Eleven year old Brian Tanner came home enthusiastic from school almost near his home he bumped into his aunty Polly Davies who stopped him. Unnoticed Polly wiped her bloody hands off on the coat of her nephew.
“Bye aunty Polly”, Brian said quickly where after he ran home.
Polly quickly walked on.
When Brian came home he saw that the front door was ajar. The boy carefully went inside and found in the living room the mortal remains of his parents. Brian directly phoned his uncle David who came right away. He called the police at once.
“Who found the bodies?”, asked detective Ed Green.
“This young man did. He’s called Brian Tanner and is my nephew. I am David Tanner”, said David.
“Brian, I am detective Briscoe and that is my partner Green. You found the bodies of your parents?”, asked detective Lennie Briscoe.
“Yes. I came home enthusiastic from school and wanted to tell my parents that I have been chosen for the school baseball team. But close to home aunty Polly stopped me and she grabbed me tight. I don’t know why. But I walked on quickly. The front door was open which is normally not the case. In the living room I found daddy and mama. Then I phoned uncle David”, told Brian.
“Who is aunty Polly?”, asked Ed.
“A sister of mama. She is a nasty and posh person”, said Brian.
“How do you mean: a nasty and posh person?”, Ed asked amazed.
Brian explained, “she talks posh and looks down at us. Daddy is computer developer and mama family manager. And aunty Polly is hairdresser of rich people. My parents can’t get on with her.”
“Polly is just jealous of her sister because of Brian. My brother Kevin and sister-in-law Vera only got him when they were married for 10 years. Polly was dead set to be with the delivery of Vera but that was refused. Especially because Polly demanded the child as being hers. Kevin and Vera had arranged that I would take care of Brian after their passing. And I will do that too”, David made clear.
Lennie saw the blood stains on the coat of Brian and asked, “Brian, how did you get those blood stains on your coat?”
The boy took off his coat and looked at the stains.
“Aunty Polly must have done that”, said Brian.
“May we take your coat along for research? Then you get a new one from us”, said Ed.
“Alright. Do make sure that it’s one of the Yankees”, said Brian.
“Are you for the Yankees?”, asked Lennie.
Brian nodded.
“Then you have no sense of baseball. The Mets are better”, was the reaction van Lennie.
Brian showed a weak smile and said, “The Yankees are better anyway.”
Ed gave David his card and said, “If you know more , this is my number.”
“Brian, do you know where aunty Polly lives?”, asked Lennie.
The boy mentioned the address. David gave his address and phone number to the police.
Op het bureau lieutenant Anita van Buren heard from Ed and Lennie what had happened was.
“Kevin and Vera Tanner have been stabbed to death. Their 11-year old Brian found them. The boy is now with his uncle. There have been blood stains found on the coat of the boy. We were allowed to take the coat with us after we had promised him a new jacket of the Yankees. Just before Brian found his parents aunty Polly stopped him. It can be that the blood is from her”, told Ed.
“Just go question”, said Anita.
The detectives left again.
Medical examiner Liz Rogers told the detectives, “They were both killed by a sharp object. We also have examined the jacket of Brian. Black hairs were found and recent traces of blood.”
“Brian has black hair. But there were no traces of blood on his hands”, said Lennie.
“The hand prints were from a grownup and not of a child. And seeing form the size and shape it was to see that it were the hands of a woman”, said Liz.
“That is quite a agreement with aunty Polly. Time that we drop by her hairdresser’s”, said Ed.
Polly Davies was very busy in her expensive hairdresser’s when Ed and Lennie came in.
“Good day gentlemen. What can I do for you?”, she asked very suave.
They showed their identity card and Ed asked, “Do you know Kevin and Vera Tanner?”
“Vera is my little sister and Kevin her husbands, so my brother-in-law. Why?”, Polly asked amazed.
“Where were you this afternoon at 2.30?”, asked Lennie.
“I am here all day. What’s the matter with Kevin and Vera?”, Polly asked impatient.
“They have been murdered. Their son found them when coming home from school. When did you see Mr and Mrs Tanner last?”, asked Ed.
“Let me think. That was last night when I had dinner with them. Brian wasn’t there”, answered Polly.
“Thanks for the information. Have a nice day”, said Lennie.
They left the hairdresser’s.
“That person is indeed very nasty and posh like Brian already said”, said Lennie.
Then the mobile phone of Ed went rang.
After he had hung up the detective said, “That was the Forensic. They have found the murder weapon. Guess 3 times what it was.”
“A hairdresser scissors and it belongs to Polly Davies. I saw at the hairdresser’s that a pair of scissors was missing”, answered Lennie.
They picked up the murder weapon and let it examined.
Examiner Julian Beck said, “The hairdresser scissors is indeed the murder weapon. The victims have been so worked at that the culprit got injured self too. Besides is the culprit right-handed.”
“That is 90% of whole New York”, Lennie remarked.
“Not quite because this culprit went to work careless. She clearly left traces behind”, reacted Julian.
“She? So the culprit is a woman?”, Ed asked with frown eyebrows.
“Indeed. The culprit is a woman and the finger prints are from Miss Davies”, confirmed Julian.
In the office of Anita was also assistant district attorney Serena Southerlyn present. Lennie and Ed told all what they had found out.
“If all evidence points in the direction of Miss Davies or aunty Polly, arrest her. If it was only to protect Brian”, said Serena.
It was very busy at the hairdresser’s when Ed and Lennie came in with an arrest warrant for Polly.
“Miss Davies, we have received the message that there is a new job for you at Riker’s. You are arrested for murder at Kevin and Vera Tanner. You have the right to remained silent. You have the right to an attorney If you can’t afford one, one will be provided to you. Everything you say can used against you in court”, said Lennie.
“I can impossible go away now. Don’t you how busy it is?”, Polly asked snappy.
“I think that the ladies can wait a moment until you are back”, said Lennie.
“And when is that?”, Polly asked hopeful.
“McCoy said about 100 years”, answered Ed.
He put Polly the handcuffs on and dragged her away.
“Sorry ladies, you will have to find another hairdresser”, Lennie said light-hearted.
Polly got rearranged and pleaded not innocent.
“Bail is $ 500.000 and hand over passport. Next case”, said the judge of the rearranging.
District attorney Jack McCoy was reading the file of the couple Tanner when David and Brian came in.
“Has aunty Polly already confessed that she has killed my parents?”, asked Brian.
“Not yet but all evidence that she has done it are there. We want to call you up as a witness and that’s why we will prepare you well. Which questions will be asked etcetera”, answered Jack.
He looked for a moment into the file and asked then, “Miss Davies said that on the evening before the murder she had dinner with your parents. But that you weren’t there. Is that so?”
“She lies. That evening we were at Yankee Stadium. They played against the Boston Red Sox. Here is proof”, said Brian.
He gave the filled scoring card of the game and the entree ticket of his mother.
“Daddy and I have season tickets but mama had to buy a single ticket”, the boy explained.
“What time were you at the stadium?”, asked Jack.
Brian thought for a second and answered then, “From 17 hours till 11 at night. We have eaten there. Aunty Polly is not interested in baseball.”
When David and Brian had gone away Polly Davies with her lawyer Tina Fleming came in.
“Jack, why has this lady been arrested while her nephew has murdered his parents?”, Tina asked fierce.
“She has been arrested because she has murdered her sister and brother-in-law. At the time of the murders Brian was at school. We have checked it at the school”, answered Jack.
“Brian is an impossible child. He always wants to have his way and my sister couldn’t handle him. Kevin was a useless father and I can take care of him much better”, snapped Polly.
“I have 25 years to life on offer. Valid until you leave my office”, said Jack.
“We take the risk with the court hall”, said Tina.
She got up with her client and left with her the office.
“Nice aunty. Briscoe said that Brian just a nice lad with no sense of baseball. And only because Brian is a supporter of the New York Yankees is”, said Serena.
“I had gotten that impression that Brian is a nice lad too”, reacted Jack.
“I dive into the past of Polly and Vera”, said Serena.
She also went away.
During the court case Brian had to testify. Jack and Serena prepared the boy very well and that was very well in handy.
“Brian, how was the relationship between your parents and Miss Davies?”, asked Tina.
“Very bad. Aunty Polly, miss Davies, hardly dropped by and when she did she made sure that there came a row between her and my parents”, answered Brian.
“Is aunty Polly a nice aunty for you?”, was the next question.
“No, she always wanted to take care of me but my parents prevented that. I am an only child but not spoiled like she is”, said Brian.
“No more questions”, said Tina.
Then Jack got up to question Brian.
“Brian, did your parents ever had a row about you with each other?”, asked the district attorney.
“No”, said the boy.
“No more questions”, said Jack and he sat down again.
Meanwhile Serena discovered that Polly was very jealous of her sister.
She said to Jack and their boss Arthur Branch, “It turns out that Polly since her child hood is jealous at her sister. They were treated equally by their parents but Polly never could find a decent man to start a family with and Vera could. The arrival of Brian made it totally dramatic.”
“Has Miss Davies no children herself that she wants the custody over the Tanner boy?”, asked Arthur.
Serena checked it for a second and answered then, “She has 5 children of her own with 5 different men. The children live with their father because Polly refuses to look after them. And then she still says that she can look after Brian better than Kevin and Vera did.”
Arthur asked, “Who has his custody now?”
“His uncle David Tanner. That was arranged by the birth of Brian already”, answered Jack.
“Then that stays that way”, said Arthur.
Polly too had to take place at the witness stand.
“How was the relationship between you and Vera?”, asked Jack.
“Very bad. Vera showed off with that brat. And only to rub me in that my children aren’t living with me. Vera said that she was a family manager. Get out of here! That gal was just a house wife. But I have a status of a working woman with her own hairdresser’s”, answered Polly.
Jack asked amazed, “What’s wrong with being a family manager or housewife?”
“Vera was just old fashioned. She took care of the house holding and Kevin earned the money”, said Polly.
She stopped for a second and then continued, “Vera thought that she was better than I was. I got so sick and tired of it that I had to do something about it. With my best and sharpest hairdressers scissors I went to their house and there inside. I just stabbed Kevin and Vera. After my good deed I ran into Brian and I wiped my blooded hand on his coat.”
It was deadly silent in the courtroom at once. Even Jack didn’t know what to say for a moment.
Finally judge Peter Jackson asked, “Are there any questions Mr McCoy?”
“No further questions anymore”, Jack said where after he sat down again.
Tina got up and said, “No questions.”
“Miss Davies, you may step down again”, said the judge.
Polly went to sit down at her seat again being very insulted and snapped at her lawyer, “You are fired bitch!”
After meetings the jury came into the courtroom again.
“Has the jury reached a decision?”, asked the judge.
“Yes, we have Your Honor”, said the foreman of the jury.
“For the murder of Kevin Tanner, is miss Davies guilty or innocent?”, asked the judge.
The answer was, “Guilty.”
“For the murder of Vera Tanner, is miss Davies guilty or innocent?”, asked the judge.
Again the answer was, “Guilty.”
The judge said, “The jury is being thanked for her services. Miss Davies hears in 2 weeks time the verdict. This case is closed.”
Shortly after the court case Brian had to come to the investigation department.
“Brian, we have promised you new jacket of the Yankees. Here you have it”, said Ed.
Brian received the jacket and said smiling, “Thanks detectives.”
Lennie and Ed took Brian aside for a moment so that Anita and David could talk.
“Brian still has it hard and misses his parents very much. But there is taken good care of him by me. We will make it”, said David.
“If it’s necessary you can also get in touch with support organizations. But I think that with you it won’t be needed”, said Anita.
“By this history Brian wants to become a lawyer and I will do everything to let him become that”, said David.
“Then he will become a good one”, said Anita.
Together they looked at Brian who wrapped up in a fierce discussion with Lennie about their baseball clubs.