The Cartel Affair

by William E. Boone

  “Ladies and gentlemen, it’s with a heavy heart that I must announce that the daughter, son and son-in-law of Senator William Baker and his wife Joanne were the victims of a murder that happened on Skyline Drive at the Franklin Cliffs Overlook. It appears that the car they were riding in was forced off the road and down the overlook. The car burst into flames. The bodies were identified using dental records. It was found at autopsy that each had been shot in the head once. This is a brutal and heinous crime. Our hearts and prayers go out to the family of Senator Baker and his wife. The Senator and his wife are dealing with this tragedy in private for now and will be making an announcement at a later date. Thank you and that is all.”

  “All right men, now we wait and see if he does the right thing or if we have to do it for him. Anybody want to lay odds that he goes to the President seeking revenge for this? He won’t do the right thing, but we will. I feel truly sorry for his wife. I bet she has no clue what’s going on with her husband.”

  “Breaking news. NBC news has just been informed that Senator William Baker is going to meet with President James Carpenter in the Oval Office at the White House tomorrow. Now back to your regular news.”

  “I told you he would. I have to go see Turner. I have to get to President Carpenter. Director Turner, can you get me in to see President Carpenter?”

  “I think I can arrange that. It might take me a day or two.”

  TWENTY-FOUR

  Oval Office – The White House

  “MR. PRESIDENT, THANK you for seeing me today.”

  “Not a problem, Bill. I want you to know that Roslynn and I are so sorry to hear about what happened to your family. How’s Joanne holding up?”

  “Not good, Mr. President. It’s a struggle for her to even get out of bed.”

  “I can't even imagine what you must be going through. If there’s anything we can do for you, just ask.”

  “I'm glad you feel that way, Mr. President. I have an idea who may have done this. I need you to get me a team to go after this son of a bitch. He threatened me and my family before and I didn't take him seriously. That was a mistake on my part. I don't want him caught; I want him dead. Can you make that happen Mr. President?”

  “I’ll check into it and get back to you in the next few days, Bill. I have a meeting tomorrow with the Director of the CIA.”

  “Thank you, Mr. President.”

  Senator Baker leaves the White House thinking he’ll be able to get the President to solve his problem for him and he’ll come out smelling like a rose. He couldn’t be further from the truth.

  TWENTY-FIVE

  Oval Office – The White House

  “THANK YOU for seeing me today, Mr. President.”

  “Not a problem, Peter. I had a meeting yesterday with Bill Baker and I was going to call you anyway. You made it sound urgent. What is it you need, Peter?”

  “Mr. President, I brought someone with me that you’ve met before. This is Travis Bones, Sir.”

  “Yes, I remember. How are you Sergeant Bones?”

  “I’m doing fine, Mr. President. I’m not a Sergeant anymore, though. I work for Director Turner now, Sir.”

  “That’s good, Mr. Bones. Now Peter, what is it you need to see me about?”

  “Actually Mr. President, it has to do with Senator Baker. We have some documents you need to see, Sir. What did Senator Baker want, if you don't mind my asking, Sir?”

  “Not at all, Peter. He wanted to know if I could get a team to take care of a problem he has. He seems to think he knows who murdered his children.”

  “He does, Mr. President. The guy works for the Senator. But not how you may think. You need to look at the documents I mentioned earlier, Sir, and it will all become clear for you as to why he asked you that.”

  “Ok, let's have a look at the documents.”

  The President spends some time going through all the documents. He gets up and walks over to the fireplace in the Oval Office and stares into the fireplace with a look the director had never seen on the President before.

  “Hmmmm. Is this for real, Peter?”

  “Yes, Sir it is. Senator Baker had Travis's family killed to try to keep his dealings with the cartels a secret, but he grossly underestimated Travis. That's how Travis came to work for me, Sir.”

  “You actually saw him in Columbia with Escobar?”

  “Yes, Sir, I did.”

  “What do you think we should do about this, Peter?”

  “Mr. President, we already have documents and proof ready to be released to the press anonymously. Things he can’t talk his way out of this time, Sir.”

  “All right Peter, I trust you and Travis to do the right thing. Travis, I’m so sorry for the sacrifice you and your family have made for this country. We are forever in your debt.”

  “Thank you, Mr. President, that means a lot coming from you personally, Sir. We’ll make this right and see that justice is done with no blow back to you, Sir.”

  “And to think that I would have helped him, not knowing what he was doing, trying to cover his own ass.”

  “Yes Sir, Mr. President. That's what a rodent like him does. Covers his own ass at the expense of those around him. And goes home and lays his head down like nothing happened and sleeps well, Sir.”

  “All right gentlemen, I leave this in your hands. Is his wife involved in all of this?”

  “As far as we can tell she has no idea what her husband has been up to at all. I really feel sorry for her. First losing her family, and now she will lose him. It’s truly tragic for her.”

  “Yes, it is Travis. Yes, it is.”

  TWENTY-SIX

  Langley Op's Center

  “ALL RIGHT MEN, the President is on board with us handling the release of information to the press anonymously. What’s the latest intel on Baker?”

  “He has scheduled a press conference for 15:30 tomorrow afternoon. I guess he’s trying to wait for the President to get back to him.”

  “I’ll talk to Director Turner and see if we can set it up to look like the President has the CIA on board and watch as he thinks his ass is covered and in the clear.”

  Travis talks to Director Turner and brings him up to speed on his plan. The director agrees with Travis and makes the call. “Senator Baker, this is CIA Director Peter Turner.”

  “Yes Director, I take it the President has talked to you?”

  “Yes Sir, he has. The President said that you may have an idea who did this to your family?”

  “Yes Director, he threatened me and my family not long ago and I stupidly did not take him seriously. I know I should’ve had him checked out, but I doubt we would have uncovered his intentions then. These sorts of people never let on to what their plans are beforehand as I’m sure you’re aware of.”

  “All too well, Senator. Do you have a name or any information about this man?”

  “Yes, I do, Director. His name is Don Williamson. He’s a dishonorably discharged Navy S.E.A.L. with an axe to grind against the government and apparently me in particular.”

  “Do you know why he singled you and your family out?”

  “I'm afraid I have no idea.”

  “Have you ever had any personal dealings with this man?”

  “No, I’ve never met or heard of this man before he threatened me and my family.”

  “All right Senator, I’ll have my people get on this and I’ll keep you informed when we find him and take care of the problem. Do you and your wife want a protection detail assigned to you?”

  “That won't be needed. I have already hired private security.”

  “All right, I’ll call as soon as we have confirmation, Senator.”

  “Thank you for your speed and help in handling this matter, Director.”

  “Senator, before I go, how did he contact you before? Was it by phone or letter?”

  “He first sent a letter to my office, then a few days later he called my office and I talked directly to him.”

  “Do
you still have the letter?”

  “No, it was thrown out with all the junk mail from my office the day after it came in.”

  “All right Senator, thank you. What did he say to you when you talked to him?”

  “He said that my family and I would pay dearly for what the government had done to him.”

  “Anything else?”

  “No, he hung up after he said this.”

  “Ok Senator, I’ll be in touch soon.”

  “Did you hear that, Travis?”

  “Yes, Sir, I did. My question is how did he come up with the name because Williamson would not have put it in the letter or told him over the phone? He had to have known him to get the name. Got ya! Of course, we know he did know him, but that proves it and he has nothing to prove otherwise. I’ll make arrangements to meet with a reporter and leak the information after his press conference.”

  TWENTY-SEVEN

  Press Conference for Senator Baker

  Napa, California

  NBC BREAKING NEWS. “Good afternoon, we are interrupting your regular programming to go live to the press conference with Senator Baker.”

  “Good afternoon and thank you for coming. I wish to thank everyone for their thoughts and prayers for my family and I. As you know, we lost our son, daughter and son-in law. This was a heinous crime. I understand, or should I say, I have heard through the grapevine so to speak, that there is a suspect in this case. I don’t know why this person has singled my family out and done this to us. I apologize for the absence of my wife; she is having a very hard time with all that has happened. I wish to thank everyone involved for respecting our privacy. Tomorrow we’ll be having the memorial service for our family. I ask that you understand that the service will be family and close friends only. I wish that we could accommodate those of you who would want to come, but I feel at this time that it would be best for my family to have this as family and close friends only. I hope that this case is brought to a conclusion very quickly and that the person or people responsible for this heinous act are brought to swift and extreme justice.”

  Travis and his team watched the news conference and understandably were pissed at what the senator had to say and how he said it. Travis found it hard to believe the arrogance and bravado of this man. Travis slowly walked into the other room and swore to himself that the senator would go down hard when the plan was set into motion. For now, Travis had to figure out how he and the team would handle the funeral coverage tomorrow.

  TWENTY-EIGHT

  First Presbyterian Church of Napa

  TRAVIS KNEW HE could not be at the church for the funeral, as Baker knew his face. He knew if Baker saw him there, he would figure out it was Travis and not Williamson who had done this to his family. This would ruin the plan they had in place to bring him down.

  Director Turner walks up to Travis, who’s in deep thought.

  “Travis, what have you got in mind to cover the funeral?”

  “We both know I can’t be there and I’m not willing to put my team in there as we don’t know for sure if Baker gave up any information to the cartels. I would like to have one of your men go in and let Baker know that you sent him to keep an eye out during the funeral. He’ll be wired of course so we can listen to what happens. I think it would be good for you to go also, Sir. Make him think everything is ok. Tell him you have an update for him after the funeral is over.”

  “What do you want me to tell him?”

  “Tell him that you’ve traced Williamson to California and that’s why you and your men are here today. To make sure he’s safe and to be ready when you pin down an exact location on him.”

  “That Travis, sounds like a plan.”

  Travis sits back in the van and watches and listens as Director Turner goes into the funeral and talks to Baker. Turner’s man is stationed next to the family so Travis can listen to the wife and get any idea if she knows anything or not. Travis still believes she has no clue as to what her husband is up to or what’s about to happen to him.

  Travis sits back and listens as the funeral begins. He has a heavy heart as he drifts back and remembers Sarah and Jamie’s funeral. He is lost in remembrance as he realizes the funeral is ending. He listens as Turner goes up to Baker and tells him that they think they have a location locked down for Williamson. Baker seems almost giddy. He thinks his problem is about to go away. Turner tells him that they will accompany Baker home and stay with him until they’re sure, and everything is wrapped up. Baker thanks him and they leave the funeral headed home. Travis follows them at a safe distance until they get home. Travis parks the van out of sight and waits for Turner to show up at the van.

  “What’s the plan now, Travis?”

  “Now we call the President and get an arrest warrant signed for this piece of crap.”

  “What will the charges be?”

  “Treason to start with and we’ll add more at a later date. Have the President get it done asap. In the meantime, you go in and tell Baker we have Williamson surrounded and are waiting for the warrant to arrive to execute. He has hostages and we can’t take him out till we get the hostages out. At least the warrant part won’t be a lie. I’ll send the warrant in when it arrives.”

  “Ok, Travis. Do you want to be there when we serve it?”

  “No, I’ll come out after it’s been served. I want him to know it was me that got his ass.”

  “Ok. I’ll call the President and have the warrant expedited. Travis, I’ll personally serve the warrant on him.”

  “Thank you, Director. That means a lot to me.”

  Travis waits in the van. He thinks back to what Baker has done to his family and he feels the rage building inside. He must not let the rage take over now. He must stay in control of his emotions. If the rage takes over now, it will destroy everything that he has worked to accomplish. That can’t happen now. Not at this stage of the game. Travis closes his eyes and thinks about all the good times with Sarah and Jamie. After about five minutes, Travis regains his composure and is in control once again of his emotions. Once again Sarah and Jamie have reached out from the grave to make things right again in Travis’s world.

  As Travis opened his eyes, an agent showed up at the van with the warrant for Senator Baker. Travis instructed him to go to the house and ask for Director Turner. “Give him the warrant and make sure you’re outside away from everybody when you give it to him. I don’t want anyone screwing the pooch on this one. I want it clean and concise, understand?”

  “Yes, Sir.”

  “Good, now go.”

  Travis put on the head set so he could listen to everything as it happened. He watched as the agent went to the front door and waited for Turner. Turner shows up and the agent hands him the warrant. Turner looks at the van and turns and walks inside. Travis thought to himself, here we go.

  Turner walks up to Senator Baker. “Senator, could I have a word in private?”

  “Certainly Peter, good news I hope.” They go into the senator’s study. Turner looks at the senator. “I don’t think this is exactly what you’re looking for, Bill. Senator William Baker, I have a warrant for your arrest.”

  “What in the Hell are you talking about, a warrant for my arrest?”

  “Yes, Sir.”

  “On what charges?”

  “Treason to start with, Senator. Treason against your country.”

  “That’s about the stupidest thing I’ve ever heard. What can you possibly come up with that could even remotely be called treason?”

  “How about you being on the payroll of the largest drug cartel in the world, Senator.”

  “That has to be the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard. You actually think I would be involved in something like that, Peter?”

  “Yes Bill, I do. I have documents proving it.” “You can’t be serious.”

  “Bill, please turn around and place your hands on your head. You are under arrest.”

  “You’ve just signed your career death warrant, Peter.
I’ll see you’re run out of Washington and become the laughingstock of law enforcement.” “Bill, your days of running rough shod over people comes to an end here and now. Turn around and place your hands on your head or I’ll do it for you.”

  Baker slowly turns and does as Turner tells him. Turner places the handcuffs on Baker.

  “Is this really necessary, Peter?”

  “Yes, it is Senator. Treason is a very serious crime and you must be dealt with in a serious manner. You may as well get used to it because it only gets worse from here for you.” Turner walks the senator out of the house.

  When they step outside, Travis is waiting with a big smile on his face. “Surprised to see me, Senator?” Baker’s eyes widen as he sees Travis standing there. “Didn’t expect to see me again, did you? Surprise, I’m still here. It’ll be a cold day in Hell before you and your kind stop me, Senator. Now you’re going to pay and pay dearly for what you did to my family. I’ll personally see to it that you’re never able to do this to anybody else ever again, you piece of shit!! I have enough evidence against you to bury your sorry ass. By the time I’m through with you, you’ll be lucky if you ever see daylight again. You had better enjoy it for what little time you can. Turner, get this piece of shit out of here before I decide to save the taxpayers a lot of money and finish the job myself.” Travis spins around and walks off before he does what he really wants to do to Baker. God knows it takes all of Travis’s willpower not to finish the job right here, right now. As Travis walks away, a huge smile comes across his face and he actually finds himself laughing. He turns and looks at Turner and Baker and the expression on Baker’s face makes Travis laugh even harder. Baker looks like somebody kicked him in the balls and told him he didn’t hurt. Travis turns and walks off still laughing. He thinks to himself, I got you, you son of a bitch. I got you!!