list of likely suspects tomorrow morning..." "Great news," laughed Mike. Tim stuck his head in and announced, "got some not-so-great news, Mike. ABC News is at the door, and they want an interview..." "Shit," growled Mike. "Tell 'em I'll be right out..." With a sorrowful look, Tim replied, "they want to interview Lucy."
Lucy's face went red hot. "Uh... Plumbers don't give interviews," rumbled Lucy. Tim answered that statement with, "they say they know just how many guys got whacked in the MS-13 massacre, and they're going to put it on the air if they don't get their interview." "Sonofabitch," growled Mike. "Better come up with something fast," muttered Nick. "Alright," muttered Mike. "Command decision. Tim? Grab a scanner. Take 'em around back to the back stairs and up to the second floor conference room. Check their gear. No live broadcast." With a sigh, Lucy rumbled, "I guess I better do my face."
Twenty minutes later, Ms. Charlene Fox found herself sitting on a folding chair in a bare room with a half-dozen floods focused on her while she waited for her special guest to arrive. In spite of volunteering for this, she felt a sensation close to panic. What had she walked herself into? What if these people were dangerous? She'd heard some shocking things from their source on Ms. Mann.
There was a bit of a commotion outside, and what sounded like heated words. Then the door opened, and a lovely blond woman came in. Just before the door shut, the reporter got a glimpse of a handsome young twenty-something with beautiful olive skin and short dark hair. Sitting down on the chair opposite Charlene, the pretty blond opened with, "hello. I'm Lucy Mann. I understand you want an interview..." She was far and away the most normal looking person Charlene had ever met. Dressed in a green pullover over blue slacks and wearing stylish flats, she looked the part of police detective.
"I have to say, you don't really look like an alien," opined Charlene. Lucy shrugged. That was, more or less, the point. "Sooo... What planet are you from," asked Charlene? "Earth," replied Lucy. "I mean originally," corrected the reporter. With a shrug, Lucy replied, "Earth. I'm a US citizen by birth, eligible to run for President if I was crazy enough to want the job." The reporter's jaw hit the floor. Flushing, the journalist said, "I... I wasn't expecting..." "We were immigrants," explained Lucy, "the same as the Italians and Irish. My people landed here about the same time my over-protective boyfriend's family got off the boat at Ellis Island. We didn't get handed names like they did, but we picked names to fit in."
She sounded so... American. Charlene found herself way out of her depth. Glancing down, she spotted the ring on Lucy's left hand. "Is that an engagement ring," asked Charlene? Nodding, Lucy replied, "haven't set a date yet. We've been too busy dealing with your Incursean problem." "What species is he," asked Charlene? "Irish-Jewish... or Jewish-Irish depending on what side of the family you're talking to..." "Human," rumbled the reporter? Lucy nodded. The reporter sat there staring at her feet for a long few moments, looking a little lost.
Leaning forward, Lucy said, "listen, I don't bite... You can ask me whatever you like as long as it's not about an active investigation..." Charlene replied, "I've heard that some of you do bite..." Lucy retorted, "they get arrested. We send them to the Null Void." "Sounds bad," opined the journalist. "It is bad," replied Lucy. "That's kind of the point." Charlene barked a laugh, and Lucy joined her. "You have an interesting laugh," chuckled the reporter. Blushing, Lucy admitted, "it's the thing that keeps me from being a perfect 10. My fiancé puts up with it."
Ice broken at last, Charlene found herself finally able to move on. As Mike Stack listened from the far side of the door, the two had a wide-ranging conversation, chatting about everything from where Lucy was born to what her plans and ambitions were for the future. News that Lucy was hoping to have her 2.5 kids and just live a normal life had Charlene intensely curious. "Why a human," she asked? Lucy shrugged and said, "when a man cares about you so much that he runs into two shoot-outs to save your butt, that's the one you want to grab." Charlene blushed. She could see that. "Mike takes care of me," sighed Lucy. "Not in a pampering sort of way... He takes care of all the little stuff that starts to grind you down, and he keeps me out of the dumb things that people do that's self-destructive." "Sounds like a good man," admitted the journo.
"So you're here meeting the in-laws," said Charlene. "How did you end up on this case?" Laughing that awful laugh, Lucy said, "dumb luck. I was shopping with my sister-in-law. Call it cop-instinct, but the three jokers in the park looked like they were up to no good. I was mostly interested in getting Val out of there with no new openings, but then the frogs shot the patrolman and were going to shoot his partner... I had to step in." With a shrug, Lucy said, "no good deed goes unpunished... Mike and I found ourselves riding down-town to meet the Commissioner."
"What was that like," asked Charlene? Lucy replied, "eye-opening. We try to stay out of the spotlight. By the laws of the Plumber League, we're not supposed to have a lot of contacts." "Why not," asked the journo? "Earth doesn't have a functioning government yet," replied Lucy. "Most races have one after the first couple global conflicts. Earth's on its fourth. Magister Tennyson's trying to push the process along, but it's tough. We... don't want to have the appearance of taking sides..." Charlene could see the point of that.
"How long have you worked as a cop," asked the reporter? "Four years," replied Lucy. Nodding in understanding, Charlene asked, "what made you want to be law enforcement?" "Met the Magister at my cousin's wedding," said Lucy. "He and his grandson stopped my aunt and uncle from assaulting the wedding party. I wanted to be a Plumber that day..." "Why do you call yourselves Plumbers," asked Charlene? Laughing, Lucy explained the mistranslation that got the Plumbers their name.
In the end, Charlene got far more than she bargained for. The strange young woman wasn't the fearsome, face-stealing monster their mysterious whistle-blower made her out to be. Charming and funny, the young woman was a stereotypical girl next door. Honestly, Charlene Fox liked her. She could have been Charlene's sister or cousin. The reporter had her sensational story for the evening news, but it wasn't the one she'd set out to tell. Thanking the detective for her time, the reporter and her crew got on their way.
Mike came in when they had gone. He wasn't happy with revealing Lucy's home town to the world. "We knew this day was coming, Mike," sighed Lucy. "We've planned for it... I think it's going to be ok..." Mike slipped his arms around her. He hadn't yet met his in-laws, but he loved their daughter. He would lay down his life for her, and by extension he'd be right there with her family. Laying her head on his shoulder, Lucy said, "that's why I love you, honey."