Breaking the Lock

Nine

January 2013, New York City

"You ready for this West?"

Nathan rose from the bench he had been sitting on and stood straight, almost at attention, to address his department captain. "Yes, sir."

"Good." Captain Marshall gave him a narrow look. "Word of advice, West?" Nathan nodded in earnest. "Internal Affairs can be intimidating. You just need to remember one thing. They wouldn't be investigating Byron without cause. Whatever it is you know or you think you know, for the sake of your career, tell them."

"I intend to, sir," Nathan replied with a light frown. He wondered briefly what the captain knew about Byron and his ring of corruption. Marshall had been in the department as long as Frank Byron. He had connections with IA and other departments. Did he know something that Nathan didn't? "Should I be concerned with Internal Affairs coming after me?"

"No. IA doesn't want you. If anything, you are their star witness. They want to know everything you know." Captain Marshall leaned in and lowered his voice. "This is big, West. Byron is going down and he's going to take a lot of officers with him. He might try to take you with him too. Don't let him. Do you understand?"

Nathan didn't have a moment to respond. The IA agent approached them, motioning to Nathan to follow. They walked down the hall to a conference room, not speaking. At the door, Nathan glanced over his shoulder at the captain who nodded reassuringly. Nathan returned the nod and entered the room. A long conference table had been set up with a row of chairs on one side for the IA agents and two chairs for him and the IA agent who had escorted him into the room on the opposite side. He took a seat and waited.

The IA agent seated directly across from him opened the meeting. "Officer West, as you know this is a formal investigation into charges being brought against Officer Frank Byron. You have been called to give testimony as to your knowledge of criminal activities conducted by Officer Byron." He motioned to the man sitting next to him. "Agent Morris will act as your advocate today. He will advise you of any legal matters you may have questions about. Shall we begin?"

Nathan spared no detail. Frank Byron was an evil man. Nathan had witnessed numerous crimes from extortion to dealing drugs to coercion but there was one thing he'd seen that outweighed all of that. Frank Byron had viciously tortured a kid who had the temerity of challenging Byron. The beating began as Byron's way of "teaching him a lesson." But it escalated quickly. There was a bloodlust in Byron's eyes and as he rained his fury on the young man, any semblance of logical thought disappeared from Frank Byron. He was nothing more than a madman in a uniform. Nathan had tried to step in and stop it, but Byron refused to listen; he was judge, jury, and punishment for that poor defenseless kid. It took four men to pull him off the kid but by then it was too late.

"Officer Petty called an ambulance but the victim died before the ambulance arrived," Nathan finished looking directly at the IA agent in front of him.

"And after the incident, when Officer Byron was put on administrative leave, what was your course of action?"

"I went directly to my superior to file a report," Nathan responded. "I included everything I had witnessed from the moment I joined Captain Marshall's division."

"Are you aware of any other violent acts committed by Officer Byron?"

Nathan shifted uncomfortably. "Just rumors," he said effectively ending his testimony.

He was dismissed shortly after and left for the day, confident that he had done the right thing. Byron got to him outside of his apartment building. He was with two other officers. All of them looked angry and menacing. Nathan stood his ground but Byron's warning to him was clear. Shut up or pay the price. It was too late for that. The damage was done and he wouldn't change a thing. At the trial, Byron's lawyer did everything he could to paint Nathan as the guilty party, doing his best to imply that Nathan was the corrupt officer and not Frank Byron. It didn't work; Nathan's testimony had sealed Byron's fate. When the verdict was read out, Byron turned and stared down Nathan in the courtroom. Still young and brash, Nathan didn't realize at the time that he had made a dangerous enemy.

Sitting in his car waiting for Byron's son, he thought about what he had seen Byron do. He knew exactly what the man was capable of. But Nathan was older, wiser and more experienced. The last thing he would allow was for anyone to hurt anyone he loved. Especially Maxie Jones. And he would do whatever he needed to do to keep her safe no matter the cost to himself.