Bullpen
Blair flung the door wide and entered the Major Crime bullpen with a spring to his steps. Jim was just setting the phone down as Blair came up to him.
"That was Carl Meredith on the phone," Jim explained. "He called to tell me that he had contacted at least a hundred hobby shops throughout the western part of the US. All reported that they had counterfeit cards, but not all had the same characteristics as our cards."
"Jeez, that means that more than one group is making them. Imagine that." Blair laughed with his voice dripping with amused sarcasm.
"Right." Jim paused, contemplating a sheet of paper in his hands. "I heard you went down to lock-up."
"Yeah, I wanted to check something out." Blair shifted on his toes, twitching in excess energy.
"And that was?" Jim asked patiently.
"Dennis and Lucy said a guy named Jake was the one that gave them their inspiration, so to speak. I was wondering if Jake could be Jack Teale. The artist rendition was pretty poor; they just weren't able to give an accurate description."
"When did all this occur to you?"
"During that ride back to the truck. Did you have to go quite that fast through the trees? I thought for sure that I was gonna get pitched off the back of the snowmobile."
"It was fun, wasn't it." Jim laughed, his eyes twinkling devilishly.
"Anyway," Blair continued, "I didn't want to say anything until Teale was booked and I got a copy of his mug shot."
"You wanted to show it to the kids?"
Blair smiled triumphantly. "They said that it was Jake. Then I went and confronted Jack with it and he just smirked and said how could he help it if great minds thought alike--not really confirming or denying."
Jim and Blair looked up as Simon Banks burst out of his office. "The mayor and county executive are giving a press conference," he told everyone as he crossed the bullpen. He went over to the TV in the break room, turned it on, then stepped back as the detectives crowded around him. It hadn't started yet, but the media was full of speculations.
"You think they're going to tell everyone about us working with the Sheriff and stopping the counterfeiting ring?" Blair asked.
"Shush!!!" Simon commanded.
"Welcome, everyone," the Mayor began. "Thank you all for being here. After much deliberation, we have decided to suspend the Bait and Shoot program--"
There was so much noise from the onlookers, that the mayor stopped speaking, until it calmed down.
"In the spirit of community solidarity," he began again, "and with the upcoming sesquicentennial celebrations, we have cancelled Bait and Shoot for the rest of this year. The program will be reevaluated for the next winter. Now, we're ready to take your questions."
"I had forgotten about the sesquicentennial," Jim remarked as he turned off the TV.
"How could you forget it? There are banners all over town and in this morning's paper is a list of activities. Hell, even Santana is supposed to come."
Jim began humming the melody to Smooth. At one point he put his face inches from Blair's nose and sang, "Just forget about it," then turned abruptly and walked leisurely back to his desk.
"Maaaan," Blair whined, because he couldn't think of a suitable reply.
Like this episode? Email the writer: lwright3@rochester.rr.com
Want to comment on production? Contact Black Panther Productions: bpproductions@wildmail.com
Author's notes: The story about counterfeiting has come strictly from my imagination. I don't have any technical expertise with printing presses. However, the part about the deputies being poisoned by fast-food workers is true. Last year, New York State Troopers were poisoned by ingesting Easy Off and other caustic chemicals at a Thruway burger joint. The kids said they did it only for fun. We also have the Bait and Shoot program implemented in an outlying town. The sheriff department's sharp shooters are responsible for taking down the deer. The first year was filled with protests and editorials in the city paper. Now, it doesn't even get a write-up in the paper.
Stay tuned next week when a drug bust goes terribly wrong, resulting in the death of a DEA agent. The resulting media frenzy targets Blair and the Major Crimes Unit in "Shaman Of The Great City" an all new The Sentinel.
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