USA, Inc. (A Mike Wardman Novel: Book 1)

by Larry Kahaner

  “Yeah, that’s it,” Hearst said. “You know, Mike, I didn’t have anything to do with these murders. I was a go-between between Kane and the Bureau, but not for murder. I was mainly an informant for Kane.

  “I believe you, Wally. Hicks worked directly with the killers hired by the FBI. We figured that out.” Hearst wasn’t smart enough to run those operations. “We don’t know what he’s got planned, but whatever it is, it’s big. Bigger than forty million.”

  “Do you really think he’ll double-cross me?”

  “You’re a liability. He won’t even let you back in the compound. I guarantee it.”

  “He’s right,” Evelyn said. “I know Kane. Slimy as they come.”

  Mike pulled the car over to the side. Hearst poked Evelyn. She winced.

  “Wally, I have an idea. No funny business. Look—hands on the wheel. We have that statue. Like I said, it’s worth forty million. How about we sell it and split the money? Not only will you not have to work for Kane, but you won’t have to work for anyone ever again.”

  Hearst thought for a moment. “Twenty for me, and you three split the rest.”

  Mike looked at Al.

  “Okay by me,” he said.

  He turned to Evelyn.

  “That’s enough for me, too,” she said.

  “How far away is the statue from here?”

  “About a half-hour,” Mike said. “In our hotel room.”

  Hearst pointed to the two men in the front. “Hand me the keys, Mike. Then you two get out and start walking the other way. You.” He prodded Evelyn with the gun. “Climb into the front. You’re driving.”

  With Evelyn in the driver’s seat and the two men now fifty feet away, Hearst handed Evelyn the keys.

  “Take me to the statue.”

  Mike and Al stood on the side of the road and watched Evelyn and Hearst drive away.

  “Not much chance for a hitchhike,” Al said, brushing some of the caked mud off his shirt and pants. He stomped his boots on the ground. They left brown shoeprints on the asphalt. “What you told Hearst about Hicks not being a murderer—was that true?”

  “Hicks never got his hands dirty. That’s for sure. Kane kept himself separated from all the unsavory operations, but you can be sure that Hicks knew everything that went on with the Judy Bee and the rest. He called the plays. He knew what Kane wanted, even if Kane didn’t say it in so many words. He kept himself and Kane a safe distance away. Money has a way of building a thick wall between the perpetrator and the unpleasantness.”

  “What about Evelyn? Will she be all right?”

  “Hearst isn’t a killer. He’s a coward. He’s not one of these guys who can look you square in the eyes and pull the trigger. All she has to do is give him the statue, and he’ll be on his way. After what she just went through, this will be a breeze.”

  “She’s really tough.”

  “Just like her sister,” Mike said. “Smart, too. She’ll figure it out.”

  “Figure what out?” Al asked.

  “Let’s find a phone. Need to make a call.”

  Chapter 60

  Richard Kane had his mansion cleaned by people who didn’t ask questions. They didn’t ask why tall metal shelves were toppled in a storeroom, or why the far wall sported a hole large enough for a man to walk through. Most of all, they didn’t ask about a pool of blood in the hallway.

  Money made it all go away.

  Kane was sitting in his library when his phone rang. It was Spalding Chapman from the bank.

  “It wasn’t easy, Richard, but we were able to fill your orders.”

  “Excellent.”

  “We go back a ways, and I hope I’m not out of line here, but you do know what you’re doing, right?”

  “Don’t worry, Spalding. I’ve never been so sure of anything in my life.”

  “It’s my job to worry. I worry about my largest depositor, and I worry about my bank.”

  “I appreciate your counsel and concern. We’ve done these kinds of transactions before and haven’t had any problems, so why worry now?”

  “The size, the scope, the—”

  “If you’re worried about getting your cut, erase that from your mind. You and the bank will be paid handsomely for your efforts and your risk.”

  Chapman heard annoyance in his client’s voice. He settled into his chair and calmed his voice. “All right, Richard. I emailed you the confirmations. You should have them in a few minutes.”

  “Thanks, Spalding. And don’t worry.”

  Chapman hung up and stared out the window at the day tourists strolling up and down the brick sidewalks. Had he really been living here for his entire life? Most men his age were already retired. Certainly, they would not still be running a bank on a daily basis. No, they would be playing golf somewhere in the sun. Somewhere exotic. Now seemed like a good time to make a change. He let out a sigh, scanned his wall of honors, and dialed his wife.

  “Honey, what do you say we take a trip? I don’t know. South America, Europe, Asia. It’s a good time of year to travel.”

  • • •

  Evelyn slipped her keycard into the lock and opened the hotel-room door. Hearst muscled in behind her, never letting the pistol barrel stray more than a few inches from her back.

  “It’s on the desk,” she said. “That’s where we left it.”

  Hearst nudged her forward. “You first.”

  Evelyn walked to the desk and pointed to the figurine sitting next to the lamp. “Over there.”

  He swung the gun in the direction of the bed and she complied. He picked up the statue and studied its features, turned it around, perused it from all angles.

  “This is worth forty million?”

  “That’s what they tell me.”

  “I guess I should say that I’m not splitting the money with you and your buddies.”

  “I’m shocked,” Evelyn said.

  “I’m sure you are. A lot of other people in my position would kill you and take the statue, but I’m not like that. Really, I’m not. I just want the money.”

  Evelyn watched him grab a towel from the bathroom, then reach into the closet and pluck a plastic laundry bag from a hanger. He rolled the statue in the towel and lowered it into the bag. He pulled the drawstrings tight. With the package tucked under his arm, he waved goodbye and left the room.

  Evelyn let out a long breath and walked over to the window to make sure Hearst drove away.

  Just then, there was a knock at the door.

  A man in a NOAA uniform tipped his baseball cap and said, “Ms. Montclair, I have something for you.”

  She took the newspaper-wrapped package and held it for a minute before placing it on the desk.

  “Do you need a ride?” he asked.

  “You know that I do,” she replied, grinning. “And I suspect you know where we’re going.”

  “Yes, ma’am.”

  • • •

  Richard Kane stared at his phone resting on the end table next to him. Not a trace of the recent mayhem could be seen anywhere. He paced the room, all the while keeping an eye on the phone. He loomed over the table and tried to will the phone to ring. When it finally did, he carefully picked it up, making sure he didn’t press any wrong buttons. Making the caller redial his number would be a personal and professional blunder.

  “Yes, Mr. Attorney General,” Kane said into the phone. “We’re all set on this end. When can we expect your announcement? Yes, sir. I understand, sir. Thank you, sir.” Kane was tired of saying “sir.”

  This was to be his biggest triumph yet. Of all his deals, this was the one he had worked his whole career for, the one that would put him in the record books. He would be revered by some, cursed by others for his business skill. But there would be no denying his genius or his guts.

  He looked at his watch. It was time to pack.

  • • •

  Mike and Al were eating at the Shady Elm Bar and Pizzeria. With their dirty clothes, they didn’t stand out from
the road workers who were taking a dinner break from filling potholes formed after the brutal winter.

  They saw Evelyn and the NOAA officer walk through the door and stood to greet them. Mike hugged Evelyn and held her at arm’s length to look her up and down.

  “You look okay.”

  “I am, but I’m a bit tired of being a hostage. Is it me? Is it because I’m a girl?”

  Mike smiled. “I’d say more like the wrong place, wrong time. Did you have any trouble, Billy?”

  “None. I was halfway between Oxford and Easton when Director McCord called on the radio, so I was already close. I thought he was pulling my leg. He also asked that I hook you up with a car. It’s the red job out front.”

  He tossed the keys on the table.

  “Thanks. We left ours at the … I owe you bigtime, Billy.”

  “No worries.” He walked out, tipping his cap to the cashier by the door.

  “Have a slice,” Al said to Evelyn. “You must be starving.”

  Mike threw some bills on the table. “Take it to go. We have to see Kane. He thinks we’re dead, so that should be a solid conversation starter.”

  Chapter 61

  The crash occurred just twenty feet outside the garage exit. The driver, perhaps preoccupied with other thoughts, didn’t see the three-ton Hummer barreling its way down the street. The driver slammed on his brakes, but the vehicle’s momentum not only crumpled the dark-blue Mercedes, but rode over it like a speed bump.

  Billy was returning to his station in Oxford when he came upon the tangled mess. He called 911 before getting on his hands and knees and reaching into the broken driver’s-side window. He turned off the engine. All he could see of the driver was a bloody tuft of gray hair peeking out from above the airbag. He used his pocketknife to rip apart the bag so he could see the rest.

  Billy held the man’s hand and asked, “What’s your name?”

  The driver turned his head to Billy and winced. His tears mixed with the airbag powder, forming a mask of white paste.

  “Chapman. Spalding Chapman,” he managed. “Tell my … wife … I love her.”

  “I will, I will,” Billy said. “I’ll stay with you until the ambulance arrives. I won’t leave you.”

  He squeezed the dying man’s hand tighter, even as he felt him slipping away. Chapman tried to talk, but instead blood bubbled from his mouth with each slurred word.

  From the corner of his eye, Billy saw the Hummer driver rush out of his vehicle. “I didn’t see him. I swear it. He drove out so fast.”

  Billy turned back to the dying man. “What, what are you saying?” He leaned closer, but could not comprehend anything over the sirens that were keening louder and louder. “It won’t be long. Help is on the way.”

  Chapman coughed in short bursts. Each spasm produced more blood. “Kane … he’s put … put … He’s …”

  “What? What?”

  Billy didn’t release the man’s hand until the EMTs arrived.

  • • •

  Mike and his two comrades made a quick stop at the surveillance van. The gear was still working.

  “Print the recordings as fast as you can,” Mike said. “We’ll read them on the way.”

  “Won’t take long,” Al said.

  A minute later, they were speeding down the highway. A call came in. It was Burke, telling Mike about a banker in Easton who’d just died.

  “Kane? Are you sure he said Kane? What does the other stuff mean?”

  “I don’t know. Billy said the guy was on his last breath,” Burke said. “He could barely make out what he was saying.”

  Mike thought about Marilyn’s last words. Contact her. Contact her.

  “What’s going on, Mike?”

  “I’m not sure, yet, but I hope to find out in less than a mile. Do we have assets in the Bay near us?”

  “Affirmative,” Burke said. “We have a fast boat in Oxford. I can have them get it ready to go.”

  “We’re going to need it.”

  • • •

  Kane packed light. He would send for his other belongings later. Or not. He could buy whatever he needed when he reached his destination. He shoveled cash into a manila envelope and addressed it to the driver of the Hummer, leaving it on his desk for his assistant to mail. With Hicks dead and his FBI lackey Hearst God knows where, Kane stepped outside and waved at the first guard with a rifle that he saw. “You, what’s your name?”

  “Crenshaw, sir.”

  “Okay, Crenshaw. You’re in charge. Nobody goes in or out unless I say so. My helicopter will be landing soon. Your job is to make sure I get on it. Do you understand?”

  “Yes, sir.” He barked into his radio and two men ran toward him. They formed a circle around the landing pad. Satisfied that his departure was assured, Kane stepped back inside and turned on the big-screen TV.

  The CNN anchor said, “There are unsubstantiated reports that Mexican forces are forming on the California and Texas border.”

  Kane turned up the sound and stood only inches from the screen.

  “We are sending crews to the area.” She put her hand to her earpiece. “We are now hearing from the Department of Homeland Security. They have refused comment. We will stay on this story. We repeat, there are unsubstantiated reports that Mexican forces are forming on the California and Texas borders. Let’s turn to our security analyst—”

  Kane turned off the television and strained for the sound of his helicopter. Nothing yet.

  “Soon,” he said to himself.

  • • •

  Al was flipping pages, scanning the transcriptions with his finger when he suddenly stopped. “Evelyn, look at this.”

  “Why would Kane be talking to the attorney general?”

  They were almost at the gatehouse when Mike screeched the car to an abrupt stop. “The attorney general?”

  “I’m sure of it,” said Al. “I only have Kane’s side of the conversation, but he definitely said ‘attorney general.’ He addressed him.”

  “When this all started, the AG wanted us to keep him apprised of the Judy Bee murders.”

  Mike’s attention was grabbed by the sight of a helicopter hovering above the property.

  “We’re too late,” he said. “That’s Kane’s chopper.”

  • • •

  Kane sat in the passenger seat as the rotors got up to speed.

  “Where to, sir? The airport?”

  “No,” Kane said, yelling into the microphone of his headset. “My boat.”

  “Right away, sir,” the pilot said. He pulled back the stick. As the chopper lifted off, Kane looked down at his mansion.

  “Going on a long cruise, sir?” the pilot asked as the helicopter banked left.

  “Yes. Yes I am. No reason to rush,” Kane said. “No reason to rush at all.” He looked out at the horizon. He could see Chesapeake Bay. In a few minutes, his boat would be in view and he would be on his way.

  • • •

  Mike saw the helicopter’s sharp turn. “He’s not going to the airport. He’s heading to the Bay.”

  He grabbed his phone and called Burke. “Kane’s boat. Where is it?”

  He heard keyboard clicks. “It’s in St. Michaels. It’s a ninety-foot Affinity.”

  “Of course,” Mike said. “Our mystery boat from Delaware Bay, the one the fishers reported. Why didn’t we see this before?”

  “What else do you need, Mike?”

  “Some luck and a fast boat. I have a score to settle, and a promise to keep.”

  Chapter 62

  “You know what to do,” Kane said to his pilot.

  “Yes, sir. I understand. Setting down smooth as silk in thirty seconds,” he responded.

  As soon as the pilot gave the all clear, Kane chucked his headset, pushed open the door, and trotted to the boat’s salon. He mixed a drink from the bar, clicked the remote control, and watched the CNN news anchors carry on about the alleged border intrusion.

  “Alleged my ass,” Kane
said to himself.

  The ship’s phone rang. It was the captain telling Kane that a faulty valve had slowed the fueling process, and it would take ten more minutes before they could leave.

  “I don’t want any more delays,” he barked into the phone and hammered it down into the cradle. He spun the ice cubes in his Scotch glass with his index finger and licked it.

  “Alleged. Alleged. I paid good money …”

  He continued to watch the talking heads debate whether it was inevitable that Mexico might take advantage, or at least test the border areas now that Texas and California had changed governments.

  “Ridiculous,” the former ambassador to Mexico said. “The Mexican government would never do such a thing. What we may be seeing—and I can’t say for sure—is civilians wanting to enter the US, maybe taking advantage of the fluid situation.”

  He was cut off by a live shot of crowds. The anchor spoke.

  “Here is Nuevo Laredo, which is on the opposite side of the Rio Grande River from the Texan city of Laredo. We can see the crowds massing in the border area. We are receiving similar reports from Ciudad Juarez and Tijuana, on the California border. The crowds appear peaceful, and we’re also receiving reports from … Let’s go live to Austin, where Texas Governor Rusty Pike is holding a news conference.”

  “I want to assure everyone that Texas is under no threat from our southern border. Under the leadership of General Jackie Denauer, in an overabundance of caution—and I want to emphasize caution—has deployed additional Texas National Guard units to these areas. She will be available to answer questions.”

  Kane clicked over to CNBC to learn whether the financial markets were rattled by these events. He recognized one anchor, who handled most of their overseas financial reporting, covering stories like the meltdown of Spanish real estate and the opening up of Cuba. Kane appreciated that she spoke several languages, because it also was one of his keys to business success.

  “For those of you who are not familiar with these equities,” she said, “they are essentially shares and options that are only sold in the private market. They received expedited SEC approval, even waiving some of the waiting periods to get these offerings into the hands of higher-income investors.”