Page 87 of Kept in the Dark

“Are you kidding me, Lucious?” Trey was livid. If Lucious was capable of being blackmailed and altering reports, anyone was. And that thought had Trey feeling nauseous.

Lucious said, “A few years before Morgan died, he approached me about my son. Said he had been hooking up with Sara. David told me he would let it go but that I would owe him.”

Trey shook his head. “Why didn’t you go to Washington?”

“My son was eighteen and Sara was only fifteen.”

No wonder the man did as he was told. If Trey was in Lucious’ shoes, he likely wouldn’t risk his son being arrested for statutory rape and possibly even pedophilia. Especially if it had been consensual.

Trey made a mental note to ask Sara about it.

“Why didn’t you go to the higher ups?” Trey asked.

Lucious snorted. “You and I both know where their loyalty lies. And it wouldn’t have mattered anyway. David had pictures of my boy and Sara- which is pretty sick if you ask me- so there would have been an investigation regardless.”

For years, Trey heard rumors that David paid off a number of people for a number of things, from keeping his family out of trouble to gaining votes. But blackmailing cops into helping him frame his daughter for the murder of his wife…that seemed low even for David.

When Trey didn’t respond, Lucious said, “I don’t have proof, but Eli and David go way back, and I know Eli would have done just about anything to stay in the mayor’s good graces.”

“Would you?” Trey asked plainly.

“Would I what?”

“Do anything to stay in David’s good graces? Or was this the only favor you did for him?”

Trey saw the pain in his friend’s eyes. It was clear Lucious felt guilty about the ordeal, but Trey couldn’t simply forget about all that the man had confessed to, as much as he wished he could. It was one thing to extend mercy to someone who had broken the law, but to willingly screw up an investigation was inexcusable.

Lucious shook his head. “No, I never took any calls if I thought his family was involved.”

“Did Washington know about the blackmail?” Trey asked.

Lucious shrugged. “I never told him but that doesn’t mean David didn’t.”

“Had anyone else at the scene been blackmailed?”

Lucious rubbed his hand together, not making eye contact with Trey. No one wanted to rat on a fellow officer, but Trey could tell that all of this weighed heavily on the man.

Lucious sighed. “Yes. All five officers at Morgan’s crime scene had accepted a bribe or had been blackmailed…except Bobby Young. He was new which is why I think Washington had him there; easier to control and manipulate. He was thrown off the force shortly after, so he wasn't as easy to manipulate as Washington and David thought. Serves them right, honestly.”

If Bobby was fired because he wouldn't follow orders, he may be their best witness as to what happened with the investigation that night.

“And, if I were you,” Lucious continued, “I’d also check with the Medical Examiner. The report that’s in the file isn’t the original. I heard Eli telling the M.E. to change it.”

Trey perked up. He hadn’t expected the M.E. to be involved, but that wasn’t surprising if they wanted to doctor an outcome.

Trey studied his friend. Lucious was a great cop and an even better friend. He was a deacon at his church and was a wonderful father and husband. Trey had a hard time believing all of this was true.

Yet, here Lucious was, admitting it all.

This job taught Trey that no matter how good someone is, there’s always a breaking point. And there’s almost always a secret to be uncovered.

Trey said, “I’ll make a call to I.A. For now, I’ll need your gun and badge. You’re suspended until further notice.”

Every case Lucious had been a part of would be investigated, as would the cases of the other officers. He didn’t doubt that many criminals were about to go free because of technicalities and that made Trey even more angry with David and Washington and the involved officers.

He had a serious clusterfuck on his hands. No doubt people would be coming out of the woodwork to file misconduct charges against his precinct, many of which would be fabricated. Not to mention the press was going to have a field day once news broke. Of course, he couldn’t forget how quickly the rumor mill worked. He got a headache just thinking about it. Their P.R. specialist was going to have her work cut out for her.

Lucious stood and placed his gun and badge on Trey’s desk, his hand lingering for a painful moment. However, despite being saddened by the news, he shook Trey's hand and said, “It’s been a pleasure serving under you.”

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