Read Black Monday, A Stan Turner Mystery Vol 7 Page 16

  Chapter 16

  THE CONGRESSMAN

   

  Arthur Lott called me back the following morning and was shocked when I told him the Continental Exporters account had been cleaned out. He claimed to know nothing about it but said he'd look into it and get back to me. He seemed sincere and I had no reason to believe he knew what was going on. Less than an hour later he called back.

  "I talked to my contact at Metroplex and they said a copy of the IRS release was delivered to them so they released the account. They assumed it had come from you," Art explained.

  "No. I've got the original in my possession and I didn't send a copy over to them."

  "Well, Stan. I'm sorry but with the release in the file we had no choice but to release the hold on the account."

  "Damn. I can't believe this."

   After thinking about it I decided the copy of the release must have come directly from the IRS, so I called Anthony Perez to see if he knew anything about it. He didn't seem surprised to hear from me.

  "Yes, I sent the release over to Metroplex. Your client's friend, Congressman Manning called. He said he had been told the lien had been released but the bank claimed not to have received the paperwork. I told him you had the release but apparently hadn't delivered it to the bank yet. He asked me to send a copy over to them."

  "Oh, my God. I can't believe this."

  "Is something wrong?" Perez asked.

  "No, nothing that concerns you. Thanks for your help."

  After hanging up with Perez, I called Congressman Manning's office to see if I could talk to him, but the receptionist claimed he was out. What was going on? I had just helped somebody steal 3.2 million dollars and it pissed me off. I called Detective Besch and told him what I had found out.

  "Congressman Manning? Are you sure the call came from him? It might have been an impostor."

  "Well, maybe, but I doubt the IRS would be fooled by someone claiming to be Manning. They seem to know him pretty well over at the Dallas field office. I think Perez has met him and knows his voice."

  "Well, I'll pass this information onto the FBI. With a U.S. Congressman involved that will knock the priority of the case up a notch or two. What are you going to do?"

  "I was thinking of calling Congressman Manning. Would you have a problem with that?"

  "No. It's a free country. Promise me, though, that you'll tell me what he has to say."

  "You bet. If he won't talk to me, I may have to go to Washington and confront him in person."

  "Actually, he probably won't talk to you by phone or in person."

  "Oh, he will talk to me whether he wants to or not."

  Besch laughed. "Well, if you need a friend in law enforcement up there in Washington, you can contact Willard Marshall of the Metropolitan Police. Just drop my name and he'll be your best friend. We were in the army together in Vietnam. He's a good detective."

  "Thank you. It will be a comfort to know I have someone to turn to if need be."

  "Be careful, Stan. You're into some pretty sticky shit here."

  He was right about that and I wondered if I should just leave it alone. But the more I thought about it, the angrier I got. One of my clients had been kidnapped and now he'd been robbed of 3.2 million dollars. I just couldn't shrug my shoulders and forget about it. I had to get to the bottom of it. Huntington's life might depend on it.

  I asked Jodie to see if she could get Congressman Manning on the line. She tried, but was told he would be in committee hearings all day and his appointment calendar was full all week. They said it was unlikely I'd be able to talk to him until next week. After thinking about it briefly, it knew it was unlikely that Manning would ever talk to me. It was clear I'd have to pay him a visit.