His voice was slow and steady and sounded a little mechanical… I heard that one of your boys is in police custody and being interrogated about that little deal you made with the chemist…
Sophia was taken completely by surprise by his words… How did you know about that?
I know about everything… I am proficient at discovering knowledge that eludes others… that is how I have gotten to where I am now. Who do you think gave her the idea to use it with her research in the first place? That’s why she came to you to find someone who could produce it. I am always working in the background… that’s how I stay clean.
The point is one of your soldiers… Vincent Balboa… he has been arrested for the murder of Charles Loften. They are talking to him and trying to get him to tell them what he knows. There is a lot more at stake here than your little family business and what you’ll gain from the gambling side. What you know is just a small piece of it all. Fortunately, you’re just a very small part of this and your mistake can’t stop the progress... but it can delay the outcome and I have a strict time table that needs to be followed closely to gain my intended outcome.
Now I realize that you were closing doors that you thought could implicate your family business, but that wasn’t MY plan… I would have taken care of things in a much more organized manner… one in which there would have been no evidence… if you would have spoke to me first before you dealt with it yourself... but you had to take matters into your own hand… it was sloppy!
Fortunately I know it all... all the details. I’m following it closely while staying completely out of the reach of ANY investigations… but you need to get your house in order. Do whatever it takes to clean this up… I don’t like loose ends… once you take him out I want no more going out on your own… I’m working with you because of my past friendship with your father. If you can’t follow my directions and keep me informed of your plans, I can easily find someone else to work with. Do you understand?
Yes was all she said. Sophia knew exactly what he meant, and she also knew that he had the power to remove her completely if he got worried… remove her from this earth if he felt he need to… and THAT worried her…
He was a very careful about details. After the call he placed the voice synthesizer that he used to disguise his voice back in his jacket pocket. Opening the back of the phone, he removed the SIM card and snapped it in half. Quickly wiping off any fingerprints, he tossed the broken card and cell phone out the window of the limo briefly watching it bounce across the pavement as they sped along their way. He was an extremely careful man, and seemed to think of everything… he had been this way since he started his climb to power, and it had served him well. The only worry he had now was the concern that there might be wild cards hiding out there somewhere… but attention to detail was HIS edge over those wanting to take his power away… and he was sure he had covered all the bases he knew about… it was the unknowns that could cause problems, and that’s why he made it his business to know EVERYTHING! Only this time he HAD missed something… one of those unknowns… it had not gone on official records yet… only three people knew at this point and one of them was the judge who had signed the court order… it was a matter of timing.
…
The phone on Dave’s desk was ringing while Dave and Berry just keep standing there staring at each other… it had only been a half hour since they had left the Chief’s office and both were thinking the same thing… maybe something went wrong… it was too soon for him to have talked to the DA… maybe his meeting with the Mayor went badly and he was canceling his offer to help… they were both so wrapped up in things that could possibly go wrong with this case that neither of them were thinking very positively. When Dave finally picked up the phone he was anticipating bad news.
After a long pause a smile began to grow across Dave’s face. Berry exhaled a sigh of relief… he could tell it was GOOD news.
After a few more seconds of listening to the caller, Dave finally responded. We’ll be down to the Task Force office shortly… we can listen to the recording and you fill me in on the details then… he hung up the phone and turned to Berry… timing again… it appears that the task force just placed a legal wire tap on a suspected crime family boss, and they have just gotten a recording of a phone conversation that is very interesting…. want to have a listen?
…
The Joint Organized Crime Task Force Initiative was mandated and funded by a State Senate Bill 9027.43B that had been introduced by a lobby group made up of police chiefs and law enforcement officials within the state… and it had been endorsed by the Mayors of each city it was to be established in. The State Bureau of Investigation was tasked with building each city’s organization. Most of them were established in a location that appeared to be a business in order to keep a cover over the real activities going on within. The local task force was not much different. They had acquired a building near Warehouse Row. When Dave pulled up to the location Berry noticed that there were several cars in the parking lot, and there was a large sign above the door that said “Simmons Imports”.
Who’s Simmons? Berry smiled widely as he spoke to Dave.
There actually is a Simmons… he runs the front… in case anyone does actually come in to do business… it appears just like a import business… front counter, cash register… complete with a Mr. Simmons as the proprietor… he’s actually an SBI agent working with the task force…
Entering the building Berry followed Dave around the counter and through the door Dave had opened going to the back. The ceiling was much higher and it was much wider than the front. The area extended back at least a hundred fifty to two hundred feet. As soon as he entered the main operations area, Berry made note of the recognized technology the task force had employed. Around two walls to his left were situated a grouping of large screen and projection type displays. In the center of the room there were a number of rows of cubicles, each including at least two computers and several display screens.
The far end of the area housed a raised platform extending out from the wall about 25 feet. It ran from one wall completely to the other. The raised area was enclosed with glass walls extending to the ceiling in front and it contained various items of electronic surveillance and recording equipment that appeared to be controlled from a central panel. Berry noticed there were several rolling chars situated around the floor in glassed in area, but currently only one of them was occupied, and it’s user seemed to be focused on the control panel until he turned to see Dave and Berry crossing the room.
Berry continued to follow Dave over to the platform, up the steps, and through the plate glass door the occupant had opened for them. This is Benny… We call him Benny Goodman because he’s a real good man with all this stuff…
Johnson, Benny Johnson… he held out his hand toward Berry.
Berry was much into shaking hand but he responded in kind. I’m Berry…
Berry Sullivan, I know… I probably know more about you that you do yourself… it’s my job you know…
Berry’s look showed that he was very uncomfortable. He started to respond rather rebelliously when he was cut off.
Hey, I’m just kiddin… a little eaves-dropping humor… all I know about you is what I have read in the papers, and what Dave here has told me… nice to meet ya Berry. Benny’s huge honest smile showed that he really was just kidding.
Nice to meet you too Benny, I’ll be sure to be more careful what I say over the phone from now on. Berry’s smile showed he was attempting a little humor of his own.
I don’t have a wire tap on you that I know of… unless of course it’s under an alias… Benny’s smile returned the tort.
Dave interrupted their little banter. So what have you got Benny?
We just receive an ok for a wire tap and I had finished setting it up when I got a flag… there’s this algorithm that determines hits and using a percentage of key words that are run through an AI for voice recognition it
then localizes the voice command words…
Berry probably understood every word you said, but for a computer illiterate person like me, you’re going to need to put it into everyday terms I can understand. Dave was a little annoyed.
OK, here’s the deal… my equipment caught a conversation between an unknown and someone we just obtained a legal wire tap for… it was sort of a fluke… don’t say anything, but I had already setup the tap, and was waiting on the order, when I decided to do some recording tests to make sure it was working ok.
Dave was getting anxious… bottom line?
Bottom line is that the equipment caught and flagged a conversation from the tap before I got the order, but after it had been signed by the judge… which makes it still legal and admissible… am I right?
I would say so… what’s the conversation about?
That’s why I called you… it has to do with the Loften murder, and since you’re the lead detective on that one, I thought you should hear it… it’s only audio you know… no video… that wasn’t in the order.
You know… I think it caught the conversation because there were a number of key words and phrases I programmed in specific to the organized crime figures in this area… might not have got it otherwise. Benny was fishing for a complement.
He got it… that’s great thinking Benny… the department will be sure to hear about this.
Berry joined in. That’s good computer thinking… I can see why they put you in charge of this area.
Benny smiled from ear to ear and spun around in his chair. Set down gentlemen, and have a listen… you’re gonna love this! ...
Although the recording wasn’t that long it contained a lot of information. Dave and Berry had exited the glass room and were sitting in the cubicles discussing the implication of what they had heard.
The first thing I need to do is alert the department that they are planning an attempt to take out Vinnie… we need him to break this and we can’t afford to let anything happen to him… I probably need to get back to the department and make sure he’s safe. This conversation certainly gives us a reason to bring Sophia Grendandino in for questioning, and if we can get her to talk, maybe we can get to the bottom of all this.
Berry was about to respond when he felt his cell phone vibrating in his jacket pocket. Taking it out he realized from the caller ID it was Dianne.
I need to take this call… hang on a second. It didn’t matter that they had just begun to discuss the recording… he had already decided a while back that he would not let his job get in the way for their relationship… Hi, what’s up?
Can you meet me for a late lunch? I am famished… so hungry I could eat a cow…
The conversation seems odd to Berry. They almost never met in the afternoons because that was usually her busiest time at the institute… and she usually didn’t eat very much… and a cow? She wasn’t a vegan… not even a vegetarian… but she usually did not eat red meat. Berry was somewhat careful with his response. Sure I can do that… say in a half hour?
That would be great… we can meet at our usual place… you know… see you soon.
He was almost certain something was wrong now… she didn’t give the name of the place they would meet, but instead called it their usual place… she had always referred to it as Gruderman’s Deli because she liked the old couple that ran the place… he was sure she was being evasive on purpose so as not to say too much over the phone…
Dave, I need to step out for a bit myself… it was Dianne… she wants to meet me in thirty minutes… she was being very evasive over the phone… like she didn’t want anyone to hear… it was sort of odd… maybe it has something to do with this case… I did ask her to check into a few things for me…
Dave looked up at Berry.
I know what you’re thinking but before you say it… no, she has no idea where this all goes… all she was doing was searching references… I didn’t tell her anything… but she’s a very smart lady… who know what she’s found out… maybe she just wants some advice on a class… either way I’ll be back to the department as soon as I talk to her and we can continue this then.
…
When he arrived she was already there sitting on the far side of the parking lot in her car waiting for him. She got out first and came over to his car. We’re going to talk while we are walking… look like this is just a normal conversation… and don’t ask any questions until I am done…. This is IMPORTANT… now smile and act normal no matter what I say… because like you usually say, just because you’re paranoid, it doesn’t mean someone isn’t out to get you… I have stumbled across some information that really scares me…
Berry tried to look normal and attempted a smile occasionally as Dianne told him what she had found out about the major donation to the institute that saved them… that it had actually came from a special think tank group that was run by a holding company with ties to someone who was very powerful. She told him how she suspected that a liaison based in the institute who was placed there by the think tank was actually working for the holding company and was put there as a spy to discover information. But it was when she mentioned a name that Berry almost chocked trying to keep from looking surprised.
Have you ever heard of a man named Agustus Rensillere?
Berry was quick to respond. Holding his hand to the side of his head and appearing to scratch his cheek, he covered his mouth from prying eyes. Don’t say another word… just knowing that name could put you in jeopardy… we need to talk in private… be careful what you say… there are people who read lips… we need to go back to my car and go though the take out before we go for a little ride. If we stay calm and look casual it will appear like we just changed our minds and decided to get carry out…
The look on Dianne’s face was almost expressionless… she just stood still and stared at him for a second… then she spoke through closed lips as if she was a ventriloquist… you surh is saheh ta tauk in yer cah?
Don’t worry… my car isn’t bugged… you’re looking at the king of electronic devices… I always check it regularly… especially lately…and yes having paranoia doesn’t mean you’re not being watched… oh… and by the way… nice ventriloquist act.
He smiled as they turned to go back to his car… odd he was thinking about his little joke’s timing right at the moment… he shouldn’t be thinking about jokes with the seriousness of the situation… he made a mental note that Muffin’s influence was beginning to rub off on him… at first he decided he should recheck him thinking… then he changed his mind… for the first time he realized why Muffin always looked at the humorous side… it was a good way to relieve the tension… maybe Muffin had the right idea after all!
…
While Berry was meeting with Dianne, Dave was busy following up on the recorded phone call they had listened to. He had asked Benny to trace the other end of the call and analyze the recording for anything that stood out like background noise of something of the sort. Dave was being careful and trying to cover all the details… it was getting to be almost more than he could handle in his mind… there were so many details to this case… so many factions involved… it was hard to imagine the entire scope of it all… it reminded him of some thriller novel that was currently pushing to the top of the best seller list… it had all the trappings of a mystery written to keep the reader on the edge of their seat… only this one was real life… and it involved real people’s lives…
He had picked up something to eat on his way back to the office and had almost finished pounding it down when the Chief walked through the door. Word is you have a recorded conversation that indicates they want to kill Balboa to keep him from talking… sounds like he might have something important to say after all…
He tossed a folder on Dave’s desk…. I believe this is what you were wanting… it’s a little more than even I expected… I think the Mayor put some pressure on him… it looks like the DA’s a politician too.
Thanks Ch
ief …
Don’t thank me… just get the information from Balboa, put it all together, and make sure you have a case that will put the crime families out of business for good… that’s what we’re here for.
As the chief left the office Dave couldn’t help thinking that Berry was right… Chief Dobbin wasn’t such a bad guy after all… he just wanted to see the city cleaned up like every other law abiding citizen… only he was in a position to do something about it and he wanted results. Dave was resolved to give them to him…