Beneath The Surface

by Glenn, Roy

  “No. Only you.”

  “Why didn’t you just come up and knock on the door?”

  “Didn’t want to disturb you or interrupt anything,” Black said.

  “Two things: One, you are never disturbing me. I always want to see you. And two, there is nothing to interrupt,” Carmen said, but Black already knew that. There were two reasons for that: One, he had Victor following Carmen so he’d always know that she was safe. And two, even though Wanda had failed to mention it, he had talked to Nick and he told him that Wanda was “hugged up” with Marcus at Cuisine that afternoon when Rain slapped her.

  When Black heard that it made him think about why. Knowing how he felt about Carmen and how she felt about him, why would Wanda invite him to dinner with her and Marcus?

  The answer was a cold slap in the face for him. Wanda never liked CeCe and wouldn’t mind seeing them breakup. She knew that Carmen would be drawn to him like a bee to honey, and him to her; which was exactly what Wanda wanted and exactly what happened. That left Marcus conveniently free for her, and everybody played their part exactly the way Wanda wanted.

  At first he thought it was funny; then he got mad. Wanda always did have that ruthless I’ll get whatever I want by any means necessary tendency. To this point, that tendency had served him well. It’s like Nick once said: Wanda was the mad scientist that made everybody rich. But until then, Black had never been on the receiving end of Wanda’s ruthless quality, and he didn’t like it.

  “Well, since I’m not interrupting anything, maybe you’ll let me take you to lunch,” Black said.

  Carmen hesitated. She wanted nothing more than to go anywhere Black wanted, as long as she was going too. But Carmen had to stay on task, and that was finding Hammdee Yasir. “I said you weren’t interrupting, not that I didn’t have something to do.”

  “What’s that, Carmen?”

  “I’m going to Atlantic City to see if I can find Hammdee Yasir.”

  Black thought for a minute. “I’ll tell you what. Why don’t I go to AC with you, and once you’re done with finding whoever this guy is, we can have dinner, maybe see a show.”

  “Deal,” Carmen said then asked, “How does it happen that you’re here and not with your woman?”

  “CeCe.”

  “I beg your pardon.”

  “Her name is Cece,” Black paused, “and she’s here.”

  Carmen started looking around the lobby. “What?”

  “Not here in the building, Carmen. She’s here in New York.”

  “What’s she doing here?” Carmen needed to know.

  “She owns a business—” Black started but Carmen cut him off.

  “Prostitution or number running?” She laughed.

  “She owns a high-end boutique in Manhattan.”

  “Oh.”

  “Apparently, there were some issues with the last inventory that she needed to look into.”

  “Where’s your daughter?”

  “My mother came from Freeport to stay with Michelle.”

  “I guess that means your nights don’t belong to me anymore,” Carmen mumbled as she led Black to the parking garage.

  He chose not to comment.

  She approached a gold Mercedes Benz and took out her keys to turn off the alarm.

  “This you?” Black asked.

  “This me. It used to belong to my sister.” She thought about Marcus. “Me and Marcus almost died in this car,” she said as they got in.

  “What happened?”

  “Someone was trying to kill my sister and cut the brake line. I was about to stop for a red light and I put my foot on the brake and it went down to the floorboard. I tried again, and the brake light on the dashboard came on. Then I started hydroplaning and a car clipped the tail end and sent the car into a spin. Another car hit me and that forced me off the road. The car slid down a hill heading for the trees.”

  “What did you do?”

  “I pulled up the emergency brake and the car began to spin again. So I cut the wheel hard to the left.”

  “That bring you out of the spin?”

  “Yes, but the back tires burst and the car hit a tree, just behind the rear passenger door.”

  “Were you hurt?”

  “No. The window shattered and the side impact airbags came out.”

  “Quite an ordeal.”

  “It was. Anyway, I got the car fixed and had it shipped here when I moved back.”

  “Why don’t you drive it more often?”

  “Parking here is murder,” Carmen said as she drove.

  “So, who are you looking for?”

  “Hammdee Yasir.”

  “Who is that and why do you want to find him?”

  “You remember the night we went to Lace and Wild Cherry told us about this real scary guy that she hooked Tangela House up with?”

  “I remember.”

  “Well, it turns out that he’s involved in an investment group that’s tied to Congressman Terrance Redding.”

  “What does he have to do with this?”

  “So much has happened while you were in Nassau,” Carmen said and told Black about how she found the newspaper clipping about the congressman in Tangela House’s room; and how Thaddeus Jones’s wife gave her the video of Crème being murdered, and his connection to Redding.

  “The police took Finch in for questioning, but they had to let him go because they didn’t have enough to hold him.”

  “Finch is dead,” Black said causally.

  “I’m not even going to ask you how you know that.”

  “Good.”

  When they arrived in Atlantic City, Black asked Carmen where she wanted to start. Carmen had never been to Atlantic City and had no idea where she was going.

  “I’m glad I showed up when I did,” Black said and told her how to get to the Bally’s on Park Place and the Boardwalk. When they got there, Black didn’t see anybody that he knew he could talk to about Yasir, so they left Bally’s and walked down to the Showboat. Black looked around and then to led Carmen to the bar, and they ordered a round.

  “What are we doing here?”

  “I’m looking for somebody,” Black said scanning the room; but he didn’t see who he was looking for. “Come on.”

  Black made his way through the crowd with Carmen following close behind him. He stopped at a blackjack table and sat down.

  The dealer smiled. “Well hello, Mr. Black. Long time no see.”

  “How you doin’, Tess?”

  “A little slow today, but it will get better. Last I heard, you got married and moved to the islands.”

  “True.”

  “Is this Mrs. Black?” Tess asked and dealt a hand.

  “No,” Black said quickly. “This is Carmen Taylor. My wife is died.”

  “I am so sorry to hear that.” Tess looked at Carmen. “But it’s good to meet you.”

  “Good to meet you too,” Carmen said and thought about being Mrs. Mike Black, as she did all those years ago.

  “I was lookin’ for Tommy Belletti, Tess. You seen him around?”

  “Haven’t seen Tommy Boy in a minute. You might try the Trump Marina or Taj Mahal. But you know what, he just might be at the Borgata.”

  “You heard of a guy named Hammdee Yasir?” Black asked.

  “The name ain’t familiar. What does he look like?”

  Black looked at Carmen. “He’s an Arab.”

  “Look around, honey, and take your pick. There’re plenty of them here all the time.”

  Black won the hand, finished his drink, and thanked and tipped Tess for her help. They left there and headed for the Trump Marina. Not finding him there, they went to the Taj Mahal. After asking around for Tommy and finding that nobody had seen him, Black and Carmen left there and headed for the Borgata. They found Tommy at a blackjack table with a pile of chips in front of him. Black sat down next to him.

  “Private game, buddy; I’m sure you understand,” Tommy said without looking at Black.


  “Suppose I just wanted to talk to you, Tommy. Would that be cool?”

  “Mike Black. What the fuck are you doing here? Last I heard, you got married to some drug dealer and moved to the islands,” Tommy said, and Carmen rolled her eyes and waited for the next line.

  “This is Carmen Taylor.”

  “I was wondering if you were gonna introduce this beautiful lady. But I woulda understood if you didn’t. Anyway, Carmen, it’s nice to meet you. I’m Tommy Belletti. Anything you need in this town, you come to me and it’s done.”

  “You got a minute to talk, Tommy?” Black asked.

  “For you, I got all the time in the world.” Tommy cashed in his chips and they went to the bar to talk. “Hey, how’s Angelo? I haven’t seen that fuck in years.”

  “Angelo’s good. He just has problems like everybody else. But you know Angelo. I’ll tell him you asked about him.”

  “You tell him that I said he should get out of Yonkers some time and see the rest of the world.”

  “You know that ain’t gonna happen.”

  “I know, but you tell him I said it anyway.”

  “I will.”

  “Now what did you want to talk about?”

  “You ever heard of a guy named Hammdee Yasir?” Black asked.

  “What about him?” Tommy needed to know.

  “What can you tell me about him?”

  “He’s from Afghanistan. Father’s supposed to be some big-time tribal warlord.”

  “Drug dealer?”

  “Do bears shit in the woods?” Tommy laughed. “Spends a lotta time at the tables throwin’ around a bunch of money. You know how those guys are: makin’ a big show of it.”

  “You know anybody he does business with?”

  “That I couldn’t tell you,” Tommy said.

  “What do you know about coal mining and mountaintop removal?” Carmen asked.

  Tommy looked at Carmen and then at Black. “What I know about that is investment in coal is good for the union; and what’s good for the union is good for some friends of mine. If you know what mean.”

  “I do.” Black turned to Carmen. “Write your number down.” Carmen dug in her purse for a pen. She wrote her number on a napkin and handed it to Tommy. “Do me a favor, Tommy.”

  “For you, Mikey, anything.”

  “Ask some of your friends if they do business with this guy.”

  “Anything I should know about this guy?” Tommy asked.

  “At this point, Tommy, you know more about him than I do. I’m just tryin’ to get up to your level.”

  “If I hear anything, I’ll give the pretty lady a call.”

  “Thanks, Tommy,” Black said and stood up. “Now I promised this lady dinner and a show.”

  “Check out the Resorts. The food is great and I hear they got Brian McKnight tonight.”

  Chapter Forty-one

  Brian McKnight put on a good show at Resorts and when it was over, Carmen drove Black back to the city and, per his request, dropped him off at Cuisine. “Thanks for the ride,” Black said.

  “Thanks for dinner; and Brian McKnight was great. And I want to thank you again for all of your help. I was just gonna waste a day in Atlantic City and wouldn’t have found out anything.”

  “Well now you know.”

  “Know what?”

  “Tommy Belletti. You want to know about anything in AC, you ask Tommy Belletti,” Black said and smiled at Carmen.

  “And where would I have met a guy like Tommy Belletti?”

  “Trust me, Carmen, guys like Tommy Belletti walk up and talk to women that look like you, all the time.”

  Carmen looked at the front entrance to Cuisine. “She in there?”

  “Hold on, let me see,” Black said and stared at the front of the building. “Damn, my X-ray vision ain’t workin’.”

  Carmen took a playful swing at him. “You know what I mean. I just thought maybe she’d be waiting for you.”

  “Carmen, it is after two in the morning; she’s probably asleep. She ain’t sittin’ in there waitin’ for me to show up at Lord knows what time.”

  “I would be; standing in the doorway waiting for you.”

  “You never did like sleeping,” Black said and got out of the car. He closed the door and stuck his head in the window. “So what’s your plan for tomorrow?”

  “Congressman Redding is working out of his office in the city tomorrow. I’m going to see if I can’t get in to see him.”

  “What time?”

  “What time what?”

  “What time you pickin’ me up?”

  Carmen smiled. “Be here around three. I’ll pick you up then.”

  The following day Carmen picked up Black and they went to Congressman Redding’s office. When she got there, Carmen was told that he had a full schedule, and that she should make an appointment for an interview.

  One again, Carmen went away without having talked to Redding, but she was able to schedule an exclusive interview for a day the following week. “Exclusive?” Black asked when Carmen told him about it.

  “Not that there were a lot of other reporters trying to interview him, but the word exclusive made his secretary feel better about it,” Carmen said.

  “What now?”

  “It’s getting late and I was thinking about inviting you to dinner,” Carmen said as the congressman’s entourage came out the front door. “On second thought, I was actually planning on following Congressman Redding.”

  The pair sat and watched as most of the congressman’s entourage went one way, and he walked off alone with Josh Fillmore. When they got in a car and drove off, Carmen followed.

  They drove out of the city, across the Tappan Zee Bridge, and continued along the New England Thruway for another hour before getting on the road and eventually stopping at a restaurant. But neither Josh nor the congressman got out of the car. Carmen and Black waited and watched for over an hour, until another car pulled in the parking lot.

  Josh got out of the car and came around to open the door for the congressman. They walked to the door together and stopped to talk to the man who had just arrived in the other car. “Let me see your camera,” Black requested. He zoomed in on the man that Redding was with. “I know that man.”

  “Who is he?” Carmen asked.

  “Geoffrey Canfield. Congressman Geoffrey Canfield.”

  “That’s a picture to take,” Carmen suggested. Black took a few shots of the two congressmen shaking hands, and then going in the restaurant. Carmen got out and followed them in and Black, armed with a camera, followed her. Carmen remained out of sight and watched as the two talked over a steak dinner. After dinner was over, the two congressmen went their separate ways. Once again, Carmen followed Redding’s car.

  As they got closer to the city, Carmen asked Black, “How do you know Canfield?”

  Black glanced at Carmen. “Congressman Martin Marshall is a business associate of mine. I met Canfield at one of Martin’s parties.”

  “Do you know if this is Canfield’s district?”

  “Are we in Brooklyn?”

  “No, we’re not in Brooklyn.”

  “Then this ain’t his district.”

  “Why would two congressmen meet all the way out here?”

  “Maybe the food was good,” Black said.

  “I wish I knew; I’m hungry,” Carmen wined.

  “You should have ordered something from the bar.”

  “I really need to know what these guys are talking about.”

  “Let me use your phone,” Black said. Carmen handed him her phone and he dialed a number. When the call went to voice mail, he left a message. “You know who this is, or at least you should. Call me back at this number.”

  Black handed the phone back to Carmen and it rang shortly thereafter. “Hello,” Carmen said.

  “Mike Black, please,” a female voice asked.

  Carmen rolled her eyes. “Hold on,” she said and handed him back the phone.

  �
�What you doing?”

  “Sittin’ here talkin’ to Jackie, why? What’s up?” Monika replied.

  Monika, Nick, and Jett Bronson were part of a special operations unit in South America. Their mission was the destruction of drug plants, seizure or destruction of financial records, and the assassination of drug dealers. Monika’s specialty was munitions, but in addition to munitions she was trained in weapons and commando tactics, now she was his personal assassin. The perfect assassin.

  “You at the new spot?”

  “Yup. It’s nice. I like what she’s done with the place.”

  “Wait there for me. I got a job for you.”

  “You know I like the sound of that. I’ll be here waiting for you,” Monika said and ended the call.

  Black told Carmen where to go, and she made her way to the high- stakes gambling house that was run by a gambler named Jackie Washington. She had a degree in chemistry from Rutgers University. But after she was fired for insubordination, Jackie became the third member of the high-tech robbing crew, headed by Travis Burns. Running this spot, the game that Black and Bobby started, was a reward her loyalty. Jackie saved Freeze’s life once, and gave Black the information that led him to Mylo.

  Since she had taken over the spot profits have soared, and that small place was getting too crowded. With that in mind, Jackie went to Black and suggested that they needed to move. Black approved.

  With the added space, Jackie was able add a couple more tables to accommodate the gamblers, and she even ran a line of working girls. She wouldn’t let them fuck in the house, but she charged them five hundred dollars per night for the privilege of having access to her high-priced clientele.

  When they arrived at the spot, Black led Carmen in and looked around for either Jackie or Monika. He found Monika at the bar and approached her. “Hello, Mr. Black,” Monika said when she saw him coming.

  “What’s up, Monika?” Black asked and sat down next to her. “I want you to meet Carmen Taylor.”

  “Nice to meet you, Ms. Taylor.”

  “Nice to meet you too; and it’s Carmen.”

  Monika returned her attention to Black. “What’s the job?”

  “Surveillance,” Black said. “I’ll let Carmen go over the particulars with you,” he said and got up, allowing Carmen to have his seat. “Where is Jackie?”