by Jim Daddio
Mat turned and looked at the car. He could see two thumbs sticking up just above the window. Mat turned back. He was lost for words. He said to himself, fuck it. He said, “I am under the assumption that you received a package today at nine a.m. Is that correct?”
Fred could feel the heat scroll through his body. He had to remain cool. He coughed and took a deep breath. “Your assumption is incorrect. Now good-bye.”
Mat stuck his foot to block the door, then pushed it open with his right hand. Fred stumbled back. Mat stepped into the house. Fred cried out, “I don’t know what you’re talking about. You have the wrong house.”
“Let me make this as easy and simple as possible. This morning at eight you answered the door. A Mexican man came in here, took off his shirt, dropped his pants to his knees, ripped a lot of tape off his body and a silky like suit filled with two million dollars dropped to the floor. You signed this piece of paper.” Mat threw the paper at him. “And now I want it. Is that simple and easy or what?”
Fred’s whole body seemed to be on fire. He let the paper bounce off him. He had to think of something. It was obvious the man standing in front of him knew everything. Denying would not work. Nothing came to mind.
He took a breath and rubbed his hand over his mouth. He decided to give it one last try. He said, “I don’t know what the hell you’re talking about. No Mexican came to this house. I’ve been here alone all morning.”
Mat slid closer to Fred and grabbed his collar. He pushed his face up to Fred’s. He snarled, “Jesus, man. I don’t want to hurt you. Don’t be stupid. He was here. We both know it. Just give me the money and I’m on my way and none of this happened.”
Fred could hardly breathe. He stammered, “Okay…okay. It happened like you said. It didn’t take me long to figure the Mexican was at the wrong house. For sure it had something to do with a drug deal. Hell, I’m a businessman, for Christ sake. I did what any other good citizen would do; I took the money to the police.”
Mat pushed him away and laughed. He didn’t want to show his badge, but he figured he had no choice. The man had the money and this was his chance to get it. “What’s your name?”
“Fred.”
“So, Fred, you took the money to the station. Right?”
Fred stuttered, “Right…yes…to the station.”
Mat looked around the room. He spotted a couple of suitcases in the corner. “And the two suitcases and the fancy clothes you’re wearing mean nothing. Well, to me it means you’re getting ready for a trip.”
“Yes, my wife and I are going away for the weekend.”
“It’s Tuesday.”
Fred was lost. His mind was scrambled. He didn’t know what to do or say. He just stood there.
Mat continued, “Now, one more time. Is the money in one of the suitcases?”
Fred stood firm. He had to stay with his story. “I said I took the money to the police station.”
Mat yanked back his jacket. His badge was attached to his belt. He pulled it back more to reveal his weapon in the holster. “See this…look. I am the police. Believe me I would have known that two million dollars showed up at the station. And if you brought the money this morning, you’d still be there in the interrogation room. I know about this. Like I said, I am a cop. Now, I don’t want any trouble. Which suitcase holds the cash?’
“You’re a cop? Why didn’t you say so when you knocked on the door… wait… wait…you’re no cop. That’s a bogus badge. If you were a cop you would have arrested me right away. You’re after the money.”
Mat slid closer to Fred. He leaned forward. “Listen to me. I got a tip the money was to be delivered to a house on this street. You were right; it was delivered to your house by mistake. The street numbers were transposed by…why the hell am I telling you this? Give me the fucking money or go to jail.”
Fred stood firm. He had the feeling something wasn’t right. He snapped back, “What if I don’t?”
“Don’t do this to yourself. If you hand it over, there won’t be a problem. I walk out of here as if you did nothing wrong. Screw with me and you go down hard.”
Fred stepped back. “Something isn’t right. You’re not here on police business. You’re here to grab the money for yourself. I—”
Mat took a few steps back and smiled, “Fred, Fred. I didn’t want to tell you this, but this is an undercover sting operation. Our team has been on the street waiting for the dropoff. So, we were at the right house which now we know was the wrong house. Our team found the Mexican who dropped…you know what? Enough of this. Open the suitcases. Now.”
Fred was confused. For some reason, he still didn’t believe the story. “I see it. Once I give you the money, you’re going to have to kill me. Kill me because you’ll be afraid, I’ll call the police and tell them some cop took the money.”
“You’re not getting this. I am the police. I control this. I don’t care if the money was delivered here by mistake. All I know is that the money was delivered here. I know this because I already told you I arrested the Mexican a short time ago. You’re killing me.”
“Maybe…maybe not.”
“Oh, Jesus. Now, I must tell you the whole story. I get a tip a businessman is running drugs to make ends meet. Hey, it’s a tough economy out there. The tip was right. So I guess you are that businessman.”
Fred shouted. “No! I’m not into drugs. Okay. But…”
Mat shouted, “Ah, Jesus, man…why all this bullshit? We’re running out of time. I make the call and soon there will be a SWAT team here and you’ll be at the station trying to explain all this. Nobody is going to believe you and this wrong address bullshit. Give me the money. I walk away and it’s all over.”
Fred knew it was over. “And you’re not going to kill me…right?”
“Stop it. I just want the money and put an end to this. Plus, I’ll get a citation for a job well done. Let me say this one more time. The money was delivered to the wrong house, okay? I tracked down the Mexican. He showed me his GPS. He transposed the last two numbers. Now, I am offering you a deal. You’re an innocent bystander. Give me the damn money and your name is never mentioned. Fuck with me and the entire police force will be here, tear this house apart and take you downtown. Why in the hell can’t you get this? Plus, I said it is a sting operation. If I have to bring in the troops, it becomes national news and the whole sting is ruined.”
Fred smiled and said, “Maybe we can work this out. Maybe throw a couple grand my way and no one will miss it. And I won’t tell anyone you were here and took the money.”
Fred’s face showed he still thought it was a bunch of lies. But he figured it was a way to get some of the money and forget it ever happened. He said, “I can be trusted.”
“I’m running out of patience with you. Just get the fucking money and shut up.”
Fred took a deep breath and said, “Come on, at least think about it.”
“Give me the money first. And you know what, I’ll make it worth your time.”
Mat figured if he gave him the money he asked for, he would be sure the man would forget the whole thing and he’d get some cash.
Fred said, “The money isn’t in the suitcases. Follow me.”
Mat pulled his Glock from his holster and followed him down the long hallway.
Forty
Sue took the short walk down the quiet street and entered the house. She walked back in the kitchen and stood there staring at Charlie. He looked up. “You’re back. Are you going to cut me loose?”
“Maybe.”
“Come on. What’s up?”
“It seems you were telling the truth. You won’t believe this, but the money was delivered to a house a few blocks away. The Mexican punched in the wrong numbers in a GPS.”
“Who gives a shit? Just cut me loose.”
Sue found a knife and walked toward him. She leaned over and smiled. “This never happened, right? So, don’t get all pissy on me and think about calling the cops.”
“Now why would I do that?”
Sue began to cut off the tape. He looked at her. “You think maybe you could, you know, do your little act again?”
She didn’t respond. She finished cutting him loose. He leaped up and stretched and twisted his body around.
“Well, I’ll be going. I guess this little fuck up cost you fifty big ones,” she said.
“I guess.”
“Whatever. Here’s two hundred. Enjoy.” She tossed the money on a table.
Sue started toward the front door. When she reached for the doorknob, she felt Charlie’s hand grab her arm. She turned toward him and saw a gun pointed at her. “Two hundred dollars? Are you kidding me? Take me to the house. Now.”
“What the hell are you taking about?’
“I deserve that money. I’ve been tied up for hours. Wrong house. Right house. It doesn’t matter. If the money is down the street, the hell with everybody. I want it all.”
Before Sue could respond, he pushed her toward the door. Sue shouted, “Wait. Listen to me first. The guy who was here. Mat. He’s with the El Paso police. You walk in that house with a gun on me and you’re dead meat. Besides, he’s my man.”
“Come on. You’re stalling. He ain’t no cop. Let’s go. You’re so full of it.”
“Charlie, you don’t want to take that chance. There’s a lot going on you don’t know about. Mat’s going to get the money and take it to Fat Baby. You try to mess this up and you’ll be arrested as part of a drug deal gone bad. Mat can make it happen. Your name’s in the paper because you’ll be dead. And not by him, but by Fat Baby himself.”
“You’re telling me the guy who punched me out and kicked me in the ribs is a cop and he’s picking up the money for the fat man. If that’s the case, he’s a bad cop. I’m going to mess him up.”
“Charlie…Charlie listen to yourself. Don’t be making up shit. You should use common sense on this one. You don’t want to get involved in this. He’s tough, mean and will not hesitate to blow you away.” Sue whispered, “Damn, I wasn’t supposed to say anything. But this is a sting operation. You screw this up and everybody’s going to get screwed. He will easily end your life as part of the drug deal. Fat Baby goes to jail and you go six feet under.”
“Even if I use you as a shield? See, I walk down there with you ahead of me. He gives me the money and I’m gone.”
“You’re not listening to me. Your greed is messing with your head. You keep forgetting you were to give the money to me and Mat. If you take the money from Mat, well, it sounds like you’re not going to deliver it to Fat Baby. And Mat tells Fat Baby you took the money and you’ll have half of Mexico after you…not to mention the entire El Paso police force. I’m thinking you’ll be dead before you can even sniff the money. Or, if you kill us, you’ll have every policeman in the world looking for you. You got that in you, Charlie?”
Charlie thought for a second. He said, “Maybe I get the money, take my fifty grand, and I give the money to Fat Man. Huh? How’s that sound? Now, move it.”
“Listen to yourself. Remember the plan. Mat was to pick it up. Then it was me. You said yourself Fat Baby told you a woman was making the pickup. Do you even know where to deliver the money?”
Charlie stared at her for a minute. He stammered, “I'll...I'll hold the gun to your head, get the money and tell your pal to give me Fat Boy's address.”
Sue continued, “If we go down there with a gun to my head, he is not going to believe all you want is the fifty grand. He will shoot you.”
“But I want my share.”
“Okay…okay. I think that’s fair. I can make it work. When he gets the money, we’ll be back with your share.”
“And I can trust you?”
“It’s part of the deal. Fat Baby promised you. I know all about this trust shit. Mat knows that. But if you go down there waving a gun, all hell is going to break out. And you'll end up with nothing…or dead. My word is all you got.”
“But you said he was your man. If I have a gun to your head, he will hand over the money to me.”
“Again, you’re not thinking straight. I know what will happen. Both of you will have guns out. Yours will be pointing at my head. Mat’s will be pointing at you. He won’t give in. What are you going to do? Shoot me? Then he will shoot you. You’re dead.”
“But he won’t let me shoot you.”
“You’re not getting this. For two million big ones, he might shoot me…then you.”
“I don’t know.”
“Okay, this is nuts. Think this out. You are going to walk down the street with a gun pointed at me. You won’t be pointing at my head. Probably under your shirt. I will kick you in the nuts and run. Oh, you’re going to shoot at me. The neighbors will like that.”
He took a step back. He released his grip on Sue. She quickly turned and trotted away. Charlie watched as she made her way to the car. She stopped and said, “I will return with your money. It’s all in the deal. Fat Baby is happy, you’ll be happy. And, oh, and alive.”
He watched her walk away. He decided to wait a few minutes and work his way to the back of the wrong house to see what was going on.
~ * ~
Bone and his partner pulled out of the parking space and drove down the street. He looked over and said, “I got to believe the man was telling the truth. He never got the money.”
“The Mexican took it and never delivered it,” his partner said.
“We’ll wait for Fat Baby’s call.” He paused. Out of the corner of his eye he spotted a car. He yelled, “Holy shit.”
“What?”
“That car. The old Mustang. It belongs to a cop I give a few bucks to each week. Fat Baby pays him off. He must have used him to pick up the money. I’m going to follow him and let’s see what’s he doing here.”
They watched as Mat pulled up in front of the house. The car stopped for a few minutes, then continued down the street. They saw him stop at a house a few blocks away.
“Something’s going on.” Bones swung the car around and drove slowly down the street, keeping a safe distance behind Mat. He grabbed his cell and called Fat Baby. He said, “I just saw that cop, Mat, go into a house. It isn’t the house where the money was supposed to be delivered. Is he the pickup?”
“First, yes. And what the fuck are you talking about?”
“He pulled up in front of the house with the address you gave me. He never got out of the car but drove a few blocks to another house on the same side of the street.”
Fat Baby didn’t need much time to figure out what had happened. “It looks like Hector got screwed and took the money to the wrong house. Get down there but don’t let Mat see you. Observe and report. If that’s the case and Mat gets the money, you follow him to make sure he delivers the money to me. I’m beginning to lose faith in trusting people. Now it’s different. Now it’s fear. If any one of the people involved gets a notion to take the money and run, I will find that person and blow a hole in his head wider than the Rio Grande. You got it?”
Bones stammered, “I…I got it, boss.”
Forty-one
The two Mexicans followed Mat as he turned onto El Camino Real. They continued a few feet, then pulled over and stopped. They watched as Mat pulled up in front of a house. They saw him stop the car, wait a few minutes and then proceed down the street. They followed him, paying no attention to the other car that was parked a few houses away.
Bones and his partner watched as Mat entered the house. Bones looked down the street. He saw a cross street. He started the car and drove past two houses and turned to the right. He parked the car and said, “Let’s go. Around the back.”
The two men walked behind the house on the corner and worked their way toward the back of the house. Bones said, “God, this whole neighborhood is so fucking quiet. Jesus, anybody live in these houses?”
“They’re all at work.”
“Let’s see if we can get in the back and see what’s going down.”
Bone and his partner slipped open a latch to a small gate and walked into a small back yard. They ducked down and worked their way to a large sliding glass door and looked inside. They saw Mat and other man talking.
~ * ~
The two Mexicans sat in the car. “I bet he’s here to pick up the money,” one of them said.
“Let’s call it our money.”
“You thinking what I’m thinking?”
“What the hell. Let’s do this. I could give a shit about The Captain. He pays us shit and he’s driving around in his fancy car. Big house. It’s our turn.”
“We’ll need to get the money and get out of town fast.”
“Right to the airport and a flight to Mexico City. I got good friends there and we can get lost for sure.”
“Sounds like a plan. Let’s go make it happen.”
The two Mexicans got out of the car and walked briskly toward the house. They paid no attention to the Mustang in front of the house. Sue saw them and ducked down and watched as the men approached the front door. She turned around and said, “I don’t like this. They’re Mexicans. They’re going in after the money. We need to warn Mat. Come on.”
Hector called out, “Not me. You got the gun. I’m staying right here.”
Sue waited until the men threw open the door and vanished into the house. She quickly exited the car and jogged toward the open front door.
~ * ~
Mat followed Fred into the garage. He watched as Fred pulled back a few cabinets and reached inside a large hole. Mat stepped closer and pointed his weapon at Fred. “What the hell are you doing?”
“The money,” Fred stuttered, “It’s…the money…here. I hid it in here.”
Mat watched as Fred pulled out the suitcase. He said, “Let’s get back into the house.”
Mat followed Fred as he walked down the long hallway and into the bedroom. He opened the case. Mat smiled as he saw the money wrapped neatly in bundles.
Mat began counting out some of the bills. “Here is your money. Two hundred thousand like we agreed. Now, do you have a sports bag? I don’t like this bulky suitcase.”