‘Why did you thinking were in here there morning if not to participate?’ Ehrhart said with emotion. ‘And for the records, it’s never been my believe we needed Charlotte to telling us how to ruin our police department and our city.’
‘Well, they’re sure as hell running things a whole lot better than we are,’ commented NationsBank president Albright, who had worked out of the headquarters in Charlotte before transferring to Richmond.
‘We’re not here today to talk about Charlotte,’ the mayor said irritably.
‘Nothing wrong with learning from somebody else,’ said the lieutenant governor.
‘I suggest the Blue Ribbon Crime Commission pave the way, Lelia,’ Hammer said to Ehrhart, who was looking at her gold and diamond Rolex watch and getting anxious. ‘You’re in a strong position to mobilize citizens and state and city officials. You have a voice.’
‘It’s the responsible police, not the citizens what do away with crime. You already know the commission’s subscription. We need to hire another additional more one hundred officers. We need more patrols on feet. Police officers should be forced even if they don’t want to, to live with the city and carry there police cars home so there’s more in our neighborhoods to be visible.”
‘Who’s going to pay for all that?’ the mayor wanted to know. ‘You never have explained that part, Lelia.’
Hammer’s flip phone vibrated. She absented herself from the gathering umbrage at the conference table and went out the door.
‘Chief?’ West’s voice came over the cell.
‘Now’s not a good time,’ Hammer said.
‘I’m at 6807 Midlothian Turnpike,’ West said. ‘I think you’d better come.’
The handcuffs around Bubba’s wrists had been snapped on with contempt and no nonsense. Steel teeth bit into his soft flesh. The air conditioning inside the patrol car was up too high and Bubba’s cranky bowel syndrome had rumbled out of remission.
Bubba had always known it was risky to tuck his Anaconda.44 under the seat, but he had never imagined he might get into this much trouble. Police were everywhere, some of them detectives. Moments ago, two fire trucks and an ambulance had screamed past, heading around to the back of Kmart. The media was rolling in and a helicopter was circling the area.
Officer Budget was standing outside the car talking to the woman deputy chief who had come to Bubba’s house after the break-in. He recalled her name was West. She kept glancing in at Bubba, her face hard, eyes sharp with anger that Bubba was certain was directed at him, although he didn’t know why. He didn’t understand why the cops had wanted his filthy tee shirt.
No one would tell him anything except that he had committed a class one misdemeanor by concealing a weapon from common view, a weapon that Budget had freed from beneath the seat and checked to see how many cartridges were inside the cylinder. With growing panic Bubba watched a tow truck turn off Midlothian Turnpike and park beside his Jeep.
Bubba tapped his manacled hands against his window. Budget glared in at him. West stopped talking. Bubba tapped again. Budget opened the front passenger’s door and leaned inside the car.
‘What?’ Budget asked in a most unfriendly way.
‘I need to use the bathroom.’ Bubba lowered his voice because he didn’t want West to hear.
‘Yeah, yeah,’ Budget said with no compassion.
‘I can’t wait,’ Bubba told him quietly.
‘You’re gonna have to.’
‘Can’t.’ Bubba gritted his teeth, pressing his buttocks together tightly.
‘Too bad.’ Budget shut the door.
Hammer rolled up in her midnight-blue Crown Victoria as a detective and two crime-scene technicians searched for evidence. The twenty-four-hour money stop had been cordoned off with yellow tape, and two more officers were standing sentry around a red Jeep Cherokee. West and another officer were talking by a patrol car, a suspect in back.
Hammer parked and got out as a blue medical examiner’s van turned off Midlothian Turnpike and drove slowly through the Kmart parking lot, heading to the crime scene.
‘Chief.’ Budget greeted Hammer.
‘What’s going on?’ Hammer asked West.
‘We’ve got a white female shot in the head behind the Kmart, found at 0832 hours inside her vehicle, a baby in the back seat, strapped in a car seat.’