62 Solitary Confinement SunnyD_lite Determining Value 2/4Sentinel G

[sunnyd-lite.livejournal.com]

Determining Value 2/?
Author: SunnyD_lite
Fandom: The Sentinel
Disclaimer: I believe that PetFly owns the boys. I don't own any teddy bears or Lloyds of London either.
Rating: G (pre-slash)
Set: 1st Season between Night Train and Rogue
Word Count: 1,860
Feedback: Yes please!
Prompt: tamingthemuse prompt 62 Solitary Confinement
A/N: Part two of the Teddy Bear caper. This week they make it to the crime scene The first part is Here Unbeta'd so please tell me of any errors.


His footsteps echoed in the museum's rotunda as he headed towards the uniforms and security guard huddled by the entrance to the exhibit halls. He grimaced at the large banners announcing the "Teddy Bears' Picnic Exhibit: Over 90 Years of America's Favorite Toy." He took a deep breath. There'd been a crime committed; that's all he really needed to know.

He recognized one of the uniforms. "Hey, Lincoln, what have we got?"

The black officer looked up from his conversation with the young red head security guard and blinked.

"Detective Ellison! I wasn't expecting you, sir." He turned back to the guard. "The brass is pulling out all the stops if they sent Ellison. He single-handedly bagged the Juno assassins last month."

He didn't want the fanfare; he was here to do a job. Over a teddy bear. "Detective Ellison," he paused, waiting. Then he glared. The officer finally bought a clue.

"Oh sorry. Detective Ellison, this is Melissa Cooper. She called in the theft."

"Hi, Melissa, nice to meet you!" Sandburg interjected while looking up to the five foot nine museum employee. Well he hadn't told him not to talk; things to remember for next time.

"And this is Sandburg. He's observing." And the gang's all here.

"Man, it must be great working here with all the traveling exhibits. Plus the Cascade Museum has the Kobayashi Collection of Japanese porcelain. Jim, we really should go see it some time. They have this sake set that's--"

"Not on today's agenda. Excuse him, Ms. Cooper. I know that you've given Officer Lincoln here a statement, but would you mind walking," here he paused to look at Sandburg, "us"--the kid beamed--"through it?"

"Anything to help, Detective. I wanted to go to the Academy myself, but plans changed and I needed something safer." She shrugged. "Normally this job is making sure people leave and keeping keen patrons from touching anything" Over her shoulder he saw Sandburg snatch his hand back from, he focused his sight on the sign, a mink teddy bear. Funny how he hadn't stuck next to Melissa.

"This way," she continued. "It's at the beginning of the exhibit."

The first display that caught his eye was a six foot blow up of a political cartoon. Subtle as always, Sandburg nudged him. "That's the cartoon I was talking about."

Across from it was another display: a blown up sepia photograph depicting a turn of the century couple standing in front of a store whose plate glass window read "Ideal Novelty and Toy Corporation". The woman, wife he supposed, was holding a misshapen bear with rounded ears. In between was a glass case with a raised dais in the middle. An empty dais.

"As soon as I saw it was empty I sealed the area and called you, and the insurance company."

As if a mere mention was enough, a guy in a suit carrying a leather briefcase turned up. Although when he moved closer, Jim caught a hint of oil overlaying what he now noticed as something familiar but he couldn't identify, so make that a pleather case. "I was told that a Ms. Cooper would assist me."

"And I'm sure she will, once we open the scene." He turned towards the shorter man and just may have loomed a bit. "Detective Ellison, and you are.. ."

"John Quincy, Lloyds of London. We've insured this exhibit." Oh he knew that tone from too many cocktail parties when his father needed his two accessories to mingle and 'do him proud'. Funny how accessories had a different meaning in his current job.

"Pleasure to meet you, but you're a little early. Our Forensics' crew hasn't cleared the scene. However, I hear this place has a great coffee shop." Great, more people to contaminate the area. Once of which was his observer. "Sandburg."

"I just. ..I'll stand over here." He turned to see his partner raise his hands in the traditional 'I surrender' move. Sighing he made a mental note to tell the lab to remove any of Sandburg's prints. He really should start carrying extra gloves. Of course if the kid had gloves he'd figure it was carte blanche. Temporary. He had to keep remembering that.

Sighing he turned back to Melissa, "Did the museum receive any threats against the exhibit? Do you know of any groups planning to protest?"

"Public Relations would have that information. Sometimes they let us know if they expect trouble over a political exhibit, but teddy bears?" She looked as confused as he was feeling. What was the motive?

"How much?"

They both turned towards the high-pitched yelp.

"Well the highest auction price was at Christie's auction in 1994. A Girl Steiff bear went for over 130,000 Euros." That explained the yip from his roommate. This was a guy who figured a hundred and thirty dollars was a nest egg.

"The item was recently acquired by Mrs. Hopkins and loaned to the museum for this exhibit. She obtained an extra policy for in beyond the one for the rest of the show. That's why I was called in."

Ah yes, the long winded explanation of the self-important.

"Is that a usual practice?" While he'd been glancing at the security guard, Quincy responded. "It's not unheard of, but neither is it a standard practice. However, Lloyd's always accommodates our clients' wishes." You could almost hear the British cadence through his mid-western accent.

Jim smiled at Melissa then turned to the scene itself. Noting the security cameras, he asked about the tapes.

"And we will also require copies for our own investigation." The man kept plummeting in his estimation. Melissa seemed to hare his opinion but gamefully maintained a straight face. "I'll check right away."

"That's fine," he assured her. "Forensics ought to be here shortly. We'll just wait here for them."

"Will this take long?" A new voice demanded attention. "It's opening day and although Thursday is our late start people WILL be wanting in."

Despite the spacious dimensions of the exhibit hall, it was starting to feel crowded. The voice belonged to a blonde in a no-nonsense blue suit and heels that showed of more leg than strictly necessary. They were nice legs, but that was balanced by the chill he got when he raised his gaze to green eyes the shade of deep glaciers. Her demeanor wasn't much warmer.

"We are treating this with the same diligence as any crime." He kept his tone bland.

"Especially with the Mayor breathing fire," he heard Sandburg whisper to Lincoln. "That bear belonged to his major financial backer." Where did the kid get this stuff? Useful though it was.

"Time?"

"I'm Detective Ellison, and you are?" He pulled out his notebook and flipped it open to copy her name. Two could play the cold game.

"Ms. Elizabeth Svendsen, Public Relations for the Cascade Museum."

"Just the person we needed to talk with, after we've secured the scene." Out of the corner of his eye he noticed Melissa slipping away and didn't blame her. He'd seen sharks with warmer blood.

Not letting Ms. Svendsen regroup, he continued, "Were there any threats or had Mrs. Hopkins mentioned any reason she's applied for the additional insurance?"

Her head moved as if to sniff, but remembered that it wasn't ladylike. "We tried to assure her of our security record, but she insisted."

Ignoring the smothered guffaw behind him, Jim inquired, "Is there a large market for the bear? I wouldn't think that there's too many original left." Greed or covetous, both made good motives. Motives weren't needed for a conviction, but it sure helped narrow the list of suspects.

"That's a question I'm sure the curator can answers. I do know that the previous owner only wanted to sell it rather than offer it for display." She looked down at a slim watch on her wrist. "Any idea on when you'll be done?"

Behind her, he saw the other officer escort one of Carolyn's teams towards the area. "Here's Forensics now. I'll let them answer that." Nodding to the new comers, he turned around and walked towards the empty display case.

"Do you need help?" This was muttered in his ear. "Breath slowly and concentrate on scent. I'm here. Remember, identify and discard."

And for some reason he always followed that low tone. There were the scents of cleaners, an underlying whiff of red wine, the pleather from before and then the elusive scent that tickled the back of his memory. Following the scent, he began to move around the display case until. "What's that?" There was something like ash beside the case.

"Hey Singh, I think we've found something." He called over to the lead investigator. She was a good sort, and with Forensics here, there was no chance of doing more than letting them do their job.

"Quick, try sight."

With a glare at his partner, he did focus on the outside of casing. No finger prints; that would have been too easy, but caught in the closure. Yes.

"What have we got, Ellison? And you do realize, we know our jobs, don't you?" But there was amusement in the investigator's tone. They'd shared many crime scenes and this gentle teasing was par for the course.

"Just a strange residue here." He pointed to the ashes, "and a hair."

"How did you? Never mind, Carolyn's mentioned that there was cleanliness, godliness and Ellison's levels of clean. Better you living with him, then me." This last was directed to Sandburg.

"Hey it's just a week. It's hard to find a place this time of the semester." Again with the surrender move. The kid better never do undercover work; he had all the subtlety of a melodrama. And speaking about time.. .

"Just trying to speed things up here. Ms. Public Relations has her panties in a twist."

"Can you twist something that icy? For someone so hot, she's giving me all the wrong kind of chills." With this he mimed shivers.

"Let me look after that. So I'm guessing you want the results"

"Yesterday. Not me, it's that the Mayor." They shared a commiserating look. Politics and police work were always unhappy bedfellows.

"And I think it's wrong." Oh this should be good.

"Dare I ask what's going on in that thing you call a brain?"

"Look, the exhibit's entitled Teddy Bear's Picnic, yet their prime example was locked in solitary confinement while the other bears were at least in diorama's."

Heading out the doors of the museum, Jim could only shake his head. Where did the kid come up with this stuff? "You can complain to Amnesty International later, we've got to track down the prior owners."

"Hope you're up for a senance then. Wait, I wonder if.."

Reaching the truck, he unlocked the door and glared as Blair got in the other side. "What do you mean?"

"Right, you were talking to the hot iceburg. The sign on the empty case gave a bit of background including the fact that Mrs. Hopkins purchased it from an Estate of Christopher Blake."

And life just kept getting better.

A/N: The price for the "Girl Bear" is true, but that price was beaten in Christie's in Monaco on October 14 2000 for a Louis Vuitton Bear with accessories. That price was 213, 720.00 Euros. Since this story is set in 1997, I mention this for only for my love of trivia.