A Quiet Street in El Paso

by Jim Daddio

  He located the house, parked the truck and walked up the steps. The door opened, and a man wave at him. He walked in and found it dark but well kept. The man spoke, “Hector, welcome. Come in and sit.”

  He groped his way to a large leather chair and sat. The man continued, “You have served us well for many years. You have proven to be a very good solider. But things have changed. We have one more run for you and then we will not need your services.”

  Hector began to feel the sweat stream down his face. He became more nervous. He stuttered, “I don’t understand. If I have done well why am I being replaced?”

  “There are new people in charge now and they have different ways to supply the chemicals.”

  “I don’t understand. I…”

  “You don’t have to. Just listen to what I will say to you. Tomorrow you will arrive here at six a.m. A body suit will be strapped under your clothes and there will be two million dollars in it. You will be instructed where to deliver the money. When you return, I will pay you ten thousand dollars. You then can go home and enjoy the money. Now, leave and be here tomorrow morning.”

  “But…”

  “There are no buts. You have been chosen to deliver this money because you are trustworthy and dependable. You will do nothing different than you do every Tuesday morning. You will act the same. Instead of going to the café and dropping off the case, you will have an address and a GPS. When you arrive, go inside, strip off your clothes and leave the body suit. You then can go to work as usual.”

  “I…It…”

  “Now, there is no more to say. Please. Leave.”

  Hector drove to his favorite café. He ordered a bottle of tequila and sat outside. He was trying to figure what had just happened to him. He tried to imagine some kind of body suit that would fit under his clothes and could hold two million dollars. His whole body shook as he drank shot after shot.

  ~ * ~

  Mat reached for his ringing cell phone. It was Fat Baby. “What’s up?”

  “Memorize this address. One-one-six-four-six El Camino Real. Be there next Tuesday at nine a.m. and pick up a large suitcase. When you have the case, call me and I will tell you where to deliver it.”

  Mat cut him off. “Hey, this is going way beyond what I signed up for. I am not your errand boy.”

  “For fifty large, you will be my errand boy…now won’t you?”

  “Whoa…that’s a big number. I don’t want to sound ungrateful, but Fat Baby, I will not whip around the city with drugs in my car.”

  “Trust is an overused word. I use it myself a lot because I am trustworthy and know when I can trust people. You will not be picking up drugs. I would never ask you to do that.”

  “Can I ask what the hell I will be picking up then?”

  “You don’t have to ask. You know.”

  Mat didn’t hesitate. “Money. Lots of it.”

  “Remember trust. I chose you because I know I can trust you to do this. And by paying you more than I would pay anybody else, I know I am getting the best man for the job.”

  “How about this then…last time. Our relationship is over after this.”

  “You’ll never hear my voice after you deliver the money. And I will never hear yours.” There was dead silence.

  Mat did what he always did when he needed time to think. He drove to the race-track in New Mexico. He seemed to think better around a noisy crowd.

  He sat in the corner watching the several screens showing tracks around the country. Off track betting. He loved it. He finished several beers and bet on a harness race somewhere in the north, night horse racing from Louisiana and dog racing from Florida. He didn’t care if he won or lost. He had to have the action.

  He couldn’t help thinking he was about to make a major mistake by picking up the money for Fat Baby. It was too easy. He still was a cop, and this was as wrong as anything could be. He thought it could be a setup. What an easy way to end my relationship with the new drug cartel. He began to imagine all type of scenarios. He could see the entire police force waiting for him. He could see the new drug cartel ending his life on the spot. He could be walking into a trap.

  Mat walked around the betting area. He found his way to one of the many bars. His mind was racing. Then it hit him. He would send Sue to pick up the money. He would be waiting at her place. When she returned with the money, he would take it to Fat Baby, collect fifty big ones and then grab Sue and head out of town. He could see them hiding out for a while. Maybe in Mexico. On the coast. He had been to La Paz once. He loved it. The money could go a long way down there. A coolness came over him as he walked out into the humid night.

  Twenty-seven

  Fred Cummings slept late. He didn’t even hear his wife as she dressed and left for work. He had returned from a trip to Fort Hood, an Army base located in central Texas. He had attended a meeting to review a contract his company had recently been awarded to do all the electrical work as part of a large award to a prime contractor.

  The meeting lasted two days and consisted of the representatives from the base, the contracting person from the Army, who made the award and the contractor who had won with the best proposal. Fred’s part of the meeting was to do an overview of the financial aspects of his company’s portion of the contract as the sub-contractor to do the electrical work. The company’s team of electrical engineers did most of the presentation. He had to sit through one boring presentation after another to present his part, less than twenty minutes.

  He awoke after nine, grabbed his cell phone, poured a cold glass of orange juice and went out to the patio. He sat, punched in a few numbers and called his boss.

  “Morning Russell, I wanted to give you a call with an update. The plane was delayed, and I didn’t get in till after midnight. I’ll be working at home for few hours.”

  Russell replied, “Go on.”

  During the past year, Fred had worked with the sales team and they had produced winning proposals for several large government contracts. Fred was to receive several large cash bonuses and a plaque from the CEO of the company. He noticed his immediate boss seemed to act cold toward him, at times not returning phone calls or answering his e-mails. Fred began to believe his boss feared he would soon be fired, and he would replace him.

  Fred continued, “The meeting went very well and as a matter of fact we were able to secure another fifty thousand dollars for several change orders. The contract was amended on the spot.”

  “Okay,” Russell answered.

  Fred shook his head. He couldn’t believe how distant and disinterested Russell sounded. “We should be able to start work within a month.”

  There were a few minutes of an uneasy silence. Fred waited for a response. Finally, he said, “I’m going to be working at home in the mornings for the next few days. A new bid came out from the county and I want to break it down from a financial standpoint before I meet with the sales team.”

  “Whatever.” Russell hung up.

  Fred almost threw his cell phone across the room. He couldn’t believe how his boss had been acting lately, and now this. He had worked for months with the sales team on the proposal, making sure the quote was accurate and the profit was sufficient. When the final numbers were added to the proposal, he had felt confident the price quote was competitive and the company would have a chance to win. They had been awarded the contract and it was one of the largest awards the company had ever won.

  Fred called his wife. “I just talked to Russell. He acted like a jerk.”

  “He’s afraid you’re going to get his job. Come on, we both know he’s useless. He’s looking over his shoulder and you’re the threat he’s seeing.”

  “I guess. But you’d think he’d be excited about the award.”

  “Let me put it this way. You’re going to get a big bonus…he won’t. Get it?”

  Fred had to laugh. “I got it all right. What do you think I should do?”

  “Nothing. Lie in the weeds, head down, do your job and
good things will happen.”

  “Agreed. Celebrate tonight?”

  “Let’s do it.”

  “I’m going to work at home for a while and go in around two for a couple of hours.”

  “I’ll be home at seven and we’ll go out to dinner.”

  “Love you.”

  “Love you, too.”

  ~ * ~

  Two days later Fred was working at home. His cell phone rang with a call from his boss. “Hello, Russell. What’s up?”

  “I want to make this as short and painless as I can. As of today, you are on paid suspension from the company.”

  Fred was stunned. He hesitated, trying to collect his thoughts. Russell continued, “You need to be here tomorrow at eight in the morning to meet with Canterbury. You are to stop working on any projects and have no contact with anybody, representing yourself as an employee of…”

  Fred shouted, “What the fuck are you talking about? What’s going on, Russell?”

  “It is what I said. Be here tomorrow. Be on time.” The phone went dead.

  Fred stood and walked around his home office in a daze. His mind was muddled and confused. He couldn’t think. He had to call somebody. He thought of Marcia Jennings, Director of Human Resources. He quickly dialed her number.

  “I just got a call from Russell. He said I am on paid suspension. What the hell does that mean?”

  “Fred, I am not at liberty to discuss this with you now. I am sure he told you to be here tomorrow morning at eight and…”

  Fred interrupted, “I know what he said. I believe I have a right to know why.”

  “You will be briefed tomorrow. That is all I can say.”

  He shouted, “You expect me to go the rest of the day and tonight not knowing what the hell is going on? Huh?”

  “Just do as Russell said. And remember to bring your laptop with you and all your files. Bye, Fred.”

  Fred sat quietly staring at the wall. His mind was racing. He said aloud, “It’s Russell. That bastard. He did something to make this happen.”

  He thought, I can’t tell Janice until I know what has happened. How could this happen. I’ve done nothing to deserve this kind of action. He kept mumbling to himself. They want my files. My laptop. I will be let go. Why?

  Fred left the house and began driving. He didn’t know where he was going…he had to get out of the house. He was confused, devastated and scared to death.

  Twenty-eight

  Fred arrived before eight and walked directly toward Richard Canterbury’s office. Richard was president of the company. After Fred had been hired he found out Strategic Electronic was a division of a nationwide conglomerate. He learned Richard had profit and loss responsibility for his division and watched every penny the company spent. When Fred took the job, he thought he was working for a privately-owned electrical contractor. As it turned out it didn’t matter to him. He had proven himself and was able to bring the financial knowledge that helped the company grow revenue very quickly.

  Nobody was around as he stood in front of the door. Before he could knock, the door opened. Richard called out, “Come in, Fred. Sit down.”

  Fred sat in a leather chair directly in front of Richard’s desk. He looked over and saw Marcia Jennings sitting to his left. He waited for Richard to walk around and sit at his chair behind his desk. For a few minutes, nobody said a word. Fred was waiting for Richard to start. He noticed his boss, Russell, was not present.

  “Fred, this isn’t easy. But I am afraid we have decided you are to be let go today.” He raised his hand. “Now, before you react. I want to tell you this is a very serious matter and we needed to act quickly. You are being let go because it came to our attention that you manipulated the numbers on several of the pricing pages, we submitted for several contracts we won so you could receive the bonus money. You have committed a serious offense against the code of conduct as outlined in the offer letter you signed.”

  Fred was stunned. His mind was having trouble comprehending what he had heard. He shook his head and finally said, “You’ve got to be kidding. I don’t even know what the hell you’re talking about. You’re saying I did something to the price quotes. I did the pricing, but the pricing was reviewed by…wait, by you and…”

  “Fred, stop. After going back and reviewing the numbers, you bid a very low price and have put this company in a very serious cash flow problem. By winning the last two contracts, the company could lose millions.”

  Fred jumped up and shouted, “That’s bullshit, and you know it. I worked those numbers and I know the margins. We made over twenty percent on both deals. We’re talking millions in revenue at a healthy profit. This contract was the company’s biggest win and with the best margin. We stand to make millions in profit.”

  “No. That’s what you wanted us to believe. The truth is, you worked the numbers so low and left out much of the work that had to be done so we would win, and you would get those bonuses we talked about. By leaving out hundreds of thousands of dollars in work we are committed to do, you have, well, hurt the finances of this company. We will have to complete the work and not be paid by the government for doing it.”

  Fred turned to Marcia. “What is going on here? I have my rights. I have the numbers right here. I want to go over each one line by line. You’ll see that every requirement was priced. Nothing was left out.”

  Marcia did not respond. He turned back to Canterbury. “Come on. Let’s go over these price sheets. I have them right here on my computer.” Fred began to reach for his briefcase.”

  “Don’t, Fred, it’s too late. It’s been decided. Marcia has a check for you which covers the rest of the week and…”

  Fred’s mind went blank. He didn’t hear the rest of what Canterbury was saying. He sat motionless. His body seemed to collapse.

  Marcia said, “Leave your laptop on the desk and empty your briefcase. Someone from security will escort you to your desk. Please take your personal items only.”

  Fred stood and lowered his head. He took a deep breath and tried to collect his thoughts. He started to turn toward the door. A thought raced through his mind. He figured it out.

  He looked at Canterbury. “I get it. It’s the bonus money. I reviewed my offer letter last night. It stated I would receive seven percent of all contracts we won that I worked the financial numbers on. I figured, based on the two wins, I would receive over two hundred and seventy thousand dollars. You don’t want to pay me. It would fuck up your expenses.” He laughed. “And you wouldn’t get your profit bonus. You never figured we would win these big contracts. Well, we did. I did. I did it with my unique pricing format and competitive numbers. And when you sat down with upper management you realized I would receive over a quarter of a million dollars. You didn’t figure that in the expense ratio. It would screw the numbers for the quarter, and you’d be out your bonus and I would get mine.”

  Canterbury walked toward the door and opened it. He said, “You’re no longer an employee of this company. Clear out your desk and get out.”

  Fred walked half way through the door, turned and said, “See you in court, you selfish bastard.”

  ~ * ~

  Fred drove around the desert for hours. He wasn’t sure how to tell his wife. He found a small café and drank several tequila shots and left for home. He found Janice in the kitchen. She said, “You’re very late. You didn’t call.”

  “I was…was…I need a drink.”

  He walked past Janice to one of the cabinets. She said, “You smell like a bottle of tequila. You all right?”

  “Just fucking great.”

  “Fred, you’re drunk. I’ve never seen you like this. What is going on?”

  He stopped and turned toward her. “I’ll tell you what’s going on. I was let go. Fired. Hear me?” he shouted, “Fired!”

  Janice was stunned. “Fired? What the hell happened?”

  Fred poured tequila into a shot glass and gulped it down. He poured another. Janice stepped forward and
put her hand over the glass. “Enough. Tell me what happened.”

  Fred staggered backward. He felt the counter with his hands and said, “Canterbury said I fudged the numbers so we would win so I would be paid the bonuses.”

  “I… I don’t understand.”

  Fred found his way to a chair and sat. “It’s a game. A joke. He said I left out work that had to be completed and put the company at risk. The truth is he doesn’t want to pay me my bonuses. If he does, he won’t receive his bonuses. Get it? He fucked me, so he could make his profit number and get paid off. By paying me it would exceed his expenses to profit ratio. I know all this. I do the paperwork. That rat bastard.”

  Janice stood silent. She moved slowly around the kitchen and sat in front of Fred. She asked, “What the hell are we going to do?”

  “Find a good attorney and sue the bastards.”

  “I mean about money. About this house. You know I do okay, but the flower shop doesn’t make enough to pay for all this.”

  Fred jumped up from the table, knocking the chair to the floor. “Damn it, Janice, I’ll find something. We have enough money in our money market account to last a few months.”

  “Great. A few months. So how much severance pay did you get?”

  Fred lowered his head. “None. He said I was let go due to a moral clause and non- compliance with company policy.”

  “Jesus, Fred, what the hell are we going to do?”

  Twenty-nine

  Hector Morales had never been so nervous in his entire life. He arrived at the house at six in the morning. He parked his car, shut off the engine, and sat quietly thinking about what he was about to do. Nothing seemed right. He knew he would be paid a lot of money and when he drove across the border it wouldn’t be any different than the thousands of times he’d done it. But still something was making him sick to his stomach.

  He slipped out of the car and walked toward the front door. As he reached for the doorknob, the door flew open. Inside, a man called out, “Right on time, my friend.”