Chapter 1

It was a cold and frosty spring morning when Det. Black Taylor arrived at the Senators illustrious mansion in his gray 1987 Chrysler New Yorker. The birds had just begun singing the morning hymns. The moistened grass glistened with the first signs of the morning sun. It was a scene perfectly fit for the beginning of an old 80’a movie. All except for the ridiculous amount of blue and red lights that flashed in the front entrance. The Senator’s house, extensive man power, this was going to be something.
 

The detective was ready and confident, even if he was annoyed about being out of bed at such an early hour. But he had impressions to make and a big case was exactly what he needed. “Death and disaster,” he said as he strolled through the jungle of officers working detail in the front of the house. “Two words that go hand in hand as natural song and dance. No, no coffee,” he said to a young officer approaching with a trey of coffee in little white cups with black plastic lids. “If you can get me a canned Dr. Pepper that would be great. Has to be cold. Cold. Alright… Alex,” he said scanned the confused young officer’s badge. “Yes sir,” he nodded shyly and took off. Black grinned at the quick thought of his younger days as he proceeded in through the doors of the Senator’s mansion. Oh how he wished he could go back and do it all over again. Maybe things would be different. 

“What do we have Waggins? Dead facts only please,” he said rubbing his hand over his forehead. “Two missing persons. The Senator and his son. There’s a ransom note upstairs in the Senator’s office that implicates the son. There’s also signs of struggle at the desk in the office but nothing at the front door of the home or the door to the office,” a sharp detective spouted back quickly. “Anybody see anything? Who else lives in the house,” Black continued on. The maids and butlers live in the apartments at the back of the property. Son, Fischer, he’s 20, and daughter Lillian, 8 live in the west wing of this mansion. The Senator and his wife, Helen, 36, live in the east wing. Wife claims she wasn’t home at the time. Alibi checks out,” Waggins answered confidently. “It’s good to have you back B. You know I’m lost without my better half,” Waggins said cracking a quiet smile at the end of their brief reunion. Black patted him on the shoulder in agreement and with a smooth wink and a nod he continued on into the next room.

“I get a sense of, uh what’s the word? Oh yes, humility,” he said aloud to the other officers inside as he took in the beauty and gaudiness of the enormous home. “Place just reeks of it,” he said sniffing the air and receiving a few laughs from the small crowd. “Humility is word invented for people who were given there success. Just to make them feel better about not earning it,” a sweetly seasoned voice ejected from the top of the grand stairway as a slender frame appeared. “I see you’re back to active duty. So soon?” she said smugly as she descended the steps like an angel leaving heaven to shake hands with the devil. “I’m sorry. Do we know each other?” the detective said curiously as he watched her light up a cigarette. As she did a maid came running to her side with a shiny glass bowl for her ashes and then quietly slipped back out of the room. “I, am a U.S. Senator’s wife. If I don’t know all the players then I’m definitely not doing my job now am I? And the drinking?” she asked as ferocious as her devilish demeanor.

He paused for a brief moment with a satisfied look on his face. What a woman he thought to himself. “I’m doing well, thank you,” he said flashing a sobriety pin he had stuck to the inside of his dark Green pea coat. “1 year sober on the 29th of this month,” he said pausing to smile and survey her. ”Okay, so, that was fun,” he said assertively. “My turn. If you, don’t mind that is. I just have a few questions for the U.S. Senator’s wife,” he said raising an eyebrow as he got out his pen and pad. He turned away from her and began towards the fire place. He stopped in amazement staring at the most expensive twin crystal vases he had ever seen. “See, where I excel in good looks and charm, I completely pull a one-eighty when it comes to balance. Complete opposite end of the spectrum. Clumsy,” he said with a smirk reaching out to touch one of the vases. “Okay, so where were we?” he continued.  He rambled off the usual opening questions, waiting to hear something off in her statements, or in her posture or facial expression. But she was stone cold and bull headed as she fired off her answers. She was very clear of her whereabouts and her alibi was indeed solid. “I’m a U.S. Senator’s wife I know how these things go,” she said confidently ashing her cigarette into the glass bowl. “And the relationship between the Senator and his son,” he said reining in on her. Still, she was a rock, “It was difficult but tolerable. I don’t put much time in it I rather my own affairs to tend to.” “And yet he’s suspected of kidnapping his father. He couldn’t do anything like that alone. Who could help him him out with something like?” Black continued on with his questioning. “I’ve no idea. As I said, I tend to my own affairs. What he does in his spare time is the least of my worries. He’s 20 now. None of my concern. Are we done here. I have a Gala this evening I need to get ready,” she snapped in annoyance at his prying.

“Going to a gala, you say? But your husband and son are missing. And that doesn’t throw a wrench in your plans at all?” he continued unfazed by her frustration. “I, am a U.S.,”…. She started “Senator’s wife. Yes, yes, I remember now. Okay. My apologies. That should be it for now,” he interjected before bowing his head to her. With a quick stale glance she was off. “The game is on,” he said out loud mimicking his favorite character Sherlock Holmes as he moved up the grand stairway. He reached the top of the stairs and followed the trail of officers into the Senator’s office. He took a few steps inside and looked around silently, taking everything in. The office was enormous and beautiful. Pictures of and with famous people and public officials stained the ugly vintage wallpaper. A display of the Senator’s first passed bill sat in the corner of the room surrounded by gold encasing and plaque with his name in big bold letters. On one side of the room there was an entire living room complete with a couch, coffee table and recliner. The only thing missing was a grand piano. Black noticed papers laying on the floor next to the huge oak desk in front of the glass window in the center of the room . The wheels of an office chair stuck out from the opposite side of the desk where a nervous looking officer stood staring directly at him waiting for him to approach. Black continued his silent site seeing before closing his eyes to envision exactly what happened. His head swayed back and forth as he muttered to himself with his arms crossed. As he stood there other officers watched his weird antics and whispered to each other. “He thinks he’s god damn Sherlock Holmes. He’s just a freak,” a burly looking officer said to another officer standing next to him with skinny frame and big nose. Black opened his eyes for a moment and glared at the two of them before shutting his eyes again. When he finally opened his eyes again he went straight for the officer that still staring and waiting for him.

He shook the nervous looking man’s had as the Alex had finally brought him his cold canned Dr. Pepper. He cracked his drink as the officer began to fumble with his paperwork. “Dead fact’s only please,” he said after the cold carbonation burned down his throat. “Looks like three men grabbed the senator here. There was a struggle. There’s blood on the desk here. Maybe from a stab wound of some sort. Ransom note here on the desk. Pretty cut and dry. All the servant’s and maids were all at their apartments at the time. They probably took him right out the front door.” “See, Officer… Sherffery, I said dead facts only. I even said please,” he said as he huffed and took another sip of his Dr. Pepper. “So is that what someone told you or did you play detective yourself,” Black said jokingly so as not to completely wound the officer’s pride as he walked around the desk and looked out at the giant glass window behind it. “And no, not out the front door, they went out this window. Get some men down there to check for impressions. Anyway. You were saying.”  The officer looked at him with a puzzled look. “I gathered most of this information sir,” the officer said with a tight lip. “It wasn’t a stab wound . If there was a stab would there would be a blood trail leading to the window and through the bushes there. Even if were only a few drops here and there, there would be a trail. The bleeding was stopped before he was moved. Okay, thank you so much,” he said with a smile as he stuck his had out and shook the officers hand before turning back to his work. He placed his drink on the ledge of the window as he examined it. “It’s unlocked. It’s unlikely he’s ever used it. Seems as if it hasn’t be touched since it was painted. They’ve lived here what, two years now. this window must be new See where the paint was completely ripped off there where it wasn’t allowed to dry before it was closed and then was forced open,” he said to Waggins who had slipped in as the other officer walked away. “So, disgruntled teen gets a couple friends to help him kidnap his father. They stab him then clean him up.  They leave a typed out ransom note and slip out the front door or window?” Waggins said sardonically. “Yeah something seems a little out of order doesn’t it,” Black replied with a quiet laugh. “Looks like you need more of those dead facts,” Waggins said as he took a quick glance at the bare spot of wood on the window. Black stood beside him as also staring at the spot as he wondered what kind of mess he was getting himself into.

He shook his head and threw a hand in the air in confusion as Waggins walked away. He was hoping to a have simple case with minimal leg work and a quick end game. He’d get back in good favor with the chief and wouldn’t be under such scrutiny from the department anymore. He was ready to move on from his mishaps and just do the job. He was good at the job. Really good. He just got so absorbed in the job that he lost himself and began drinking. Things almost got ugly for Black but his partner Waggins saved and covered his a*s. Got him help. Now he was back and the first case he’s given lead on is starting to develop more strings than a harp. “Guess we’re here now,” he said to himself as he motioned for the fingerprint kit and began dusting the desk and its contents for prints. “Have we got a match on the this blood sample yet?” he said aloud to anyone listening. “No sir,” someone yelled out from the back of the room. He scanned with the patience of stubborn leaf in the fall that wont let go of it’s tree. The finger prints painted a picture for him. He began scanning the desk in all its cluttered glory. He could see were he placed things regularly like his coffee or where he placed his hands when he was nervous or bored. He saw where he had placed his feet when he would sit back comfortably in his chair. But then he noticed skid mark that seemed fresh. It looked feet being drug from there position in an unexpected manor. He then found small scratch marks where someone had tried not to be taken.. “Det. Black. You want to see this,” Waggins said handing Black a laptop. “What’s this,” Black asked. “Laptop. Must have been knocked to the corner in the struggle. There’s a video, take a look,” Waggins explained motioning for Black to lay the laptop on the desk.

Black pressed play on the video that was already pulled up on the laptop. “This was on the screen already?” he asked as it began. Waggins nodded yes. A man in a black mask appeared on the screen. “We know who you are. We know what you’ve done. We’re coming,” the man in the black mask said in a distorted voice before the video quickly ended. Blacked played the video a couple  more times. “Somebody get me a picture of the son,” Black yelled out into the room for a pair of listening ears. A few moments later an officer in uniform handed him the picture he asked for. “Yeah those are his eyes. It’s the son in this video. I want everything you can find on the son on my desk by noon,” he said taking his gloves off and tossing them a nearby trashcan. “Attention ladies!” he screamed taking command of the room. “We got something here. I’m going to need full focus and attention to detail. If you can’t give me that then get your a*s outside and write me a couple parking tickets. I need dead facts. There’s nothing in the world that holds more truth then death. So bring it to me , dead facts, no nonsense,” he carried on. “Glad to have you back Black,” an officer yelled from the back of the room sardonically. There was a slight chuckle throughout the room. “Yeah, yeah, I’m back and barking orders like I never left. Alright, wrap this up quick we don’t wanna be here any longer than we have to. I don’t think we’re very welcome either. And we’re tight lip on this folks, I don’t think I need to remind you of whose house we’re in. Jesus is watching,” he said pointing to a giant portrait of the Senator as he walked out of the room. 

He was quickly met by a tall, thin man in a suit with a professional busy look on his face. “Hi there. I’m the Senator’s publicist. I’d just like to talk to you about a few things before you continue your investigation,” he said with his government detail swagger. “Um, Okay,” Black replied slyly studying the man. Total gimp he thought. He was probably bread for the job by his rich parents. “Bradly Shane,” said the tall man sticking out his hand for a proper shake. “Detective Black Taylor,” he said squeezing the mans hand to match his grip. “Okay, so as you know Senator Lawing is very important to society. News of this would be, cataclysmic to the community. With that being said, keep this quiet. The story we feed the public is that the Senator is sick from a bug and that the presence of the department was apart of a planned exercise that had to be carried out for security reasons. I can’t express to you how important it is for all this to remain quiet. And please understand this is all coming from the higher ups. I’m nothing but a glorified messenger sent with direct orders. So. And I’m not allowed to report back until those orders are carried out, understand?” he said moving closer to Black entering a more stern tone and demeanor. “Alright then. Will I be needing to make a statement of any kind?” Black asked stepping forward with grit to show his defiance to the tune being used. “Not at this time. But if that needs to happen I’ll be in touch,” he said with a nod before sharply walking off. “Wonderful,” he said aloud putting his hands into his pockets and taking a breath. It was still early and there was obviously plenty more to do than he thought firsthand. He needed to make sure he was ready. He had to know he could handle what was to come next if this case was as complicated as he thinks it could be. Especially now after reading the scene and getting a few dead facts of his own. For Black there was only one way to find out.