CHAPTER 12

 The man was kind of pudgy and getting old. He looked to be doing everything he could to avoid that inevitability though. For one thing, there was not a hair out of place on his head. He walked, or maybe swaggered was a better word, with his hands on his hips. His blue police uniform was a couple of sizes too small as well. Maybe he was trying to deny that his belly was trying to push it’s way out. Maybe he just thought he was still some kind of sex symbol? He smiled a lot. His teeth were pearly white and looked to be as artificial as his expression. The smile was not quite forced but it did have a feel of being a put on. Teal’c considered that it was just because the guy was not that good of an actor. One could only hope he wasn’t this way for real
 

“And this dirty, grungy,” the police captain said as he introduced Teal’c too the two men sitting at a desk. As he been had doing all along, since Teal’c was introduced, he was over dramatizing his gestures as he spoke, “scum ridden, individual…”

 “Captain Hooker,” Teal’c said in as polite and respectful a manner as was possible for Jaffa. He pointed to the one man that was dressed much like a street beggar, “am I to take it that this is one of the many ’perps’ you spoke of?”

 “Uh,” TJ Hooker rubbed his chin and then pointed to the other guy that was wearing a suit, “no actually he’s the perpetrator. The guy with the cigar, that looks homeless, is my detective. Good man though. Name of Beltzer. Came over from Chicago after they closed his precinct. Not quite as good as where I worked in California you realize. Oh there was this one blond that used to work for me. Did I tell you about her?”

 The man in the suit was not amused, “hey flat foot. Can you people just book me in or am I going to have to sit down here all day?”

 The grungy looking detective just played with his cigar and responded, “I’m going as fast as I can dirt bag.”

 On the other hand the Captain looked offended that no one wanted to hear his story. Teal’c decided that this offense to the Captain was a slight to his own honor. His look became stern and he slowly bent down to look at the perpetrator, dead in the eye, “if you do not wish to sit quietly in this chair I must warn you that I will enforce your constitutional right to remain silent, by ripping out your tongue.” 

 As the man began to quiver Teal’c drove home his point, “now cooperate with this detective.  NOW!”

 The man was shaking violently as he looked back to the dirty, homeless looking, detective in the skull cap, “I.. I confess!  I burglarized twenty two houses just last year! I used the profits to purchase crank and then I sold that to kids at an orphanage!!!”

 The man was weeping uncontrollably as Beltzer played with his cigar and responded, “that’s nice buddy. Only problem is I brought you in on a J Walking charge.”

 Hooker politely explained, “it’s the three strikes and your out law. This is his third offense. He’s looking at hard time.”

 Teal’c raised an eye brow, “I see.”

 As they walked off Beltzer stopped working for a second and watched and listened to his Captain talking all the way to the door.
 Hooker was going on as usual, “you know I used to know a man that said that exact same thing. You even sound kind of like him when you do it.”

 Teal‘c walked through the door, being held open for him, as he responded, “You mean the use of the word fascinating?”
 

Hooker followed him through, “the exact one. You’re not Jewish by any chance are you?” 

 The door behind them closed and all Beltzer had to say on the matter was, “dirt bags.”