Nolan's Journal Chapter 36
"We've gotten started with Captain Stein's cop-on-the-beat idea. For the past few days, Stella's been walking while I cruised the area in the shop. I was never more than two minutes away in case she needed me. But when she didn't, we went over her body cam footage together to see if there was anything she might have done better.
"For most of her hours on her feet, she was great. She talked to some of the residents of the neighborhood, particularly the shopkeepers, to see if there was anything they were worried about. There were the usual concerns about gangs, but most of those had to do with tagging and other relatively minor property damage. There was an incident, though, when Stella had to call me in.
"She started chatting with Clarence, a bodega owner who was cleaning his front window before his opening time in the morning. He told her that he had to clean it every day, not because of taggers, but because teens in the neighborhood would spit on it and puke on it.
"Clarence tried chasing them off, but when he did, he couldn't keep an eye on customers inside the store, and he was afraid of being ripped off while distracted. His security camera only covers the register, and he can't afford a larger system. He had found some beer and snacks missing. None of it was a big loss, but his margins are pretty narrow, and the shoplifting makes them even narrower. So he started staying inside while the kids did whatever they were going to do to his window and then cleaning it off in the morning. Stella called me in to see if we could put a plan together to help him out. We figured we could identify and bring in the perpetrators if we put an undercover cop in the store, but the UC cop couldn't appear threatening to the kids.
"Stella and I brought the idea to Gray, who is trying his best to work with Captain Stein. He OK'd the UC idea if we had a cop who could make it work. Of course, Lucy jumped at the chance to do UC again, but she decided she'd have to dress up and disguise herself even more than she did while playing Sava.
"Celina told us that a church in her neighborhood operates a clothes closet, and when the unhoused come in for something fresh to wear, they often just leave their old things behind. The church washes them, but usually, they're not in good enough shape to give to anyone to wear again. Lucy went by and picked up a worn coat and dress and grabbed a pair of shoes that were about to go in the dumpster. She put some weird insoles in them that gave her a subtle limp. She also put a gray rinse in her hair. Then she dropped by Aaron's mother's studio, and a makeup artist there aged her about 40 years. If she hadn't spoken to me in her normal voice, I never would have known it was Lucy.
"She set up a place for herself in the back of the store around the food Tamara told her the unhoused could live on most cheaply. Then she waited. She was there for two days before anything happened. Two teenagers came into the store and were hanging around the back refrigerator case. As Clarence signaled to her to keep an eye on them, two others came and barfed on the front window. The two in the store immediately grabbed a 24-pack of beer, five bags of chips, and three jars of salsa.
"Lucy popped out of her nest and flashed her badge at them. She called in Stella and me to transport them to Mid-Wilshire. They were scared enough to almost barf on themselves. When Lucy questioned them, she found out the whole scheme was part of an online game. Instead of selling it, kids scored points for what they stole, and then they had online parties together. It turned out teens were also playing the game in other divisions and in other states. Captain Stein put our tech people on tracking down who was behind it and shutting it down. It's quite a feather in her cap and doesn't look bad for Lucy, Grey, or me either. Uncovering the situation should also give Stella a boost as a rookie."
"Bailey made her decision about the capoeira studio. She decided to become a partner on the proviso that it has child-care facilities, for the patrons as well as the teachers. After our maneuvering to make sure Essie is always with someone we trust, as well as all the issues that Nyla and James and Angela and Wesley have gone through getting childcare, she's become hyper-aware of the need. She thinks it will attract both good staff and more students. I suspect she's right.
"Bailey's not the only one thinking along those lines. With the LAPD trying to have the makeup of the force reflect the population of the city, we need more female cops. Childcare could be a huge issue in having women and even some men decide to choose law enforcement as a career. So, Stein's next pilot program could be a childcare facility at Mid-Wilshire.
"So far, she's only talking about babies. One or two rooms (preferably soundproofed) would be enough. Cop moms and dads could pop in to see them during the day, schedule permitting. Cop moms might even be able to nurse there. Since both Harper and Lopez pumped during their time on duty, a facility like that would have allowed them to skip the pump and refrigerator and go straight to the rocking chair.
"The one person who hates the idea is Smitty. It's not that he hates babies, although I can't remember him ever expressing an urge to cuddle or even look at one. The room Stein is proposing to use is where the snack vending machines are. She hasn't said she'd get rid of them, just move them to a room at the other end of the division. Smitty complained that he would have to walk an extra two minutes to get his chips. He hasn't gotten much sympathy.
"Stein is going to have to get the idea past the higher-ups, but she seems optimistic that it will fly. She thinks that a family-friendly police force should play well in the press. I hope the powers that be agree.
"Thanksgiving is almost upon us, and Essie is really looking forward to it. That her new mommy and daddy are at the top of her list to be grateful for gives me feelings I can't even describe. When I first saw it, there were tears in my eyes. Bailey outright bawled. I hadn't seen her do that since the doctor told her that her fallopian tubes were damaged. But those were tears of sadness and loss. Essie has brought her tears of joy.
"With all of that, I can't help feeling nervous. For a lot of my life, every time I thought I was on top of the world, something happened to knock me off my perch. Somehow, I've always been able to get up, dust myself off, and do what had to be done. Bailey's been the same way. After all Essie's been through, more than Bailey or I have ever had to face, she's been incredibly resilient. But enough is more than enough. I'm determined to do everything in my power to see that she doesn't have to bounce back again from anything else."