Chapter 13
Revelations
Back at the OPP Headquarters in downtown Toronto, Elijah, looking like he had slept the night in a dumpster, was still feeling sluggish as he put ice on the nasty bump he received to the back of his head. Despite this though, he still had the capacity to be rather demanding.
"How long were we out?" Elijah asked Sergeant Kilpatrick, as he rubbed his head with ice.
"Only about 4 hours," Kilpatrick responded. "I personally don't know if they administered any drugs, but I doubt it seeing as you were unconscious for a relatively short period of time."
"Is it standard OPP practice to put civilians in harms way during a major drug bust?" Elijah asked.
"I don't quite understand," Kilpatrick claimed.
"When you entered the barn, it seemed as if you already knew that Tim and Kevin had us in their possession before you arrived. So I ask you again, is it standard OPP procedure to put civilians in harms way during a major drug bust?" Elijah asked raising his voice.
"No it is not an OPP practice to put normal citizens in harms way, but there's something you must know. In the real world, sometimes people are put in danger, even unintentionally. This was a major drug bust! Almost $14 million of cocaine and heroin were prevented from going onto the streets because of the hard work of the men and the women in my task force. I'm sorry you got injured in the process, but in my opinion, that's a small price to pay for safe streets."
"What if they would have murdered us?" Becca said, almost in tears. "What would your story have been then?"
"Ma'am, they would not have killed you. They're not like that," Kilpatrick said.
"How do you know?" Elijah responded. "For all we know, they were involved in killing their boss in a brutal rollercoaster accident. To say that you know that they wouldn't have killed us is like saying that you know that the Toronto baseball team is going to win the World Series this year. Sure it's something that everyone would like to believe, but it's something that is impossible to predict."
"So what would you have had us do?" Kilpatrick said, throwing his arms up in disgust.
"I would have rescued us. I recognize that that might have blown your cover, but it would have at least looked like you were more concerned about saving innocent lives than about being featured in a highly publicized drug bust."
"I am concerned about saving lives, that's why we had to arrest these two before more drugs reached the street."
"Sergeant," Elijah said as he stood up, "you can keep telling yourself that story until the cows come home, but in my experience, drug busts usually don't end without shots being fired. This one was an exception, and you got lucky that one of those two didn't have a gun and shoot us trying to hit you. You cannot honestly tell me that we were in minimal danger, for we weren't. We were hit over the heads, probably suffered a concussion along with who knows what other type of injuries, and then tied up to a chair. To boot, they put us in the room where a major drug deal was going down, with the intent on killing us when the transaction was done. Sure I am grateful that you freed me and saved my life, but the ends do not justify the means. You should have rescued us the moment you found out that we were being held hostage, or at the very least, had us moved before the deal went down." Elijah paused before continuing. "There's still one question that you haven't answered. Who hit us over the head?"
"I'd rather not answer that," Kilpatrick said.
"I don't care what you'd rather do; I believe that I'm entitled to the truth," Elijah said, sounding exasperated.
"The truth?" Kilpatrick said in disdain, "Sir, I don't think you can handle the truth even if it hit you square in the face. You see, we live in a dangerous world, one in which our city's streets are being overrun with drugs. These same drugs are destroying the kids of the next generation. In order to combat this problem, we flood neighborhoods with scores of undercover units, armed and ready to thwart the scumbags that sell these drugs. This is a hard job, one that I think you would not want to do. You see, you weep for those who are killed and then you curse the police. You have that luxury. You have the luxury of not knowing what I know, that some of those people's deaths and injuries, while tragic, probably saved lives. You have no desire for the truth, because deep down, you want me on the streets providing the very freedom that you hold so dear. At any rate, I have neither the time, nor the inclination to explain something to a man who rises and sleeps under the blanket of freedom that I provide, then questions the way in which I provide it."
"Sergeant, you've been watching too many movies. I am not a U.S. Navy Lieutenant, and you are certainly not a U.S. Marine Corps Colonel! All I wanted to know was who hit us over the head. These are facts that I believe I am entitled to!" Elijah yelled.
"It was you who hit us, wasn't it?" Becca interjected.
"I'm not at liberty to say," Kilpatrick said.
"Well that's just great," Elijah said, waving his arms in disgust. "We have two drug runners in there, which may very well have killed a man, and out here we have a police sergeant who goes around assaulting innocent bystanders who may or may not threaten one of his stings. I don't know what is worse, people who think that they can work outside of the law, or the police who think that they are above the law."
"Now hold on Elijah, I don't think that's a fair characterization of the officer's actions," Becca said.
"Sure it is!" Elijah interrupted. "As far as I'm concerned, the Sergeant is just as guilty as the two accused in the room down the hall. He could have done something to get rid of us without blowing his cover. But did he? No! He chose the easy way out, the one that caused him the least amount of pain. I have a mind to file a report, but I highly doubt that anything would come of it. After all, its justice at all cost, isn't it Sergeant?"
Kilpatrick stood there silent, staring at the wall in front of him.
As Elijah sat down, the OPP Chief of Police, Adam Baker, walked into the room. Kilpatrick immediately stood at attention, obviously fearful of what the chief was about to say.
"Sounds like there are some hot tempers in here," Baker said. "Is it true Sergeant Kilpatrick?"
"Is what true, sir?"
"You know exactly what I'm talking about. Is what Mr. Deville says true?"
Kilpatrick stood there in silence.
"Sergeant, I'm talking to you!" Baker yelled.
Kilpatrick hesitated, and then replied, "Yes sir, it's all true."
"Do you realize what kind of lawsuit you've just opened us up to, let alone the convictions that might disappear because of your conduct?" Baker asked. "Go wait in my office and I'll deal with you later.
Kilpatrick walked toward the door, and as he did he glared back at Elijah and said, "You have just made this city more dangerous my friend. That will live on your conscience until the day you die, I can assure you of that."
"No you're wrong Sergeant," Elijah responded. "The streets are only safe when good, honest cops protect them. Otherwise, convictions are thrown out, and the very people that you swore to protect, are put in danger by those criminals who should be in jail."
With that, Kilpatrick left and the room was again silent.
It seemed like an eternity before the chief finally decided to open his mouth.
"It is hard for me to express how extremely sorry I am for the ordeal you went through. If there's anything I can do..."
"As a matter of fact there is: let me talk to Craig and Parker," Elijah said.
"Done," Baker responded as he motioned for Elijah to follow him down the hall.
Before Elijah left, he instructed Becca to stay behind and call Cameron to see if there was an update. When Elijah arrived in the interrogation wing of the police station, he asked Baker to seat both Tim and Kevin in the same room. When Baker objected, Elijah assured him that he knew what he was doing. Before letting him question them though, Baker warned Elijah that he was not to question them on any topic concerning the sting. Eli
jah guaranteed that his interrogation would not focus on the drug bust, unless it was crucial to his murder investigation.
Seated in two chairs facing the door and with their heads down on the table, Tim and Kevin looked noticeably tired as Elijah entered the room. As the door opened, each of them opened their eyes a little, and the moment they noticed it was Elijah, they sat straight up. Fear was evident on their faces.
"So gentlemen. We're in quite a fix here," Elijah said as he got no response. "It seems to me that one of you would want to talk to me because as I see it, not only are you guys in a lot of trouble with them," Elijah said pointing to what was obviously a two-way mirror, "but you could easily go down for murdering Scott Taylor as well." Elijah still received blank stares from both Tim and Kevin, so he sat down and continued. "OK, if you're not going to talk to me, let me tell you a story and you can critique it. The way I see it, is both of you had about 14 million reasons to keep your alleged drug running scheme a secret. After all, if anyone found out, it would mean jail time at the least, or perhaps an even smaller cut of the proceeds. You each made sure that when the shipments allegedly carrying drugs were arriving at the park, that only you were there to receive the boxes. How you pulled that off given the crowded loading docks is shocking, but you did pull it off every time...except one: the time Scott Taylor caught you. I don't know what he was doing that lead him to the loading docks, but just like me, he saw you unloading mysterious boxes and, unlike me, got the chance to confront you about it. There probably was an argument that ensued, but no matter the results of that argument, one thing became clear: Scott Taylor had to be murdered in order for your drug running enterprise to have guaranteed secrecy. To pull it off, you came up with an ingenious plan that would kill Mr. Taylor using the most unconventional of weapons: a rollercoaster. The execution of this plan was rather simple. First, Kevin would re-program the ride's computer to ensure that no one would be warned that the ride had a problem. To be on the safe side, he also made sure that he would be operating the ride that day, so that he would be the one in charge of investigating and fixing any problems that might have arisen. Second, Tim, with his job as head of maintenance, would sabotage the ride using a blow torch to partially cut off the wheel casings of the car, thus guaranteeing that the ride would crash when a person was aboard. The last part of the plan, who to frame, is at this point a mystery to me. What I don't know is if you intended to frame Elliot Ravenwood or whether you found a scapegoat by accident, but don't you worry, I'll find out. So," Elijah said standing up, leaning against the table with a grin on his face, "how did I do?"
"Not one word of that is true," Kevin said angrily as he was being restrained by Tim and told not to say another word. Against Tim's wishes Kevin continued. "You think you're so smart don't you. You think you can just come in here, and since we're in a jam can pin a murder on us. Well guess what buddy, we have a jury system here in Canada, and what juries like to see at trials is evidence, not stories. You have no proof that we committed that murder, and you never will! You want to know why? Because we're innocent!" Kevin yelled as he stood up and slammed his fist against the table.
"Then where were you the night before the murder?" asked Elijah.
"We both were at a club until almost 2AM the night before Scott was murdered," Kevin said.
"What club?" Elijah responded
"Club Ticonderoga. It's a pickup bar on the north end of the city. You can ask any one of the employees there. Both of us arrived at 8PM and were there until the place closed at 2," Kevin said as he sat back down and leaned back in his chair.
With that revelation, Elijah banged twice on the wall signaling that he wanted an officer to enter. When one opened the door, he quickly leaned over and whispered something fast into the officer's ear and sent him away.
"What was that about?" asked Kevin.
"Oh nothing," responded Elijah. "I just gave the officer instructions for my partner to go down and question the people at Club Ticonderoga. If she comes back and says that the staff can place you there on the night in question, then you're home free. If not, then I guess we're going to have some public beatings," Elijah said facetiously. After a moment of silence, Elijah leaned against the table and said, "In all seriousness though, if she comes back and says you weren't there, then I hope you guys like prison because that's where you'll be spending the rest of your life." He paused and then looked to Kevin and stated, "As for your lecture to me a minute ago about proof, as the defense lawyer defending Elliot Ravenwood, I don't need to prove your guilt; I just need to show the jury that it is possible that someone else could have committed this crime. To be able to show this, yes I would need some evidence, but the standard of proof isn't the same. For instance, in this case I might argue that you both had means and opportunity (you both were skilled in the areas needed to commit the crime and both had access to the park). You both also had motive (to hide your drug running). If I show in court that there is reason to believe that you guys committed this murder, resulting in an acquittal for my client, you can bet for sure that the police will investigate and find the evidence needed to convict.
However, my theory would go out the window if your alibis check out. Let's hope for your sakes that they do."
Elijah, finishing his argument, started moving towards the door when Kevin yelled "STOP!" Elijah, not shocked by the outburst, turned with a smile and came and sat down.
"You have something you want to change. Were you at home? Were you with a girl friend? Or did you in fact kill Scott Taylor?"
"We weren't at the bar," Kevin said, pausing to calm his shaking hands. "We were in an alley selling drugs."
"That sounds convenient now doesn't it? I suppose that you two were the only ones doing this and that no one else can corroborate your alibi can they?" Elijah asked.
"No, there's nobody who could identify us because we wore masks to disguise our faces from the druggies that we sold to," Kevin said.
"Well that's simply not good enough!" Elijah said, throwing his hands up in disgust.
"Well it's the truth!" Kevin said. "You've got to believe us!"
"That's where you're wrong Mr. Craig," Elijah said as he got up and approached the door. "So far in one day you've given me three different alibis. That's three opportunities to tell the truth, but instead you chose to lie. If you want my advise: get a good lawyer, for I don't believe your story; and neither will a jury.
As he walked out, Becca, who had caught the last part of the interview while watching on the other side of the mirror, asked Elijah if he really meant what he said.
"I always mean what I say," Elijah said. "In the kind of trouble that they're in, it would be inconsequential to admit to another drug crime if it meant getting out from under a murder charge."
"Then where does that leave us?" Becca said.
"That leaves us with Parker and Craig as the prime suspects for the murder, but without any suspects for the embezzlement." Elijah said. "Perhaps though, we've been going at this the wrong way. Perhaps the murder wasn't a cover up for the embezzlement after all, but a completely different crime altogether.
"You mean Elliot got unlucky enough to be framed twice?"
"It is quite possible, although I can't prove it. I guess that's something that Cameron will have to look into," Elijah said. "Speaking of Cameron, how's his investigation coming?"
"Lousy," Becca replied. "He has found exactly what Scott Taylor's P.I. knew: that money was being funneled to a dummy corporation owned by Elliot."
"You mean he hasn't found out anything new yet?" Elijah asked.
"Well it's hard Elijah" Becca replied. "Whoever forged those documents did a great job."
"You mean to tell me that there are no witnesses that can identify someone other than Elliot having access to the account?" Elijah asked.
"Cameron interviewed the bank manager and he positively identified Elliot as the one who opened the business acc
ounts. He also has identification cards showing that Elliot's signature was also on the two private accounts through which the embezzled money was funneled.
"Did he interview any of the tellers?"
"He did, but no one could say one way or another. Nothing we found indicates that someone other than Elliot withdrew the money from the bank."
"Don't you find that a little odd, sis?" Elijah said. "I mean we're talking about hundreds of thousands of dollars and no teller could say positively that Elliot did or didn't withdraw this money?"
"But whoever is really behind this was very careful. They probably wouldn't have used the same teller twice," Becca replied.
"I don't buy that for a minute. If I was a teller, I would remember large transactions like that," Elijah said. He then stopped walking, and stood there thinking. "You know what Becca? I want Cameron to go back to the bank tomorrow and ask to examine all of their records."
"They won't agree to that," Becca replied.
"If they don't, we'll have to get a court order. Sure it might take a few weeks to be heard, but it could be vital to the defense."
"Whatever you say," Becca responded.
Chief Baker then approached them as they were walking out of the station. "Don't worry," Elijah yelled, as he waved his right hand to say goodbye, "there will be no lawsuit for $50 million. Just see that it doesn't happen again."
One of the officers had retrieved their car from the park and had parked it out front. Becca decided to drive, allowing Elijah some time to rest his eyes.
His mind couldn't stop racing however, in spite of his sheer exhaustion, because no matter all of the information he had learned and all the people he had interviewed, he was only baby steps closer to solving the ultimate question: 'Who Killed Scott Taylor?'. This certainly was a difficult case, but one that he was determined not to give up on, for Elliot's life was hanging in the balance. Failure was not an option.
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