Earthquake in San Francisco

Chapter 1

1

Chief Robert T. Ironside watched as his lawyer brother and his secretary went through security. They were headed home. Perry Mason came to San Francisco initially to defend Ironside on an Internal Affairs Investigation. But, when Howard Jergens, the man behind a sleazy online gossip site was murdered, Ironside convinced Perry to defend Alexandra Hughes. The famous lawyer from Atlanta, Georgia, Ben Matlock was brought in to take over the detective's case. In the end, Ironside was cleared and the real killer of Howard Jergens was exposed.

It seemed he and Perry only saw each other when there was a murder to solve. Even if they were able to take a vacation together, somebody always fell prey to murder and their vacation always ended up as another case to solve.

Robert Ironside turned to his aide and friend. "Let's go, Mark. There's no sense in hanging around this airport."

Mark Sanger stepped in behind the chief's wheelchair and began pushing him toward the exit into the parking garage. When they arrived back at the van, Mark pushed the button. The familiar whine of the lift sounded, the door opened, and the lift lowered to the ground. Ironside turned his chair and backed onto it as Mark again pushed the button, lifting the detective into the air. Sanger waited until his boss was in the van before pushing the button to return the lift inside the van to its resting position. Mark walked around the vehicle and opened the driver's door. After slipping behind the wheel, he turned and asked his boss, "Where to, the office?"

"Do you have a better place in mind, Mister Sanger?" the chief growled.

"I could think of a lot of places we could go, Chief, but the office it is." Mark turned around, started the van, and put it in gear. He pulled the vehicle out of its parking spot and headed out of the garage. He remained quiet as Chief Ironside was displaying a moodiness that appeared when he had something on his mind. Mark had no idea what it was and wouldn't ask. Robert Ironside wouldn't say anything until he was ready. Questioning him would be a waste of time. To get the chief to open up before he was ready was equal to trying to move a mountain.

The ride back to the office was completed in silence. Ironside didn't say a word and Mark chose to respect his silence. They arrived at the police garage. Sanger pulled in and drove the van down to the reserved spot where the chief's van was always parked. His boss was in the lift and riding it down to the police garage pavement before Mark could even get out of the van. He met the detective on the other side and began wheeling him to the elevator, which would take both of them to the top floor where Ironside's office was located.

Mark pushed the former Chief of Detectives out of the elevator as soon as the doors open. Turning the chair to the left, the young man braced himself and pushed his boss up the ramp to the office that served as Ironside's home, and Mark's as well. Sanger reached forward and opened the door. Ironside wheeled into the office and down the ramp. Eve was working at the chief's desk and Ed was seated at the main table.

The big man most peopled called the "Ironman on Wheels" guided his chair over to the table. Ed looked up at the boss. "I take it Perry and Della got off on time?"

"You take it right," Ironside said. He put his elbow on the table and leaned his chin on his raised thumb.

Eve joined them. She sat down and studied the chief. Something was on his mind. She had no idea what it was as he never gave them any indication, yet she could tell he was deep in thought about something. She decided to take the direct approach. "Chief, what's wrong?"

Ironside looked up at his policewoman. "What makes you think there's something wrong?"

"Well, for starters, you've been quiet all day," Eve said.

"All day?" The detective looked at his watch. "It's just coming up on twelve o'clock," he said sarcastically.

"Alright, all morning then," Eve remarked, refraining from rolling her eyes. She had worked with Ironside for quite a while, so she had become accustomed to his sarcasm. She waited, but Robert Ironside just sat there.

"Chief?" Ed said.

Looking over at his sergeant, he lowered his eyebrows. "I've known Patrick Simpson for more than twenty years. He was a good mayor and an excellent administrator. I can't understand what possessed him to embezzle money from the city and then murder Howard Jergens."

Eve now understood his mood. Patrick Simpson had been the chief's friend for many years. Most of the time he stood by Ironside and gave the detective free rein in solving whatever emerged as the latest crisis. He'd considered Simpson a friend. Jergens's murderer was a mystery until they'd discovered the man behind the embezzlement was Mayor Simpson.

"He was heavily in debt, Chief," Ed said.

"I know that," Ironside said. "With all the people Dennis and I know, we could've gotten him help with that. Why resort to embezzlement and murder?"

"Some people feel the despair," Mark said. "They feel like the world is closing in on them. It can affect your thinking. Maybe he was just too proud to ask for help."

"He'll spend the rest of his life in prison for what he's done, Mark. Patrick wasn't someone who lived on the street. He had it all. He was a good mayor other than stealing from the city. He could've had a pretty good political career. He threw it all away for embezzling funds to cover the valuables he was stealing. It doesn't matter that he was returning the money when they were sold. It is still embezzlement"

"We'll never know what he was thinking, Chief," Eve said, trying to soothe him. His feelings were hurt by the fact that Patrick Simpson was willing to end his career in disgrace by framing him in the original theft of the Tiger, although she knew he'd never admit it. He was always affected when a friend, close or otherwise, ended up behind bars for committing a crime.

"I should've seen the signs," Ironside said.

"Chief, Mayor Simpson was even closer to Commissioner Randall and even he didn't see the signs. He was as shocked as the rest of us when the truth came out about the mayor," Ed pointed out.

Before Ironside could reply, Ed's cellphone rang. He allowed it to ring until Ironside barked, "Are you going to answer that or not?"

Ed reached into his suit coat pocket and pulled the cell phone out. "Sergeant Brown."

"Ed, is that you? I wasn't sure you'd have the same number."

Brown was floored. He had never expected to hear from Vivian Page again. Yet, there wasn't any doubt it was her voice on the other end of the phone. "Yes." He turned to see the chief, Eve and Mark staring at him. Ed stood up and headed for the door. "This is personal. I'll be right back." Without waiting for his boss to object, his long legs took him up the ramp and out of the office.

"Vivian?" Ed said.

"Yes, Ed, it's me. I wasn't going to make this call," she said and then became silent.

"Then why did you?"

"I miss you. I just miss you so badly, I don't know what to do. You started something, Ed Brown, and now I just can't get you out of my system."

"I wasn't the one who left, Vivian," Ed reminded her.

"I know that. I just didn't want a movie career. I guess I knew it as soon as we started filming that picture. My place is in the theater not on the silver screen," Vivian said.

"Viv, why are you calling me now?" Ed asked her. The pain of losing her came back in a flood of emotions. It tore through him like a sharp knife cutting a piece of meat. The sergeant was reminded of their short affair when Vivian Page came to San Francisco to promote her new movie . . . her first movie. Ed had been assigned to protect her when a key was slipped into her pocket that represented a lot of money.

Vivian Page took to Ed immediately. It could've been a fairy tale romance except for one thing . . . Ed was a police officer. Vivian didn't think much of the police. She didn't like his job or the fact that he carried a gun. When she ultimately decided she wanted to return to New York, she hadn't asked him to go with her. Vivian knew he loved his job and the city of San Francisco. Ed Brown would have been miserable in New York City, at least that's what she convinced herself. The actress thought she'd forget him and life would go on. There would be another man down the road. In fact, there had been many. They flocked to her like birds flocked to someone feeding them in a park. Yet, every time she tried to start a new relationship, none of them measured up to the San Francisco detective. It had become unbearable until she decided she needed to hear his voice again.

"I miss you, Ed. I have to see you. Please, can you come to New York? I just can't seem to live without you," she said.

Ed Brown was torn. She wasn't the only one who hadn't had a successful relationship since she left San Francisco. Every woman he dated, when the chief would give him some free time, only served to remind him of a love long lost. He knew what was best for them both was to politely refuse and hang up, but he just couldn't do it. He shouldn't visit her, yet he wanted to see her again. Brown tried to convince himself it would only be for a few short days, and they could part friends. He would return to San Francisco and his job working for the chief. How could it hurt?

"I'd like that," he found himself saying. He shouldn't have, yet he couldn't help himself. He had to see her again.

"Can you get some time off?" Vivian asked in anticipation.

"I have time coming, but I'll have to clear it with the chief," he told her.

"Oh yes, Chief Ironside," she said with what came very close to disdain in her voice. Ironside was a man she didn't understand. She told him so when she spoke to him over the phone for the last time before leaving town.

"He's my boss, Viv."

"I know that. Can you check with him and see if you can get some time off?"

Ed smiled. They didn't have any major cases going at the moment. It was the perfect time to ask for a bit of vacation time. Eve could handle whatever came up, and if not, then the chief could borrow Carl Reese as he had in the past to help. "I'll ask him right away."

"Perfect! I can't wait to see you, Ed Brown," she said excitedly.

"Me too."

"Goodbye, Ed."

"Goodbye, Viv." Ed hung up his cell phone and placed it back in his pocket. Now, he just had to ask the chief. He wasn't looking forward to it. Despite trying to allow his detectives their private lives, the chief cared about them, and asking for an immediate vacation was going to send up red flags, even though there really wasn't any reason for him to worry.

Sergeant Brown headed back up the ramp and entered the office. As he came down the ramp, all eyes were on him. Chief Ironside didn't say anything, although Ed knew he was curious about the mysterious phone call he just received.

"Everything all right?" Ironside finally asked.

"Everything is fine," Ed assured him.

Ironside waited for Ed to elaborate, but he didn't. Ironside hadn't been a detective all these years not to recognize Ed had something on his mind. He could read it in his eyes. "Okay, Ed, what is it? What's wrong?"

Ed smiled. You just couldn't put anything past the chief. When he spoke up, he tried to completely control the tone of his voice to avoid raising the chief's suspicions any further. Otherwise, there were going to be several questions he just wasn't willing to answer. "Chief, nothing's wrong. Everything is fine."

Ironside frowned. "Are you sure?"

"I'm sure." Ed said nothing for a moment and then looked Ironside straight in the eye. "Chief, since we're a bit slow right now, it would be a good time for me to take a vacation . . . that is if it's all right with you."

"Vacation? Ed, you get a phone call and then come back in here and ask for a vacation out of the blue and you want me to believe there's nothing wrong?" Ironside voiced his skepticism.

"Chief, everything is fine. Really, I'm fine. I just want to take a vacation effective immediately. Will you approve it?" Ed asked.

Obviously, Ed wasn't going to open up and talk to him. To push him any further would be fruitless. It now was only a matter of whether he was going to approve the vacation his sergeant was requesting. Other than old cases, Ed was right; they were slow at the moment. There wasn't any reason not to let him go. Besides as hard as he worked his staff, they deserved to take a vacation.

"Of course I'll approve it. Fill out the proper paperwork and take as long as you need."

"Thanks, Chief. I appreciate it," Ed said.

Eve reached into the filing cabinet and pulled out a vacation request form. She walked over to her co-worker and handed it to him. "Just sign it and I'll fill in the rest. You'll have to put in the dates as well."

Brown smiled at her. "Thanks, Eve." He signed the form and filled in three weeks. He looked up to see the chief staring at him. Ed felt a little guilty not telling him why he wanted the vacation time. He just didn't want to see the look on his face when he told him he wanted to go to New York and visit Vivian. Ed suspected the chief didn't approve of Vivian Page. He'd never come out and said it in so many words. It just wasn't like the chief. It was his demeanor every time her name was brought up after she left Ed behind the last time.

He met Ironside's eyes. "Thanks, Chief. I'll see you when I get back." Brown smiled at Eve and nodded at Mark.

"Later," Sanger said.

"Later," Ed replied. He turned, went up the ramp and hurried out of the office as if he were concerned the chief might change his mind.

After he was gone, Mark walked over to the table. "What do you suppose that was all about?"

Ironside stared straight ahead. Without looking at Mark, he said, "You were in the room. You know as much as I do."

"I wonder where that phone call came from," Eve said.

"I don't know that anymore than you do." Ironside snarled. He regretted his short remark as soon as it came out. Eve was only worried about Ed just as he was.

"Ed doesn't have any relatives. So that can't be it," Mark said.

"Could it be a woman? Eve asked. "What do you think, Chief?"

"I think it's none of our business. If Ed wanted us to know who called him, he would've told us."

"Then you aren't going to try and find out?" Mark stared at his boss. He couldn't believe he wasn't as concerned as he and Eve.

"And just how would I justify checking up on him?" Ironside's tone betrayed his concern.

"Chief, don't take this the wrong way," Eve said, "but that never stopped you before."

Ironside said nothing; he knew Eve was right. If he were concerned, he used his resources to check on them. Why was this time any different? Possibly because, of all of his staff, Ed always seemed to be in complete control of his life. Mark had made some mistakes since he started working for him, and Ironside found it necessary to intervene. Eve shot a teenager, which resulted in her suffering great guilt. Again, he intervened to help her get over it.

Was that phone call serious enough that he should find out if Ed was in any trouble? "Oh hell. Eve, call the phone company. Find out where that phone call came from. Then call the airport and find out where his flight is going."

Mark and Eve grinned as she headed for the closest phone.

2

Frank Hunt was finally granted another parole hearing. For years, he stayed out of trouble in order to convince the parole board he was completely rehabilitated. He spent fifteen years in this stinking hole, and he wanted out. Fifteen years...taken from him by Robert T. Ironside. He hated the man more than he'd ever hated anyone in his entire life. Ironside was the reason he was in this prison. He was the reason the prison board had refused parole.

Frank had done everything asked of him by the warden. He stayed out of fights and informed on other inmates in order to gain favor with the warden. Now, once again, he'd been told Ironside would be informed of his hearing and would have the opportunity to speak. Would the detective succeed in convincing the parole board he was not worthy of being released? Frank didn't understand how one man could have so much influence.

"Frankie, why are you so quiet? You should be happy," Roland Hubbard said.

Roland was his cellmate since the day he walked into the prison for the first time. He was serving a life sentence for the murder of his parents. Hubbard had been a senior in high school. His father and mother attended a party one night. When they returned, they found their son in bed with an eleven-year-old girl. He had injected heroin into her veins. Fortunately, his father was a doctor and was able to keep the girl alive. Not wanting their son in trouble with the law, they paid the girl's parents a huge sum of money, so they wouldn't go to the police.

Furious with Roland for his transgression, his father grounded him for the remainder of the school year. He took away his car, the television in his room as well as his stereo. All of the money from his paychecks from his part-time job at a local restaurant was taken from him and placed into an account he couldn't access. His father constantly called the restaurant, checking up on him to make sure he was working. Roland wasn't allowed to attend any of the school functions. He wasn't allowed to do anything but go to school, work, and then back home again.

Roland developed a hatred for his father. Taking his father's gun out of his den, he went into his parents room and unloaded several rounds into their sleeping bodies.

Ironside was the detective assigned to the case. He quickly arrested Roland who was tried and convicted of the murder of his parents. He was given a sentence of life in prison.

Frank liked and trusted Roland. They became friends over the years. Frank always depended on Roland to watch his back. He wished there was some way they could be released together, but Roland murdered two inmates while in prison and received consecutive sentences. He would never see the outside of the prison.

Frank looked at his friend. "I'm happy about the parole hearing." He was silent for a moment. Then he said, "Ironside has been invited to attend."

"That's not good. He's convinced them to keep you in here before."

"I know. I just hope he's not able to do it again," Frank said.

Roland sat down on the bed. Looking at Frank, he couldn't resist asking about Ironside. "If you're paroled, what about that cop? Will you try to make him pay like you've said you would for years?"

"I want out of here for one reason only. Just between you and me . . ." He was silent for a moment before continuing. "I'm going to kill him. I've done nothing but think about it every day since I came here."

"Frankie, I know I always encouraged you to kill him, but that was just talk. Look, buddy, I'm in here for the rest of my life. You have a chance to get out and stay out. Don't waste it on Ironside; he's not worth it."

"I have thought of nothing else for fifteen years. It's been the only thing keeping me from going crazy. I have to kill him. I promised myself I would if I ever got out of here."

"Just promise me you'll think about it, Frankie. I mean seriously think about it. Forget Ironside. Go on with your life. Stay out of here. Promise me you'll think about it?"

Frank smiled. "You've been a good friend, the best I've ever had. I promise I'll think about it."

"That's all I can ask." Roland lay down on his bunk, picked up a book, and began to read.

Frank looked over at him. Yes, he was the best friend he ever had. He'd miss him. He felt bad about lying to him. Hunt had no intention of changing his mind about killing Ironside. It was the only thing that kept him from going insane. Ironside did this to him, and he was going to pay...with his life. Then Frank could go on with his own life whether he was on the outside or the inside. It no longer made any difference to him.