Cold Case 8-10: Good Night, Nurse

[valrush]

COLD CASE: GOOD NIGHT, NURSE

Will’s replacement is given an immediate test when a man comes forward about a body he found years ago and demands answers about his past.

PREVIOUSLY ON COLD CASE:

"Jimmy Mota," Pierson said. "He’s the piece of garbage that attacked your mother."
"What about him?" Scotty asked, frowning as they walked.
"Took a deal, three to five, sent him to Graterford."
Scotty looked at Pierson. "You gotta be kidding me!"
Pierson shook his head. "Could be out in eighteen months on good behavior."
 
"There’s a new fish on your block, likes to sing." Scotty said, quietly.
Hector looked at Scotty. "Sound to me like you want someone to catch a cold."
"It’s goin’ around."
Hector looked down in thought for a moment. "Suppose... suppose this fish gets made out to be a snitch in the yard."
Scotty shrugged. "Then he’s everybody’s problem."
 
"Yo, Mota." Scotty said with a smile as he approached Mota in the yard. Mota turned around and just recognized Scotty as Scotty put his arm around the felon. "What’s happenin’, bro?"
"Tag, you’re it, b*tch." Scotty said, quietly into his ear. "That’s for my moms."
 
In the prison showers, Mota lay in a pool of his own blood.

Scotty entered his apartment, and looked at his mail. Two bills, one letter trying to get him to apply for a new credit card, and an envelope with a typed address.

He opened the last one up. Inside was a newspaper clipping and a piece of paper.The clipping showed a picture of Scotty in uniform, smiling. It was from his time at West. He had helped solve the murder of Frank Gaines. Frank had been abusing his daughter for years. His wife had snapped and stabbed him with a knife when she found out.

The piece of lined paper was  torn from a notepad with a printed list of names: “Frank Gaines’s killer got 3 years, Nash Cavanaugh 6 years, Lauren Williams 2 years, Rudy Tanner 2 years, Mark Ellison 7 years, Jimmy Mota ?”.

Scotty ripped up the piece of paper and the clipping, and stuffed them both in the bin. He opened the trash and grabbed the bag, then took it downstairs to throw it in the chute.

He then took out his cell phone and looked at the display.

10 new messages.

John closed the glass door to his office and sat across the desk from Will. “What the hell is going on, Will? I’ve seen you get crazed over cases before, but not like this. Then added to it is your taking multiple personal days in a row. You’ve never done that before. Explain this to me, Will,” said John. Will didn’t even move; he just gave John an icy stare. “Will, I’m your lieutenant. Please do not make me threaten you. We’re the old dogs of this unit; we go back a long way. I think that entitles me to some honesty.”

Will leaned in and put his elbows on the desk. ‘The truth is I’m sick, John. I got the medical report; all signs are pointing to early stage lung cancer. I’ve been thinking of leaving. On some level I know I probably should, but then I heard this call come through my police scanner: ‘young girl, blue dress, silver tiara,’ and I knew who it was and I just feel like I should see it through.”

John started scratching his chin. “You realize that with what you just told me; I shouldn’t let you stay on anymore.”

Will shook his head and stood up. “I will start packing my desk.”

“Sit down, Will,” insisted John. Will returned to his seat. “Here is how we’re going to proceed. I did not hear this; as far as anyone here is concerned you are perfectly healthy. Julie Garret is now your only case. You can stay on until the job is closed or until I feel that you are no longer physically fit enough for duty. At either point I will put into the city for your retirement. If, however, you blow up like that at anyone else again, the deal is off the table and I will be forced to terminate you without benefits. Is that clear?”

Will stood up. “Alright, that sounds fair.”

John extended his hand and Will shook it. “You’re a good cop, Will, and you’ve been around almost as long as me. If anyone deserves a cheesy gold watch and a crappy pension, it’s you.”

“Thank you, John,” said Will as he left the office.
 
John Stillman stood in the middle of the office. “Everyone, can I have your attention! As some of you may know; Will Jeffries has decided that this was his last case! It’s a decision he agonized over for a long time, but he has finally decided to retire! As of tomorrow, Will Jeffries is no longer a member of the Philadelphia Police Department! We’ll miss you, Will!”

[valrush]

1

The following story is fictional and

does not depict any actual person or event

Cyndi Lauper: “Girls Just Want To Have Fun”

 
March 30, 1984
 
The King’s Oak bar was located just over four miles away from La Salle University which made it a convenient stop at the end of the night for the four students seated at a corner booth waiting on their orders. One male occupied this booth and he was surrounded by three girls. The girl sitting in front of him to his left was named Stephanie Dale, and she had puffed-up blonde, curly hair and wore a day-glow green dress. She was the first one to speak, “I have another question then. Police officers are issued standard weapons. How the hell did that guy berry tackler, or whatever his name was, get a military grade gun into that place in the first place?”

“His name was Tackleberry. Stephanie, you ask too many question; it was a comedy,” said the girl seated next to him with straight, dark hair and wearing a light blue t-shirt and orange day-glow shorts.

“It was more like two hours I’m not getting back. The only funny part was the guy who kept making all the weird noises. What were you thinking when you chose that movie?” said the straight-haired blonde in acid-washed jeans and a La Salle University t-shirt.

“Nichole, why are you looking at me? This is all on Laura. She’s the one who had to see ‘Police Academy’ again,” insisted Kyle Ambros, the loan male at the table. He had brownish hair and wore blue jeans and a La Salle jacket.

“Would you rather have seen ‘Reckless’ again? I thought it would be something we could all enjoy, but apparently nobody else here has a sense of humor,” Laura replied.

“Well, how’s this for a joke? I move that we don’t let anyone wearing day-glow orange in public doesn’t get to pick what we do on our nights out anymore,” insisted Kyle.

“What do you want, Kyle? I haven’t had time to do laundry. It was either this or scrubs,” Laura responded.

A dark-haired waitress walked up to the booth with a tray of food and four bottles of Budweiser. She had seen the group many times before so she spoke to Kyle briefly, “Girls’ night out again, Kyle?”

“Yeah Marla, that joke just keeps getting funnier. But, contrary to popular belief, I do have an extra piece and it works. So do me a favor and spread the news?” asked Kyle.

“Why do you ladies insist on bringing him with you every week? I’m just saying if you ladies really want to enjoy your nights out, it’s a simple operation,” insisted Marla.

“Not so simple according to the textbook,” Kyle informed.

“Please don’t remind me. I’m sure I failed that damn test,” insisted Nichole.

“I’m with Nichole on this one. I don’t even want to think about ‘Introduction to Nursing’ right now,” Stephanie added.

“Yeah, I hear that. I propose a toast to the end of midterms!” Kyle called out as he raised his bottle of beer into the air. The three girls then followed in unison.

Cold Case Soundtrack: “Sister Vivian’s Flashback”
 
Kyle Ambros was found face down near an alley approximately one mile from the King’s Oak bar in a pool that was one third shattered glass, one third white wine, and one third blood.

[valrush]

Lilly was seated at her desk when she suddenly got the feeling that she was being watched. She looked up suddenly and saw a skinny Afro-American male with short hair and wearing a brown suit hovering over her. “I’m looking for Lt. John Stillman,” he said.

“Is he expecting you?” Lilly asked.

The man pulled a badge from his jacket pocket. “My name is Detective Andrew Darius. I’ve been transferred here from burglary division.”

“You’re Will Jeffries’s replacement aren’t you?” Lilly added as they shook hands. “Detective Lilly Rush, I can take you to Stillman’s office. Welcome to homicide.”

Andrew followed Lilly through the maze of desks until they came to a glass door. “Boss, there’s an Andrew Darius here for you.”

“Send him in, and you might as well stay. We’re doing an interview in here,” said Stillman. The pair entered the office and made their introductions. Fellow detective Nick Vera was already there along with an older, balding man in worn clothing that

Lilly did not recognize. “This man says his name is Victor Willard. He came in with information on a murder near where he used to live.”

“Where exactly did you used to live, Mr. Willard?” asked Lilly.

The man shook his head. “An alley a little ways from this place called the ‘King’s Oak’ bar. Back in the early 1980s I was what you might call today ‘roof-impaired’. Any money I found I blew on whiskey, but I have been sober for a little over 26 years now.

“Anyway, it’s like I was telling the other detectives. I remember hearing glass breaking and this girl shouting this name over and over again: ‘Kyle!’, ‘Kyle!’ The next thing I remember was waking up and seeing a body covered in broken glass and blood. The smell of alcohol was everywhere. I remember because that was the day I quit drinking. I was never a deeply religious man, but that was a hard sign to ignore.”

“I can imagine,” said Vera.

John walked over to Lilly and Andrew. “We checked the database. There is an unsolved murder that fits this description: Kyle Ambros from 1984.”

“AA uses the term ‘making amends’. I’ve been stuck on that step for a long time now,” Victor explained.

“I’m a little confused, Mr. Willard. Are you turning yourself in or … what?” asked Vera.

“I wish it were that simple. But my memories from back then are very broken at best. I was hoping you could fill in the gaps,” Victor informed. “I know have to pay for what I’ve done, but in order to do that I have to know what I’ve done. I have to know. Did I kill this man?”

[valrush]

2

Lilly and Andrew walked through the file storage unit looking for the right file box. “So, these are ice cubes,” said Andrew as he turned his head from side to side.

“Ice cubes?” asked Lilly.

“All these big white boxes. I figured it was a fitting name for the freezer,” Andrew replied.

“’The freezer’ you say? I don’t think I’ve ever heard that one before,” insisted Lilly.

“Are you serious? Every cop I’ve met since I joined the force calls your unit the freezer. I asked one of my old partners about it once; he told me it was this storage place where old unsolved homicides went to die,” Andrew informed.

“Yeah, no shortage of unsolved murders in the city of brotherly hate. But with new forensic capabilities and new witnesses coming forward every day we’ve managed to breathe new life into quite a few of these over the years,” Lilly responded.

That’s when Lilly heard the voice of her long-time partner Scotty Valens call out to her. “Rush, Miller, it’s over here!” Lilly, Andrew, and Katrina Miller all joined Scotty and the others peering over the file. “Kyle Ambros, 21 years old, originally from the Kensington district, and a student in La Salle University’s school of … nursing? Am I reading this right?”

“That’s what the paperwork says,” Miller added.

“The body was found on early morning May 22, 1984 near an alley about 1 mile from the King’s Oak bar,” Scotty added.

“Well, that matches our homeless guy’s story,” insisted Miller.

“Kensington was macho man central back then; it was the center of industry and manufacturing before all the factories closed. A male nurse in 1980s Kensington; that’s got to widen the suspect pool,” insisted Rush.

“Are we thinking this guy preferred the home team? I have to be honest; ‘King’s Oak’ sounds like a gay bar to me,” Andrew added.

“They’re still in business, and according to the website it’s just a regular sports bar. But I’m guessing they wouldn’t advertise either way,” insisted John.

“Any chance we have the guy who did this already? It does say that the theory at the time was that some drunk on the street fought him for the wine,” said Andrew.

“It also says that they found a significant amount of broken glass near the body, and the coroner’s report also says that the cause of death was blunt force trauma to the rear right side of the skull. Apparently his clothing appeared to have been soaked through with alcohol, but the bottle was so shattered that they couldn’t get any usable prints. And no witnesses came forward to confirm or deny anything until now,” Scotty informed.

“Maybe no one came forward, but I don’t think he was alone,” said Lilly as she took one of the pictures from Scotty’s hands. “Look at the injured area. There’s a big piece of fabric covering it, and it’s tied down with something that looks like a chain. Someone tried to dress the wound; I don’t think our former drunk would have known to do that.”

“Yeah, that kind of instinct usually comes with medical training. Maybe he was with another nursing student that night?” asked Vera.

“It’s hard to say since they couldn’t get any forensics off of that either other than Kyle’s own blood,” John added.

“Here’s something else. I don’t know about Kyle, but his brother Craig has a record. He was brought up by a Steven Tyrell on simple assault charges, but it seems like he never followed through with them,” Miller explained.

“This is how I say we proceed. Kensington and La Salle are not that far apart; he might have been a commuting student. Valens, I want you to take the new guy and track down Kyle’s family, and find out if there’s any kind of history with him and his brother. Rush and Miller, I’ve been doing some checking and it turns out our homeless guy isn’t so homeless anymore. Take this address and keep your eyes and ears on him in case he remembers anything else,” John said handing Lilly a scrap of paper. “I’ll take Vera and check out the school records.”

[valrush]

Scotty and Andrew tracked down Kyle’s father at a construction site in lower Kensington. “Remember, go easy on him. Nobody is a suspect yet,” said Scotty.

A man with a gray mustache wearing coveralls and an orange helmet walked up to them. “Foreman said two guys in suits were asking about me.’

“You’re Jared Ambros,” said Scotty as they flashed their badges. “Detectives Valens and Darius, Philadelphia Homicide. We’re taking another look at your son Kyle’s murder.”

Jared leaned up against a support beam and sighed. “Kyle. It’s been 27 years.”

“Well, a witness has just come forward with information that we’re just trying to confirm. What can you tell us about Kyle?”

“I can tell you about years of regret. Kyle and I didn’t really get along,” insisted Jared.

“Troublemaker?” asked Andrew.

“He was never really trouble; we just didn’t have much in common,” Jared explained. “Back then I worked on the line at a textile mill; this was before they all started pulling out of the area. Anyway, I was like most of the guys there; we talked

about cars, sports, or girls. Kyle was more of a sensitive type.”

“Do you mean a sensitive type who didn’t like to talk about girls?” asked Andrew.

Jared turned away to his right. “If that’s your subtle way of asking if my son was gay, the truth is I wish I knew. It’s not like he ever brought anyone home to meet me. I can tell you that he was smart; there’s no way he would have ended up taking whatever temp construction work he could get just to get by like me. He had enough sense to get out of this life. He always liked Science. I figured he would go to medical school or study architecture or something. He just about floored me when he said he wanted to be a nurse; that’s what most of our fights were about.”

“Technically that’s still medicine, Mr. Ambros,” Scotty replied.

“Yeah, I know that now. When my wife had her heart attack three years ago I watched a few nurses assisting the doctors and taking care of her when she was recovering. I realized then that the job could be a lot more complex than I had thought, but back then I just felt like Kyle was settling…”

[valrush]

Genesis: “That’s All”

 
“I remember one particular evening in late April of that year. Kyle came down the stairs dressed in jeans and a La Salle t-shirt. I was seated in my green recliner watching the local news. Kyle pulled back the white curtain on the front wall and looked out the window. I guess I was the one who started things off this night because I remember asking, ‘You have plans tonight or something?’

“’If you must know, Stephanie and the others are planning on catching a movie tonight,’ Kyle replied.

“’Well, you ladies have fun,’ I said sarcastically.

“’Dad, please don’t start with this again,’ Kyle said.

“’I’m just curious as to why you don’t ask one of those girls out,’ I told him.

“’We’re just friends, dad. It works for me,’ Kyle insisted.

“’Male nurse and girls who are just friends. Yeah, it sounds like every straight guy’s dream,’ I said.

“Kyle turned from the window and glared at me. ‘Will you stop hounding me with that? I’ve told you a million times! I’m not… that way! Come on! You’re the one who caught me stealing your old ‘Playboy’s when I was twelve!’

“’I’m also the one who recently caught you nailing a picture of Kevin Bacon’s ass to your wall!’ I yelled back.

“’What? I liked ‘Footloose’!’ he said. Maybe that’s all it was, but you didn’t see this thing. It was basically Kevin Bacon bending over in front of the camera. His ass was in the center of the frame and it had this weird pink highlight on it. What the hell was I supposed to think?

“Anyway, as stubborn as I was, I just kept pushing. ‘Well, if that’s not the issue, then what is? Because I don’t get it! I don’t get why an intelligent kid like you wants to settle for a girl’s job!’

“’It’s not a ‘girl’s job’ if a guy does it!’ Kyle yelled.

“’Kyle, you are one of the smartest people I know! You could do anything! Please explain to me why you’re choosing to empty bedpans for the rest of your life!’ I asked.

“’That’s all a nurse is to you, isn’t it? Nurses save lives! My instructor at school told us that a qualified nurse can save someone’s life as well as any overpriced doctor—‘ A car honked outside the house. ‘That’s Stephanie. As fun as this has been, I have to get out of here.’ Kyle walked into the kitchen and through the front door, but not before I heard him mumble under his breath, ‘I should have gone away to school.’.”

[valrush]

“If I knew then what I know now, maybe I wouldn’t have given him so much crap,” insisted Jared.

“Who was Stephanie?” asked Scotty.

“His cousin Stephanie Dale. She looked out for Kyle at that school,” Jared explained.

“Do you know where we could find her? If they were close she might know something,” Scotty insisted.

“She and her one friend, Nichole Lititz, they work on the nursing staff at one of those old people homes in the city. I’d have to hunt down the name of the place though,” Jared explained.

“What can you tell us about his older brother Craig?” asked Andrew.

Jared turned away. “I knew it. I know how you cops think; Craig was arrested once so he killed his brother. All he did was try to defend his brother, and those charges were dropped! You should be talking to that red-headed little bastard Steve Tyrell!”

“Why is that?” asked Scotty.

“I may have given my kid a hard time, but he’s the one who went so far as to pick fights with him! If you don’t believe me, talk to Craig about it! He should be on shift right now at the 7-11 three blocks to the right of here!” Jared replied.

“We’ll be sure to do that. Thank you for your time, Mr. Ambros,” said Scotty.

Scotty and Andrew walked back to their car. “So, did I pass?” asked Andrew as Scotty turned the key.

“You could have chimed in a little more, but I’ll give you a gold star for the effort,” insisted Scotty.

“So, is this how homicide works? You do a few of these freezer jobs and then they give you a real case,” Andrew asked.

“This is a real case. What, don’t tell me you’re tired of looking at me already?” asked Scotty.

“Well, I transferred from burglary where it’s crazy practically every night of the week. I’m used to a certain level of action, and working cold cases… It’s not exactly what I pictured doing when I signed up to become a cop,” Andrew explained.

Scotty laughed softly. “What’s so damn funny about that?”

“Darius, you sound just like I did eight years ago when I joined this team. Do you want to talk about crazy? I worked in narcotics before I started here. But cold cases can get pretty hair. You might have heard something on the news a few months back about an explosion in a hotel room,” Scotty informed.

“I think I remember that,” said Andrew.

“That was one of our jobs. We were working the murder of this retired CIA agent. It turned out that some of his allies from back then were dirty. Somehow the killer found out one of them was talking to us and found out where he was staying. So when we arrived at the hotel room we found our witness tied to a chair with a bomb strapped to his chest. Trust me, you never know what someone might do when you start digging things up that they thought were buried forever,” Scotty explained. They drove for a few blocks until they spotted a sign for a 7-11. “This must be it.”

Scotty parked the car and the pair entered the store with badges in hand. “Philadelphia P.D.! We’re looking for Craig Ambros!” Scotty shouted.

A uniformed worker turned away from the cash register. “I’m Craig Ambros. What of it?” he asked.

“Your brother Kyle was murdered in 1984. We’re looking into it again,” said Scotty.

“What can you tell us about Steve Tyrell? We understand both you and your brother had run-ins with him,” asked Andrew.

Craig shook his head. “Do I have to call my lawyer? You can’t talk to me about him; those charges were dropped!”

“They’re still in our files. But we’re homicide; the only way we care about a stupid bar fight is if that is what killed your brother. Is that what happened?” asked Scotty.

“The evidence we have suggests that Kyle was beaten with a wine bottle,” said Andrew.

“I remember that from when the cops came around the first time. Now you think Steve was good for it? Somehow I can’t picture those two going out drinking together,” insisted Craig.

“We’ve heard they didn’t get along. I don’t suppose you know where we could find him,” Scotty replied.

“Hardly anyone got along with Steve Tyrell. That guy was a pain in my ass the whole time we worked in the factory together,” Craig explained. “As for where you can find him, try the nearest cemetery. Rumor has it he was killed in a car crash in 1997.”

“Perfect,” Andrew sneered.

“I can’t say that for sure though; it’s not like I would have gone to the funeral of the guy who tried to lock me up,” Craig said as he turned back to the register. “Stephanie might have though.”

“Your cousin, Stephanie Dale?” asked Andrew.

Craig turned back around with a slightly surprised expression. “Yeah, believe it or not, she actually dated that loser…”

[valrush]

Twisted Sister: “We’re Not Gonna Take It”

 
“I remember it was about midday. Steve and I were both standing outside of the factory where we worked about to take our lunch break when we saw cousin Stephanie pull up in that faded green Buick of hers. ‘Stephanie, what are you doing here?’ Steve asked.

“Stephanie and Kyle both stepped out of the car. ‘Kyle and I are between classes right now. I thought we could all do lunch today,’ Stephanie told us.

“’Oh yeah, so he’s the cousin you go to school with,’ Steve responded. ‘So, male nurse, what happened? Did ballet school fill up?’

“Kyle just stood there for a minute before finally speaking up. ‘That’s a riot, Steve. I’ve never heard that one before. Have you ever thought about writing for ‘Cheers’, because you are just so damn funny?’

“’What’s funny about? I’m concerned for public health, really. You’re already sick when you go to a hospital, and from what I hear if a queer like you just breathes on somebody they get AIDS,’ Steve replied.

“’Well, in that case—‘ Kyle said before he let out a long hot breath right in Steve’s face. I won’t lie I was a little proud at that moment. ‘Gee, I hope it’s not true.’

“’Steve, what the hell are you doing?’ asked Stephanie.

“’Leave my brother alone, Steve,’ I said.

“’What? This is a milestone day! Your brother just whispered in my ear that he loves me! I bet he wants to kiss now!’ Steve added.

“I couldn’t take this anymore. I walked up to Steve and said, ‘Let me get this straight; you want him to kiss you?’

“’What did you say to me?’ Steve responded.

“’I said maybe I didn’t make myself clear. Lay off of my brother!’ I shouted.

“Steve turned back to Kyle and said, ‘What do you know, honey? It seems Craig doesn’t approve of me.’ That’s when I slugged him right in his big, fat, greasy nose. He stumbled backwards with blood pouring everywhere. ‘What the hell!?... You’re going to pay for that! I know cops!’.”

[valrush]

“I spent the night in lock-up before Stephanie convinced him to drop the charges,’ Craig added.

“We’re looking at the possibility of a hate crime as motive. So we have to ask, was Kyle gay?” asked Andrew.

Craig shook his head. “He liked girls as far as I knew. Although I can’t really say he dated much.”

“Well, thank you for your time, Craig,” said Andrew as they walked out of the store. “If Kyle and Stephanie were close, he might have had another run-in with Steve Tyrell.”

“Steve might be dead now, but it doesn’t mean he didn’t kill him then,” insisted Scotty. “Let’s track down Stephanie Dale and find out if this guy wanted anymore payback.”

[valrush]

3

Stillman and Vera sat across from two women in the nurses’ lounge area at the Atria Retirement Community in Center City. “Yeah, we were all friends when Kyle went to school with us. I even still have the picture,” Nichole Lititz informed.

“Picture?” asked Vera.

“You would ask to see that wouldn’t you?” said Stephanie as Nichole went to her locker and retrieved a Polaroid. “Gees, that puffy, curly hair and day-glow green dress. I still can’t believe you thought that was a good look for me.” Nichole’s hair was shorter now, but beyond that she had not changed much from her picture. The curl was gone from Stephanie’s hair, however, and the blonde was starting to fade.

“When was this taken?” asked Stillman.

“That’s hard to say. Before Kyle was killed we all hung out at the King’s Oak bar a lot. I really wish I could be of more assistance,” insisted Nichole.

“Who’s the other girl?” asked Stillman.

“Oh yeah, Laura Wullinski,” said Stephanie solemnly.

“You weren’t on good terms with her?” asked Vera.

“It’s not that; it’s just she’s kind of a sad case. Stephanie and I graduated, but it turned out Laura just didn’t have the stomach for nursing. She didn’t make it; the last either of us heard she worked at a Best Buy on Christopher Columbus Blvd.,” explained Nichole.

“We’ll check her out. Meanwhile, what can you tell us about Steve Tyrell? We understand you had a relationship with him, Stephanie,” insisted Stillman.

A slight smile came to Stephanie’s face. “Yeah, Steve and Stephanie; on paper we should have been the perfect couple. If you’re asking about him, I can only assume you know about his fight with my cousin Craig. Why are you asking about him anyway? Isn’t he dead now?”

“We were just curious if Steve ever got into it with either of your cousins again,” Vera explained.

“Not that I know of, and I’m sure Craig would have told me if he did. He loved to trash Steve, and looking back I guess I can’t blame him. I stayed with that jerk long enough to convince him to drop the charges, and I broke it off shortly after that.

I figured that somebody who went around starting fist fights with my family probably wasn’t for me,” Stephanie explained.

“What can you tell us about Kyle’s personal life? Everyone else we’ve talked to has been rather ambiguous about the subject,” Stillman asked.

“Not much to tell. I never saw him with a girlfriend,” said Nichole.

“That’s because he wanted you,” insisted Stephanie.

“Shut up! He did not!” Nichole added.

“So Kyle was into girls?” asked Vera.

Stephanie threw her hands in the air. “Typical. You sound like everyone else from where I used to live. If a guy goes to nursing school and doesn’t talk about the Eagles and Phillies nonstop, he must be gay! If only they had the word ‘metrosexual’ back then!”

“I’ve heard that before. Maybe you can tell me what the hell it means,” said Vera.

“It’s basically a straight male with strong feminine tendencies. But my point remains the same, Kyle liked girls. He wanted Nichole; that’s what Laura told me,” Stephanie replied.

“And what does that tell you? We both know Laura didn’t know if she was coming or going half the time,” Nichole responded.

“You sound surprised by all this. I take it Kyle never acted on this desire,” said Stillman.

“No. Even if he had, I doubt I would have done anything about it. I just always saw guys like him as more boy friend material then boyfriend material. Back then I was actually more into his brother,” insisted Nichole.

“Craig? Now there’s an interesting piece of information that he left out,” said Vera.

“Well, it’s not like their one date ended in marriage,” Stephanie explained.

“They went out?” asked Stillman.

“It’s the one regret I have with Kyle. I kind of… set them up…”

[valrush]

The J. Geils Band: “Love Stinks”

 
“It was about mid May. We were all seated in our usual booth. I remember Kyle saying something like, ‘I just don’t know if I can afford to keep doing this. Movie tickets alone are $3.00 for one now, and driving up here I saw that gas is up to $1.39 a gallon.’ He’d probably wet himself if he saw prices now.

“’Since when do you worry this much about money?’ Laura asked.

“’Well, between my dad and my brother, I just keep hearing all these stories about factory workers getting laid off. I guess it’s just on my mind tonight,’ Kyle said.

“’Speaking of your brother look who just walked in,’ I said. We all turned and saw Craig enter the bar. ‘He just won’t let go of this thing.’ I stood up from my seat and walked up to Craig. ‘Why the hell are you following me? I have apologized for Steve a billion times! I’m not with him anymore and he dropped the charges! What more do you want from me?’

“’I’m not here about that. I was just curious about something,’ he said with a slight nervousness. ‘That Nichole you’re always with. Is she seeing anyone?’

“’So you have a thing for Nichole now?’ I asked.

“Craig started bobbing his head from side to side. ‘Maybe.’

“’Well, I could give you her number, but I think I need to hear something a little more definite then ‘maybe’,’ I replied.

“’Do you really need to make me squirm? Fine, I think she’s hot. Are you happy now?’ he said.

“I took a napkin off of one of the tables and pulled a pen out of my jacket pocket. ‘You know I do. This is her number at the school, and for what it’s worth she said the same thing about you once.’

“’Really, and your just telling me this now,’ Craig said.

“’Just call her!’ I yelled back. Craig took the napkin and left.”

[valrush]

“I didn’t find out about Kyle from Laura until a few days later. I’m glad my nursing career stuck; I don’t think my matchmaking skills would have cut it,” Stephanie added.

“It looks like someone tried to tend to Kyle’s injuries. Do you know if he might have been with someone that night?” asked Vera.

“Well, it wasn’t either of us. Stephanie and I spent that weekend in my dorm room doing a combination of sleeping and cramming for final exams,” insisted Nichole.

“Can we borrow that picture? It might come in handy,” asked Stillman.

“You can burn that picture for all I care. I’d just as soon not remember what I looked like back then,” Stephanie replied as she handed them the picture.

“Thank you for your time,” said Vera as they left the room. The door closed behind them. “She’s hiding something. I don’t care if it is final exams; no college student spends their entire weekend studying.”

“Let’s get the picture to Rush and Miller; maybe Mr. Willard will remember something when he sees it. Meanwhile, I’ll call Valens and Darius and have them track down our missing friend,” Stillman explained.

[valrush]

Scotty’s phone went off in the middle of the Best Buy store. “Valens.”

“Nice move, detective. Changing your cell phone number, I mean.”

“What?” asked Valens.

“But the thing is your badge number didn’t change. So I can still find you.”

“Who the hell are you?” Scotty demanded.

“Someone who knows about Jimmy Mota; that’s all you should care about. I’ll text you instructions on where to find me. If I were you I’d follow them in the next 24 hours; you’ve already wasted enough time.”

Scotty turned the phone off. “Okay, what the hell was that?” asked Darius.

“Nothing, it’s some jackass who keeps prank calling me. Is that her?” asked Scotty pointing at one of the registers.

“The manager did say she would be on the register today,” said Andrew as they approached the register with badges in hand. “Are you Laura Wullinski?”

The girl looked up from the register. “Yeah, I’m Laura Wullinski. Who are you, the Best Buy police?”

“No, we’re the Philadelphia Police. We’ve been looking into new leads on the murder of Kyle Ambros, and we understand that you knew him,” explained Andrew.

“From La Salle University, one of the high points of my life,” Laura responded.

“We’ve been talking to Kyle’s cousin Stephanie Dale. She said you all used to be friends,” Scotty added.

“Me, Kyle, Stephanie, and Nichole Lititz Although, I can’t really say I’m friends with them now,” she added.

“You don’t see them anymore?” asked Andrew.

“Rarely since they got jobs. It’s quite simple really; they graduated and I didn’t. My family paid for two years of school so that I could take my first nursing class and discover that I hate blood. That was a fun conversation when I quit too,” Laura informed.

“But you were all close for a few years. Did anything ever happen beyond that?” asked Scotty.

“Not for me. We were a close group of good friends; I couldn’t see any of us risking that,” insisted Laura.

“According to Stephanie, Kyle was willing to risk that. She told us that you said Kyle was into Nichole Lititz,” Scotty added.

“Well, she jumps to conclusions a lot. All I said was that I thought it was weird,” insisted Laura.

“You thought what was weird?” asked Andrew.

“Kyle bought Nichole a birthday gift that year; we never did birthdays for each other before…”

[valrush]

Denise Williams: “Let’s Hear It for the Boy”

 
“We were coming out of class and walking down the sidewalk when I turned to Kyle. ‘Are you ready for this final at all? Because I’m going out of my damn mind.’

“’You? You worry too much. I’m the one everybody’s watching.’ Kyle said.

“’How do you figure that?’ I had to ask.

“’Look at me; I’m a guy from Kensington who majored in nursing. You keep hearing on television about how women get stereotyped all the time, but trust me it works both ways. If I fail, I’ll end up in the mills with my family and all the other muscle heads where I know I don’t belong,’ Kyle explained.

“’That’s just it. You, Stephanie, Nichole, you all seem to have this confidence that you know this is where you belong. Sometimes I just don’t know if nursing was the right choice for me,’ I explained.

“’You’re hardly locked in to it. You could always change your major,’ Kyle explained.

“’In my sophomore year? Don’t you think that’s a little flakey?’ I remember saying. Then I noticed a small, white box sticking out of Kyle’s shorts pocket. ‘What’s with the fancy box?’

“Kyle looked a little stunned when I brought it up. ‘Oh, this… this is just something for Nichole’s birthday next week. That’s why I’ve been a little freaked out about money lately.’

“’Since when do we do each other’s birthdays?’ I asked him.

“’Well, Stephanie says my brother is thinking of asking her out. So when they inevitably break up as is my brother’s pattern I would like to stay friends with her,’ Kyle explained.

“Kyle had told me before that his brother had been through his share of girls, so I didn’t really question his logic back then. I just asked him, ‘What did you get her?’ He opened the box and showed me. It was a small silver chain.”

[valrush]

“To be honest, I thought it looked expensive, but I didn’t really put it all together at that point. I was too busy trying to figure out my own life,” Laura added.

“Somebody tried to perform first aid on Kyle the night he was killed. Do you remember where you were on May 21, 1984?” asked Scotty.

“I can’t remember what I ate for breakfast this morning, but I was probably home panicking over finals like I said,” insisted Laura.

“Thank you for your time,” said Andrew. He turned to Scotty as they walked away from the register. “All these extremely studious students. I’m with Vera; I don’t buy it. Wasn’t a small chain used in Kyle’s wound dressing?”

“But they couldn’t find anything useful on it. It’s all circumstantial until we get some real evidence. Let’s hope the ladies can get something out of our witness,” Scotty answered.

[valrush]

4

Victor’s apartment was hardly spacious. The walls were a faded, dingy shade of white. There was little furniture in the room with exception of a clear, plastic table and some red, plastic chairs, and there was little electricity on in the place so the majority of the light came from what shone through the window as the sun was going down. Lilly and Katrina took a look around the apartment before Katrina spoke, “Quite a place, Mr. Willard.”

“I’m still putting it together with the money I get from cleaning buildings a few nights a week. I know it’s hardly the Ritz, but it’s still miles better than what I used to have,” insisted Victor.

“Victor, we’ve been working Kyle’s case, but it’s been difficult without any real evidence to feed off of,” Lilly explained. She pulled the photograph of Kyle with his friends from her coat pocket. “Can you look at this picture and tell us if you remember anyone from that night?”

Victor looked over the photograph. “It’s not really from that night, but I remember her.”

“Which one?” Lilly asked.

To Lilly and Katrina’s surprise, Victor did not point at the people in the center of the photograph. Rather he pointed to the upper left corner of the picture. “The waitress, the tan girl with dark hair in the background. She goes by Marla Brock. You could try talking to her; she’s the night manager at that bar now. I know this because she was one of my amends from my drinking days.”

“We’ll check her out, but meanwhile is there anything you can remember seeing from that night?” asked Miller.

Victor shook his head. “No, I’m sorry, but my memories from back then are still very broken. It was all just noise to me…”

[valrush]

Cold Case Soundtrack: “The Park”

“There was the sound of footsteps; a fast, heavy stomping on the cement followed by a fast, lighter clicking behind him. In between there was shouting, but I can’t say what for. I just heard broken phrases: ‘… we can talk…’, ‘… you blew it…’, ‘… such a jerk…’. Then there was the sound of glass breaking. Then this girl’s voice shouting ‘Kyle!’, ‘Kyle!’ over and over again.’

[valrush]

“I was passed out and in and out of consciousness at the time. I thought it was all a dream until I came to and found a bloody corpse outside my alley. I shouted for help for what seemed like forever. Then when cops finally did come I can only assume they smelled nothing but booze in the air. They couldn’t charge me because they had no real proof it was me, but I’m sure they assumed I did it. Maybe I did. Even now I can’t give an answer either way,” Victor insisted.

“It sounds like Kyle was being chased that night,” Lilly said as she headed for the door. “We’ll check out your bartender, but for what it’s worth, I don’t think you killed this guy.”

[valrush]

The bar was as busy as ever that night when Lilly and Kat showed their badges to Marla Brock. Marla was somewhat heavier now, but her face and hair had not really changed. “Yeah, I still remember Kyle,” said Marla. “I’m about the only one here who would. Most people who work here don’t stay longer than a month. But I stayed, and now I’m one of the people who run the place.”

“And you still remember Kyle after all these years. Though I guess you would remember somebody getting wacked so close to where you work,” Miller added.

“I remember feeling like an idiot when I found out he was dead. I made a stupid comment to him that night about how it must be his lucky night,” said Marla.

“Lucky how?” asked Lilly.

“Do you see the ‘Ms PacMan’ machine by the entrance over there?” Marla asked pointing at the front door. “I’m the only one here who knows that it’s actually Kyle Ambros who still holds the house record on that game. 120,450 points, he hit the mark that very night.”

“You’re serious? I played that game when I was a kid; I got winded at level 5. 120,450, that’s like… level 50,” insisted Miller.

“That record is still standing after all this time?” asked Lilly.

“The game isn’t as popular anymore. I think the only way you could get kids interested in ‘Ms. PacMan’ again is if you gave her missile launcher and a machine gun,” Marla explained.

Lilly walked over to the machine and examined the display. “The number is here. But don’t players usually enter their initials when they hit one of these scores? Who the hell is ‘CLB’?”

“That’s where the story gets interesting. Do you see the score below it marked ‘CFA’? That score belonged to Kyle’s brother Craig. ‘CLB’ stands for Craig’s little brother. It was one of a few shots Kyle took at him that night; I guess he wasn’t used to beating his brother very often,” Marla explained.

“Craig was with Kyle that night?” asked Miller.

“Craig was with one of Kyle’s friends I believe… Nichole Lititz I think. I remember they ordered a bottle of wine, but I don’t think they actually opened it,” insisted Marla.

“Craig was with Nichole. That must be the date Stephanie was talking about. If Kyle made Craig look bad, that could be motive,” Lilly explained.

[valrush]

“My lawyer is on his way, and he will tell you the same thing! You can’t talk to me about this!” Craig yelled across the metal table in holding to Valens and Vera.

“We can’t talk about Steve Tyrell, but your brother is still in play,” insisted Valens.

“You think I killed Kyle!” Craig shouted.

“We think there’s a lot you never told us. A witness has been talking about how you and Kyle were both at the bar that night. You were with Kyle’s friend Nichole, and Kyle was with an arcade machine,” Vera explained.

Craig did not speak. “That’s okay, Craig, you don’t have to talk. We already know the score,” insisted Valens.

“120,450 points on ‘Ms. PacMan’ to be exact. That’s right, Craig. Our witness told us the whole story about how ‘Craig’s little brother’ still holds the house record on that game. He beat out this ‘CFA’ guy by a good 30,000 points,” Vera added. “But you wouldn’t know anything about that would you, Craig Frederick Ambros?”

Craig snorted. “This is pathetic Yeah that was my score, but do a little subtraction and you’ll find out how old I was in 1984. You think I killed my brother over a videogame!”

“We think you killed your brother because he showed you up that night in front of your girl! He was showing off trying to impress her; I’ll bet that ate you alive!” Valens shouted.

“You see, we had it all wrong. All this time we thought we were looking at a hate crime, and what we should have been looking for was a good, old-fashioned love triangle between Kyle, Nichole Lititz, and you,” Vera explained.

Scotty reached into a file and pulled out a series of crime scene photographs. “Somebody tried to give your brother first aid that night, and we know you were with Nichole Lititz at the bar! So is that how it went down; you wacked him and she patched him?”

“What you’re saying makes no sense. Kyle tried to… impress… Nichole? If he was interested in Nichole, he didn’t show it! He barely acknowledged anyone that night!” Craig explained.

“Stephanie told us that she had heard through the grape vine that Kyle may have had feelings for Nichole. You’re saying you didn’t know?” asked Vera.

“If Kyle wanted that girl, he should have done something about it. Trust me, he wouldn’t have had to do much but ask her out,” Craig replied.

“Wait, you’re saying Kyle’s feelings were reciprocated?” asked Valens.

“I’m saying that Nichole barely took her eyes off Kyle the whole damn time we were at the bar! If Kyle had just looked up from that stupid game, he might have seen that…”