Vendetta
Part 8
Cassy grimaced as the cold coffee hit her lips. She spit it back into the cup before swallowing then looked around to make sure no one saw her. She was clear. Grabbing the cup, she made her way to the kitchenette. Dumping out the old cup, she poured fresh coffee into the mug. The smell of the fresh brew was inviting. She turned and looked out over the main floor. It was quiet. Most of the detectives and officers were out on the streets, except for her absent partner. No, his desk was empty because he was injured. . .again. He was in the hospital. . .again.
"Cassy, they found Brandt," was the sudden shout from Harry's office. Cassy quickly descended the stairs and entered the Captain's office. He handed her a file, "He's dead."
Cassy frowned at the news, "What happened?"
"A couple of tourists found his body lying on the shore of the inner-coastal. By the looks of the body, he's been dead for a few days. Morton figures he was killed sometime over the weekend." Harry sat back in his chair and sipped from his tea cup.
"Cause of death?" Cassy opened the folder and was met with a horrific site. The body of the man had deteriorated in the water, becoming fish food for the aquatic population.
"Gunshot wound to the chest. Bullet penetrated the heart. Morton figures the man was dead before he ever hit the water." Harry leaned forward. "The way I figure it, somehow the guys who shot Tom and Fred traced the stolen Jaguar to Brandt. Found out where he'd taken the car, killed him and then went to the garage."
"So we don't have any more leads to them than we did before," Cassy shook her head and collapsed in the chair across from her boss.
Harry nodded in agreement. "At this point, Tom is our only lead to the killers."
"Well, there's one other lead, we just don't know who that person is," Cassy muttered.
"Who?" Harry's forehead furrowed with the question.
"Whoever led the shooters to Brandt. Someone had to tip them off how to find the Jag. It's doubtful that they just stumbled across the man."
Harry nodded in agreement. "Contact Robbery. See if they can provide any leads on Brandt's associates. Any word from Narcotics?"
"Mickey said that word on the street is that there is new action in Miami. No one is talking about them. Seems they are dealing to a very exclusive clientele. He said he'd contact Miami P.D. to see if they had any surveillance shots. Figured that if he could get some pictures of whose involved, Tom might be able to identify the shooters."
Harry closed his eyes, "I'll be honest with you Cassy, I'm worried about your partner. I don't like the fact that he's the only link to these men. It makes him too vulnerable."
"Agreed."
"How's he feeling?" Harry took off his glasses and rubbed his eyes.
"Physically, he's doing okay. He started therapy yesterday. Mentally, however, he is being pretty hard on himself. He blames himself for what happened to Fred. What's worse, Jeremy won't talk to him, so he thinks the kid blames him too."
"Does he?"
Cassy shrugged her shoulders, "He's mad. He's hurt. Beyond that, I don't know what he's thinking." She stood, preparing to leave the office.
"Cassy, one more thing." Harry stopped her. She turned, seeing his grim face, "We need to turn something up on this. . .soon. The Commissioner is pressing me about using police personnel to guard Tom. He doesn't seem to think that Tom is in as great a danger as we do. If we don't come up with a lead, I think he's going to make me pull the guard. That'll leave Tom vulnerable. I don't want him to be on his own."
"That won't happen," Cassy said with a determined look. "I won't let that happen." She turned and left the office.
Harry watched the detective leave, "Neither will I," he whispered to himself.
Cassy peeked around the door to her partner's all too familiar hospital room. To her surprise, the bed was empty. The guard had told her he was in the room. She pushed the door open and saw him standing at the window, leaning against the wall for support.
"Hey you," she said, with some concern in her voice.
Startled, Tom turned at the sound of his partner's voice. "Didn't expect to see you this afternoon."
"I brought you some more magazines. Thought you had probably read the old ones from cover to cover." She tossed the new sports magazines onto the table beside the bed.
"Thanks, but I haven't finished the others yet," Tom said with a twinge of regret.
"That's okay. I'm not gonna test you over them or anything." She looked at her partner, his back to her as he continued to gaze out the window. She saw his body sway slightly, probably from fatigue and she walked to his side, placing a supporting hand on his upper back. "You sure you should be up?"
"Doc says I need to start walking more," Tom muttered.
"This isn't walking, Thomas," she pointed to the window. "Whatcha looking at."
"Nothing. Just thinking." He turned from the window and hobbled back to the bed, gently easing himself back against the raised mattress. He looked miserable. Cassy could see the dark circles surrounding his eyes. His normally tan skin tone looked faded.
"You feeling okay?" She asked, unable to hide her concern.
Tom shrugged, but didn't answer. "How's the case coming."
"Brandt's body was found on the inner-coastal today. Shot in the chest, just like. . ." Cassy stopped.
"Just like Fred," Tom completed.
"We're looking for someone who would know how the shooters found Brandt. Narcotics has a lead on new action in Miami. They are trying to get a hold of surveillance shots so that you can see if any of them look familiar."
"That sounds like a long shot." Tom shook his head.
"It is. But these are the only leads we have." Cassy shrugged.
"Jeremy?" Tom didn't have to complete the question. The tone of his voice told Cassy all she needed to know.
"He's still at his father's house. He's sorting through everything and deciding what he want's to keep and what he's going to send to charity." Cassy looked regretfully at her partner, "He hasn't come to see you yet, has he." Tom said nothing. Cassy was silent for a moment. "When do you think you'll be released."
"Maybe tomorrow afternoon, if therapy goes okay. Peg's been pushing me hard, but I can tell there's been a real improvement in my strength." Tom paused and looked out the window from the bed. "I want to go home," he whispered.
"I'll come by tomorrow to take you home. I can stay with you for a couple of days if you'd like."
"No, that's okay. I think it'll be crowded enough with me and my shadow." Tom pointed to the guard standing at the door.
Cassy started to tell Tom that he may not have the guard much longer, but decided against revealing this information. While Tom would be ecstatic to ditch the police officer, he wouldn't be happy to know that Cassy would become the replacement. But she had made the vow that there was no way in hell that Tom was going to be left on his own.
End Part 8
To Part 9