Fumbled

by Harry Brady

  She arrived first and had a table in the back with two cups of coffee waiting. Cash went back and pulled out a chair. He thanked her for coming and sat down.

  ”This doesn`t sound like your six year old son misbehaving at school. What`s going on?” she asked.

  Adding a little cream to his coffee, he began to stir it and looking directly into her eyes began, “I`ve stumbled into an international human trafficking cartel that may involve the Korean Mafia that you think is muscling into the narcotics trade here in town.”

  LaKeisha looking directly back at him said, “We could have talked about this in the squad room. Why the secrecy?”

  “Because I`m way out of my Jurisdiction and I`m way in over my head.” Cash continued starting with Henry Kim`s basement meeting and then relating the story of Soon Ling Oh. He told her about how she was at a singles bar in Incheon with some of her friends and met three clean cut young Korean men. As the night went on they moved to a house party and it sounds, like Rohypnol, commonly referred to as a roofie, the date rape drug, was involved. The drug can last up to eight hours and nothing can be remembered while under the influence. The next thing she remembered was that she and two other girls were on a ship out to sea. Cash stopped and took a sip of his coffee. LaKeisha sat in silence and indicated with her hand for him to continue.

  “The crew of the ship were all Koreans and they treated the girls with deference. They fed them and let them out on deck, but otherwise had no contact with them. After several days at sea, they docked at a small port. The girls had no idea where they were. Once they were on shore they were met by the same young men that were in the singles bar in Incheon. They were roughly pushed into the back of a delivery van and driven inland to a small airfield where they boarded a two engine plane with their captors. By this time, they had recognized some signs in Spanish and guessed they were in Mexico or South America.” Cash paused at this point and took a deep breath.

  “After a short flight, they landed in a desolate field where a large van was waiting. Once they got in, they were not allowed to speak but it became apparent as the van drove along that the signs were now in English and that they were in the United States. They drove nonstop for the entire day until they arrived that night at a house that overlooked a river.” He continued with his narrative about the escape of Soon Ling Oh from the downtown hotel., how she hid in the Kim`s restaurant and ended up in his neighbor`s basement.

  Cash paused again and LaKeisha asked, “Is there more to the story?” At this point Cash described the morning`s trip into the Rust Belt cities along the Monongahela River and the discovery of the house where the other girls are being held captive.

  LaKeisha pushed her chair back and said, “Wow!! Cash when you step into something you get into it up to your neck.” Standing up she continued, “That was my third cup of coffee. Excuse me while I go to the ladies room. When I come back we need to figure out our next step how to rescue the girls and nail those bastards.”

  When LaKeisha returned from the ladies room Cash smiled and said, “I`m glad you used the word “we.” All “we” have to deal with is an international drug and human trafficking cartel, Mexican air borne coyotes, an illegal immigrant in my neighbor`s basement, a drug war in the city, and don`t forget a suspected serial killer in a nursing home. This reminds me of the old joke when the Lone Ranger and Tonto come to the crest of a hill and when they looked down the hill there are two hundred Indians in war paint. When the Lone Ranger asks Tonto what should we do? Tonto looks at him and says what do you mean “we,” Kemosabe?”

  LaKeisha smiled and said, “Come on! Let`s go get them, Kemosabe.”

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  23

  The most direct approach was the obvious, so Cash and LaKeisha drove from the Burger King directly across town to the Southside where they pulled into the parking lot at thirty three eleven East Carson Street. The unpretentious sign read Western Pennsylvania Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The building itself was of modern design with ample use of glass and aluminum to provide a brightly lit lobby. A guard was standing at the metal detectors and after Cash and LaKeisha showed their badges, he asked them to check their revolvers. After tagging the guns, he handed each of them a receipt and directed them to the information desk.

  At the information, desk they were greeted by a middle-aged lady with a name tag that read Sarah. They explained that this was an unscheduled visit but they needed to talk to an agent about an urgent matter. Sarah asked a few more questions that produced enough useful information from the detectives. She hesitatingly asked them to be seated in a waiting area and she picked up her phone. Taking seats in the aluminum and glass waiting area they were discussing how to go about contacting the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agency when a slender young woman walked over and introduced herself as Agent Karen Lipke. She led them to a small generic government office with no personal pictures on the walls or desk. She sat down behind the desk and the two detectives took chairs facing her.

  Sha inquired about the purpose of their visit, and also why they had considered it urgent.

  Cash took the lead and gave a synopsis of the human trafficking, narcotics, and an international criminal organization operating in the Pittsburgh area. Ms. Lipke seemed dubious of the tale but after a few minutes of further discussion excused herself and left the room. Fifteen minutes later she returned with a man carrying manila folder who introduced himself as Agent Donald Graham. Before the detectives could say anything Graham said, “I`ve been looking forward to meeting you, Phillip Cash. There are a few questions I`d like you to answer.”

  Cash, obviously surprised by this opening statement, silently gestured with his hands for agent Graham to proceed. “Why were you in your personal vehicle doing surveillance out of your jurisdiction and who was in the car with you this morning?”

  Cash recovered and asked added, “How did you get that information?”

  Graham replied, “I`m the one asking the questions. What were you doing there and who was in the car with you?”

  Cash answered the questions as asked.

  Graham then continued, “We have had that house under observation for about ten days. We saw your car and ran the license plate.” Without sitting down he said, “We all need to go up to the bureau chief`s office and share some of what we know.”

  On the way there, LaKeisha whispered to Cash,” Yeah, like these guys like to share information.”

  Bobby Alberts was the newly appointed Bureau Chief of Station for the Western Pennsylvania Federal Bureau of Investigation. An African American, he had come up through the ranks and he was respected by his agents. He stood about five eleven and his athletic build carried one hundred and eighty pounds. He had played halfback in the Big Ten and his bureau history included the story of a drug dealer he had thrown through a second story window during a drug bust in Baltimore.

  When they entered his office he got up from behind his desk and came over to Cash and LaKeisha. He was wearing a white shirt with his sleeves rolled up. The top button of his shirt was open and his tie was pulled down a few inches. When they shook hands Cash felt like his hand was in a vise. The handshake with LaKeisha was much more gentlemanly.

  The station chief got right down to business once they were seated. “We`ve had the Koreans under our observation for some time now. They are out of Queens, New York, and we know that they have to move their business out of that city. They see the Rust Belt as a great opportunity. There is an opioid epidemic in this area extending from Donora here in on the Monongahela River down through Ambridge and Aliquippa along the Ohio River into West Virginia and beyond. The reason for my being posted here is to stop organized crime from turning this into their pot of gold. Your suspicions of human trafficking are the first we have heard of in this area.”

  Cash interrupted here and said, “These aren`t suspicions. We have talked to one of the kid
naped women who escaped from the Koreans. She was in my car and pinpointed the house where two other girls are being held.”

  A surprised Bobby Alberts looked at Cash and said, “What in the hell are you telling me? If I got the story right, you had an illegal alien, a victim of human trafficking by an international crime syndicate in your personal vehicle. You were totally out of your jurisdiction and trying to do the job of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.”

  Cash didn`t blink and answered, “That`s about right. That`s water over the dam. Now, are we going to share information and take these guys down?”

  Alberts sat back in his chair and smiled, “Well, I`ll hand you this, Detective Cash, you`ve got balls but here is how things are going to be.”

  Driving back to Zone One headquarters LaKeisha began the discussion, “I don`t want to say “I told you so,” but so much for the sharing bit. That Bobby Alberts is the real thing. Let`s review where we stand. First off, you need to take Soon Ling into custody and report her to Immigration and Custom`s Enforcement. We should put a hold on her until she can be turned over to them. Secondly, you were officially told to stay in your own backyard. So now it is back to simple homicides and narcotics for us.”

  “Yeah, I guess you`re right. Back to our boring lives. Say, I noticed you paying a lot of attention and taking a good hard look at the bureau chief. Is he your type?”

  “Give me a break, Kemosabe. I`m a single mom with a full time job and a fifteen year old boy who`s hormones are exploding. I don`t have time for any romancing. Besides, that I`m still in love with my man, Amos, who died a hero in Viet Nam.”

  With that Cash realized that he had scratched open an old wound so he turned his attention to traffic as a tear rolled down LaKeisha`s cheek.

  Chapter

  24

  Pak Tan Hee was dreading the phone call he needed to make to Lee Heon Tae. It was Lee who had been his mentor and introduced him to Khangpae. Lee had treated him as a little brother. Lee was there the day he got his tattoo signifying the pa (mob) he belonged to. Pak sat in the house overlooking Donora and the Monongahela River and let his mind wander back to when he was a teenager in Suwon, South Korea. The rice farmers were still using ox carts to take their goods to market and on one particularly frigid day as he was walking along the road he passed a pair of oxen who had icicles hanging down from their mouths as they labored along on the road to Incheon. In the summertime the sunsets were breathtaking. The silhouettes of the fishermen returning in their sampans stood in bold relief on the yellow sea. All the colors of the visible spectrum were gloriously on display. The red orange of the setting sun blended into the green, yellow, and blue of the sampan sails, while the impending night brought the indigo and violet that completed this beautiful panorama. It was as beautiful and peaceful as any place on this planet. Why did he ever leave there and how did he become involved with an international crime organization? He hated working in the stinking rice paddies with human waste as fertilizer and saw no future as the third son in his family. So he left the rice paddies and became what was considered a “slicky boy” in those days, making a few won by stealing anything he could from the U.S. Army base at Ascom City where he got a job as a house boy. The drunken soldiers were also an easy mark in the darker alleys of Bupyung.

  Coming back to the reality of the task facing him, he felt embarrassed and guilty that he had let his idol down. Lowering his head in shame he dialed Lee Heon Tae`s cellphone number. On the third ring, the familiar voice of his mentor answered “Yo bo seo.”

  “It`s me, Heon Tae. I need to give you an update.” Pak hesitated at this point and was not sure how to proceed.

  “What`s going on my younger brother?” Lee asked “You sound upset.”

  Pak then proceeded to tell him that one of the girls in his group had escaped. That they had sold her services to a man in a hotel in downtown Pittsburgh and she somehow escaped. He told of how the three men had scoured the downtown area but found no sign of her.

  Lee went ballistic over the phone “An dwae yo!!” (It can`t be) calling Pak every derogatory name in the Korean language. How Pak had disappointed his mentor and how he had dishonored his pa and the only way to redeem himself was to find the girl and punish her properly. In Khangpae, this constituted a death sentence for her. As Lee`s anger subsided, he became more pragmatic and asked Pak for more details. After getting all the information he proceeded with some advice. Obviously the girl could not have gone far in a strange city with no money and no obvious plan. Therefore, the most logical place would be the Korean restaurant.

  Pak explained they had gone there and searched the entire place.

  Lee exploded again, “You stupid idiot, that is where you have to go! Go back and force the owners to tell you where she is. Use whatever methods necessary but find and eliminate that girl. She knows too much!”

  The chastised Pak Tan Hee (street name Tom) knew what his task was.

  Kim Heon Tae sat back in his chair in the second floor office at the Korean Martial Arts School for Taekwondo and Hokkaido. He pondered what this latest development from his little brother`s mission in the Rust Belt meant to the overall survival of the Incheon branch of Khangpae in America. They had been battling the Chinese Green Dragons for over twenty years for the drug and prostitution trade in Queens. At one time, they even worked with the Green Dragons to battle the mafia families for control of this turf. Once the Koreans and Chinese had control of Queens the Green Dragons turned against their oriental partners and a bloody battle began between the two sides. At first, the Khangpae held their own but eventually the overpowering numbers of Green Dragon warriors had forced the Koreans to look for other territories.

  Lately, things had become more precarious when two of Kim`s associates had been assassinated in a very grisly manner. There was also talk on the street that Kim himself could be the next victim. Sitting up straight in his chair he realized that he needed to go to Donora, Pennsylvania to help his little brother solidify their control in the Rust Belt. He picked up his phone and made plans accordingly.

  It was closing time at the Garden of the Morning Calm restaurant, and the elder Mr. Kim was bussing the last tables and setting up for the next day’s customers. He turned and walked to the front door to lock up. Looking out the front window he saw a Black Cadillac Escalade pull up and two burly Koreans got out and came barging in, “Sorry but we are closed for dinner,” he said. The larger of the two men grabbed him by his shirt and pushing him against the wall hissed “We`re not here to eat, we want the girl!”

  Kim immediately recognized him as the man who was there the night before, “What girl?”

  Before he could say anything else, the other Korean ran back toward the kitchen as Mrs. Kim came through the door drying her hands with a towel. He grabbed her in a bear hug, turned, and carried her to where her husband was being held against the wall. Pak Tan Hee then pushed Mr. Kim to the floor knocking down several chairs. Towering over him he issued the ominous threat, if Kim wanted to see his wife alive again he would have twenty four hours to lead them to the girl`s location. Kicking the fallen Mr. Kim he added, “I will call you here tomorrow morning at 8:00 A.M. and I want the answer.” Then, the two thugs left carrying a struggling Mrs. Kim who they threw roughly into the back of the black Cadillac Escalade and drove off. A dazed and frightened Mr. Kim ignored the pain from being kicked in his back, got up, and rushed to the phone to call his son Henry.

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  25

  The children were upstairs in their bedrooms for the night and Laura and Phil Cash sat down in the den to relax. He had just brought in a glass of white zinfandel for her and he eased into his recliner chair with a bottle of Bud Light. Laura began to tell Phil about her day as a substitute teacher at Brian and Robin`s school. Just as Phil took his first sip of the Bud Light, the doorbell rang. ”I`ll get it,” he said as he slowly got up and went to the front door wondering who would be
ringing their door bell at this time of night. Opening the door, he saw a frenzied Henry Kim, who blurted out “They’ve kidnapped my mother.”

  Phil motioned Henry in and they went into the den. When Laura saw Henry, she sensed something was wrong and directed him to a chair. Henry declined to sit and pacing back and forth in the den he began to tell them what had just happened at the Garden of the Morning Calm. Laura got up and put his arm on Henry`s shoulder and had him sit down in the chair. Phil sensing the emergency changed mentally from husband, father, and neighbor to his Detective Cash mode.

  “Did your father call the police?”

  “No, he just locked himself in the restaurant and called me.”

  Cash pulled out his cell phone and as he was dialing he said, “We need to get a patrol car over there right away and make sure your dad is o.k.” After making the call, he turned to Henry and swore him to absolute secrecy. ”I talked to the Federal Bureau of Investigation and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement today. I think I know where your mother has been taken. We have scheduled a joint meeting tomorrow with the Pittsburgh Police and agents from ICE and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. These guys are good. We`ll get your mother back.”

  Henry holding back some tears said, ”I know you will do all you can, but this looks almost hopeless.”

  Laura got up and going over to where Henry was sitting, she bent down and putting her arm around his shoulder said, “The police and the federal agents will do all they can, and you and I need to do what we can. We can all pray because miracles still happen.”

  As Laura continued to try and comfort Henry, Cash stepped into the kitchen and pulled agent Don Grahams card from his pocket and dialed the emergency number. Graham was still in the office on East Carson Street and picked up on the second ring. Cash said, “Agent Graham this is Detective Cash. We need to share again.” Cash then explained the kidnapping of Mrs. Kim and the twenty-four hour deadline the kidnappers had given her husband. He added, “What these hostages need is the Federal Bureau of Investigation`s fire power.”