Chapter 77

7:20 p.m. Tuesday

Andy was chatting with Regan - who was waiting for the van to pick her up from the course - when the flashing lights appeared in his rearview mirror.

He instantly looked at the speedometer. The cruise control was set to two miles above the posted speed. He didn't think that would draw police attention - particularly because several cars had zoomed past him as though he was sitting still over the past couple of miles.

"I have to go," he said.

"Why?" Regan wondered.

"I'm being pulled over for something," Andy related.

"Were you speeding?" Regan asked with a laugh - forgetting that a speeding ticket would consume every penny that Andy had gotten from work that day and would be on her insurance.

"I don't think so," Andy replied as he pulled to the shoulder. "I had the cruise control set. Maybe you have a taillight out or something. I'll call you back in a few minutes."

He had just ended the call when a young highway patrolman walked up beside him. Andy had lowered the window and he had his hands on the steering wheel where the officer could see them. His time in the inner city had taught him how to keep from getting his head split open over something trivial.

He gave the officer a smile as the man approached.

"License, registration and proof of insurance," the police officer said flatly.

"Sure," Andy said. "Can I ask why you've stopped me?"

The police officer just looked at him. In truth, the officer was confused. He had expected the driver to be Latino or Black. He had not expected a clean-shaven white kid.

Andy pulled his driver's license out of his wallet and opened the glove box to find the car owner's information.

"The car belongs to my girlfriend," he told the officer as he held out the cards. He was shocked to find that the policeman had his hand resting on his service weapon - and that the locking strap had already been loosened. He glanced at the holster and then up at the police officer incredulously. "May I inquire as to why I'm being stopped?"

The police officer looked at the license and the car information but didn't answer. Instead he walked back to his car and got inside.

"Fuck," Andy mumbled. He hit the Bluetooth feature and called Regan back.

"Mistaken identity?" Regan asked with a giggle.

"I don't know," he said. "Uh, the car, is it in your name or your parents'?"

"Dad's, I think," Regan replied, concern in her voice. "Why?"

"I'm not sure," Andy said. "The guy ... he's seriously nervous about something. He had his gun unlocked and his hand on it. It's like he thought the car was stolen or something. I'm going to call your dad."

"I'll call Mom," Regan said. She saw the van pulling into the lot and cursed its timing.

Andy related the situation to Robert and was surprised when the officer reappeared.

"Please step out of the car, sir," the man said.

"What?" Robert said though the Bluetooth speaker. "Officer, my name is Robert Riley. The car belongs to my family and Andy has our permission to use it."

"Turn off the phone and step out of the car," the officer said in a firm voice.

"Do as he says, Andy," Robert advised. "Your father and I are only ten minutes away. We'll be right there and get this straightened out."

"Crap," Andy said as he tried to turn off the phone. He carefully exited the vehicle.

"Please step to the front of the car, sir," the officer said. "Keep your hands visible, please."

Andy held his hands out to his side as he walked to the front of the Audi.

"I don't understand why you've stopped me," Andy said.

"We have a report that a car matching this description is transporting drugs from a local school," the man said.

"That's ridiculous!" Andy said, wondering who had seen Joy come to the car. He hoped whoever it was had some insulation because he was pretty certain the girl's life was about to become a train wreck.

"I'd like your permission to search the vehicle, sir," the policeman said.

"I don't own the car," Andy reiterated. "As you've heard, one of the owners is on his way out. If he's willing to allow it, I have no problem with it. But that decision has to come from him."

"If you have nothing to hide, then I don't see the problem," the officer said.

"The problem is that you haven't given me any reasonable explanation as to why you chose to stop me," Andy replied. "Just since we've been sitting here, three other red convertibles have driven past. In fact, here comes another one now. I don't see a police car chasing them."

A car stopped on the opposite shoulder. Andy didn't recognize the car but he recognized the first person out - his mother.

"Oh, shit," Andy mumbled.

The officer turned his head and watched three women thread their way through the median and across the lane.

"Please stay well away from the vehicle," he ordered.

"This young man is my son," Camille stated.

"And my grandson," Anne added.

"And my daughter's boyfriend," Rita threw in for good measure. "The car belongs to me and my attorney is on his way. My husband overheard why you've stopped this vehicle through the phone. Thankfully, we were only at the next exit. Otherwise, I doubt you would have a career when I'm through with you."

"Ma'am, I'd like your permission to search this vehicle," the officer said.

"Absolutely not," Rita said. "I demand to know why you think Andy is transporting something illegal."

"I'm sorry, I don't have that information," the officer said. "I was told to look for a vehicle matching this description."

"Is there anything illegal in the car, Andy?" Camille asked.

"I have no idea," Andy replied. "There is nothing I know about. That's for sure. But I don't have any idea of who might have stuck something in there to try to discredit Regan or Rita or me. This guy seems certain that he's going to find something so someone must have done something."

"What is in the paper sack in the front floor?" the officer asked. The bag was in plain sight and the officer didn't need a warrant to inspect it.

"Oh, crap," Andy muttered again.

"Andy?" Camille asked with a raised eyebrow.

"It's nothing ... illegal," he protested. "It's just embarrassing."

"What is it, Andy?" Rita asked.

Andy looked toward the clear blue sky. The chance of a lightning bolt killing him was remote.

"Underwear," he said with a sigh.

"There's nothing embarrassing about boxer shorts," Anne said with a laugh.

"Not my underwear, Grandma," Andy said.

"How did you get a pair of Regan's panties?" Rita asked.

"Not hers, either," Andy admitted with a long sigh.

"Andy!" Camille said firmly.

"Joy's," Andy replied, blushing deeply.

"Andy!" Camille said. The words were the same but the tone of voice differed greatly.

"It's not like that!" he said. "I picked her up at the golf course just now. Do you know about that?"

"Regan told us," Rita said. It was evident that she was unhappy with the admission, too.

"So, she told you why," Andy asked hopefully.

"No," Camille said. The officer knew he was losing control of the situation.

"Can I look in the bag?" he asked.

"If you want to see a pair of girl's underwear, then have at it, Pal," Andy snapped. "They told me that she was playing golf and her period started. My girlfriend called, told me what happened and asked me to pick her up. She had a towel wrapped around her when she got in the car. She was embarrassed, I guess, to have the people who do the laundry out there see what happened. She gave me the bag and asked me to give them to Regan to give back to her later. If I'd have known this was going to happen, I would have just told her to throw them away or something. Christ."

"I'll look in the bag," Rita said. "Will you take my word for it?"

"I'm afraid not, Ma'am," the officer said. "The vehicle is subject to confiscation. I'll need to look myself."

"Fine," Rita hissed. "Just do it then."

The officer reached inside and pulled the bag out. He opened it, saw the contents and folded it closed quickly.

"It's underwear," he said with a blush. He could tell from the thin paper that there was nothing beneath it. Andy immediately thought that he should suggest Rico switch to used panties for transporting narcotics. The scent might even throw the drug dogs off, he considered.

About that time, Robert and Evan pulled up behind the police car - accompanied by a man Andy didn't know - causing the officer additional consternation.

"I need you three and those three to leave the scene," he exclaimed.

"The young man is still a minor and this is his mother, father and grandmother," the unknown man stated. "Additionally, you've asked to search a vehicle owned by the Rileys. I have been retained to act as Mr. Drayton's legal counsel. It appears to me that you are the only person here without a viable reason. We are not going to consent to a search. You don't have the probable cause to get a warrant. Seriously? An unidentified source? Please. I will make you reveal your source and then I will destroy your source."

The patrolman looked at the faces arrayed in front of him.

"I need to notify my supervisor that this has turned into a situation," he declared.

"A situation indeed," Evan stated.

While the patrolman sat in his vehicle speaking to his commander, Rita's cell phone buzzed in her pocket.

She looked at the caller and smiled grimly.

"What do you have?" she asked in lieu of a greeting. "Uh-huh. Uh-huh. OK. And that traced back to whom?"

Andy watched the woman's eyes narrow dangerously and he couldn't believe he had ever said a single nasty word to her.

"Now isn't that interesting," she said. "Thank you. Send your bill to the normal place and I'll make sure it's paid immediately."

She put the phone away and turned to her husband.

"I believe that you and I need to take another trip Regan's school," she said. "I spoke to a private detective just now. The 'tip' was fed to the highway patrol from the city arson squad."

"OK," Robert said, not understanding why that necessitated a trip to Regan's school.

"One of the teachers at C-B has a husband who works on the arson squad in the city," Rita declared. "Interestingly enough, she contacted his cell phone about an hour ago from a landline at the school. I think I'd like to have a little discussion with her."

"Don't go scorched Earth on my account," Andy cut in.

"Young man, I'm not certain you understand the circumstances," the attorney said, putting his hand on Andy's shoulder. "A vehicle linked to the Rileys was broadcast on the police band as being one suspected of transporting narcotics. While I'm certain that a portion of Ms. Riley's wrath is because you have been inconvenienced, the majority of it is because of the damage her reputation could have sustained."

"No!" Rita interrupted. "In the immortal words of Andy Drayton, the harpies that want to rant and rave about me can kiss my ass. My reputation can either stand on its own or fall on its own. Andy is just getting started in life. I will not let a vendetta from a few unhappy high school teachers tear him down. I thought we had reached an agreement but it appears that I was wrong. So I am going to let them know that Regan and Andy are off limits."

The patrol officer was getting nowhere with his commander - until he mentioned that the vehicle belonged to Robert and Rita Riley.

"Someone set us up!" the commander exclaimed. "Apologize for the misunderstanding, turn the kid loose and we'll pray like hell the Rileys don't nail our nuts to the wall. I'm going to get in touch with the district commander and let him know the city arson squad played us for chumps. Christ on a crutch. He's going to go apeshit about this. Rita Fucking Riley! And we didn't even go to code when we called it in. Son of a bitch!"

The officer watched as the two people he thought were the Rileys walked across the traffic again - which had slowed to a crawl as everyone and their brother gawked as what he suspected might be the end of his career. They got in the car that the female contingent arrived in and sped off northward.

The young patrolman got out of the cruiser and walked forward.

"I'm sorry," he said. "You're free to go and please accept my apology for the inconvenience. There must have been a miscommunication along the line."

"There was no miscommunication, young man," the lawyer, whose name Andy didn't know, stated. "We know the arson squad contacted you; we know a teacher at Clairborne Benedict contacted her husband on the arson squad. Mr. and Mrs. Riley are on their way to deal with that little problem as we speak. Now, you and I are going to deal with the other problem this has created. I assume that someone has clued you on as to Mrs. Riley's identity by this point in time. So, you and I are going to transport this vehicle to your station where your commander and I will watch as you search the vehicle and document each and every thing you find or do not find. If you find anything illegal in the vehicle, we will deal with it then. When you find nothing illicit, however, you will write a report stating such and give me a copy. Otherwise, I believe Mrs. Riley will be forced to contact the state police commander in Sacramento to discuss 'probable cause' and its foundation in the fundamental tenets of police work. Do we have an agreement?"

The officer let out a long sigh. He was due to leave shift in 20 more minutes and he knew a detailed search would take hours. Still, he knew he had only one way to answer.

"Yes, Sir," he agreed. "Would you like to transport the vehicle or should I contact a tow service?"

"I'll drive it," the lawyer said. "May I assume I'll have a police escort to your duty station?"

The officer nodded grimly. He would alert the shift commander that the night was about to get longer.

Regan practically raced down the stairs to where Jillian Pace's office rested in the first floor of her dormitory. She opened the door without knocking and slammed it behind her.

"You just royally fucked up, Lady!" she said angrily.

"Miss Riley," the administrator said haughtily. "That is no way for a lady to talk."

"Fuck you," Regan spat. "Let me fill you in on what has happened in the last few minutes and what's going to happen in the next few minutes. The state police are searching my vehicle for narcotics!"

The administrator blinked.

"Your vehicle?" she asked before she could stop herself.

"My boyfriend was driving my fucking car," Regan yelled. "My fucking car - registered to my fucking parents! My mom and dad spent 25 minutes alongside Route 28 this evening because you wanted to paint a target on my boyfriend. Well, Lady, the target is directly on you and your husband now! He has a union to back him up so he'll only be busted back to patrol by the time my family is through. You? Oh, you are screwed. I know you understand why Mrs. DuMont is gone. Perhaps you thought you were smarter or better protected. You're neither."