A/N: Sorry for the delay folks. Work and family commiments took priority over the week. Will look to continue updating regularly. Please keep the Reviews coming.
Chapter 5
Jamie's Apartment
Manhattan, New York
Eddie rolled over and when her arm landed, Jamie's side of the bed was empty and cool. She looked around the room. Throwing on a robe, she walked out to the living room where she saw Jamie standing by the window. "Jamie?"
"Oh hey, what are you doing up?" Jamie asked turning away from the window and seeing Eddie by the bedroom door. He saw her come over. He put his arms around her as she laid her head on her chest. "I didn't mean to wake you."
"You didn't, you weren't in bed." Eddie answered with her face buried in his chest. She looked up at Jamie. "What are you doing out here?"
"Thinking about everything." He replied kissing the top of her head. He saw her look up. "We're good; I mean everything else. The sergeant's exam, a new partner to get used to when we get back. Stuff like that."
She looked up and stared at him. "Jamie are you thinking you made a mistake by taking the exam?"
He shook his head as he broke her grip and lead her to the couch. "No, I just feel a little overwhelmed with this. You know while I was recovering, I talked my priest, and Amazing Grace right."
Eddie nodded in her understanding. She often drove Jamie or picked him up from the meetings. Jamie took up the advice of Sergeant Renzulli, his father, and Danny to go talk to someone while recovery, to try and prevent some form of PTSD. Jamie knew that seeing them had helped him. Eddie took his hands in hers. "I remember and it helped with your recovery. Why don't we go to church so you can talk to Father McNally again?"
"No just having you around and talking to you helps me every day." Jamie replied. He lightly kissed her on the lips. "Thanks for being my rock."
"Your welcome." Eddie replied. She got up and offered her hand to him. "Come on, let's go back to bed and I'll show you how much of a great listener I am."
Jamie took her hand as she took the lead to the bedroom.
One Police Plaza
Manhattan, New York
Frank walked off the elevator towards his office with a pace that can be described as slow by those that usually see him walk. Baker held open the door for him. "Thank you Baker."
"You're welcome sir." Baker replied as she walked in behind him. She took the coat from him. "The mayor's office called and said if there is anything they can do to be off assistance, we should let them know."
"This is my burden, but please tell them thank you for me." Frank replied as he sat down at his desk. He saw Baker nodded at the comment. "Anything else?"
"Crime stats briefing for the Transit police is at 9:30, and the Vice President's visit security meeting with the FBI and Secret Service at 1:30." Baker stated as she held looked at her print out. The doors opened and in walked Ghormley and Garrett into the office. "And your 8:30 is early."
"Thank you Baker." Frank answered. He waited until Baker had left the room before turning his attention to the duo standing before him. "Good morning, what fine news have you decided to grace me with?"
"Frank we found her." Garrett stated as he handed over a file folder with a picture of Walter Braden on the night of the incident with a dark hair woman on his arm outside of a club. "Her name was Janet Connor, daughter of the former CEO of First Financial."
Frank studied the picture for a moment. "Do we know if she got in the car with him?"
Ghormley shook his head. "This picture was taken just before Walter got into his car. The photographer who took it remembered the two of them fighting over it."
"That was over twenty years ago. How does the photographer remember that?" Frank asked closing the folder and setting it on his desk.
"He remembers them arguing all the way to the car and seeing her walk away after he snatched the keys from her." Ghormley stated as he handed over a witness statement. "The photographer sat on the picture out of respect for Jeffery Billings."
"Then when Walter went to trial, the photographer was assigned to an overseas story so the picture was never published." Garrett finished the line that Ghormley was on. He looked at Frank. "The photographer retired a couple years ago, but still lives in the city."
Frank looked at the both of them. "What about Jennifer Connor?"
"Goes by Jennifer Sanderson now." Ghormley answered as he handed over another file to Frank who opened it. "Married about three years after the incident and lives over on the Upper West Side with her husband and family."
"What does she do now?" Frank asked looking at the file. He found the information. "She took over as CFO of First Financial?"
"Yes sir, and her husband is the CEO of First Financial." Ghormley stated as he shifted on his feet. He saw Franks stare at him. "We just ran an image search sir, we didn't contact her."
"Let's ask her to come in and speak with me." Frank ordered getting a nod from Ghormley but a stare from Garrett. "I'm just going to talk to her."
"Yet William Braden lawyers may see it as witness tampering." Garrett reminded his boss. He pulled out his phone and held it up. "I have a full voicemail and hundreds of texts. I'm all referring them to legal."
"Another issue sir, even if she corroborates the test, we can't try William Braden for the same charge, double jeopardy." Ghormley told Frank who got up and walked towards the window.
"I know that." Frank stated as he stared out the window for a few moment. He then turned around. "Maybe she will finally shed light onto that evening."
St. Victors
Manhattan, New York
Linda Reagan walked onto the fourth floor of the hospital and towards the nurse's station. Her friend Jennifer Martinez saw her and smiled. "Hey Linda, what brings you up here?"
"I just wanted to see Mr. Johnson. The accident victim." Linda answered with her own smile. This was the floor on which her shooting took place, and it's been a while since she has been back on the floor. "How's he doing?"
Jennifer looked at the board real quick. "He's doing well following surgery. He's in room 413."
"Thanks." Linda told her friend. She then walked down the hallway towards Room 413. She stopped at the door and looked into the room. Mr. Johnson was sitting in bed, eating the hospital breakfast and watching TV. She lightly knocked on the door. "Mr. Johnson, Nurse Reagan. I was your nurse yesterday."
"I remember you. Come on in." Mr. Johnson told her as he pushed his breakfast tray away from him. He smiled as she approached. "Thanks for being so concern about my wellbeing yesterday."
"It's my job Mr. Johnson." Linda replied as she looked at the monitor and Mr. Johnson. She then looked at the board in the room who was in charge of him during that shift. "You got some good people looking after you now."
"The doctor that the performed the surgery is really good too." Mr. Johnson told her moving a little bit, to shift. He looked at Linda. "He checked on me first thing this morning."
Linda nodded at the statement made by Mr. Johnson. "He's a really good surgeon. He saved my brother in law who is a cop."
Then it dawn on Mr. Johnson. "Jamie Reagan. The officer who saved the kid in the shootout a few months ago."
"Yep that's him." Linda stated with a little bit of a smile on her face. She then looked at the clock on the well. "I just wanted to check in on you to see how you are doing."
"Thanks Nurse Reagan I appreciate." Mr. Johnson replied with a smile on his face. He handed her a card. "This is from my family. I already gave the doc his."
Linda nodded her thanks and left the room. As soon as she walked on the elevator, she opened the card. "Thanks for saving my husband and dad. Love the Johnson Family."
Linda smiled and wiped away some tears as the doors opened on the first floor.
Major Case Squad
54th Precinct
Danny and Baez were sitting at their desk going through copy of receipts from every drug store and all night pharmacies within the area of the murder. Baez looked at her partner. "Reagan, I looked at these receipts and I haven't found anything that matches the time frame that Todd McDillion could have stopped at."
"I know partner, but Todd had to cut himself killing Samantha." Danny remarked as he continued to look through receipts. He stopped on one. "Here I found something. An hour after the murder, there was purchase of gauze, tape, and an antibiotic cream to treat cuts."
Baez typed something into her computer. "He must have paid cash for that because there isn't a charge on his credit card, but I have something more interesting here."
"What's that partner?" Danny said looking up from the pile of receipts.
"He has a deposit of four thousand dollars day after the murder." Baez told Danny who got up and came around the desk to look at the screen. "It came as a transfer from our victim's mother."
"Mom, didn't tell us about that." Danny said as he noticed a TARU tech come on over to the desk. "What did you find out from the bar footage."
"Oh your victim, her mother and her mother's boyfriend were definitely on there." The tech told them. He led the pair of them to the room where the footage was cued up. "Watch this."
The footage showed Samantha noticing her mother being all cozy with Todd McDillion and kissing him very hard on the mouth. Then Samantha stormed out of the bar. "Confirms the mother's story."
"Hold on." The tech told them as footage continued as Mrs. Barnes nodded to Todd who walked after Samantha. "I don't know but that doesn't look like a breakup."
"No it doesn't. Can you rewind it to just before that moment?" Danny asked the tech who rewound the tape for a moment to just a couple minutes before. The footage played on as Mrs. Barnes noticed her daughter and cozied up to the boyfriend. "She knew Samantha was there, and riled up her up."
"For what purpose?" Baez asked as her phone rang.
"I don't know partner." Danny answered as the tech paused the footage at the kiss again. Danny patted him on the shoulders. "Thanks, can you get the surveillance footage from this address and see if that guy was there buying these products."
The tech nodded as Baez hung up the phone. "Hotel security over in midtown says Todd McDillion is staying there. He paid cash for the room for three days."
"Let's get over there." Danny answered the statement from Baez as they walked out of the room.
The Midtown Holiday Inn
Manhattan, New York
Danny, Baez and a couple of uniforms arrived at the hotel where security was waiting for them outside. Danny recognized the man. "Jerry Michelson. Though you retired?"
"I did Danny, but I got offered to be security chief for a few hotels in the city." Jerry replied as he shook Danny and Baez's hands. "Make a lot more now than I did on the job."
Danny smile and nodded before turning serious. "You found our suspect?"
"Sure did. Room 302, near the stairwell. I posted one of my security guys there to make sure he doesn't rabbit." Jerry answered as he pulled up a iPad that showed the surveillance footage inside the hotel. "Still in there."
"Alright. Let your guy know were coming." Danny told his friend who nodded. He then turned to Baez. "You take Martinez here and go up the stairs, while I take Jones and use the elevator."
Baez nodded as the pair split up and moved off in separate directions. It took a couple minutes for them to arrive outside the room. Danny knocked on the door. "Mr. McDillion, hotel maintenance, we got a report of water coming through to the room directly below you."
"What do you mean that there is water coming through…." Todd McDillion said as he opened the door and saw Danny, Baez, and two uniforms officers on the other side. He attempt to shut the door, but Danny forced it opened and knocked Todd to the ground. "Okay, okay."
"Todd McDillion you are under arrest for the murder of Samantha Barnes." Baez stated as Danny began to cuff him as the officers stood by after clearing the rest of the room.
"I killed her alright, but it wasn't my idea." Todd said as Danny brought him to his feet.
Danny looked Todd square in the face. "Than whose idea was it?"
"It was Sarah. She wanted her daughter dead." Todd told Danny and Baez who looked at him in shock.