A Delicate Matter

by Don Easton

Rose leaned back, folding her arms across her chest. “Who was murdered and how?” she asked sternly.

  “Why would you ask that?” Jack was defensive.

  “After working thirty hours, if it had been anything less you would’ve called to debrief me. Answering my question with another question tells me I’m right.”

  “Well, you’re partially right, but —”

  “You’re telling me that someone has been partially murdered?” Rose said coldly.

  Jack closed his eyes and sighed. “No, someone was murdered.”

  “Who, how, and what part did you play in it?”

  “I had nothing to do with it.” He raised his hands in protest.

  “Really? Then I won’t be hearing any coincidence bullshit about where you happened to be when it happened. Preferably you weren’t even in the same city.”

  “Uh, let me explain. Jamie King was beaten to death Saturday night. It’s in the news as a home invasion, but his name hasn’t been released pending notification of next of kin.”

  “And you worked thirty hours on that? Damn it, Jack, you were specifically told by Isaac to remain on the sidelines. Does I-HIT know you stuck your nose into their case?”

  “To start with,” Jack said, gesturing to his laptop, “I’ve got proof that I did remain on the sidelines.”

  Rose glanced at the laptop and gave Jack a quizzical look.

  “Furthermore, Connie called and asked for my help. It’s Vancouver’s case, but Wilson from VPD Homicide called her because King was her main suspect in the murder of Dwayne Begg. She’s assisting him.”

  Rose exhaled audibly. “Sorry I sounded so cynical. You did tell Connie last Thursday that Satans Wrath had given the Cobras an ultimatum to pay up. Isaac will find it reasonable that you became involved, given the circumstances and that I-HIT called you.”

  Jack nodded. “Connie blames herself for King’s murder because after she showed Larry Begg his picture, he told the Gypsy Devils, who then told Satans Wrath. The reason Connie called was that she knows I have an informant in Satans Wrath. She asked me to let her know if I heard anything and also gave me permission to stick my nose into the matter.”

  “And I presume you did,” Rose said, gesturing to the report.

  “I better start at the beginning,” Jack replied. “That’d be Friday night. Laura and I checked out the bar where the Cobras hang out.”

  “That was a day before the murder. You were told to stay —”

  “I know, on the sidelines. We did. I simply wanted to see if any of the Cobras were around after being threatened by Satans Wrath.”

  “Why? What does that have to do with anything?”

  “The Cobras weren’t around, which to me indicates they were unable to return the weed or pay the money. I think they would’ve done one or the other if they’d been the ones who killed Dwayne and ripped off the stash.”

  Rose appeared to mull this over.

  “It’s only a theory,” Jack went on. “I also came up with another theory Friday night. I wondered if there was another grow-op in the area where Dwayne was murdered. If there was, then perhaps whoever had that grow-op did the murder.”

  “And?”

  “It didn’t check out. Laura and I went out Saturday morning and searched the area far beyond where Larry and Dwayne had their grow-op. There was nothing.”

  “Too bad,” Rose said.

  “The good news is that we think we found the rock that Dwayne used to pound on the boat motor right before he was shot.”

  “Forensics missed that?” Rose exclaimed.

  “It wasn’t easy to find,” Jack replied, before explaining how it was found and Connie’s subsequent delight.

  “I don’t think Isaac will criticize you for that, considering that the crime scene had been vacated,” Rose noted.

  “Hope not,” Jack said. “We did our best to remain on the sidelines, “including what happened later.” He turned on his laptop and stood beside her to watch.

  Rose’s eyebrows shot up. “What’re you showing me?”

  “You’ll see, but let me explain what led into it.”

  “Led into what?”

  “Another theory.” As the laptop powered up, Jack told her about the break-in at the marina on Friday night and his suspicion that Satans Wrath did it to obtain King’s address.

  “So with King’s murder the following night … that theory may be right,” Rose said musingly.

  “May be right?” Jack smiled. “Laura and I decided to video the event.”

  “No! Don’t tell me —”

  “The video is self-explanatory,” Jack said.

  Rose focused on the screen, with occasional quick glances at Jack as the video progressed. When it ended with King’s murder and Weasel’s 911 call, she turned and gaped at Jack, speechless.

  “As you can see,” he said, “we remained on the sidelines as ordered.”

  “What … what did I-HIT say about this?” Rose demanded. “The evidence — Christ, the courts will slam you for not stepping in to save him.”

  “I didn’t expect someone to be murdered,” Jack replied. “We just got lucky.”

  “Lucky? Don’t say that in court!”

  Jack struggled to hide his grin when he imagined how that’d go over.

  “So what did Connie say?”

  “She doesn’t know. I didn’t inform anyone in I-HIT.”

  “You didn’t tell them? Why the hell not?”

  “No need to raise your voice. I had a reason.”

  “What reason?”

  “I’ll tell you,” he said, “but let me sit down.” He closed the laptop and returned to his seat. “It was after the murder when things got really interesting.”

  “Then things got interesting?” Rose looked ready to burst. “I’d say the murder is plenty interesting enough. What happened next?”

  He gestured to the report on her desk. “It’s all there, but let me debrief you first.”

  Rose listened as Jack told of his unsuccessful attempt to get Damien to cooperate and the subsequent meeting with Vicki. When he finished she said, “I don’t believe it.”

  “What don’t you believe?” Jack asked, irritated.

  “I — I’m flabbergasted,” Rose replied. “I don’t know what to say.”

  “As far as I’m concerned it went well.” Jack’s tone was terse. “Today is Monday. Damien retires this Saturday. That’s when Purvis Evans — alias Pure E — takes over. It’s also when Buck receives his full patch. I intend to nail Damien before then.”

  “All … all right, you have my support,” Rose said finally. “I feel shell-shocked.” Suddenly she groaned.

  “What’s wrong?”

  “There’s no way we can seize the money and drop the murder charge against Buck without Damien knowing Vicki turned him in.”

  Jack stared silently at Rose. We can get him — but how much can I tell you without you freaking out and nixing the idea? Then there’s Isaac.…

  “This sucks,” Rose said glumly. “Knowing what we know and not being able to do anything about it is worse than not knowing.”

  “What you’re worried about isn’t a problem,” Jack said, with a brush of his hand to indicate her concern was trivial.

  “Really?” Rose couldn’t hide her skepticism.

  “I questioned Vicki to ensure her safety. Lots of people know about the laundering. Three or four lawyers and people in several real estate firms. As far as Buck goes, I’ll make it look like I didn’t have the legal grounds to go on King’s property. Therefore, the prosecutor would refuse to lay the charge.”

  “It’s unlikely the lawyers would ever inform on Damien because they could go to jail, too,” Rose said. “As far as the real estate agents go, they wouldn’t know the details of the accounts in Vancouver and the
BVI, so I don’t see how that really helps.”

  “It’s doubtful the lawyer in Mexico would go to jail,” Jack replied, “because somebody there’d be bought off. I don’t want the guy’s office searched. It could be done right afterwards, but either way, I’m sure he’d be tipped off. If they try to search it at the same time as the others, he could be alerted as soon as someone applied for a warrant. Then he’d warn everyone.”

  “You’re thinking that if the lawyer in Mexico is left alone, Damien might think he’s the informant,” Rose said.

  “It’s something he’d have to consider. And there’s another thing in Vicki’s favour. Her maiden name is on all the documents.”

  “So she’d have to be charged, too.”

  “She knows that, but it’d be obvious in court that Damien coerced her into doing it. If she was convicted, she’d only end up with probation.”

  Rose hesitated. “I still don’t think the lawyer in Mexico would be enough to guarantee her safety.”

  Me, neither.

  “As far as her name being on the documents goes,” Rose went on, “Damien would know that she’d likely get probation, as she would. As far as the rest goes, sure, there are lots of people in on the money-laundering scheme, but very few know about the account in BVI.” She frowned. “Arresting Damien so soon after King’s murder, then letting Buck off the hook? Uh-uh.”

  “I don’t like the timing, either, but this can’t wait. Vicki is emotionally unstable. At one point, she wanted Damien to kill Laura and me. It’s hard to know what she’ll do next. If she says something to Damien, the money would disappear — and maybe her along with it.”

  “I don’t know.” Rose shook her head. “Her safety is a concern to me.”

  “I do know,” Jack said firmly. “Trust me.”

  Rose stared at him. “Dwayne was your informant. Now you want to take a chance on having another one murdered?”

  “You know how I feel about Dwayne,” Jack said heatedly. “Do you really think I’d risk another informant’s life if I wasn’t confident?”

  “Even for Damien?” Rose challenged. When Jack didn’t respond, she added, “Your desire to nail him, especially before Saturday … well, it could be blinding your judgment.”

  “I’m far from blind.” Jack struggled to control his emotions. “I’m not saying there aren’t problems. What I am telling you is that Vicki will be okay — although I’d still like to muddy the water so that the wrong people won’t be murdered in retaliation.”

  “The wrong people murdered?”

  “There’s a problem,” Jack stated, “but it isn’t with Vicki. Forget about her. She’ll be okay.”

  “Who do you think is the problem?” Rose asked.

  “Let me explain the situation,” Jack said. “Once Damien is busted, I have to look down the road and think how much information will be divulged in court. If the DEA in Dallas get a whiff of the money trail, it could all end up in a conspiracy charge.”

  “If the DEA connects the West 12th Street gang in Dallas to any financial transactions with the lawyers or the real estate agents,” Rose said, “I can guarantee there’d be conspiracy charges. Likely here and in the States.”

  “Exactly. It might come out that I had three informants. To follow the sequence of events, first I may have to disclose who I’d refer to as ‘Informant A.’ He’s a full-patch member of Satans Wrath and tipped us off to the grow-op. He also told us about Satans Wrath giving the Cobras two days to pay up.”

  “That’s the Weenie Wagger you told me about. He wouldn’t have to be identified as being a member of Satans Wrath in court.”

  “No, but the witch hunt would be on. As it stands, he thinks he’s safe, but I hope to use him down the road. If Satans Wrath later become suspicious and look at their own people, only two of them knew where Larry’s grow-op was. One was Buck Zabat and the other is Informant A.”

  “They might think Buck’s charge was dropped because he co-operated,” Rose suggested.

  “Buck is Damien’s son. He’s been brainwashed all his life that the club is his family. They know he wouldn’t turn, which is why I took the video to Damien instead of trying to turn Buck. Something I wouldn’t have done if Buck was my informant.”

  “So with that in mind, using Informant A in the future could place him in some serious trouble,” Rose said.

  “More like a bullet to the back of the head.”

  “Ouch.”

  “Then it might come out that I had Informant B, but as far as Larry goes, he’s too low end and I’m not worried about anyone pointing a finger at him. The bikers have several grow-ops. I wouldn’t supply enough information for them to figure out his identity or which grow-op Informant B may have been connected with.”

  “Which leads to Informant C,” Rose said.

  “Yes … Vicki. At first I worried that dropping Buck’s charge could have the potential to make the bad guys suspect her, but —”

  “The potential to suspect her? I think it’d be crystal clear.”

  “Crystal clear?” It’s clear to me what Damien did to Crystal. I can still see her eyes as she burned to death.…

  “Are you with me?” Rose asked.

  “Yes. Sorry. My mind was wandering.”

  “Damn it, this is serious. Pay attention. I don’t see how Vicki could not be in jeopardy — or are you thinking witness protection?”

  “That’s not an option,” Jack said. “Too many relatives in the area who’d be targeted in her place. Besides, it’s not necessary. All the informants will be safe.”

  “I feel like we’re dancing in circles here. I believe that Larry isn’t an issue, but explain how you intend to protect Weenie Wagger and Vicki.”

  “Damien is giving the Gypsy Devils two weeks to come up with whoever was responsible for tipping me off, resulting in my videoing King. To add further credence to his belief that the Gypsy Devils are to blame, I deflected some heat onto one of them. In time, when things come out in court, the bikers will think they’ve already cleaned up that problem and Informant A should be safe. If I don’t keep him safe I won’t be able to use him in the future. Obviously.”

  “Exactly how did you deflect heat onto this Gypsy Devil?”

  Jack told Rose that he’d had the DEA seize the drugs in Dallas and explained how that’d cast suspicion on Neal. He capped his explanation by saying, “If you disagree with the idea, it’s not too late to bust Bob and Roxie in the States. They won’t have made it back yet. Also, if the bikers don’t suspect Neal and he lives, then farther down the road he’ll likely be deported to face charges.”

  Rose twirled a pen between her fingers before she spoke. “I realize that Neal’s a bad guy, but Isaac won’t be impressed by another murder. Especially if we were the ones who pointed the finger at the victim.”

  “If we don’t point the finger and Satans Wrath select a few of their own targets, it could result in a gang war. Some innocent person could be killed.”

  Rose just stared at Jack.

  “You disagree?” he asked.

  “No, but I feel like you’ve stuck me between a rock and a hard place.”

  “Maybe I shouldn’t have told you about letting the semi return from the U.S.,” Jack replied.

  “Quit trying to protect me,” Rose said in annoyance. “I’m your boss. I need to know what’s happening under my command.” She eyed him suspiciously. “What other tricks do you have up your sleeve?”

  Like setting up Cummings and my plan with Vicki? Jack twirled the tip of his beard with his fingers as if he was in deep thought. “It’s possible I might come up with something else to deflect heat from the informants, but that’d be fluid, depending on the circumstances as they unfold.”

  “What about Vicki? Seizing the dope and letting the semi go has nothing to do with protecting her.”

 
“I told you, she’ll be safe.”

  “Why, then, do I feel like there’s something you’re not telling me?”

  Probably because you’re right — there is. You know me too well. He gave Rose his best look of wide-eyed innocence. “I don’t know what more I can say. Basically we’re on the verge of taking Damien down. We should be rejoicing.”

  “Yes, and when I bring up the issue of Vicki’s safety, you purposely try to distract me.”

  That obvious, was I?

  She scrutinized Jack’s face. “The thing is, I know how protective you are of your sources. When you first sat down to talk I was concerned that you hadn’t looked at the situation closely enough. I thought perhaps you were blinded by your understandable desire to catch Damien. Now that I’ve spoken with you I know that you’re confident she’ll be okay.”

  “I am confident.”

  “I know — too confident. So what aren’t you telling me?”

  Jack leaned forward, his eyes riveted on hers. “I won’t take any action against Damien unless I’m convinced it can be done without bringing harm to Vicki.” His words were firm and expressed his determination.

  Rose grimaced.

  “Don’t you believe me?” Jack asked, his anger rising.

  “I believe you,” Rose said evenly. “But I’m asking you how you protect her.”

  “And I’m asking you to trust my judgment. Look, I admit that Vicki’s unstable. Things could change in an instant — but be assured, I’ve lost one informant and I don’t intend to lose another.”

  Rose sighed. “I better schedule a meeting with Isaac.”

  “Do I have your support?” Jack asked.

  “Reluctantly … yes.”

  Jack closed his eyes, raised both fists, and shouted, “Yes!”

  “Don’t celebrate yet. Wait until we talk with Isaac.”

  “Are you going to tell him that I-HIT should expect another body, one by the name of Neal Barlow, to roll their way?”

  “I’ll play that by ear,” Rose replied.

  “Yeah, he’s a pretty busy guy,” Jack said. “No use bothering him with trivial details. It’d be reasonable to expect he’d trust your judgment regarding what’s right.”