PREVIOUSLY

Tea swallows hard, trying to keep her composure. "Actually, things have been looking up. I hope you don't mind, but someone else is going to be joining us for dinner." She notices the disappointed look that comes across John's face. "No, " he says, none too convincingly, "Anyone I know?" Téa smiles innocently. "As a matter of fact, you do know him." She looks toward the doorway. John follows her gaze, and who he sees causes a stab of panic to rip through him. "Hey, Sykes...remember me?" Todd says, grinning sarcastically.

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Sykes feels bile rise in his throat at the sight of Todd Manning. He had the sickening feeling he had been found out. Todd enjoyed the frightened look on Sykes' face immensely.
"Geez, Sykes, don't I even get a hello? I mean...the least you could do is be polite after drooling over my wife for all these months."
Sykes attempts bravado. "You're in deep trouble, Manning."
"Not as much as your in, Sykes."
"I haven't done anything wrong, unlike you."
Téa stands up and walks over to Todd, causing a streak of jealousy to surge through Sykes.
"Now, John, we're all adults here, I think we can handle this civilly."
"Harboring a fugitive is a pretty serious offense, Counselor," Sykes sneers.
"So is having police statements altered," Téa shoots back. Todd smiles at Sykes' obvious discomfort.
Sykes stands up and walks away from them, his back to them, his forehead beginning to break out in a sweat.
"I don't know what you're talking about."
Todd walks towards him. "Save it, Sykes, Delgado and me..we got proof."
Sykes rubs his chin nervously, and turns around to face them.
"Oh, really....you know what I think? I think you're bluffing....to save your sorry ass, Manning."
Todd walks over to Téa's bag and picks up the statements. He also, unbeknownst to Sykes, clicks "record" on the small tape recorder that is hidden by Téa's briefcase. He walks over to Sykes, waving the statement. "See this? Yeah...see I didn't say this...this is not what happened."
Sykes laughs. "This is your proof? Like anyone is going to believe you!"
Todd laughs with him. "Probably not. But they would probably believe Starr's old nanny, who is willing to testify that the statement of file is not the statement she made. You know what, they'd probably also believe the cop who took the statements, who coincedentally was transferred to the middle of nowhere, who is also willing to testify that this is not his signature," Todd finishes, grinning like a Cheshire cat.
"Not to mention, Commissioner, you hustled my client awfully quickly out of the PD that day...could it be you didn't want him to speak to his lawyer?" Téa asks.
Sykes is speechless. He had been so careful.
"You still can't prove I had anything to do with this."
Todd grins and looks at Téa, enjoying this little game. "I don't know about you, Delgado, but what did it for me was the timing of the whole thing. Wasn't that the same time Sykes here was under suspicion for covering up a murder?"
Téa smiles. "Oh, yeah...I seem to remember an obstruction of justice charge. Funny, if I recall it seemed to disappear right about the time you were arrested."
"Yeah...funny how that is," Todd pauses, looking at Sykes, "Don't you think that's funny Sykes?"
Sykes squirms, trying to figure a way out.
Téa walks over to him and sits down. "Look John, we don't want to go public with this....I think we can probably come up with some sort of deal."
"Blackmail, Counselor?"
Téa pauses. "Ensuring all of our interests."
"Yeah," Todd interjects, "What we really want to know is...who was in on this with you."
Sykes feels trapped, but fears revealing his accomplice.
"No one," he says, unconvincingly.
"Now come on Sykes, you would have to have pretty powerful connections to ensure that that nasty little obstruction of justice charge disappears. And I would figure it's also someone who hates my guts...wanted to get me out of town bad enough to blackmail you. Although, I guess that doesn't exactly narrow the list down."
Sykes puts his head in his hands, still silent.
"Oh, Delgado....didn't that nanny say something about Kevin Buchanan?"
Téa grins at Sykes. "Yeah, Todd...she did...now the Buchanans...they sure would love to have you out of town...and Asa certainly is powerful...is that who your connection was, John?"
Sykes glares at the both of them, but feels defeated. He was going to be ruined unless he came clean and struck a deal with Todd and Téa.
"Yeah," Sykes says in a low voice, "I was in on it with Asa Buchanan."

To be continued.....

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