TRIALS OF THE HEART - PART TWO

PREVIOUSLY
A weak smile played along Blair's lips. "Sure. Let's go." Tea reached out and took Starr's offered hand. The two women set off across the park at a brisk pace, with the little girl swinging between them, holding each one by the hand.

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Commissioner Bo Buchanan pulled away from behind his desk, removed his glasses and sat back. He took a sip of coffee and looked over the piles of files, lists of evidence and newspaper clippings littering his desktop. His eyes fell on the Georgie Phillips murder file, which was the thickest of the group. Bo sighed deeply. "When will I be able to put that whole incident behind me?" he thought. He glanced at the photo of his wife, Nora, which he had replaced in the customary spot out of habit after his reinstatement as commissioner. His brow furrowed. As usual, his wife had him off balance. He had thought they were making some progress toward reconciling and then bam! The hostage situation at the lodge had put an end to it. After that, Nora had shut down on him completely, and he couldn't quite understand it. She was distant, hostile even, and refused to talk about it. Her excuse was her daughter Rachel, who was still having emotional problems over the death of her roommate Georgie, but Bo had to wonder if there was more to it. Maybe it was Nora's guilt about almost sending Drew to prison, but now that his son was free, Bo was ready to forgive even that. Well, maybe when this Manning trial was over and the slimeball was on his way to Statesville, Nora and Rachel could put the whole thing behind them.

The commissioner walked to the one small, grimy window in his office. A window-mounted air conditioner droned and rattled in the bottom portion, but he could still make out the people hurrying across the city square. With the heat wave, no one was anxious to remain outdoors for long. Reluctantly, Bo let his thoughts return to the Phillips case and the man he had locked up for the crime down in the basement jail. Having been a resident of that jail just a few short weeks before, Bo knew that the combination of the heat and the lack of air conditioning down there must make for nearly intolerable conditions. "Let him sweat," he thought.

He returned to his desk and pulled open the Phillips file for the 10th time that day. He shuffled through a few sheets, and carefully studied the photo of the bloodstained fireplace gloves. Yes, everything pointed to Manning. It was an airtight case, and the man's past violence toward women made it easy to buy him as the murderer. But the commissioner couldn't quite escape this little voice in his head that told him the case was too tight, that everything seemed to fall into place too easily. And then there was Manning himself. Why did he go to the trouble of trying to flush out the killer up at the lodge if he had done the murder himself? There were certainly easier ways to pin a crime on someone, and with his resources, Manning could have been long gone out of Llanview instead of doing his psycho act at Asa's lodge.

Bo's thoughts were interrupted by a knock on the door. A young officer opened the door and announced, "Ms. Delgado and Ms. Cramer to see you, sir." Bo cringed as Blair, followed by Tea marched purposefully into the office. He looked from one to the other. "What's this about, ladies? Blair, I told you the police department has no further comments on the Phillips case for publication in the Sun." He turned to Tea. "Or is this something about your client, Counselor?"

"As a matter of fact, it is, Commissioner," answered Tea. "We are here to ask for a favor." She turned to her cohort. "Blair?"
Blair cleared her throat. "We've come to ask you to let Todd see Starr." She ignored Bo's smirk and shaking head and continued on. "Up here. In an office or interrogation room so she won't find out he's in jail."
Bo chuckled without warmth. "Well, at least this is something I won't have to waste a lot of time with," he said. "The answer is no."
"Wait a minute, Bo!" said Tea with a catch in her voice. "Won't you at least hear us out? Starr is just a little girl, and she misses her father terribly." She paused. "And he really needs her now."
Bo shook his head and turned to Blair. "What's this really about? You don't expect me to believe after all these years of fighting to get your daughter away from Manning, you've suddenly gone soft on him now, of all times? Is this a stunt for the latest headline in the Sun? Why am I not surprised you'd use your daughter this way?"
"Why do you always think the worst of me? I'm thinking of Starr. Todd can go to hell as far as I'm concerned, but she loves him. She's missing him in the worst way, so for her sake I'm willing to put my feelings about Todd aside and let her see him. But not down there in that cage. She'd be too scared."
Tea stepped forward. "I know you hate Todd, Commissioner, and maybe you have good reason. But I'm sure you can understand a father's need to make sure his child is doing all right in a situation like this." Bo broke eye contact and the smug grin slowly faded from his face. "We're not asking you to compromise your duties, Bo," continued Tea. "We're just looking for a bit of indulgence for a child's sake, that's all."

Bo turned away and looked out the window. "Where was Manning's sensitivity about a father's feelings when he went after me, and then my son Drew in his newspaper?" he asked. Bo whipped around. "Where were his feelings for his little girl when he strapped on fake dynamite and threatened to kill himself and a dozen other people?" He looked at Blair "Don't talk to me about Starr's needs. She's better off never laying eyes on him again! Now if you'll excuse me, ladies, I have work to do."

Tea stood there stunned, her eyes filled with tears. "Before all this stuff with Georgie, I never would have believed you could be so vindictive, Bo. I used to admire you and your impartiality. But you're a hard, bitter man now. Everyone always accuses Todd of holding a grudge, buy you've taken it to a new art form. You've become more twisted than him!" Bo flinched as Tea turned on her heel and marched out.

Blair thoughtfully put her hand on the door, slowly closed it, and then leaned on the inside. "I told you I'm busy, Blair, and I'm not going to change my mind. Don't waste your time."
"Is this about Nora, Bo?" she asked quietly. She walked slowly toward him, taking large steps with her long legs. "Are you still hurting from her betrayal and taking it out on the world?" Blair stopped right in front of Bo as he sat on the edge of his desk. "I don't blame you, really," she continued. She reached out and gently picked up the end of his tie. She moved up closer to his neck and straightened the knot. "A man should be able to count on his wife to stand by him." Bo reached up, grabbed her by the wrist and pulled her away.

"I'm not about to discuss my marriage with the likes of you, Blair, and I hope you don't think I'm the type that would fall for this crap. Now get out while you still have some dignity left."

"I was only telling you that I know what it's like to be lonely, Bo." She sauntered to the door, letting him get a good look at her tight skirt. Blair looked back over her shoulder. "You let your son grow up without a father, and look how he turned out: a conman. I guess I shouldn't be surprised." Bo looked stony as she closed the door behind her. He stomped around to the back of his desk, and looked at a newly framed photo of Drew at his police academy graduation. Bo glanced again at Nora's photo, then glared at the mug shot of Todd Manning laying on top of the open Georgie Phillips file. He slammed the file shut, and walked quickly through the rear entrance of his office.

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Todd stood at the little stainless steel sink and splashed water in his face and over his neck in yet another futile attempt to cool down. Leaving the water dripping down his back, he padded over to the cell door in his bare feet, gripped two of the bars and stuck his face between them, hoping to find more air circulating in the corridor. He glanced up at the only source of natural light: a high, barred window filled with frosted glass. He gave up the hope of any kind of ventilation and paced back to the other side of the cell. Sweat trickled down his spine and the white cotton T-shirt clung to his torso. He briefly considered stripping off the T-shirt and denim prison pants he wore, and spending the afternoon clad only in his white cotton boxers. But he balked at exposing himself that much, even for the sake of a little relief from the heat. "It probably wouldn't do any good anyway," he thought. For the twentieth time that day, he sat down on the built-in bench in the cell and pressed his perspiring back against the cinderblock wall, which retained the barest hint of coolness. He looked again toward the grungy window and tried to imagine the view from his penthouse, or even his office. He took too much pleasure in looking down on the world, but after a lifetime of being locked in various small places by his father, and then the authorities during his frequent run-ins with the law, something about all that sky and space was infinitely comforting.

But there was little comfort in the thought of home or the Sun today. This time he was too close to losing everything, just like everyone in his life took such pleasure in predicting. The Buchanans had done this to him, and he let his mind mull over several options for wiping the clan out of existence if he ever got out of jail. "If I ever get out of here....," he said aloud. He snorted. "Like they'll ever let that happen." He glanced around the cell, looking at the ceiling tiles, the two walls of bars, the bunk and the stainless steel sink and toilet in the corner. It was a study in monotony. Todd strolled again to the bars and stuck his head out as far as he could to check on the position of the guard around the corner behind a second locked, barred door. He moved to the sink, and felt deliberately for a little gap where the sink failed to rest flush against the wall. Using his fingernails, he carefully extracted a handful of photographs from their hiding place, then sat down on the lower bunk and slowly started to flip through them. These were precious to him, as two previous sets Tea brought him had been confiscated as contraband. He wasn't naive enough to expect a reason, other than the fact that Bo and his minions took excruciating pleasure in ticking him off. Obviously they were hoping he'd lose it so they had an excuse to beat the crap out of him. He looked at some recent pictures of Starr, looking adorable in her little summer dresses, then moved on to a couple of older photos of her as a chubby toddler. In one photo of Starr's last birthday, Tea hovered in the background, dressed in a short, clingy brown and tan heathered knit dress that fit her to perfection. Her hair was piled on top of her head the way he liked it.

Todd stared at the image of his wife so intently, he didn't notice the sound of the outer jail door opening and the keys jingling in the lock of his cell until it was almost too late. He quickly shoved the stack of photos under the pillow of the lower bunk as the commissioner entered the cell and was locked in by the guard.

The prisoner looked up at him. "My lawyers told me not to talk to you without them present, Commissioner. They seem to have this crazy idea that you might be trying to frame me for murder." His demeanor was deceptively calm.

Bo smirked at him and moved to the stone bench at the back of the cell. He sat down slowly and loosened his tie against the heat. "Steaming in your own juices, Manning? You're even more paranoid than usual." He looked across at the other man and noticed the sweat trickling down his face. "Besides, I'm not here to discuss your case."
Todd leaned forward and placed his forearms on his knees. Bo noticed the bandages over both sets of knuckles. "Oh, so this is your bi-weekly visit to jerk my chain," grinned Todd. "Figuratively speaking, of course, although I'm sure you'd like to do it literally if you could think up an excuse."
Bo grinned back, although his eyes were as cold as the other man's. "I had a little visit from part of your female fan club today, Manning. Your two wives. It seems that your little girl is missing her Daddy."
Todd quickly let his face go blank, but the momentary look of pain in his eyes told Bo he'd stuck the knife in deep. Strangely enough, he felt little satisfaction. Todd looked at the floor. "Leave Starr out of it. Hate me all you want, but leave her alone. She's done nothing wrong and doesn't deserve your contempt."
"I have nothing but pity for her, Manning, being stuck with an old man like you," answered Bo. "If she's lucky, she'll never have to see your ugly face again."
Todd's eyes filled with fury, and he got abruptly to his feet and walked a few steps away from the Commissioner. He stood with his back toward his tormentor. "What do you want?" he spat.
Bo took advantage of Todd's distraction to quickly reach under the pillow on the bunk and pull out the hidden photographs. Todd whipped around and started toward him with murder in his eyes. But the sound of the guard quickly unlocking the cell to come to the aide of the commissioner brought him up short. The man stood in the doorway fingering his nightstick, looking toward Bo for guidance. Knowing that taking one more step toward the commissioner would bring that weapon down on his cranium, Todd moved away to the other side of the cell. "It's OK, Frank," Bo told the guard, and he backed away and locked the cell again, glaring at the prisoner's back. "You're getting wiser in your old age, Manning," said Bo. " Now let's see what we have here." He flipped through the pictures.

Todd took a deep breath and gripped the steel frame of the bunk with all his strength. He felt some of the scabs on his knuckles break open with the pressure. "Look, Bo, do we have to play these games? You hold all the cards. You've won. You've managed to make me look like the murderer, even though we both know you did it. Blair used it as ammunition to get both the paper and Starr away from me. I'm never going to see my little girl again, so is it such a big deal if I keep her pictures? You know photos aren't considered contraband for anyone but me."

Bo continued to look at the photographs, and looked almost wistful for a moment. "Such a sweet little thing. How did you get so lucky, Manning?" He strolled to the door and nodded at the guard. As the man unlocked the cell, Bo continued, "The best thing for her is to send you away for a long time, where you can't disappoint her or cause her pain like you do with everyone else." Todd continued staring straight ahead, still gripping the bunk. His body shook slightly with suppressed rage, and drops of sweat fell from his forehead. Outside the cell, Bo leaned against the opposite wall while the guard locked the door, and looked down at the photos. When he heard the door slam shut, Todd allowed himself to let go of the bed frame.

"You sadistic b@stard!" shouted Todd. He flung himself around and started toward the bars. "You'd better hope I never get out of here, because I'll..." He stopped cold as the packet of photos hit him in the chest, bounced off and scattered at his feet.

"Take a good look, Manning," taunted Bo. "Because that's all you're going to see of Starr for a long, long time." Todd held himself still as the guard and the commissioner exited the jail through the outer barred door. When they were out of sight, he slowly bent down and picked up the pictures. He sat down again on the bunk, and arranged the photos so the one with Tea was on top of the stack. His finger traced the features of his daughter. With tears in his eyes, he moved his fingers over the form of his wife.

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In the waiting area of the squad room, Tea sat sobbing, while Blair, who was seated next to her, rolled her eyes. She riffled through her purse. "Tea, for someone who cries as much as you do, you never seem to have a tissue." Blair shoved a couple at the other woman. "You should carry a jumbo sized box in that briefcase of yours." Tea wiped her eyes and blew her nose.

"I'm just so angry at that sanctimonious..." Tea cut off as Kelly Cramer entered with Officer Drew Buchanan, Bo's son. Tea looked at him with open hostility. Kelly greeted her cousin Blair, but stopped short when she saw the tears in Tea's eyes.
"Tea, are you all right?" she asked with concern. She looked back and forth at the two women. "What are you doing here?" Drew shuffled uncomfortably at the sight of the tears.
Blair answered for the two of them. "I'm waiting on Viki. She's bringing Starr here to meet me. We had hoped she'd get to see Todd, but the high and mighty commissioner has ruled against it," said Blair derisively.
"My dad must have had a reason," ventured Drew. "She's awful little and the jail is scary."
Blair looked at the young policeman with contempt. "We'd thought of that, Drew, and dealt with it. Your father is just a vindictive jerk, and that's the end of it."
Drew looked furious as Kelly pushed him toward his desk. "It's not worth it, Drew. They're hurting, that's all. Just leave it alone, for my sake, OK?" Drew patted her cheek affectionately and moved away. Kelly looked at her cousin and Tea. "I'm sorry. I know it's hard. When Drew...." Blair cut her off.
"Spare me more of your whining, Kelly. We'll deal with it." Looking hurt, Kelly left to join Drew at his desk. Tea had herself under control as Viki entered with Starr. The little girl was jumping out of her skin with excitement to be in the police station. She spotted her cousin behind the barrier and jumped up and down shouting, "Tee, Mommy! Look! There's Kelly!" She waved frantically. Kelly beckoned, and Blair nodded. The little girl ran over to the desk to join Kelly and Drew. Viki surveyed the two Mrs. Mannings seated on the bench.

"I take it things didn't go well," she guessed.
Across the squad room, Starr sat on Drew's desk, happily wearing his policeman's hat and playing with a hole punch and a pile of colored paper. Commissioner Bo came through the door and stopped, speechless at the sight of the little girl. Maybe he was somewhat off balance at coming face to face with the flesh and blood subject of the photos he had been perusing moments before, or possibly feeling guilty at using a child as a weapon to hurt her father, no matter how hated he might be. He seemed out of kilter as he greeted his son and Kelly. Bo stared uncomfortably at the little girl, who was punching out confetti from the paper and gluing it down on another sheet using a glue stick. She looked up at him with eyes that were unnervingly like Manning's. "I'm making a picture for my Daddy," she told him. He glanced across the room and was frozen by the icy blue gaze of his ex-sister-in-law, Viki Carpenter. He approached Viki, Tea and Blair. Bo wouldn't admit it to anyone, but he secretly dreaded Viki's disapproval. She looked at him as though she could see right inside him.

"So, Bo. You've decided my brother is not worthy to be treated like any other human being. You seem to have made a unilateral decision to deny him the only human contact that might help him right now. I take it you prefer to see him locked up for good, rather than trying to help him in any way?"
"Viki, you don't know the whole story. He'd probably scare his daughter in the state he's in. I think he's gone over the edge." Bo shifted uncomfortably as Viki stared at him intently.
"No one's beyond help, Bo. Even Todd. Starr misses her father terribly, and he needs her. Her mother and stepmother agree, so is it really your decision to make? You know he'd never hurt her," Viki continued.
"Viki, it's not that simple. There are rules," continued Bo.
Viki fixed him with her cool stare. "And rules are meant to be broken, Bo," she said. "Especially by the Commissioner of Police. Let's talk."

TO BE CONTINUED