Dark Side of the Force Ch. 01

The chronological order of my stories is as follows: Todd & Melina series, Interludes 1-5, Sperm Wars series, Russian Roulette series, Case of the Murdered Lovers series, Case of the Murdered Chessplayer series, The Swap series, Interludes 6-10, The Murdered Football Player Series, Case of the Black Widow series, Teresa's Christmas Story, The Case of the Black Badge series, A Case of Revenge series, Trilogy Series.

Dark Side Of The Force, Ch. 01.

Feedback and constructive criticism is very much appreciated, and I encourage feedback for ideas.

This story contains graphic scenes, extreme language, and actions that might be extremely offensive to some people. These scenes, words and actions are used only for the literary purposes of this story. The author does not condone murder, racial or racist language, violence, rape or violence against women, and any depictions of any of these in this story should not be construed as acceptance of the above.

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Part 1 - Prologue: Badges and Promotions

(Author's note: a lot of this chapter is laying groundwork, like an interlude, so please bear with it. Thanks in advance.

On the afternoon of July 31st, I was called into the Chief's office. As soon as I walked in, he said "Tomorrow, I need to see you in your very best uniform. Formal. Medals instead of ribbons. Medal of Valor shined up and looking good around your neck. Shaved and looking sharp. Just so you know, I'll be dressed the same way myself."

"Yes sir." I said. "Sounds like a special occasion."

"Sure is." Griswold replied. "And allow me to suggest that you take some time and practice fastening the clasp on the Medal of Valor. Practice a lot more than you think you need to."

"Ahhhhh..." I said, realizing why the Chief had told me to do that.

"Yes." he replied, smiling under his mustaches. "I'm so excited that I'm beside myself over it. It's going to be a wonderful day. I had two items of business with the Council over the last couple of days, and both came through."

"Excellent! So what else?" I asked. "The Council passed the new rank structure last night with nary a peep. I still have to be 36 years old to be a Captain, though."

"The good news is that they passed brevetting." replied the Chief. 'Brevetting' was promoting someone to higher rank than their pay grade, ahead of the zone, so to speak. For example, the legendary General Custer was brevetted a general during the Civil War... then had to go back being a Captain after the Civil War. Also, sometimes an Army Major taking a battalion command would be brevetted to Lieutenant Colonel, to have rank and authority equal to other battalion commanders in the same brigade. But he'd be paid like a Major until he was eligible to actually be promoted to the higher rank.

Brevetting in our Police Force would allow some authority to be given to outstanding officers that only lacked the right birthdate to be promoted. I had pushed for it, and I had plans... not for myself, but for others.

"No, you are not being brevetted to Captain." said the Chief. I could tell by the twinkle in his eyes that something was up. "And it's a damn good thing they passed the new ordinance: it's official, I'm going to be retiring at the end of the year. December 31st."

I groaned. I knew this was coming. The Chief's little incident of disarming the SBI agents had not gone over well with half of the State's legislators and other officials, while the other half supported what he did and pushed back on his behalf. But it was a spark to potentially ignite the festering war that was being fought politically. The Governor was the Chief's close personal friend, but his (the Governor's) only solution was to tell everyone that Chief Griswold would be retiring by the end of the year, allowing the furor to die down.

I knew that the Chief was contemplating retirement, anyway. But now it was official, and I felt like I was losing my dad... not my biological father, but someone much closer.

"I was going to retire anyway." the Chief said. "But now it's official and the papers have gone in. The Council 'reluctantly' accepted my retirement during their executive session meeting last night. But I don't feel bad about it now... I don' t have to worry, anymore."

"What do you mean, sir?" I asked, seeing the gleam in the Chief's eyes getting brighter, and his mustaches starting to twitch.

"Let me give you a brief bit of history, Don." the Chief said, leaning back in his chair and giving a classroom-style lecture. "When the County and Town governments merged some years ago, there was a lot of angst over how the new Police Department would be merged. As a result, we got a rank structure more suited for the military, with formalized ranks that most police departments don't have."

The Chief continued: "In making the ranks, they provided for two equivalent positions that have never been filled: Deputy Chief, and Commander. The Deputy Chief is like the Executive Officer, the XO, all about beans and bullets; while the Commander is like the Operations Officer or S-3, and directs the troops."

"Yes sir, I understand." I said. "And since we don't have them, I stole one of their offices."

"Yes, yes you did." replied the Chief. "But here's the fun part of the story: Paulina brought something to my attention, so I had her re-examine the original law and codicils passed by the Council. As you know, they put age requirements on senior-level Sergeants and all Lieutenants and Captains.

"However, they overlooked something: for some reason they forgot to put any age requirements on the Commander position! Paulina and I had this confirmed by DA Krasney, and the Council asked for and received an opinion from Judge Watts. It's solid: there is no age requirement to be a Commander, and I can nominate anyone I want to that post and rank."

It hit me. "So that's why you and Paulina were smiling the other day..." I whispered. The Chief smiled.

"Yes." replied the Chief, "I went to them with a request, more like a demand, and after getting Judge Watts' opinion, they approved my request before rewriting the overall law, though Reginald B.F. Lewis brought up precincts again. Don't fret on that, the good news is that now you really are entitled to that office you are in." The Chief stood up and extended his hand. "Congratulations, Commander!"

I stood up and shook the Chief's hand, totally surprised. I was now going to be the No. 2 man in the Town & County Police Force. In the event of the loss of the Chief by resignation, retirement or less fortunate ways, it was the Commander, not the Deputy Chief, that took charge. Was I ready for this? I briefly thought to myself.

The Chief did not let go of my hand, holding it firmly. "Don, I know I can now retire and let go, knowing that I am leaving my Police Force in the very best possible hands. I know you'll take care of those great people that have chosen to serve our Town & County."

"Yes sir, I promise that I will." I said. We both were trying not to have tears in our eyes.

----

The morning of August 1st dawned bright and clear. It was going to be a beautiful day. Rain had passed through the night before, and we were getting somewhat cooler temperatures than normal. Fine by me.

The first words out of the Chief's mouth to me when he saw me was "Did you practice?"

"Yes sir." I said. "For nearly an hour, with Laura. She feels very decorated now."

The Chief chuckled. "Give her my appreciation for her contribution to the cause." he said, his eyes twinkling.

I did not have to wear my uniform jacket nor the Medal of Valor while inside and until the ceremonies started, so I left them in my office. However, Tanya Perlman, her pregnancy now showing well, did not miss that I had the yellow 'piping' of the Command Group down the sides of my blue pants instead of light blue, which was worn by Captains, Lieutenants and below. Her eyes sparkled as she grinned at me, but she did not say anything. Somewhat to my dismay, either no one else noticed (for a while) or just didn't say anything. Maybe they were used to me being 'out of the box'.

I heard applause in Vice as Teresa Croyle reported for duty, with light blue piping on her jacket sleeves, but nothing on her skirt as no piping was worn on policewomen's skirts. Cindy Ross came in, looking very sharp also, but wearing pants as she always did... and people did notice her light blue piping.

Then the new Detectives began trickling in. Let's meet them, shall we:

In Vice:

Julie "The Abacus" Newton was staying in her grade and position for now.

Leonard "Sergeant" Sharples was certainly not getting a promotion at this time, nor any other if I could help it.

Lieutenant Teresa Croyle was returning, assuming the leadership of the Vice Squad.

E.J. Jefferson was an athletic black man, about 6'0" in height, with broad shoulders. He was politically very Conservative, a seeming rarity for a black man. He was very straight-laced. He was being promoted from the uniformed ranks, and he said that his name came from his family perhaps being slaves of the family for whom the County was named.

Christopher Purvis was being promoted to full Detective from Detective J.G.

John "Grubby" Paul was being promoted from the uniformed ranks, having done much undercover work with the Force as a Sergeant. He looked really grubby even when cleaned up, hence the nickname. Women flocked to him, though.

And then there was Joanne Cummings. She was blonde and very beautiful, having participated in beauty pageants at the highest levels. She liked hunting and had been shown in magazines in camouflage, posing with a Boone & Crockett buck that she'd harvested. She also was very smart, which I hoped would translate to police and street smarts. She was coming in as a Detective (J.G.).

In MCD:

Diana Torres was being promoted to full Detective from Detective Apprentice.

Lorena Rose was coming in as a Detective (J.G.). She was young, very hot, and energetic, with brown hair and a smoking hot, fit body. She would be a firecracker.

Claire Michaels was older than me, in her thirties, and was coming in as a Senior Detective from Los Angeles. She was hot, too, with a fine body and wavy brown hair. I'd noticed Hugh Hewitt taking a really good second look at her when he saw her.

Detective (J.G.) Ted "Teddy" Parker was youngish, kind of milquetoast, but very bright.

Martin Nash was getting a second 'black box', i.e. a promotion to Senior Detective.

And of course, Theodore "Theo" Washington, whose brother was an ADA in DA Krasney's office, who was remaining in his current grade and position.

Per usual, I went into Vice and handed everyone the plastic sleeves with their new badges and ranks. The badges were to be worn going into the ceremony, and the ranks affixed during the ceremony. Then I headed to MCD. I handed Diana Torres the first plastic sleeve containing her new badge and rank, and she blushed and squealed with happiness. I handed Martin Nash his new rank (his badge remained the same), then handed the new people their badges and ranks. When I was done, there was one plastic bag left in my hand.

"Lieutenant," said Cindy Ross, "we're going to have to assign desks to these new guys."

"You're right." I said. "And that is now your job, Supervisor Ross!" I extended my hand, holding out the last plastic sleeve. Cindy blushed as everyone clapped as she took the sleeve. I might have forgotten to mention to Cindy that she was being promoted. Maybe just to surprise her.

"Okay guys, start looking at desks and deciding which ones to beg Miss Ross to give you." I said. "Cindy, you need to come with me to the Chief's office.

My mother was in the Chief's office, wearing her formal Police Auxiliary uniform. When Cindy and I got there, the Chief explained the situation:

"Miss Ross, you are not old enough to be promoted directly to Lieutenant." Griswold growled. "However, under the recently passed ordinance, what we are going to do is brevet you to Lieutenant. Congratulations!" Cindy blushed again, and I knew she'd be blushing more before this day was over.

The Chief had to swear in Cindy as a Supervisor first. That normally happened during the formal ceremonies, but Cindy would be brevetted then. So the Chief swore her in, and my mom and I pinned the Supervisor ranks on her shoulders.

"Now, take 'em off. Bag 'em and hold on to them." I said. "Here's your Lieutenant badge and rank." The badge said 'Lieutenant (B)', but the authority was the same.

"Now Teresa won't outrank you." I said. That got one of the biggest smiles from Cindy Ross that I had ever seen. My mother giggled at it.

There was a knock on the door, and Tanya Perlman was admitted. "Perlman, congratulations!" the Chief said as I handed her a plastic sleeve containing a Lieutenant's badge and the silver bars of rank. "Crowbar, explain everything."

"You're not taking over MCD until your baby is born." I said. "But we're promoting you now. After your baby is born and you return to duty, it will be as MCD leader. Cindy is going to run MCD until then, after which I will have special duties for her, which I'll discuss later."

"Well, Tanya, we better start cussin' out Don now, since we're the same rank as him for the time being." Cindy said, teasing me.

"Er, no... we're not." Tanya said, her finger pointing at and almost touching the yellow piping on my pants.

Cindy gave a look that said 'whaa???' as it struck her. "What to?"

"Commander." I said.

"Oh my God, congratulations!" Cindy said, giving me a warm hug. As she released me, she said, "Geez, still my boss!"

"Yep." I said. "And we're going to be having more fun than ever."

----

Only one other note: in the Patrolman ranks, the Patrolman rank looks like a private-first-class, a connected chevron and rocker, but with military-police pistols in the space between them. Higher ranks lose the pistols, but an interesting tradition happened:

When the Town and County merged, the new Senior Patrolman ranks were meant to look like Army Specialist badges: chevrons pointed down, rockers over the top. Senior Patrolman would have one chevron with two rockers, then one chevron with three rockers to denote pay grades.

The uniforms were taken to a seamstress to have the ranks sewn on for Merger Day. But she made a mistake: she sewed every rank on upside down, with one chevron pointing up instead of down, and the two and three rockers below.

It looked strange, but everyone liked it and insisted on keeping it that way. And six months later, the Council passed the first codicil to the Merger ordinance, formalizing the way the ranks were worn.

I was proud to personally pin upon Senior Patrolman Micah Rudistan the chevron-three rockers rank. He'd be a Sergeant soon, if I had anything to do with it.

Part 2 - Honor and Valor

The ceremonies began at 9:00am, a bit earlier than normal because we had a lot of them; we were catching up from past months and years of having people working in jobs higher than their normal grade.

After the uniformed officers received their promotions and medals/ribbons, the Detectives were promoted, and then my three Lieutenants. Someone began calling the three women "Crowbar's Angels", a name that would stick to them.

Last was my promotion to Commander, the first in Town & County history. It surprised nearly everyone, but I received hearty applause as Laura and my mom pinned the ranks on my shoulders. They were silver oak leaf clusters, what an Army Lieutenant Colonel (or Navy Commander) would wear.

Then the Chief announced that there was going to be another ceremony in the Courthouse Square, on the steps of City Hall at 1:00pm, and that every officer not on a mission needed to be in attendance. That got everyone buzzing.

"I think it's the Police Cross for Lieutenant Ross." I heard Micah Rudistan say to some other officers. Other guesses were the Police Medal for Ross, Police Medals for me and Ross, and so on. Whenever I was asked, I just smiled and said "We'll have to see when we get there." Then I would go pose for pictures with Laura or my mom.

----

At 1:00pm there were a large number of people in Courthouse Square. The Media was there, and Bettina Wurtzburg and Diane Williams were all over the place getting spot interviews. I indulged Bettina for one, she congratulated me on my promotion and I said it was a great honor and I was proud to serve the Town & County. Then Bettina interviewed my mom, who said she was very proud of her son.

Benches for the Police Force were set up in the middle, facing the microphones at the top of the City Hall steps, and the Fire Department, EMTs and Public Health Departments also had benches to either side. They'd also been asked to attend in as large and formal numbers as possible. It was an impressive array of uniforms and medals.

The Town & County Council were sitting in seats behind the podium. So was Congressman Gerald A. Condor and other politicians. Harold Malone and Daniel Allgood and their wives were in the audience below, and I actually saw them shake hands and greet each other at least politely, probably disappointing the Media. The only politician not here... was State Senator Nathan Allen.

Lt. Scott Peterson asked me and Cindy to please take seats with Chief Griswold behind the podium. Cindy was very surprised. "What is going on?" she asked me.

"This is the only way I can keep you on light duty and out of trouble." I quipped. That got me a bit of a reproving look, but Cindy could get me to say no more.

The Mayor began the proceedings by welcoming everyone, greeting the Town & County Council, then he gave the podium to Police Chief Griswold.

"It's my great honor to be here today," said the Chief, "to recognize a very special police officer, whose service and sacrifice in the line of duty has far exceeded anything we've had a right to ask." He then read the Council's proclamation, which stated in flowery language that Lieutenant Cindy Ross was the first woman in Town or County history to be awarded...

...the Medal of Valor.

Cindy was shocked, and blushing furiously as she was asked to come to the podium, then Chief Griswold said "Commander, would you please do the honors?" I took the Medal of Valor that was in its box, feeling the heaviness of it, seeing the bright red ribbon and the gold-star-and-wreath ornate medal underneath.

As I draped it around Cindy's neck, I realized why the Chief had ordered me to practice: my hands were shaking, and I did not want to fuck this up. Fortunately, I got it right and correctly clasped the ribbon as the Courthouse Square erupted in applause, especially from the Police Force sitting in the bleachers in front of us.

I patted Cindy on the shoulders and whispered "You deserve this!" then moved myself back as far as I could. This was my partner's day.

-----

Cindy was becoming tired, I could tell. She had had to endure dozens of pictures, and then people and the Press wanted pictures of her with me and the Chief, the three people wearing Medals of Valor at the same time. I finally broke the throng by saying that Lieutenant Ross is still on light duty and was being ordered to get some rest, and I led her to a waiting patrol car, which took her back to Headquarters.

Back at the Station, Cindy continued to be congratulated, but at least she was able to be sitting down. It was pretty much a party day in the Detective Division.

-----

I had ordered Cindy to go home at 4:00pm, seeing that she was worn out physically. Of course, she instead followed me into my office.

"Can I ask you a question, Lieut-, er, Commander?" she said.