My Lawyer (Bruce Kennedy Series Book 1)

by JC Kane

  The meeting never started on time. It was fifteen minutes past seven and the President of the COC called the meeting to order. After a few formalities to document the record, state the agenda, and establish who was present, it was Bruce’s turn to speak.

  “Wow, what a great turnout tonight,” Bruce said into the hand-held microphone. “Before we get into the legal issues tonight, there’s some information I want to share with all of you and I want you to share it with everyone back at your respective clubs.” Bruce looked around at the crowd and noticed a lot of people were still floating by the bar, talking, not paying attention.

  “You people over by the bar, ordering drinks, might want to pay attention to this,” Bruce said as he raised his voice to compete with the noise in the bar. “I’m giving away $25,000.00 dollars in cash, so you might want to listen to what I have to say.”

  Some of the noise-makers stopped talking and turned their attention towards Bruce. The chatter in the bar dropped significantly.

  “Here’s the deal. A lot of you know Old Goat, he’s a member of the Two Zero Five Motorcycle Club. His brother, Green, is over there,” Bruce pointed to Green, who was sitting in the corner with several other members of the Two Zero Five. “Old Goat has been off the grid for several weeks and no one, not even Green, knows exactly where he is. Green did get a text message saying from Old Goat saying that he was safe, he’s happy, he’s on a vacation from reality, but I’d like to know exactly where he is so I can talk to him. It’s important that I talk to him face to face. If anyone in this room, or anyone you know, gives me information that leads directly to a face to face meeting with Old Goat, I will give you $25,000.00 in cold hard cash.”

  One of the member’s of the Hells Angels standing near the bar yelled across the room. “I heard Old Goat was shacked up with some old cougar in Stockton.”

  Bruce nodded his head. “I’m glad you brought that up because I want to make something clear. This isn’t Crime Stoppers, okay. I don’t want a bunch of shitty information coming at me. No disrespect to you Kev, but I don’t care what you heard. I don’t care what you think. I don’t want guesses. I can do all that myself. I’m offering $25,000.00. That’s a lot of money. If you think he’s in Stockton, go to Stockton and verify that he’s there. If he is, call me, and make sure he is there when I get there. Don’t come to me with some bullshit theory. I’m offering a lot of money because I want him found fast. I want solid, concrete information based on verified facts. Okay? If you come to me with information and I follow up on that lead, he better damn well be where you say he is, or I’m not gonna be happy. If you have trustworthy information, follow up on it yourself and verify the information before you come to me. If you connect me with Old Goat, you will get paid, I promise you that. Everyone clear on that?”

  Kev, from the Hells Angels, yelled across the room again. “Does it matter if he’s dead or alive?” Everyone in the room started laughing, except Bruce and the members of the Two Zero Five.

  “It does matter,” Bruce said. “He has to be alive. It’s kind of difficult to have a conversation with a dead person. He has to be alive and in one piece.”

  “What if he’s already dead when we find him?” Kev asked.

  “If the evidence clearly suggests that Old Goat was dead for a long time before you arrived, I will give you a thousand dollars, how’s that? I’m doing this because I need to talk to him. I need to have a conversation with him. If he’s dead, that defeats the purpose. Understand?”

  “Hell, I’ve had plenty of conversations with dead men,” Kev said. Everyone laughed again.

  Bruce smiled. “And I’m sure they were fascinating conversations. Bottom line - if anyone gets me face to face with Old Goat, I will pay you $25,000.00. Share it with your people. Now, let’s move on to the illegal checkpoints in Livermore.”

  Chapter 19

  Cooper McGill walked into the conference room of his law firm, McGill & Mason, and shook hands with Lee Giordano and Jesus Acosta. “Welcome. I’m Cooper McGill. Can I get you guys any water or anything to drink?”

  “Do you have any scotch?” Lee asked.

  Cooper laughed as he sat down. “You know, we usually don’t bring that out until three o’clock.”

  Lee nodded but didn’t understand he was making a joke.

  “So, how did you guys hear about McGill & Mason?”

  “I work with Bruce Kennedy,” Lee said.

  Jesus corrected Lee. “You used to work with Bruce Kennedy.”

  “Right,” Lee said. “I used to work with Bruce Kennedy and your name came up every once in a while. I know he threw some legal work your way.”

  Cooper nodded. “Oh, Okay.” Bruce didn’t tell Cooper that Lee and Jesus would be visiting him. That seemed strange to him.

  “Yeah, I think you helped his guy, Arturo, recently,” Lee said. “He was arrested for carrying a loaded firearm in his car.”

  Cooper nodded again. “I remember Arturo. Very nice guy. We ended up getting a pretty good deal for him.” Cooper opened his leather binder and clicked his retractable pen, ready to take notes. “You say you used to work with Bruce Kennedy? Are you a lawyer?” Cooper liked to ask questions when he already knew the answer. It was a good way to test a person’s credibility. Bruce had talked to Cooper about Lee and Jesus many times before. Usually, it was a complaint about what they did or what they wanted to do and how it would increase Bruce’s chances of ending up in jail.

  “We were partners in some business ventures. Bruce just retired and so now we are no longer partners.” Lee wanted to test Cooper. He liked testing people. He knew that Bruce had used Cooper for some pretty shady stuff, but wanted to know how much information Cooper would share, without being coerced.

  “Oh, what business ventures? Any that I might have helped him with?”

  “Well, Oceanic Bakery, for one.”

  “I love Oceanic Bakery. They make the best sourdough bread. I didn’t know Bruce was involved in that business.” Cooper knew. He just didn’t want Lee to know he knew.

  “And also some commercial property investments. But, what about you? You do criminal law, right?”

  “Actually, we primarily do personal injury law here, but we also have a handful of criminal matters, and we have a few corporate clients. What kind of case do you need help with today? Melissa, my paralegal, said it was regarding a business matter? Is that right?”

  “Yes, it is,” Lee said. “Essentially, Bruce is now retired and so that leaves us without an attorney to handle all of the legal stuff that he took care of. We’re looking for someone we can trust to handle our business affairs.”

  “You’re looking for someone to handle the business affairs for Oceanic Bakery?”

  “We’re looking for someone we can trust with private business matters. We don’t want everyone knowing our business. We just want one person to handle everything like Bruce did.”

  “For Oceanic Bakery?”

  “Not just Oceanic Bakery, for all of our business ventures.”

  “Well, without knowing exactly how extensive your businesses are, it’s hard to say whether I could personally handle all of the matters. But, I can assure you that all of the attorneys, and staff, here at McGill & Mason hold everything in complete confidence. Everything you share with us is —”

  “Okay, I can’t take this anymore,” Jesus said. “We’ll be here all day if you two don’t get to the point. We know that you know Bruce was involved in a drug operation. Lee, just ask the man if he can help us or not. Let’s stop beating around the fucking bush already”

  Cooper shook his head. “I’m sorry, but I think we might have a misunderstanding. Bruce referred legal matters to me, but that’s the extent of our relationship. I have never been involved in any drug operation.”

  Lee scrunched his face up. “You’re telling me that you didn’t know Bruce was a partner in a major drug organization?”

  “I’m not sure where you get that idea from, but I can assure you tha
t he never shared any information about that with me.”

  “Are you serious?” Lee asked. “He told me that you were a good guy. That we could trust you. Now you’re telling me you don’t know anything about his situation?”

  “Wait, wait, wait,” Jesus said. “I know what’s going on here. He thinks we’re wired. That’s why he’s not talking.”

  Lee laughed and Jesus smiled because he was so proud of himself for figuring it out.

  “Ah,” Lee said. “That makes sense. I’m not going to strip down naked for you, but I will tell you that I am now the head of the largest drug operation in northern California. Bruce is done and now I’m running everything. Okay? We can talk here. I wouldn’t say that if I was wearing a wire. You understand what I’m saying?”

  “I understand what you’re saying, but that doesn’t change the fact that I don’t know anything about Bruce’s illegal business activities. He’s referred me legitimate clients, and that’s it.”

  “He still doesn’t believe we’re not wired,” Jesus said.

  “Look, I’m gonna be clear. We need an attorney to handle the ‘legal matters’ for our drug operation. The cash flow, the banking, moving the money around, all of that stuff. Bruce said you were a good guy so we came to talk to you. You understand what I’m saying?”

  “I can’t advise you, or anyone, on how to break the law. I can advise you what the law is and how it applies to your circumstances, but I can’t help you break the law if that’s what you’re asking. If you want to refer a specific criminal matter —”

  Lee’s phone rang and he looked at the display. “It’s Francisco.” Lee looked at Cooper. “Can you step outside really quick? I need privacy for this phone call.”

  Cooper started to say something, then thought better of it. It was his office, after all. People like Lee and Jesus didn’t always use common sense, and usually weren’t interested in being courteous. He closed his binder and left his office so Lee could have his privacy.

  Lee answered the phone. “Hello?”

  “It’s Francisco. My boss wants to meet with you tomorrow?”

  “Okay, great.”

  “Go alone. No security. No friends. Just you. Meet me at the top level of the Hyatt Regency parking garage in Santa Clara at four o’clock in the afternoon. Send me a message when you arrive so I know you’re there.”

  “That doesn’t leave me a lot of time,” Lee said. “Can we meet later this week? Maybe at my place or something?”

  “If you want to make a deal, the meeting is today at four o’clock. That’s it.” Francisco ended the call.

  “Hello? Francisco?” Lee looked at his phone but the call had ended.

  “What’s going on?” Jesus asked.

  “We have to leave now. It’s time to meet Francisco’s boss.”

  Chapter 20

  Bruce and Green were upstairs at the Firehouse stuffing stacks of money into a backpack. A Cadillac ATS-V pulled into the parking lot of the Firehouse and Bruce’s phone buzzed, alerting him to the visitor. He looked out one of the massive windows overlooking the front parking lot and saw the car pull into a parking space.

  “You recognize this guy?” Bruce asked.

  Green walked over and looked out the window. Francisco Carbajal stepped out of his Cadillac, looked around, and casually approached the front door of the Firehouse.

  “I don’t know who that is,” Green said as he pulled a gun out of his waistband. “You want me to handle it?”

  Bruce’s phone rang. He hit a button and placed the call on speaker. Bruce held up his finger, signaling Green to wait a second. The buzzer at the front of his shop was connected to his smartphone. If someone rang the doorbell at the front of the Firehouse, Bruce got an alert on his phone. He could see the person through the video camera and he could talk to them on his phone.

  “Yeah?” Bruce asked, looking at the video image of Francisco on his iPhone.

  “I’m looking for Bruce Kennedy. Lee Giordano told me I could find him here.”

  “Who are you?”

  “My name is Francisco Carbajal.”

  Green looked at Bruce. They heard the name before and knew he was with the Sinaloa Cartel.

  “I’m Bruce. What do you want?”

  Francisco raised his arms as he looked directly into the video camera. He was growing impatient. “Maybe you could invite me in and we could chat face to face.”

  “What, exactly, do you want to chat about?” Bruce asked.

  “Lee and I are forming a partnership, and, since you’re Lee’s partner, oh sorry, Lee’s former partner, I thought it would be smart to talk to you and make sure everyone is on the same page.”

  “Not much to talk about since Lee and I are no longer partners.”

  Francisco took a deep breath. “Perhaps you could let me in and we could discuss the details like two civilized human beings. I’m standing out here like an asshole yelling into a speaker.” Francisco looked around the parking lot but no one was around. “I come in peace. I promise.”

  “Give me a minute.” Bruce looked at Green as he disconnected the call. “Let’s go see what this fool wants. I can’t believe Lee told him to come and talk to me.”

  “I can,” Green said.

  Bruce zipped up the backpack and threw it into the safe. The safe was a trap built into the pool table. Bruce hit a button on his phone and the safe disappeared into the pool table. No one would ever guess that the pool table was anything more than just a pool table.

  Bruce and Green walked downstairs to the motorcycle shop.

  “Search this guy and take his gun when he comes in,” Bruce said. “I don’t know him and I don’t want to take any chances.”

  Bruce hit the button on the wall and the garage door opened. Green held his Sig Sauer P320 nine millimeter handgun next to his leg. He made sure that Francisco got a glimpse of it. Green waved him into the garage and Francisco walked in through the open garage door.

  “No disrespect,” Green said. “But we don’t know you. Do you have a gun on you?”

  Francisco nodded. “I do. I always carry a gun.”

  Green raised his gun casually and pointed it at Francisco. “Where is the gun?”

  “Do you think if I wanted to kill you I would ring the doorbell out front and ask to come inside?”

  Bruce walked over closer to Francisco and Green. “I don’t know. How would you do it, if you wanted to kill me?”

  “It’s in my waistband, small of my back.” Francisco turned around and lifted his jacket.

  Green pulled the gun out and set it on a workbench.

  Francisco turned around. “This is a friendly visit. I just want to talk business. That’s all.”

  Green patted him down. He didn’t trust anyone he didn’t know, especially in the drug business.

  “Who are you?” Francisco asked as Green finished his pat-down.

  “Name’s Green.”

  “Green? That’s an interesting name.”

  “Well, I’m an interesting person,” Green said.

  “Do you guys feel safe now?” Francisco asked. “Can we actually have a conversation?”

  “I’m sure you would do the same thing if a strange person from a drug cartel showed up unexpectedly at your front door. Although I get the feeling you wouldn’t be as polite as we were.”

  “You know who I am?” Francisco asked.

  “Francisco Carbajal,” Bruce said. “At least, that’s what you told me.”

  Francisco smiled. “I work with El Cazador de Cabeza. Do you know who that is?”

  “The Head Hunter?” Bruce said. “You’re with the Sinaloa cartel, right?” The Sinaloa cartel was the largest and most powerful drug cartel in Mexico. They were known for their ability to get things done, by any means necessary.

  Francisco nodded and looked at Green. “So, I understand Bruce doesn’t work with Lee anymore, but the Two Zero Five and Oceanic Bakery is still part of the drug organization, correct? I just talked to Lee a couple
days ago and he told me that you were working with him.”

  Bruce shook his head. “Actually, that’s not true. A lot can happen in a couple days. Lee didn’t lie to you then and I’m not lying now.”

  “So, that’s it? No more Two Zero Five support? No more Oceanic Bakery? Are you on your own now? Trying to start your own thing?” Francisco pointed at Green. “Is this Green man your new partner?”

  “Nope,” Bruce said. “I’m retired. No partners. No deals. Nothing but my little motorcycle shop here.”

  “You’re a lawyer too, yes?”

  Bruce nodded. “I’m a problem solver.”

  “It seems that I have a problem that needs solving. When I discussed the terms of our arrangement with Lee, it was my understanding that Oceanic Bakery and the Two Zero Five Motorcycle Club would be part of that deal. If that’s not the case, then we will definitely have to renegotiate.”

  “That does sound like a problem,” Bruce said. “Luckily, it’s not my problem.”

  “And what about the motorcycle club?” Francisco looked at Green. “Lee told me that they would be helping expand the business and gain control of the proper territories.”

  Green laughed. “That’s news to me.”

  “Is that a no?” Francisco asked.

  “That is a no,” Green said. “I won’t be working with Lee in any capacity whatsoever. I used to work with Bruce, and he’s retired, so ...”

  Francisco turned and looked out into the parking lot. “This is not good.”

  “Sorry to disappoint you,” Bruce said. “But life goes on, I suppose.”

  Francisco walked over towards the workbench, towards his gun. Green moved in front of him, blocking his path.

  “Don’t worry,” Francisco said. “I have no plans to shoot anyone, today.” Green looked at Bruce for approval. Bruce nodded and Green handed the gun to Francisco.

  Francisco stuffed the gun into his waistband. “If I were you, I would reconsider your retirement plans. I imagine it would be very boring.”