t was a warm evening in the city. Except for the sounds of sirens, it was relatively quiet.


Still, it would be anything but an ordinary evening, especially for police detectives like Lieutenant Jack Stoneward and Inspector Lucas Tannehill, who just happened to be in the neighborhood.


The place was a jewelry store, Bennett's Jewelries, located in the Downtown area. It didn't look as if anything was stolen, but it was a mess nonetheless.


As the two approached the crime scene, they could see plenty of shattered glass, but the most gruesome scene was a male body, lying face up and with five bullet holes in the chest and the right arm.


One of the officers happened to see them. “Lieutenant Stoneward. I see you and Inspector Tannehill just happened to be in the neighborhood. Aren't you guys working stakeout?”


“Yeah, yeah”, answered Stoneward. “No thanks to Captain Ryker.”


“What does he have against you guys?” asked the other officer.


“Ah, he's just jealous”, replied Tannehill. “So, what happened here?”


“We got a call six minutes ago that there was a shooting right here in this location. When we arrived, we found him lying on the floor.”


“No witnesses?” asked Stoneward.


“Nope”, replied the other officer.


Suddenly another car pulls up. It was a slender man in a white suit. “Hey, Lucas--”


As Tannehill looked, he saw the familiar face. “Oh, brother. It's Icabod Crane.”


It was actually Detective Sam Crane, newly assigned to the homicide division. “Aren't you two supposed to be working stakeout?”


“Relax, boy”, Stoneward replied with a smile. “We just happened to be in the neighborhood. Poor guy didn't stand a chance----”


“Captain Ryker will hear about this”, Crane interrupted angrily.


“So, he'll hear about it”, Tannehill replied. “We don't have a problem with that. He has a problem with us.”


“Yeah, so go ahead and tell him, Thin Boy,” Stoneward answered with a smile on his face.


As they walked away from Inspector Crane, they allowed him to speak with the other officers.


“You think Crane can wrap up this investigation?” asked Tannehill.


“He couldn't wrap up a birthday gift, much less this case.”


“Oh, we're real comedians, aren't we?” They both laughed as they left the scene in Tannehill's Dodge Challenger.


The next day, the both of them were called into Captain Dean Ryker's office.


Ryker was a thin-built man, wearing his light-brown suit and a white, wrinkled shirt.


“Gentlemen”, he started to say with a stoic look on his face. “ I understand you were at Bennett's Jewelries.”


“Sure”, replied Lieutenant Stoneward. “I was hoping to get something for my wife and my daughter. They love when I surprise them.”


Both Stoneward and Tannehill looked at each other and started to laugh a little, but Ryker was obviously not amused.


“You two enjoy making jokes, but this is a serious matter. This is Crane's case and you two need to stay out. If Crane needs you' he'll call you”


“Quite frankly, he'll need us sooner than he thinks.” said Tannehill.


“You got that right, pal.” agreed Stoneward.


“All right; that's enough. Now get back on stakeout and out of my sight.”


The two detectives, not wanting to argue more than necessary, would eventually leave.


Just as they were about to go outside, one of the officers who were at the crime scene happened to stop them. “Excuse me, Lieutenant----”


“Hey, Maloney. What's up?”


“Just in case you're interested, they identified the deceased man as Damon Carducci. Apparently he was carrying this note.” He handed the note to the Lieutenant.


“Joseph D'Amico—--”


“Hey, the rich dude from Italy. I hear he's richer than the guys who run GUCCI now, but he's not in the same business.”


“If you ask me, he's expanded his business to include illegal activities, like smuggling and prostitution.”


“Unfortunately, that hasn't been proven.”


“Nope, but I remember he once served time for possession of illegal substances when he was younger. I busted him for that.”


“Really??”


My guess is he'll lie to us about knowing this Carducci. Still, I'd like to pay the scumbag a visit.”


“Sounds like you know where he lives---”


“Heck, yeah. He has an office in the Hillman Heights area, under the name Big City Associates of Finances.”


“That figures. A guy like him in a business that has to do with money somehow.”


Officer Maloney was about to leave when Lieutenant Stoneward said, “Thanks, Maloney.”


Maloney shook his head in acknowledgment.