Happy New Year & 25th in the Amanda Saga: Jeremy Eastman is Confused

Dear Ted and Jody:

Happy New Year. Thank you for your email message this morning.

The weather forecasters predicted our high for today would be around midnight and then the temperature was to plummet though the morning and finally have some snow in the late afternoon.   However, Mother Nature didn’t get the memo.  Temperature at midnight was at freezing and stayed that way until I left to go into town at 8:40 for a massage.  On the way into town I did stop along Silver Lake and shot into the hills where there was some snow.  But then as soon as I got back into the car it started to snow.  Apparently, it snowed the whole time I was gone.  For when I got back at 12;40 there was four inches of snow on the ground.  I would have shot the lake for comparisons, but the highway was two pairs of tire ruts in 4 inches of snow and slush; my vehicle would have been a hazard stopping on the narrow shoulder.  Since I had already seen three aftermaths of accidents on the way home I decided to let some other shots take at the Information Center on WA504 where I could safely get off the road.  The parking lot was closed, but someone got in and made a snow man.  That had to have been just done when I took the shot.  So, we got our late afternoon and evening snow early. However, the temperature is rising and it is now 5 degrees above freezing and the snow if falling off trees, wired, the roof of the shed and the fence.  So, the snow covered ‘beauty’ is slowly revealing the bare wires, bare roof and bare fence.  Gone are those photo opportunities.  The forecasters, however, are still calling for sub-freezing temperatures for the next week. Bummer.

Nancy reports some improvement in her knee.  She has been using alternating heat and ice on it.  I have wathed her walk and she is not turning in her toes, so perhaps that is helping as well.

I am attaching the next episode of the Amanda Saga.

Warmest regards, and again, Happy New Year,

Ed

025 Jeremy Eastman is Confused

Fiction in 1295 words by T. Edward Westen, 2016

 

In his gut, Jeremy Eastman knew that Judge Belemany died attempting to kill Edith Gunderson.  He also knew in his gut that it had something to do with the 20-year-old White case. So, he had come over to Child Protective Services to see if Ms. Gunderson had uncovered any more information about that decades old case or hadn’t found the time yet. ‘It won’t hurt to jog her memory and convince her that it is important.”  He thought. He reached the bottom of the stairs leading to Child Protective Services and saw Ms. Gunderson get in the elevator and the door close behind her.  He watched the floor indicator and waited until it stopped and hoped she got off at that floor.  He climbed to the third level where he hoped she got off and found himself in the waiting area for the Detective Squad.  He could see Ms. Gunderson talking to the two detectives beyond the rail separating the visitors from the working detectives. Jeremy Eastman knew they were the detectives assigned to investigate the judge’s death.  All too well he knew. The older one, Detective Mohamad Batan had told Jeremy more than once, “No comment.”  ‘I’ll catch her on the way out.’ He thought and sat down to wait. 

 

So, Jeremy Eastman was watching when the detectives and Ms. Gunderson went to the Interrogation room and he continued to watch.  He could see most of what was going on in the Interrogation room through the one-way glass.  He could clearly see Detective Philipson and the man the detectives met in the room when Detective Philipson and the man disappeared.  He abruptly stood up. “What the hell just happened?”  He said out loud.

 

The man dozing on the bench next to him awaken enough to say “I wasn’t there.  I don’t know.”   Then he seemed to nod back to sleep.

 

When, a few seconds later, Detective Philipson and the man who disappeared with him materialized on the other side of the room, Jeremy Eastman just happened to be looking that way.  “Damn.”  He said and collapsed on to the bench.

 

The guy next to him roused again and said, “I told you I wasn’t there. Now leave me out of it. I’m so tired.” And once again the man fell asleep.

 

When Detective Batan had thrown open the interrogation room door and stood still for a few seconds, Edith Gunderson focused on him.  Then when Detective Batan pointed to the other side of the room Edith Gunderson turned.  As she turned she saw Jeremy Eastman fall onto the bench.  Without thinking, Edith Gunderson started to rush over to see if Jeremy Eastman was ill, or hurt.

 

At that same instant Detective Batan quickly moved towards his desk where his partner and Special Agent Fleishman had materialized.  His momentum intercepted that of Edith Gunderson who was rushing to Jeremy Eastman’s aid and the two collided and fell onto the floor.

 

Awkwardly helping each other up and both muttering apologies, Edith Gunderson finally saw Detective Philipson and the man she thought as from the FBI standing by the detective’s desk, and collapsed again.

 

The collision and Edith Gunderson’s second collapse caused several detectives to leave their desks and come over so there was quite a circle of men and women around Edith Gunderson and Detective Batan. 

 

Detective Batan turned to one detective and said “Cindy, would you please assist Ms. Gunderson?”

 

Cindy, the female detective, nodded and said, “The rest of you scoot, the show is over.”  Stooping down she helped Ms. Gunderson get to her feet.  “Can I get you some water.”

 

Ms. Gunderson seemed to have a laser focus on Detective Batan as he moved to his partner and Special Agent Fleishman. “Thank you miss, but I had best join Detective Batan”

 

“Detective, not miss.”  Replied the female detective.

 

Edith Gunderson very clearly said “Yes, Detective, you would have thought I would know better.  It has been a hell of a fight.  I do apologize and really, I will be just fine.  Thank you for the help up.”  With that she strode off in the direction of Detective Batan, Philipson and the man she thought was an FBI agent.

 

When Edith Gunderson finally reached the three men, Detective Batan was speaking with his forefinger in the FBI guy’s face. “ . . .do that?”

 

Edith Gunderson chimed in.  “Yes, how in the hell, . . . You just disappeared, and now you are here.  How in the hell did you do that?

 

Jeremy Eastman had recovered and was close enough to her hear and came toward the group and said.  “Yeah what just happened?  You were in there” he said pointing to the interrogation room and now you are here, how did you just disappear?”

 

Special Agent Fleishman looked Detective Batan in the eyes and said “Well, Senior Partner, do you need more convicning?”

 

Detective Batan shook his head in disbelief but said “This is well above my pay grade.  I’m convinced, but how we convince the captain is beyond me.”

 

Special Agent Fleishman smiled broadly. “For starters, I turned the video recorder on in the interrogation room.  Then,” sweeping his hand to include Jeremy Eastman and Edith Gunderson, “You do have two eye witnesses.  Finally, putting his hand on Detective Philipson’s shoulder causing the Detective to wince and pull back, you have my volunteer accomplice.”

 

No one else in the squad room had seen what happened.  No one showed any sign of interest in the discussion taking place among the two detectives and three civilians. Heated discussions were the norm in detective squad rooms.  Indeed, in police “establishments” in general. So, the captain was not the least bit interested in working out what he saw as a problem between to members of the same team.  When approached, he appeared busy and waved the two detectives off with the words “You are senior, Batan, handle it.”

 

Detective Batan reached in his coat pocket, pulled out his cell phone and hit the record icon.  “Excuse me Captain, what did you say?”

 

The Captain looked up with a dark menacing look on his face.  “Are you still here?  I told you to handle it Batan, you are senior, act senior.”  Then he went into his office and shut the door.

 

Detective Batan shrugged his shoulders, “I guess that is all the authorization we need. Too bad the pay doesn’t’ come with this new ‘authority’ I seem to have.”

 

Detective Philipson looked puzzled and asked “What was that all about.”

 

Detective Batan shook his head sadly, “The captain is retiring next month.  I suppose he is figuring out this place will run just fine without him when he leaves and is giving it a head start.”

 

Special Agent Fleishman asked “So, what status will I have in the investigation?”

 

“I have no clue as to your interest?  Explain why you should have any status or role.”  Said Detective Batan.

 

Special Agent Fleishman pulled a head and shoulders shot of Judge Belemany out of the inside pocket of his jacket and said, “this is your dead guy.  He is wanted for murder, and terrorist destruction in my world.”

 

“Yup, that used to be Judge Belemany.” Said Edith Gunderson.  “What did you mean by ‘my world’.”

 

Detectives Philipson and Batan and Agent Fleishman looked at Edith Gunderson’s eager face and the look of anticipation on Jeremy Eastman’s face and the three realized they had two people who witnessed the 15 second time travel but otherwise had no clue that that is what they saw.  They also had to figure out how to handle the two civilians.

 

Agent Fleishman turned to Detective Batan and asked “Who are these people and what do they have to do with the judge’s death?”