II. One by one, hurrah
August 1961 Kansas City, Kansas
Yvonne intentionally ignored the customer sitting in front of her as she cleaned the one existent crumbs off the counter top with a rag.
"You know if you scrub that any harder the coatings gonna come up" Floyd remarked
Yvonne dropped her rag and glared "So you came over to the colored part of town to give me cleaning tips."
Floyd smiled shyly before rubbing the back of his head, "I came to apologize and thank you for the ice."
Yvonne rolled her eyes, "Okay, that all?"
"Actually I'd like a slice of pie, if you don't mind," Floyd replied with a grin.
Yvonne pursed her lips and glared at him. "You came all the way over here for some pie?"
"I heard it was really good pie," Floyd responded as if it was a certifiable fact.
Yvonne rolled her eyes "What kind of pie do you want?"
"Surprise me" Floyd offered.
He watched as Yvonne disappeared into the kitchen, only to return a few minutes later, carrying a slice of pie.
"Anything else?" Yvonne asked as she sat the plate in front of Floyd.
"No ma'am." Floyd responded while he began to eat his cherry pie.
"So why were you and those guys fighting?" Yvonne asked after several minutes of silence.
"It was over a girl" Floyd stated taking another bit of pie.
"Ohh, so who's girlfriend did you steal?" Yvonne asked with a smirk.
"I didn't" Floyd responded propping his elbow onto the counter.
"Then why'd they kick your ass," Yvonne asked curiously.
"One of them likes a girl, except she don't like him, she likes me, I don't like her…and for the record I wasn't getting my ass kicked" Floyd smirked
"Okay that black eye tells another story. So what don't you like about her? She ain't pretty enough?" Yvonne retorted.
"No she's pretty, she's just not my type," Floyd responded shoving another bit of pie into his mouth.
"Yeah right, pretty girls are every man's type, they don't care if she's smart as long as she looks good." Yvonne laughed out as she moved down the bar to serve another customer.
"Not always" Floyd mumbled with a smirk as he watched her walk away.
(Present day New York)
"So Finch who's the new number" Shaw asked as she and John filed into the library.
"His name is Lucas Cavanaugh, he's a very successful stock broker working for Smith and Brothers, other than a few DUI's. Mr. Cavanaugh has a clean record." Harold replied as he posted Cavanaugh's photo onto the glass board.
"So is he the victim or perpetrator?" John asked staring at the picture of the sixty-something year old man.
"I'm not sure but our best beat would be to start with Mr. Cavanaugh's ex-wives." Harold replied while sitting back down at his computer.
"Wives? How many women we talking about?" Shaw questioned.
"Not including his most recent twenty-two year old wife Tarry Bradshaw, Mr. Cavanaugh has 14 ex- wives." Harold exclaimed.
Shaw crinkled her nose "I bet one of the scored former Mrs. is trying to off him."
"A vary plausible theory" Harold replied.
Where's Cavanaugh now? John asked.
"I tracked his phone to an upscale Italian restaurant, he's been at the location for the last fifteen minutes, presumably having lunch" Harold answered.
"Good I'm hungry, Reese you're buying," Shaw stated as she headed out the library.
"Great," John mumbled under his breath turning on his heel following her out.
"Let me get the 12 ounce porter house steak, with mash potatoes, broccoli and a side of fries," Shaw stated to the waiter.
"I'll have the house salad," John added to waiter, hiding his smile behind his hand at the man's shocked expression at Shaw's lunch order.
"Mr. Reese, Ms. Shaw do you have eyes on Mr. Cavanaugh?"
John scratched his ear discreetly touching his ear piece "Yes Finch, he and his wife are sitting two tables away from us."
"Good. On another note Mr. Reese, I overheard your conversation with Detective Carter this morning. It doesn't seem like the Detectives have any leads regarding their homicide but I will be monitoring the Detectives investigation should this new 'man in the suit' pose a threat to you or our operation."
"There can be only one." John quoting with a smirk.
Shaw looked at John scrunching her eyebrows together in confusion.
"Come on Shaw, it's from Highlander it's a cult classic, Finch back me up" John asked.
"I beg your pardon, I don't follow. What is this Highlander?" Harold asked equally confused.
John rubbed his eyes in disappointment "We all need to have a movie night."
"Yeah whatever, our number looks like he's making his way to the bathroom" Shaw replied stuffing a roll into her mouth.
John took another sip of his water before getting up and heading in the direction Cavanaugh went. He stood outside the bathroom door for a moment before entering silently to hear Cavanaugh talking to someone in one of the stalls.
"I don't care Ronnie! Don't tell me to calm down you just told me Jimmy is fucking dead! I know he got him and he's coming for us. His gonna kill us both like he did Bobby and Jimmy! You can sit around in your office and pretend that nothing's wrong but I'm getting the hell out of this country before he finds me!"
John quickly moved into the nearest stall and closed the door just as Cavanaugh yanked open his stall door and stormed out the bathroom.
"Did you hear that?" John questioned as he exited the bathroom.
"Yes Mr. Reese I'm looking into Mr. Cavanaugh's call log history to see who he was conversing with." Harold replied as he began hacking into Cavanaugh's phone company's records.
"What's going on? Do we get to shot somebody?" Shaw asked as John sat back down at the table as the discreetly watched Cavanaugh hurriedly pay for his food as he ushered his wife along.
"Someone spooked Cavanaugh he's heading out of the country" John replied as they watched the hostess approach Cavanaugh.
"Mr. Cavanaugh there's a call for you." The hostess politely declared as she extended the phone to Cavanaugh.
"What! Who is it?" Cavanaugh demanded looking at the phone.
"He said his name is Floyd he says it's a family emergency." the hosted responded.
John and Shaw tensed as they watched the Cavanaugh drop his jacket on the floor before shakenly taking the phone from the hostess.
"Finch can we listen in on the call" John asked as his eyes scanned the restaurant for threats.
Give me a moment…luckily the restaurant still uses an old analog cordless phone." Harold responded as he tapped into the land line.
"Please Floyd…I didn't do anything, it wasn't my idea, it just happened…it was an accident no one was supposed to get hurt" Cavanaugh pleaded over the phone.
John, Harold and Sameen listened on baited breath for the man on the other end of the phone to respond. Instead of a person they heard a strumming of a guitar before a musical recording played across the phone line.
*"In the great book of John, you're warned of the day, when you'll be laid, beneath the cold clay, the Angel of Death, will come from the sky, and claim up your soul, when the time comes to die…"
"I don't like this we're interceding now Finch." John stated as he and Shaw rose from their seats. But before they could make their way towards Cavanaugh two bullets piercing the widow striking Cavanaugh in the chest.
As his body hit the ground the entire restaurant broke out into a panicked frenzy as Mrs. Cavanaugh and the hostess both covered in blood spatter screamed.
John watched as Shaw quickly put pressure on Cavanaugh's chest before telling the hostess to call the police and an ambulance. Glimpsing at the man wounds, he knew that help wouldn't make it in time.
John knelt down next to Cavanaugh "Who's his next target?"
John watched as the man struggled to speak, shacking, as blood spurted from his mouth before his body stilled and the life left his eyes.
John swore under his breath before turning his gaze and looking out the bullet pierced glass, scanning the rooftops and the street in front of the restaurant, his eyes locking onto a man dressed in a 50's style suit and hat staring too casually at the panic surrounding the restaurant.
"Harold call Carter. Shaw stay here," John ordered as he bolted out the restaurant ignoring Shaw's questioning.
As he made his way out the restaurant and onto the sidewalk, he spotted the hatted man making his way into the subway. He quickly bolted across the street shouldering his way through the growing crowd of people and down into the subway.
John pushed his way down the stairs as he hurried followed the man in the suit quickly moving through the pay stall and down onto the subway platform.
Catching a glimpse of the man entering into a waiting train, John broke out in a full blown run as he tried to board the same subway car, extending his hand, as the doors closed shut.
Just as his hand hit the window of the door, the man in the suit lifted his head and stared at him. John felt a small chill as he locked sights with the man's hardened green eyes. as the train pulled away from the platform, he stepped back from the doors watching as the man tipped his hat to him and smirked.
John tapped his earpiece "Finch we might have a problem."
"I don't have anything on this guy, he moved to the city back in 1969, came from a small town in Kansas. No criminal record and according to his company he hasn't received any death threats or have problems at work," Fusco complained as he and Carter reviewed their whiteboard.
"Well judging from the three bullets somebody put in him, he has an enemy somewhere." Joss replied as she gazed at the board.
"Are we sure it wasn't our mutual friend?" Fusco questioned as he glanced at the witness statements
"No it's not him, one of the witnesses describe the man as having green eyes and an almost full head of grey hair." Joss replied.
"So?" Fusco questioned.
"John has blue eyes, in the right light they might appear aqua, but no one can mistake his eyes as green plus John has black hair with grey around his temples and a slight sprinkle throughout the rest of his hair, he's not fully grey." Joss stated absently while looking through the ME's report.
"You gonna tell me his suit and shoe size too?" Fusco questioned sarcastically.
"44 long and 14 wide shoe size" Joss replied not paying attention to Fusco's shocked look.
"How do you know that?" Fusco questioned looking suspiciously at his partner.
Joss looked up from her file and raised an eyebrow at Fusco, smirking "What Fusco you think men are the only ones you size up the measurements of the opposite sex."
"I don't know what you're talking about Carter, I don't size up women." Fusco replied mockingly offended.
"Uhhuh and I'm a princess." Joss retorted as her burner phone began to ring.
"Carter….What!When?...okay were on our way." Joss spoke before hanging up.
"What's up?" Fusco asked following Joss's lead grabbing his gun and jacket.
"Our mutual friends were in a shooting at an Italian restaurant off 45th, there's a dead body." Carter replied securing her gun and grabbing her jacket off the back of the chair, leaving the bull pen with Fusco in tow.
"Mr. Reese, Ms. Shaw the detectives are on their way, Mr. Reese what happened in the subway" Harold asked.
"I'm pretty sure the man in the suit is our prep," John replied as he watched the uniformed officers taking everyone's statements.
"What makes you think that" Harold questioned curiously.
"That song that was played over the phone was from 1954, the man in the subway was wearing a 50's style suit" John replied.
"How do you know the songs from 1954?" Shaw asked.
"Not important," John replied dismissively, "we need to find this guy, judging from the call Cavanaugh had in the bathroom, I don't think he's done yet. Finch did you ever find out who Cavanaugh was talking to in the bathroom?"
"Yes, Mr. Reese it was the Ronald Middleton." Harold responded heavily concerned.
"Ronald Middleton? Why does that sound familiar?" Shaw asked.
"Because Ms. Shaw, Ronald Middleton is more commonly referred to as Commissioner Middleton, of the NYPD." Harold responded.
"Well our jobs just got a lot more interesting." Shaw committed out loud.
"Is Middleton a number yet?" John asked as he watched Carter and Fusco pull up to the crime scene in a dark blue charger.
"No not yet, but that doesn't mean his life isn't in danger." Harold responded.
"So what are we telling Carter and Fusco?" Shaw asked as she watched Fusco and Carter talked to two uniforms before heading their way.
"We'll tell them about Cavanaugh and the man on the subway but we'll keep Middleton out of it until we know for sure what's going on" John stated.
"Mr. and Mrs. Rooney the uniformed officers informed us that you both witnessed the shooting. Do you mind telling me what happened? Joss questioned trying to control her irritation at the cocky smirk on Johns face.
John grinned "Of course Detective anything for New York's finest"
AN: * Angel of Death by Hank Williams 1954 recording