Rick Blechta - Orchestrated Murder

As they led their prisoner to the elevator, Pratt said with a laugh, “Let me guess, Ellis. You were also a star on your high school track team. Hurdles, right?”

The young detective nodded. “Got it in one, sir…I mean, Pratt.”

All the six o’clock news showed was someone being led out the stage door, an overcoat pulled up over his head. There were a lot of loose ends to tie up, so all Pratt would say to the crowd of reporters was that someone had been arrested for the murder of Luigi Spadafini. There would be a news conference the next morning.

As the film clip played on the tv in the corner of the captain’s office, Pratt, Ellis and McDonnell were watching it carefully.

“Pretty slick bit of detecting, Pratt,” the captain laughed. He’d enjoyed telling the chief and mayor that the crisis was over.

“It’s because our young Detective Ellis is a nosy bastard with good instincts. He’s also a dab hand with a computer-and fast on his feet.”

The captain leaned back in his chair. “Tell me about it, Ellis.”

“It actually was lucky that I decided to use Browne’s office because that gave me access to his computer. I only needed his connection to the Internet for my laptop. I did happen to turn on his computer, though, since I was there. It had a password, but I figured that out on the first try. It was his wife’s name, and that was on the family photo on his desk. Amazing how many people do something that simple.”

When the captain started to say something, Pratt held up his hand.

“The lad knows how illegal that was. But it got us some important information. With that warrant they’re hopefully getting signed now, we can ‘officially’ find the information Ellis uncovered. It will make our case even stronger.”

“Which was?”

“Browne kept copious notes. There’s a ledger, I guess you could call it, that tracks who he helped, why and what he expected to get out of it. Spadafini had promised to take him to the new orchestra and become its manager. It was supposed to be payback for all the crap Browne had shoveled for him. Unfortunately, the conductor was a lying bastard. Last night he told Browne he’d never even told the other orchestra about their deal-and he wasn’t going to. The girl Spadafini was with last night heard one end of that argument. When we arrested Browne, he had his cell phone in his pocket. Since it was now evidence, we checked. Sure enough, in its history there was a phone call to Spadafini at precisely that time.”

“I interviewed the girl a second time,” Ellis added. “And she’d heard more than she’d told Pratt originally. She thought from what she heard that it was an orchestra member on the phone. After the murder, she didn’t want to rat on any of her colleagues. She didn’t think that would go down well.”

“Nice girl,” McDonnell said. “And getting lied to about a new job was enough to push Browne over the edge?”

Pratt let Ellis answer again.

“Seems as if Browne had done more than cover up Spadafini’s indiscretions. There were some illegal things.”

“Like what?”

“We’re not sure yet. He alluded to something involving an underage girl. About that time, a lawyer showed up and turned off the tap. We’ll get it out of him somehow.”

The captain shook his head. “So why did the orchestra pull that ‘we’re all guilty’ stunt?”

Pratt answered. “Because they were all convinced that one of them had done it. It worked perfectly for Browne. He’d known all the scuttlebutt going down among them, how they’d been jokingly coming up with ways to kill their conductor. This morning he just gave it a little push.”

“If Browne had recovered Spadafini’s cell phone after the murder,” Ellis added, “he only needed to lose it. We might never have thought to check the phone company’s records and connect up the dots. Browne might actually have gotten away with it.”

The captain shook his head again. “Maybe you won’t complain about cell phones anymore, eh, Pratt? One of them saved your sorry ass today.” McDonnell got to his feet. “Good job, both of you. Now I’m going home to persuade my wife she isn’t mad at me for being down here on my day off.”

The two detectives were headed for home too.

As they stopped to get their coats, Ellis turned to Pratt. “You said earlier that you’d heard Spadafini conduct several times. What was he like as a musician?”

“Incredible. He could make you hear a piece of music as if it was the first time. I don’t think I’ve ever been to more exciting concerts.”

“And he was such a…well, a scumbag as a person.”

“Yeah, kid. Welcome to our world. You’ll find when you dig below the surface, a lot of people are pretty ugly. In my experience, the more ability a person has, the greater the ugliness.”

Ellis held out his hand to Pratt. “Thank you for letting me work with you today- and for trusting me.”

“Thank the captain. He dumped you on me. Remember?” Then Pratt clapped Ellis on the shoulder. “How about if we go out for a couple of beers and a good steak dinner with all the trimmings? My treat.

Got anything on?”

“I’m in-just as long as the restaurant’s background music isn’t classical.”