by Dave Daren
“James Landis,” I muttered. “I’m James Landis. That’s me, good ol’ James Landis, at your service. Just James. No one calls me Jimmy anymore. I’m James.”
I couldn’t believe how ridiculous I felt repeating myself, but hopefully, it would make things easier if I got the interview. I hated to think what would happen next if I didn’t get it.
I decided not to think about that possibility and focus on the packing I had ahead of me for the day.
When I pulled into the parking garage, I noticed the lights had been repaired, and most of the cars had returned to their normal spots, though it was still early enough that the empty spots weren’t as suspicious. Still, I was more cautious than before when I exited my vehicle and scanned the concrete space for any more surprise visitors.
No one jumped out from behind the cement columns as I made my way to the front door and up the stairs to the fifth floor. I walked down the hall to my apartment and found a stack of boxes by my door with a sticky note on top.
Thought you might need these.
-Sulla
The Ugandan doorman was a godsend, since I’d just realized I didn’t even have any boxes ready to put my stuff in. I carried the stack of cardboard into my apartment and got to work.
I mumbled my fake name to myself over and over as I loaded most of my belongings into the boxes. I didn’t have a lot of stuff since my apartment was barely bigger than a postage stamp, but I had just enough to make me break into a sweat as I filled the boxes. I kept a few suits, bathroom necessities, and a coffee mug out, so I could still use them until I was officially moved out. I’d already given notice to the property manager, who was thrilled at my offer to buy out my contract six months early.
Money was easy for me now, and I had no problem spending it to get what I wanted, which was a nice change from my terminally broke college life. Back then I’d struggled to pay my rent one month at a time, let alone six months in advance. I wondered more than once if law school would be worth all the double shifts at the coffee shop to make sure I had a place to live while I was in school. Even working at my former white shoe firm hadn’t paid as well as being Anthony’s personal attorney, and I shuddered at the idea of never meeting him and still working in that life-draining office.
Suddenly, my phone burst into song, and I looked down to see Anthony’s name on the screen.
“Hello?” I answered.
“Damn, James, you must be in high demand,” Anthony chuckled. “They already want to bring you in for an interview.”
“Really?” I was incredulous the fake resume had worked.
“Yep,” he confirmed. “Tomorrow morning at nine sharp. Wear a black suit that says you have some money but not all the money. Got it?”
“I can do that,” I agreed.
I’d have to unpack one of my old suits from my time at Parish, McHale, but I had to trust Anthony’s instincts. He’d already gotten me the interview with a simple resume.
“And don’t forget to keep your answers short,” he continued. “No one wants someone to work security who asks a million questions or seems like a chatterbox. You’re there to do a job and handle whatever situation arises.”
“Speak softly, and carry a big stick,” I muttered. “Understood.”
“Good luck,” Anthony chuckled before he disconnected the call.
“Yeah,” I grumbled to myself as I set my phone back on the table and checked my watch.
It was dinner time, and as usual, I had nothing in my fridge. Even the takeout Liz and I had shared last weekend had given me no leftovers, and I pulled up a food delivery app to fix the problem.
I sent out an order for a burger and fries before I hopped in the shower. I had plenty of time before the food arrived to clean up, though I had to skip my normal habit of shaving my face before I got in. It was weird to feel the layer of prickly stubble on my cheeks and chin, but Anthony seemed to know what he was doing. I guessed he’d hired a few security guys himself, like Hank, so I had to trust his advice if I wanted to get the job.
Not that I truly wanted to get it, but the alternative was much worse.
I finished my shower a few minutes before my food arrived and spent the next few hours eating and prepping the paperwork Liz needed for my cases. Most of the judges should have been open to the continuances, but on the off-chance they weren’t, I needed to have something else ready for her to present. I polished off a few motions for her to have on hand, then I decided to call it a night and try to catch up on some of the sleep I hadn’t gotten last night.
My alarm woke me bright and early, and I pulled out the mid-range suit Anthony had suggested. A few minutes later, I was acceptably both rugged and professional, and I walked downstairs with feigned confidence. Instead of heading straight to my car, I had time to grab a coffee from across the street.
I got a few strange looks from the baristas, who were used to my normal clean-cut appearance, but I didn’t offer any explanation. Besides, what would I tell them?
“Oh, I’m just going to a job interview under a fake name, so I can’t really look like myself?”
Sure, that wouldn’t draw any extra attention.
My brain felt muddled, and I began to doubt my ability to become James Landis, private security guard. I waited for my coffee while a whirlwind of anxiety rushed through my brain.
Then my name was called, and I grabbed the steaming cup of white chocolate macchiato.
Once the warm brew hit my lips, it seemed to wake me from my stupor, and I felt more prepared to handle the job interview ahead.
As I drove across the city to the Bronx, I practiced my name and interview skills a few more times. By the time I reached the Gryffon office, I felt like maybe I could be James Landis for a little while.
I parked and strode up to the front door at 8:45. I walked inside to see a smoking-hot receptionist who watched me with curiosity. She wore a tight purple dress that left nothing to the imagination, and the neckline was deep enough that I could see the stitches of the black bra she wore underneath. I got the distinct feeling she hadn’t been hired for her stellar ability to answer phones or greet visitors.
“Can I help you?” she asked in a hoarse voice.
“My name is James Landis,” I started. “I’m here for an interview for security.”
“You look like you’d make a great bodyguard,” she murmured as she picked up her phone. “Take a seat.”
I suppressed a smile as I moved to the waiting area and sat in the chair. I didn’t want to look too comfortable or too edgy, so I leaned on my thighs and kept my head on a swivel. I didn’t have to wait long before a side door opened, and a fat guy in a cheap security guard uniform stepped into the lobby. His thin red hair had been slicked to the side to cover an impending bald spot, and even though the day had barely begun, his face was greased with a layer of sweat. There was no way he was the boss for the security team at Gryffon.
“Landis?” he called out as he looked down at his clipboard.
“Yes, sir,” I answered and rose to greet him.
“Ah, are you sure you’re looking for a security job?” He looked me up and down with obvious doubt.
“Yes, sir,” I confirmed with a nod. “I’m sure you looked at my resume.”
“I did,” he agreed and shrugged. “Come on.”
The interview was short and sweet. The fat guy was Nate Baldwin, and he’d been head of security for ten years. He said they had a high turnover rate because they didn’t pay as well as the personal security detail position did, but there was always the opportunity to move up. I convinced him that was my goal, and within an hour, I had the job.
I couldn’t believe it had been that easy to bullshit my way into a security position. I literally had no idea what I was talking about when I answered his questions, and yet, here I was with a job offer for a position I knew nothing about.
“I can start as soon as you’ll have me,” I said as I shook his hand.
“How about now?”
Nate offered. “I don’t have any other trainees right now, and I really need someone ready to cover shifts by next week.”
“Done,” I agreed. “What do I do?”
“I’ll show you around first, then I’ll set you up in the conference room to watch the videos,” he explained with a gleeful smile.
The Gryffon office wasn’t as large as I’d imagined, but it had several different hallways that didn’t connect in the typical grid pattern. I wondered if the setup was to keep people out of certain areas, but I didn’t bother to ask Nate. He seemed completely satisfied with his boring role, and I didn’t want to arouse any suspicions.
We were at the back of the building when we passed a dark hallway that was missing the surveillance cameras I’d seen at nearly every turn, and only one door was at the end of the hall. It had some sort of scanner to the right of the door, and no sign to designate its purpose. Only a narrow window on the left-hand side revealed part of a desk inside the door.
“What’s over there?” I asked as I tried to seem concerned about the security of the office. “It doesn’t have any cameras. How are we supposed to keep an eye on it?”
“Oh, that’s Mr. G.’s office,” Nate said with a mild wave. “He just wants us to make sure the door is shut when we make our rounds. He doesn’t like the cameras down here.”
Bingo. Less than an hour on the job, and I already had my first clue about the mysterious Vlado Galic.
“Mr. G.?” I acted confused at the name. “Is he the owner or something?”
“Pretty much.” The security officer shrugged. “He runs the whole board of directors, even though they all pretend they have the same vote. We all know he’s in charge.”
“Oh, that’s the Vlado guy I saw on the website, right?” I encouraged him to continue. “He does all the press conferences, I think.”
“That’s him,” Nate confirmed. “He keeps to himself, and he doesn’t like when anyone talks to him unless he talks to them first, so don’t bug him.”
“I’ve had a few clients like that,” I agreed. “They like their privacy.”
“Oh, yeah, Mr. G. is big on privacy,” he said as his voice dropped to a whisper. “He has passwords to everything, even when someone is delivering his lunch. If they don’t know the password he gives them, he’ll send them away and order from somewhere else. It’s wild.”
“Sounds a little paranoid,” I murmured.
“Yeah, well, if you were friends with the mob, you’d probably understand.” Nate smirked then cleared his throat as though he’d said too much. “Anyway, the conference room is over here. Let’s get you started on those videos. They take some time, but they have very valuable information about what our role is here. Gryffon takes security very seriously, so you should pay attention.”
A few minutes later, Nate left me to my own devices as I watched videos from the 80s about how to properly monitor the building, check for intruders, and notify authorities. My mind drifted back to that dark hallway, and I wondered if I could figure out a way to get back to it and see what Vlado kept hidden in his office.
I decided to look around under the pretense of hunting for the bathroom, and I crept out of the conference room and back down the hall. The funky setup was difficult to memorize, but I was fairly certain I was close to Vlado’s secret hallway, and I turned down the hallway to see I was right.
I crept closer to the door and listened for any movement from inside. I could hear a man’s voice as he spoke to someone and paused before speaking again. Vlado must have been on the phone with someone, and he sounded excited. I risked a glance through the sliver of glass to the left of the door, and I could see he sat at the black desk with a laptop in front of him. He pounded away on the keyboard while he talked on the phone in Serbian, but I couldn’t understand a word of it.
So, I’d confirmed he used a laptop and knew Serbian. Fantastic.
I stepped back from the door and scurried around the corner to find the bathroom. If Nate watched me on the cameras, he’d see I eventually made it to the men’s room and hopefully wouldn’t have any questions about it. Without a camera on Galic’s hallway, he wouldn’t know I’d taken a peek into the window near his door, so I wouldn’t have too many questions to answer, though something told me Nate was more likely to be eating a snack than watching the cameras.
When I finished, I stepped out of the bathroom and headed back down the long corridor to pass Vlado’s secret office hallway and make my way toward the conference room. I felt like I’d skated through my first spy attempt when I nearly bumped into someone coming around the corner.
“Who are you?” The thick Serbian accent of Vlado Galic echoed down the empty hallway as I took a step back and met his gaze.
He didn’t seem as large in person as he did in the pictures, but he was still intimidating, nonetheless. His shoulders were several inches wider than mine, and his face was set in a stony look of suspicion.
“James Landis,” I answered and stuck out my hand. “I’m training for security today.”
“And what are you doing down here?” he asked without moving a muscle. “The conference room is at the other end of the office.”
“I was trying to find the bathroom and got turned around,” I admitted and looked down as though embarrassed. “These halls are a little different than what I’m used to. I’m on my way back to the conference room now.”
When I looked down, I noticed Galic carried a laptop case. It wasn’t just any case, though. It looked like military-grade metal that surrounded the device, and his knuckles were white as he gripped the handle. The company’s logo, a gryphon, was emblazoned across the outside, and he tucked the case closer to his body when he caught my gaze. My guess was that it was the same laptop he’d been using when I’d sneaked a peek in his office earlier.
“I think we’ll just let Nate know you got lost,” he growled and pointed in the direction I was headed. “Go back to your training.”
“Of course, sir,” I replied before I scurried down the hallway.
I risked a glance over my shoulder to see Vlado head in the opposite direction with the laptop case in hand. I furrowed my brow and continued back to the training videos.
Over the next few hours, I struggled to stay awake as the outdated videos played on and I kept a close eye on the glass windows that surrounded the conference room. I could see nearly everyone who came and went from Gryffon, and I caught several glimpses of Vlado as he visited various offices within the building, hit on the receptionist, and checked in with Nate.
I had no doubt Vlado would update Nate on finding me in the hall, but I’d already noticed what I needed to know. Vlado didn’t go anywhere without that laptop. While he cruised around the building, the silver case was gripped in his hand, and he never even set it down when he talked to his coworkers or the receptionist while he blatantly flirted with her. No one seemed surprised by his behavior, though they probably chalked it up to more of his odd paranoia.
Even on my second trip to the bathroom, I’d seen him leave the men’s room with the case in his hand. Then, at the end of the day, he’d walked out the front door with personal security on either side and the laptop by his side.
It had to be important, even if I wasn’t quite sure how yet.
“Alright, do you feel like you’ve learned anything new?” Nate asked when he strolled into the conference room and shut off the TV.
“Yeah, I think so,” I answered honestly. “Same time tomorrow?”
Nate nodded, and I skipped out of the conference room and out the front door. I could barely contain my excitement as I jogged to my car and slid inside. I pulled up Anthony’s number on my phone and called.
He answered before the first ring was finished.
“Did you get anything?” he asked.
“Maybe,” I replied. “Vlado is a secretive guy, but he always has his laptop. He carries it in a fancy case, and he doesn’t let it out of his sight. He even took it to the bathroom.”
/> “Interesting,” Anthony murmured. “And took it home?”
“Yep,” I confirmed. “What do you think it means?”
“I’m not sure yet,” he admitted. “But we’ll find out. Do you think if we get the laptop, the feds will dig into it?”
“Hmm.” I pressed my mouth into a thin line as I considered it. “I think if it’s anonymously given to them, it’s a possibility, but then you run the risk of screwing up the chain of custody, confirming who it belongs to, stuff like that. Even if it does hold up as evidence, a good defense attorney might get it thrown out for unlawful search. And the rules are even tighter when the feds are involved. There are a few different variables here.”
“So, if they can’t prove it’s his from the contents, they may not look at Vlado at all,” Anthony said in an exasperated tone. “Or if they do look at him, he might still get away with whatever he’s doing, and he’ll know someone is onto him.”
“Yeah,” I agreed. “But we have some time to figure it out. I didn’t get fired yet, so I can go back tomorrow and see what I can find.”
“Do you think you can get on the laptop?” Anthony wondered.
“No way.” I shook my head. “He literally never lets it leave his side. And his office has a keypad, so I’d have to get that code, and he doesn’t have any cameras there for me to try to figure it out.”
“Dammit!” my client cursed, and there was a loud thump as something landed hard in the background. “How am I supposed to do this my way if my way is a thousand times harder than my father’s way?”
I paused.
Anthony was determined to run things without resorting to his father’s old-school ways of handling problems, and I had to commend him for it. While he’d seemed willing to become a made man in front of Sal, he really didn’t want to become exactly what he hated about the family business. I felt a moment of empathy for my client, who was obviously dealing with some inner turmoil over the decisions he had to make to keep his position.
“I think we can figure it out,” I assured him. “Don’t give up after one day. I know there’s a solution that doesn’t involve, ah, what your dad suggested.”
