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10
Concord Community Hospital
Porte Franklyn
WEDNESDAY MORNING
Elson Grissom was speaking on his cell, his voice Gestapo sharp, when Savich, Griffin, and Pepper walked into his hospital room. “Get it done. I’ll be released from the hospital in two hours and I don’t want to be dragged to the police station and questioned.” He punched off his cell, looked up at the three of them.
“Who are you? The Three Musketeers?”
A tall dark-haired woman was standing beside his bed, her hand on his shoulder. She turned to see them, stiffened all over, and stepped forward, blocking them, her eyes hot. So this was Grissom’s daughter, Melissa Kay. Savich saw the father-daughter resemblance—the strong jaw, the upward-slanted dark eyebrows over dark eyes. She looked to be in her midthirties. Even if Savich hadn’t read she’d been married and divorced three times, he might have guessed it. Her eyes were a roiling brew of violence, barely leashed, and who could live with that all the time?
Grissom’s hand stayed her. “It’s okay, Mellie. Stand down.”
Stand down? He gave his daughter military orders? But she did stand down, staying quiet and close to her father. Savich said easily, “We’re federal musketeers, Mr. Grissom. I’m Special Agent Dillon Savich, and this is Federal Prosecutor Pepper Jersik.”
Melissa Kay stuck out her hand and Savich handed her his creds, looked directly into her eyes. “You’re Melissa Kay Grissom, correct?”
“Of course I am.” She handed the creds to her father, and he studied them for a long time. Savich knew he was thinking about how best to deal with them. Grissom gave the creds back to his daughter, motioned for her to give them to Savich. When she finally handed them back, she got in his face, said in a cold voice, “Can’t you see my father is still recovering from getting attacked by that madman? What do you want?”
Savich gently took her arms in his hands and lifted her to the side. For a moment she was too stunned to respond, but in a flash she stepped back in his way. “Cop or no cop, you can’t do that. How dare you touch me?”
“Mellie!” She stopped cold at her father’s voice. “I don’t want you arrested for trying to protect me. Go stand by the window. That’s right. Everything will be fine.”
When she stood stiff and tall by the narrow window, vibrating with rage, Grissom looked from Savich to Pepper. “What do you want?” But he didn’t wait for an answer, turned to Pepper. “So you’re a federal prosecutor? I thought maybe you were his assistant or his secretary or something.”
Pepper laughed down at him. “Such a disappointment—I’d expect something more original, even from a man flat on his back, not that old chestnut. As Agent Savich said, I’m Pepper Jersik, federal prosecutor.” She walked to the bed, leaned down, and said quietly, “You’ve been a very bad man for far too long, Mr. Grissom. I’m the federal prosecutor who’s going to nail your butt in federal court, send you to a fine federal prison for the rest of your unnatural life.”
Grissom didn’t even blink. He even gave her a dismissive look, shook his head. “Right, lady, in your dreams. Say what you have to say and get out. My lawyers are due any moment to escort me home.”
Pepper said, “We’re here to tell you you’re under federal investigation concerning allegations you’ve been working with the Cantrera drug cartel, setting up distribution points, here and in Mexico, off-loading drugs for them, and laundering money, both for them and for yourself.”
Melissa Kay took a fast step toward Pepper. “That’s ridiculous!”
Grissom sent Melissa Kay a look, shook his head at her, but said nothing. She stepped back, but looked like if she’d had a gun she’d shoot them on the spot. Grissom gave Pepper a sneer that turned into an ugly laugh. “That’s a lie, but nothing new, I’ve heard it all. If you had any real proof, you’d be arresting me. What else? You’re going to tell me there’s more crap from the Lone Ranger?”
Pepper smiled. “The Lone Ranger’s not involved that I know of. All the evidence against you is from Eliot Ness, neatly collected in an envelope delivered with you to the Porte Franklyn police station last night. I’ve got to say, Ness did a good job of it. We’re already at work verifying and expanding on the proof he gave us.”
“Doesn’t matter what the buffoon calls himself. It’s all a frame, probably engineered by one of my competitors, or the cops. The top cop, Pershing, wants to be reelected. Word is he’ll do about anything. Have you given your so-called evidence to my lawyers? They tell me they’ll make sure you can’t use any of it. And they want to see it. Wait, what does Eliot Ness have to do with anything?”
Pepper said, “Your lawyers know perfectly well we can use it. And they’ll hear our evidence in discovery after your indictments are returned against you by a federal grand jury. As for Eliot Ness, maybe you recall he was the agent who brought down Al Capone, just as the current Eliot Ness is bringing you down nearly a hundred years later.”
Grissom snorted. “Who cares what the idiot calls himself? Like I said, it’s all a frame. It’s laughable. Come on, even you feds don’t believe all that crap, do you?”
“Sure, impossible not to—talk about all your activities laid out in black and white; it’s impressive how bad you’ve been for so long before our informant came along and put an end to you. Still, you can be sure we’re looking into all the particulars carefully ourselves.”
Melissa Kay whipped around, her face red. “You’re calling that man who attacked my father an informant? He assaulted him, drugged him, and you think he’s a hero? This Eliot Ness is the criminal. You should be talking about arresting him, not my father.”
Savich said easily, hoping she’d leap on him rather than Pepper, “Didn’t you know the doctors found no sign of any beating, Miss Grissom?” He waited, wondering if whatever control she had of herself would snap. He rather hoped it would.
Melissa Kay pushed away from the window, fists up, face red. “Look at my father! He’s in pain!”
Grissom raised his hand to stay her. “Mellie’s right. It’s not those idiot doctors’ kidneys that hurt.” He gave a credible wince.
Pepper said, “The evidence included with your delivery to the police station last night also clearly shows you’ve been methodically embezzling from the police and firefighters’ pension funds for years. If the world were a fairer place, I could turn this over to all the people you’ve been stealing from and let them deal with you. Talk about sore kidneys.”
Melissa Kay shouted, “Shut up, you bitch! That threat is as stupid as you look. If anyone embezzled anything, it’s obviously the person who sent you that so-called evidence or it was someone with a grudge against my father.” She again took a step toward Pepper, her fists up, ready to pound flesh.
