Scrabble Spells Murder!
Chapter 03
3.1
Everyone stared at the clue on the Scrabble board on the computer screen. "Well, does that mean anything to anyone?" asked Commissioner Randall.
"I think we can safely say that it is divided by three words," Ironside observed. "BIRD, COD, HALL."
"Each one of those words probably represents where, when, and who," said Ed.
"It is not much of a clue," complained Mark. Those words don't really tell us anything."
"On the contrary, Mark. They tell us who is going to be killed, where it will take place, and when it will happen," said Ironside.
"How do we tell which clue applies to which one?" Eve wondered.
"Let's start with the last word," suggested Ironside. "Hall... logically this is the one that should refer to the place."
"But what kind of Hall?" questioned Commissioner Randall. "There are all kinds of halls in the city. Consider the halls in schools."
"Just about every public building in the city has halls," Carl offered.
"Including this building," said Ed.
"Is it possible the killer intends to go after Chief Ironside immediately?" inquired Commissioner Randall.
"It is a possibility," agreed Mark. "It is at least something we must consider. The chief is probably his ultimate target."
"No, I don't think that the killer will go after the chief first. He wants to beat him at his sick version of a Scrabble game. I think that he will kill several people before he goes after the chief." Eve walked over to the kitchen to put on another pot of coffee.
"Then what kind of hall is it and how do we figure out where the hall is?" Ed wondered.
"I don't think we can," Ironside frowned.
"What?" Randall was shocked to hear Ironside sound so defeated. It was not like him. "You can't be serious."
The chief removed the letters out of the Scrabble game box and put them on the board in the same manner the Hacker did on the computer screen. "What I mean, Dennis, is that we probably will never figure out what they mean if we take the clues separately. They will have to be figured out collectively."
"Chief, you lost me," Carl admitted.
"Individually, they mean nothing. But all together they tell us what we want to know."
"I understand what the Chief is saying," Ed said. "In other words, it was Professor Plum with the candle stick in the library."
"Precisely! The important thing is... when? If we don't know when, the where and the who will not mean anything at all. But we do know when."
Carl looked at Ironside with a confused expression. "We do?"
"No, Lieutenant, we are clueless," Randall said, confused.
"No, Dennis, we are not clueless. The hacker put that clue front and center to be sure we are in the game."
"You mean BIRD, Chief?" Eve asked.
"Yes, Eve. What day do we usually associate a bird with?" Ironside asked.
"Of course! Thanksgiving!" Eve said excitedly.
"That is right, Miss Whitfield. He has told us that the killing will occur on the holiday."
"That is only a week away," Mark pointed out.
"Correct, Mark. We have one week to solve this clue and prevent a murder."
Everyone was silent for a moment. They did not know how long they would be given to solve the first clue but now that they did, the pressure was even greater.
"I will work on the clue. You people will start on that list of suspects. Mark, go to the nearest game store and buy a couple more Scrabble games. I doubt that our friend will pay much attention that the individual letters are limited."
When no one moved away from the table, Ironside snarled, "We only have one week, children!" All of them headed out of the office on the run.
Dennis Randall remained at the table. Ironside looked at his friend and boss. "What is it Dennis?"
"I keep thinking about some poor sol out there that doesn't even know that he or she has been targeted by this maniac. Someone that may only have one week to live. He could be planning a big family dinner right at this moment not realizing that he will never get to eat it."
"Look on the bright side of it," Ironside said.
"Bright side? What bright side?"
"He could be leaving town for the holiday."
Randall snorted. "I should be so lucky."
Ironside's face turned grim. "You won't be."
"Thanks Bob. That is just what I needed to hear. Why do all the lunatics seem to be in San Francisco? The Moonlight Killer, Pierre Fougere, Morgan Haynes. Why can't they all pick some other city to terrorize?"
"I doubt that we have any more than any other big city. It just seems that way."
Randall stood up. "At least I can report to the city council that you have the day pinned down."
I would prefer that you didn't tell them, Dennis. The less people that know, the less chance they tell someone else and the less chance our Hacker finds out what we know. We can't be sure that one of us doesn't know the Hacker."
"Alright, Bob. I won't tell them for now but that is not going to fly for long."
"So tell me something I don't already know."
3.2
Ed pulled his Ford up to the curb of Andre Banner's apartment building. He remembered the threats Banner made toward the chief at his trial. Ironside had dismissed him as a suspect almost right away. Ed wondered if Banner had the ability to hack into and control the chief's computer.
Ironside was rarely wrong when he made a decision to exclude someone in an investigation. Ed wondered how he could be so sure. He did not think he would have the confidence to make such a quick judgment. Then that might explain why he was a chief and Ed was a detective sergeant.
Sgt. Brown shut off the engine of his car, got out and headed up the sidewalk to the building he knew he would find Andre Banner. He had found out that Banner had lost his job. He had been unable to get along with the manager of the computer company his parole officer had secured for him when his prison term was up.
Ed opened the door and walked down the long hall until he reached apartment twenty-seven. The sergeant wrapped his knuckles on the door and waited.
"Yea, who is it?" The voice called out from the other side.
"Police! Open up. I want to talk to you," Ed replied.
Banner opened the door with the security chain attached.
"Is that you, Brown?"
"Sgt. Brown. Chief Ironside sent me to talk with you."
"Get lost. I have nothing to say to you or that cripple."
"Listen, Banner. We can talk here or I will be back with a warrant and you can talk to Chief Ironside. Now, open the door."
Brown waited. He heard the chain being released and the door opened. Andre Banner stood there holding it, giving no indication that he intended to let Ed in.
"Let me in and we will have a nice friendly chat," Ed said.
Banner reluctantly opened the door and let Ed Brown pass into his apartment. "You have five minutes and then you are out of here."
Ed walked into the living room. The place was trashed. There was paper everywhere. Empty pizza boxes were thrown on the floor. There were empty McDonald's, Wendy's, Taco Bell, and Subway bags lying all over.
"You would never win the House Keeping Seal of Approval, Banner and your diet is terrible."
"You didn't come here to discuss that, Brown. What the hell does Ironside want now... another five years of my life? That bastard sent me up."
"You sent yourself up. You broke the law. The chief arrested you. If he hadn't, someone else would have."
"Yea, right. Say what you came here to say and get out."
"Are you trying to get back at the chief?"
"What the hell are you talking about?"
"I want to know if you hacked into his computer."
"Hell no, are you crazy! I hate the son of a bitch but I have no desire to go back to prison."
Ed looked around the room. There was an elaborate computer set up in one corner of the living room. Ed walked over to it.
"Unless you have a warrant, Brown, don't touch the computer."
"Why, would I find that you are monitoring the chief's computer?"
"I would not know how to do that."
"Maybe, I should get Vincent down here and find out."
"You can't push me around, Brown. You have to have probable cause to search the computer and just because I hate Ironside doesn't give you that."
"You have not learned a thing have you? Lost your job and now you have nothing to do all day except play on the computer. Do you play computer Scrabble?"
"What? I never heard of the game. I just got a job working for the cable company, supporting their internet service. Why don't you leave me alone? I am trying to get my life straighten out. Don't you think you have messed it up enough?"
"We didn't mess it up, Andre, you did."
"Look, you can check with the cable company. They will tell you I work for them. Please, leave me alone. I have to get back to work."
Ed stared at him for a moment and then headed for the door. "Keep your nose clean, Andre. We will be watching you."
Ed left the apartment and went back to his car. The chief was right. Banner was not the one that hacked into his computer.
3.3
Ironside sat at the main table in his office staring at the Scrabble board in front of him. BIRDCODHALL. What did the rest of the clue mean? What hall could the murder be taking place in? And who could possibly be represented by COD?
He wheeled over to his desk and reached into the bottom drawer. Could it be as easy as someone with the last name of a fish? He thumbed through the book until he reached the 'C's. Trailing his finger down the columns until he arrived at people with the last name of Cod, there were four of them. Chief Ironside reached into the desk drawer and removed a pen. He wrote the names of all four on a tablet. Lawrence T. Cod, David M Cod, BR Cod, William C. Cod. Not one name was familiar to him. This man wanted him to be humiliated but more importantly, he wanted him to suffer. Would he choose people Ironside did not know?
He knew that most crooks would go after the citizens of his town as a way to get to him but Ironside was sure that this man would choose higher profile targets. The list he just made was useless. He tore the paper from the tablet and rolled it into a ball.
Wheeling back to the table, he stared at the Scrabble board. BIRDCODHALL. There was no doubt that the day was Thanksgiving. What connection did the other two clues have to one another? He had been concentrating on COD as the person. He was doing exactly what he had told his staff not to do, separating the clues into individual clues.
Ironside looked again at the Scrabble board. Somehow, the clues were tied together. But how? Someone was going to be murdered on the holiday. He was convinced that it would be someone well known. The Hacker would want to strike fear into the people of San Francisco. Although killing just anyone would certainly accomplish that after two or three killings, it would bring his game to the attention of the people quicker if the first person was someone prominent.
He had to start thinking along the lines of someone whom all the public would know... someone that would cause a panic. That could mean a city council member or a visiting celebrity.
The clues were too vague, Ironside decided. Would he be able to solve them in time? He realized a lot of it would have to be just plain luck. The clues could represent numerous places and people. That was why he knew they had to be combined and solved together. One clue would not tell them the complete picture. The place stood out with BIRD but the Hacker made sure the other two had to be solved together.
"Mark! Will you get me a cup of coffee, please?"
3.4
The intercom in Randall's office buzzed. "Yes," he answered the summons.
"Commissioner, the mayor is here to see you."
Randall sighed. It had been four days since the first clue. Bob and his people had not come up with the solution and Thanksgiving was only three days away. Naturally, the city council had somehow found out about the Scrabble game. They were already becoming nervous about what would happen on Thursday. He could not blame them. It was the council the city would pressure for protection against the Hacker. As they say... it rolls downhill. They would pressure him and he would pressure Bob Ironside to stop the Hacker from killing whomever the clue represented.
Thank God for Bob Ironside! How would San Francisco survive without him? Randall knew no one was irreplaceable but Bob Ironside came closer than anyone he knew. He could not have imagined his career in the city without the detective to lean on. They had been friends for a good many years and in those years, Randall had the opportunity to observe a lot of detectives… none better than Robert T. Ironside.
As good as Bob was, he also had a downside. This case was a prime example of that. Every crook in the country and some from around the world dreamed of defeating San Francisco's modern day Sherlock Holmes. As a result, the city attracted some of the most dangerous of the criminal element. The Hacker was living proof. This was not just a potential serial killer. He was killing in order to outwit Randall's top detective. Whoever he was, he wanted to humiliate him in front of the entire city. He was in for a rude awakening.
The Hacker might succeed in killing someone… maybe several but in the end Robert Ironside would have enough clues to find and stop the man and he would do it faster than anyone else in the entire police department. What worried Randall was the clues that he would not solve… or solve too late to save the individual targeted. He could not think about it now. The mayor was on his way in.
The door to his office opened and his secretary escorted Mayor Patrick Simpson into his office.
"Dennis… "
"I know what you are going to say, Mr. Mayor. We are doing everything that can possibly be done to find the Hacker."
"I hope you turned this case over to Chief Ironside," the mayor said in what sounded more like an order than a statement.
"Of course I did. Who else would I assign it to," Randall replied, attempting to keep the irritation out of his voice.
He almost chuckled at the mayor's panic. The city council always demanded any case of this nature be turned over to Robert Ironside. The man worked ungodly hours, forcing his staff to do the same, to keep up with the caseload he and the city council dumped on him. Yet, whenever he requested that Ironside's budget be increased or more personnel assigned to his office, the answer was always no. It was a wonder Bob could operate his office on what the city provided him. He was still amazed that they voted unanimously to buy him a new van after the paddy wagon had been destroyed as Sgt. Ed Brown and D.W Donnelly used the vehicle to convince Harvey Poole's deputies that they had been killed when the paddy wagon went over a cliff.*
"What is he doing about it?"
"Trying to solve the first clue. Mr. Mayor, you have to give Bob a chance to figure it out. Panicking is not going to do any of us any good."
"I am not panicking!" he said, indignantly. "I want to know where he is on this."
"I told you, he is working on it."
"We don't know when the Hacker is going to strike. He had better solve this before he does."
Randall realized that despite the mayor's grapevine, he did not know that Ironside had figured out the murder was to take place on Thanksgiving Day. Then how could he, Bob was keeping that quiet. He would have instructed his staff not to say anything to anyone.
"Is there someone else you would rather have on the case?" Randall asked, knowing the answer. He just wanted to point out the best man for the job... was on the job.
"Of course not!" Simpson snapped. "Ironside is the best in the department. He ought to be with the budget we supply."
Randall gave him a look of disbelief. "We supply him with very little, Mr. Mayor. We don't even pay him."
"We can't pay him. He would lose his pension."
"Not if we put him back on active duty."
"We would never get that past the insurance company, Dennis, and you know it."
"I think we would. Besides, we will never know unless we try. Furthermore, he should not have to pay Mark Sanger out of his own pocket. He should be paid staff. No, Patrick, we give Chief Ironside very little."
"Alright, Dennis, you made your point. We will pursue it after we get this Scrabble game hacker."
Randall could not believe his own ears. He was not going to let it go at that. "Why not now? While you are realizing how much the city needs him. Afterwards, the city council could very well decide it is not necessary. The urgency will be gone. Damn it! Patrick, Bob Ironside deserves it and YOU know it."
"Alright you win. I will see what I can do. Just keep me informed." Simpson turned and left Randall's office.
Maybe, just maybe he could get the help Bob needed in that office. He smiled. Then he could assign more cases to him that no one else could solve.
3.5
Mark checked the turkey in the oven. He glanced over at his boss who was sitting at the table staring at the Scrabble board in front of him. Occasionally, he would write something down on a pad of paper.
"Chief, if we are going to eat dinner on that table your Scrabble board is going to have to be removed," Mark told him.
"It is today, Mark. Someone is going to die today because I have not been able to figure out whom and where." He slammed his fist down on the table startling both Eve and Ed who were working on the case at other tables. They both got up and walked over to the boss.
"It's not your fault, Chief," Eve soothed. "The clues are just too vague."
"Let's keep going," Ed said.
The door opened and Lt. Carl Reese walked in. "Sorry, I am late, Chief. I had to make sure everything was set for the family before I left."
"I am sorry I have interrupted everyone's holiday," Ironside said, "but we don't have much time to decide where and who we are going to try to protect."
"We understand," Eve said.
"Where's the commissioner? Eve, didn't you invite him and Patricia to this session and dinner? And what about Katherine?"
"Of course I did. Katherine is on the way over right now but the Randalls are not coming."
Ironside turned his wheelchair toward his police officer. "Why not? The plan was to decide who the target might be and protect them. We will know soon enough if we are wrong. Then we were to have dinner."
"The commissioner said he and his wife have a tradition for Thanksgiving. They have dinner at the Warf every year at noon. They did not want to change it because of the Hacker."
Ironside's face lit up. "Did you say the Warf?"
"Yes, why?"
"It has been right there in front of me all along!" Ironside shouted. "The Warf!"
"It represents COD!" Ed exclaimed excitedly.
"That's right, Ed. And, HALL means the Hall of Justice… not where but whom… namely Commissioner Dennis Randall. I told you all three clues had to be solved together."
"Chief, that means he is going to kill the commissioner at noon today!" Carl pointed out.
"Not if I can help it and I can!" Ironside whirled his chair around and headed for the ramp. "Let's go!"
*Refers to the Ironside episode "Poole's Paradise"