Meet the New Boss

Chapter 8

"Jimmy!" Walter Clark called when he saw Jim and Hank in the doorway of the Upper West Side coffee shop where they'd agreed to meet for breakfast. "Over here, ten o'clock," Walter added, rising to meet Jim. When Jim arrived at the table, Walter deftly guided his hand to the back of a chair, then resumed his own seat.

A waitress arrived with a coffee pot and menus. She handed a menu to Walter, then offered one to Jim. When Jim didn't take it, she said, "Oh . . . uh, sorry," before lapsing into a confused silence.

Jim shrugged it off. It wasn't the first time, and it wouldn't be the last. "No problem."

After the waitress poured the coffee and took their orders, Walter asked, "So you got transferred to the 4-0?"

"Yeah," Jim confirmed.

"How's it going there?"

Jim took a sip of coffee. "You know Phil Krause," he replied, with a pained expression.

"Yeah, I do. He still the same?"

"Yeah."

Walter frowned. "That's not good. You got any idea who's behind the transfer?"

"No. Do you?"

Walter thought for a moment. "Not really."

"I gotta ask you, Walter, do you think Lieutenant Fisk wanted me out of his squad?"

"No," Walter replied flatly. "What makes you think that?"

Jim shook his head. "I dunno. Fisk said he had nothing to do with the transfer and didn't even know about it, but Krause said – "

"Jimmy," Walter interrupted, "I know Gary Fisk – and so do you. If he wanted you out of his squad, he'd tell you to your face. You know that. Besides, since when do you believe anything Phil Krause says?"

"I know, I know. It's just – I don't know what to believe anymore. When Captain Greene told me I was being transferred – "

"It was Greene?"

"Yeah. Why?"

Walter shook his head. "Oh, man. He and Krause go back a long way."

"You're kidding me," Jim said in disbelief.

"No," Walter assured him. "It was before your time, but they worked together in Vice, must be ten, fifteen years ago, at least."

Jim thought for a moment, then pulled out his cell phone and dialed. "Karen, it's Jim," he said. "Have you pulled the arrest reports on the DOA? . . .You need to do that – and check who the arresting officer was . . .Yeah . . .Greene and Krause used to work together, in Vice . . .Yeah, Walter told me, just now . . . OK." He closed the phone and slipped it back into his pocket.

"What's that about?" Walter asked.

"My last case at the 8," Jim explained.

"Sounds to me like you're still working it."

"Yeah, I guess so."

Walter picked up his coffee cup and drank, then said, "Listen, Jim, if Greene and Krause are involved, there's something bent about this whole situation."

"You got that right," Jim agreed.

"I'll talk to some people I know, see what I can find out."

"Thanks."

"You just hang in there and stay out of Phil's way."

"I don't have much choice, do I?" Jim took off his glasses and rubbed his eye, then bowed his head, looking discouraged.

Walter gave his friend a worried look. Then he noticed the waitress arriving with their food and changed the subject. "How's that beautiful wife of yours?" he asked.

"Thanks," Karen said as she hung up the phone.

"What was that about?" Marty asked.

"That was Jim," she replied. "He thinks we should check the arrest reports on the DOA, see who the arresting officers were."

"What for?"

"He said Captain Greene and Lieutenant Krause used to work together, in Vice."

Two hours later, Karen and Tom returned from Records with copies of Joyce Matthews' arrest reports. "Bingo," Tom said, dropping them on his desk.

"What did you find?" Campbell asked.

"Phil Krause was the arresting officer the last time Joyce was arrested. Kevin Greene was the sergeant who signed off on the report. The charges were dropped."

Marty noticed Karen staring thoughtfully out the window. "What's up?" he asked her.

"Just thinking."

"What, you're channeling Dunbar now?"

"Maybe," she replied with a smile. "Remember the description Sonny gave us of Joyce's 'sugar daddy'? When we re-canvassed, the neighbors said they saw a man fitting that description coming and going from her apartment."

"Well, that would make sense, if he was the 'sugar daddy'," Marty pointed out.

"Yeah," Karen agreed, then continued, " – and one of them saw him there the night before Joyce's body was found. I was thinking, we've seen someone recently who fits that description – "

Tom finished the sentence for her. " – Captain Greene."

Karen nodded. "You got it. And now we know there's a connection between him and Krause and the DOA."

Marty thought for a minute. "We better talk to the boss," he said, "this is gonna get real sticky."

The squad crowded into Fisk's office. Tom closed the door behind them. The lieutenant listened, his expression growing increasingly concerned, as Karen explained her theory. When she finished, he asked, frowning, "Do you know what you're suggesting?"

"Yes," Karen assured him, as Marty and Tom nodded in support.

"What's your theory about the motive?" Fisk asked.

Karen thought for a minute. "I'm not sure," she finally answered. "There are a couple of possibilities. Maybe he wanted to break it off, and she didn't, or maybe she was blackmailing him, and he got tired of paying."

"Could be," Fisk agreed. "Did Crime Scene get anything from the apartment?"

"The apartment was pretty well scoured," Tom answered, "but they found some traces of blood spatter. It looks like she was killed there. As of yesterday afternoon, they hadn't found any usable prints. They said the place was wiped down pretty good."

"What's your next step?" Fisk asked.

"Bring in the neighbors and have them look at a photo line-up, see if they can ID Captain Greene," Karen said.

Fisk sighed. "OK. Get going."

On her way to the door, Karen stopped and turned back toward the lieutenant. "There's one other thing, boss."

"What's that?"

"This explains why Jim got transferred. Working in the Chief's office, Greene must've heard about the cases Jim's cleared since he's been here. I bet Greene didn't want him anywhere near this one."

"Yeah," Tom agreed, "or maybe he thought, if Jim was transferred, that would create a distraction."

"And either way, he gives his old buddy Krause a chance to go after Jim," Marty pointed out.

"It all fits, boss," Karen asserted.

Fisk nodded grimly. "Just keep me informed – every step of the way."

By late afternoon, four of Joyce Matthews' neighbors had positively identified Captain Greene as the man they'd seen coming and going from her apartment, including the neighbor who saw him there the night before Joyce's body was found in the dumpster. Fisk shook his head sadly when Karen told him. "This is a bad day for the Department," he said.

Karen nodded gravely. "Yeah," she agreed. "And it's not gonna get any better. We need to get a warrant to get his DNA and search his home."

"I'll call IAB," Fisk told her, picking up the phone. "We need to turn this over to them now. Oh, and Karen, this stays in the squad."

"I know," she replied, "but don't you think we should let Jim know? If Krause finds out we're looking at Greene for the murder, he's gonna turn up the heat on Jim, I know he will. I should warn him. And you know Jim, he can keep his mouth shut. Besides," she added bitterly, "he says no one there talks to him anyway."

"OK," Fisk agreed, "just make sure he knows to keep it to himself."

"Yes, sir."

"Good. Close the door on your way out, please."

"OK." Jim ended another one-sided conversation with Karen and closed his phone.

Before he could replace his earpiece and get back to work, Krause called out to him from his office. "Dunbar, my office, right now," he ordered.

Shit, Jim thought as he made his way to Krause's office. What now?

Krause wasted no time letting him know. "Who were you talking to?" he demanded.

"My wife," Jim lied, trying to keep his expression unreadable.

"You talk to your wife like that?"

"She's used to it," Jim told him curtly, trying not to think about what Christie would say about that.

"You sure it wasn't that pretty partner of yours from the 8?"

"Yeah, I'm sure."

"Oh, yeah? I bet she's sweet on you – or maybe you're sweet on her."

"No," Jim said stiffly.

"Well, what about all those times you have to go walk the dog?"

"What about it?" Jim asked.

"You're telling me the dog can't hold it?"

"He has to be on a very strict schedule – " Jim started to explain.

Krause cut him off. "Don't give me that crap. I know what you're doing. I catch you talking to your little partner or any of your buddies from the 8, you're taking a rip. Got it?"

"Yes, sir," Jim snapped. Without waiting for Krause to dismiss him, he turned and walked back to his desk, not noticing or caring when he collided with the door frame on the way out of Krause's office. Scowling, Krause slammed the door behind him.