Thrilling Thirteen

by Ponzo, Gary

  Nihad Tansu appeared to stand taller now. He looked around at the other soldiers, the center of attention. “This woman is already a corpse, Sarock. That much is certain.”

  “Good,” Kharrazi smiled. Then the smile faded as he turned and pointed to Huseyn, alone, still sitting at the folding table. “First, get rid of this coward.”

  Huseyn became lightheaded and his body lost its ability to hold itself upright. He saw the wicked expression on Tansu’s face and he surrendered to a wave of nausea. There was nothing in his stomach to purge, so he bent his head down and shuddered with his mouth open, gagging on pure fear itself. When he looked up, he saw Tansu over him with his knife gleaming in his hand. “Please,” he begged. “Make it quick.”

  * * *

  Just north of Little Italy in Baltimore on a narrow, dead end street, sat a group of abandoned warehouses. To the naked eye they appeared as innocuous as negligent businesses harboring a tax write-off. To a select few in the FBI, they were known as ten acres of training ground for new recruits. On select occasions, it became a perfect meeting place for the seedier activities of the Bureau. Whenever an informant had information to exchange and couldn’t afford to be seen strolling through the front door of the FBI building, or sharing a booth in a local restaurant with a man in a blue suit, the warehouse district was used.

  The warehouses were topped with six-foot walls around their perimeter. Stingy slits in the walls allowed just enough room for snipers. It was dusk and a group of dark clouds threatened overhead. Nick thought he saw a shadow cross one of the slits on the roof as he maneuvered his car through the minefield of potholes. He was comforted to know it was one of his own up there. Someone almost as good as the guy sitting next to him, and that would have been plenty good enough. Nick turned into what looked like a dead end alley. At the end of the alley, a steel door yawned open as they approached.

  “I guess they know we’re here,” Matt said.

  Nick drove into the warehouse and found a huge parking lot taking up the bottom floor. There were already several cars there. He parked next to the familiar sedan of Walt Jackson.

  Their shoes echoed on the cement floor as they made their way to the elevators. Matt pushed the third-floor button and waved at the undetectable miniature camera above the doors.

  When they got out on the third floor, they found themselves before the only room in the entire building with a padlock and silent alarm. Now, however, the door was open and Nick could smell the coffee brewing before he saw the strange inhabitants.

  Along the left wall, sitting on an odd array of army cots and folded chairs were Jimmy Ferraro, better known as Jimmy Fingers, Don Silkari, and several other Italian Americans. At the end of the row, sitting in the only leather chair in the building, Sal Demenci picked lint from the sleeve of his jacket.

  Across the room from them sat Walt Jackson and FBI Director Louis Dutton. The room was noiseless, save for the humming of a second hand refrigerator, copy machine, and computer that occupied the far wall. The only things the two sides of the room had in common were the Styrofoam cups of coffee they drank.

  Nick and Matt grabbed a couple of folded chairs and diplomatically sat in the middle of the congregation.

  Nick nodded to Sal, “I hear Tommy’s going to make it.”

  Sal smiled faintly. “He’s a fighter, that kid.”

  Louis Dutton sat behind a worn wooden desk and scribbled notes on a legal pad, while Jackson sat next to the desk, elbows on his knees, foot tapping the linoleum floor.

  Just as Dutton glanced at his wristwatch, the elevator dinged and a slow-moving pair of footsteps grew louder. The large angular frame of Samuel Fisk filled the doorway. He stopped for a dramatic moment and looked over the incongruous crowd, his hands by his side like he was there for a high noon shootout.

  The long, awkward silence continued as Fisk made his way to the desk and withdrew a bottle of scotch from the bottom drawer. As if by sleight of hand, a shot glass appeared, and he filled it to the brim. Fisk managed to appear professional while downing the booze with one quick gulp.

  He wiped one side of his mouth with his fist and looked over the Italian Americans without judgment. He sat at the edge of the desk, his back to Dutton, and acknowledged Nick and Matt with a look.

  The Italian Americans sat with their legs crossed, checking their nails, the usual look of boredom fixed on their faces whenever in the presence of the law.

  Fisk pointed the empty shot glass at Sal Demenci. “Sal, how much prison time have you done in your life?”

  The opening line didn’t amuse the left side. They watched Sal frown. “I don’t remember,” Sal said. “Is it important I know the answer?”

  Fisk grinned. “Now I know why they call you all wise guys. No it’s not important. What is important is how much evidence we have against you to send you back.”

  “You threatening me?” Sal bristled.

  Fisk shook his head. “Not at all.” He turned to Walt and the SAC handed him a manila file. Fisk opened the file and read silently. He looked up at Sal and said, “Hmm, racketeering, extortion, pretty impressive.”

  “That why we’re here?” Sal snapped. “You gonna make me come all the way down here just to bust my chops? I thought we had a deal?”

  Fisk’s face lightened. He leaned over and handed Sal the file. Sal took it from the Secretary of State warily, as if it were flammable. He perused the file with Silk hanging on his shoulder, and they both raised their eyebrows at what they saw.

  “Pretty interesting stuff, huh?” Fisk said.

  Sal closed the file and left it on his lap. “Why are you showing me this?”

  A loud clap of thunder boomed overhead and Fisk went over and peeked through a slat in the horizontal blinds. The sky was dark now and rain pellets began to dance off of the bulletproof glass window.

  Fisk turned and stuffed his hands in his pockets. He said to Nick, “Do you know what Sal here is?”

  Nick gave Fisk an are-you-kidding-me expression. He knew that there was no right answer, so he looked at Sal and said the first thing that popped into his head. “Italian.”

  This got the room chuckling.

  “That’s close,” Fisk said. “He’s Italian, but he’s also American. Like me, like you, like everyone in this room.”

  Sal nodded. Silk nodded. Tony the Butcher nodded. They seemed to understand where Fisk was going and they liked it.

  Fisk splashed another pinch of scotch and downed it with a flip of his wrist. He pointed the empty shot glass, “You see, Sal, if you and your men help us out here,” he shrugged, “maybe these files get lost. I don’t know, maybe they go away permanently.”

  “Maybe?” Sal asked.

  “Definitely,” Fisk said. He looked back at Dutton and Jackson, who reluctantly made agreeable expressions.

  Now Fisk took a different stance. He seemed to be addressing the government employees in the room, while looking at Sal and the gang. “I’m not going to debate the constitutionality of this meeting. There’s no question that we’re . . . uh . . . I am trampling on certain amendments. And I am here to tell you that I am taking full responsibility for this arrangement. No one outside of this room is aware of any of this. Personally, I don’t think Thomas Jefferson wrote the Constitution with foreigners in mind. He was declaring an official document to protect the citizens of the United States against their own government. Assuring them their right to bear arms and speak freely against what could be a totalitarian regime in the future.

  “There was no way these rights would have been afforded to the Redcoats, should they have needed them, and they will not be used to protect the invasion of Kurdish rebels in our country, killing our innocent population.”

  Fisk sold the idea like an umpire selling a close third strike with an aggressive fist pump. No one seemed ready to challenge. Nick wondered how deep this mess was going to get.

  Fisk turned to make eye contact with him and Matt. The only two men in the room who spent thei
r days in the field tracking terrorists for a living. “We have data that suggests seven hundred Kurds have entered this country legally over the past eighteen months. They’ve got visas and they’re protected by our civil rights policies. As law enforcers you guys are forced to stand on the sidelines and wait for them to do something illegal before we can act. In most cases, after they kill Americans.” Fisk worked his hand into a fist, selling it again. “The time for waiting is over. I’m not going to ask you two to cross the line yourselves. It’s not fair. But these guys make a living on the other side of that line. I want you two to assist them with your knowledge of these terrorists and their behavior patterns. You know where they congregate, where they shop. We’ve run out of surveillance time. It’s time to get rough.”

  Fisk paused a moment, letting the idea settle in on the men. Both of them knew what was coming so they weren’t surprised at the concept. Fisk addressed Sal while pointing a thumb over his shoulder at Dutton and Jackson. “These two gentleman are going to furnish you with confidential files, intelligence that is known to us about these Kurdish intruders. Most of them are ignorant boys instructed to buy material that is suspicious, yet perfectly legal, so we waste our manpower on the wrong guys, while the real terrorists go to work. In the end, every one of them is culpable. No one gets a free pass.”

  Fisk made his way to the doorway and turned to Dutton. “I want you to give them everything. Even if it compromises our intelligence-gathering devices. They need to know it all. The President has received a fax demanding the withdrawal of troops from Turkey or the KSF threatened to blow up the White House. It sounds incredible, but we’re in no position to call their bluff. We have twenty-four hours to find Kharrazi and cut the head off of the snake.” He made a sweeping glance at everyone in the room. “Let’s get it done gentleman.”

  For the first time all day, Nick’s headache went away.

  Chapter 20

  Julie Bracco had just finished loading the dinner plates into the dishwasher when she heard the doorbell. It startled her. She looked up to see that it was nearly nine o’clock, then turned on her TV on the kitchen counter and switched to channel 777. The security system displayed the image of a man standing at her front door in a dark blue suit with his hands in his pockets. His face was down, trying to elude the brunt of the wind-strewn rain. She didn’t recognize the man, so she clicked a button on her remote and spoke into the tiny speaker at the bottom of the device. “Who is it?”

  The man’s voice came back through the television. “Agent Ford, Ma’am.” He held up FBI credentials above his head and waved it with the nonchalant gesture of daily routine. “There’s been intelligence gathered that leads us to believe you are in danger. I’ve been instructed to escort you to a local safe house.”

  Julie had never heard of the agent, but she knew there were several hundred inside the beltway who she wasn’t familiar with. She’d felt safer since Nick had installed extra security devices. There were twelve cameras, double-bolted locks, and alarm triggers throughout the house. One push of a button and she would have help inside of three minutes. Nick never took chances when it came to her safety, and it was one of the many ways he showed her how much he loved her.

  Still, it bothered her that she wasn’t told ahead of time about the move. She said, “Hang on a minute,” and dialed Nick’s secure phone.

  * * *

  The strange crowd that congregated in the abandoned warehouse was now divided into four groups. Each FBI staff member took five Italian Americans into a separate corner of the room and gave them detailed information about the KSF. Walt Jackson spoke about how to determine a KSF soldier by his gait, the way they didn’t make eye contact and how they all wore the same ten-dollar haircut. He also gave them a declaration of immunity. He spoke of their need to flee the scene and not to be concerned about leaving evidence behind. The FBI would be the lead investigator in any domestic terrorist activity and whatever evidence remained would never resurface in any subsequent investigations.

  Louis Dutton touted the significant advantage of working undercover. He explained the Bureau’s policies to the men and their responsibilities. He also highlighted the expensive surveillance toys they had access to, which brought smiles to the faces of more than one gangster.

  Appropriately, Matt discussed high-tech weaponry. He demonstrated laser sights and new silencers that required a keen ear just to hear the shot fired. The silenced machine guns drew excited expressions as eager hands passed around the new weapons like starving pilgrims at Thanksgiving dinner.

  Nick trained the men how to avoid the traps that were certain to be waiting for them. He updated them on the latest leads they had developed and passed out surveillance photos of the major players known to be on American soil. He was directing their attention toward the changing of facial hair, when his phone vibrated in his pocket.

  Nick held up a finger to the group and pushed a button on his phone, “Bracco.”

  Julie sounded winded. “Nick, did you send over an agent to take me to a safe house?”

  Nick squeezed his eyes shut. “Sorry, Sweetie, I forgot to call you.” He didn’t want to worry her any more than he had to, but they had received intelligence warning him to protect his wife. “Julie, we’re just being extra cautious. Maybe for a day or two. Things are going to come to a head here pretty quick.”

  “What’s the agent’s name?” Julie asked.

  “Agent Ford,” Nick said. “William is his first name. He’s a rookie, but he’s a good man. He’ll take good care of you.”

  Julie seemed satisfied and asked when she would see Nick again.

  “I’ll make it to the safe house for breakfast,” he said. “I’ll bring some bagels and fresh coffee.”

  Julie was quiet.

  “Jule? Are you okay with this?”

  “No, Nick, I’m not. But if you tell me this is almost over, I trust you.”

  Nick hung up wondering how long his wife could put up with all the stress. He tried to remember the last quiet moment they’d had together without the threat of interruption. He sincerely felt he was the luckiest man on the planet to have found someone as compassionate and patient as Julie. He didn’t have time for these sentimental thoughts right now, yet there they were, hanging around the fringes of his mind like bees buzzing around honeysuckle.

  Walt shouted, “Time,” signaling the groups to switch corners. The announcement snapped Nick back to his task—training gangsters to eliminate terrorists. The ultimate exterminators.

  * * *

  Julie packed an overnight bag while Agent Ford remained in the rain, pacing on the porch. She trusted no one, even if his credentials were valid, and Nick had vouched for him, she wasn’t allowing any margin for error.

  There was a knock on the door and the strained voice of Agent Ford came through the solid oak slab. “Mrs. Bracco. How much longer?”

  “I’m just about packed,” she shouted from the bedroom.

  Julie pulled a large suitcase on its casters across the tiled foyer to the front door. She set the alarm before quickly exiting the house. She locked the deadbolt behind her and hustled through the rain to Agent Ford’s sedan.

  The FBI agent followed her to the car and opened the back door for her. “Throw your stuff in here,” he said. “The trunk’s lock is jammed.”

  Julie hesitated, sensitive to every deviation from the norm.

  Agent Ford looked puzzled, his shoulders hunched over in the downpour. “What?” he asked.

  “The trunk is jammed?” Julie asked, gripping the handle of her suitcase tighter than necessary.

  Agent Ford opened his palms. “Mrs. Bracco, is there a reason you’re acting this way?” He showed her an embarrassed smile. “I could give you the phone number of my kindergarten teacher, she’d vouch for me.”

  Julie realized she was overdoing it. Too many years married to a cynical FBI agent. She managed a tight grin. “I’m sorry, Agent Ford. I’m a little tense, that’s all.”

&n
bsp; She tossed her suitcase in the backseat and slid in beside it. Agent Ford shut the door and hurried into the driver’s seat. Pulling his hands over his scalp, he squeezed the moisture from his hair. Looking over his shoulder he said, “Ready?”

  Julie nodded. She looked back at her home, getting smaller as the car drove away, and wondered what kind of world she occupied. Her own residence was no longer considered safe.

  ***

  It was almost ten o’clock and Nick was working his last group of mobsters. They stood with their arms folded, taking in the information with nods and smiles. A hit man’s dream come true, Nick thought. The government was not only sanctioning their occupation, but they were actually getting targets to choose from.

  The fax machine rang to life and Walt pulled out the first page. Everyone stopped to see his reaction. Walt scanned the sheet and looked up. “Ohio,” he said, leaving out the emotion. “They left a garbage can full of Semtex in front of an apartment building in Cleveland. No one noticed it. It killed twelve, including three kids.” He crumpled the paper into a tight ball and tossed it into the trash.

  The room remained silent for a few dreary moments. Grown men looking at each other with sorrowful eyes. Suddenly, the unethical cloud that hung over the assortment of criminals and policemen seemed to lift. Opposite sides of the law began to merge like in-laws for a family crisis. Nick made eye contact with Don Silkari and the both of them shook their heads at each other in disbelief of what was happening to them. To their country. Their homes.

  Finally, Sal broke the silence. He cemented the accord with a sentiment that connected every man in the room. “Kids,” he said, with a mouthful of disdain. “The bastards are killing our kids.”

  Dutton’s cell phone chirped. He answered, spoke a couple of brief words and hung up. “We’ve got a lead,” he said. He looked at Sal with something approaching a grin and said, “Let’s go do something with it.”

  ***

  Julie looked at her watch. It was ten thirty and the rain was slapping the windshield so hard visibility was a chore. She’d made little conversation with Agent Ford. This seemed to suit the man since he made no attempt at small talk. Julie spent her time gazing out of her window as residential streets turned into tree-lined corridors. She’d lived in Maryland all of her life, but wasn’t familiar with the roads she’d seen tonight.