by Mike Ryan
“Well, thank you for the word of warning,” Berry said. “I so appreciate your concern for me.”
Jacobs grinned. “Good luck.”
Jacobs turned, with Thrower opening the door as his friend reached it. Thrower followed him out the door, then closed it. They said farewell to the secretary, then went down the hallway to exit the building.
“That went well,” Thrower said.
“Just like we expected. Let’s hope he reacts the way we think he will.”
“I’m pretty confident he will. With a guy like that, you just know he’s on the phone with Mallette right now, telling him we were there.”
Jacobs smiled, hoping that was the case. “Well, if he is, our plan’s working so far.”
14
Berry looked through the blinds of his window, looking down at the street below, seeing if he could make out his two visitors. He saw them, just as they were about to get into a car. He watched them as they got in, and continued watching as the car drove away, eventually out of his sight. He immediately went back to his desk and got on the phone.
Mallette answered right away. “Yes?”
“They were just here,” Berry said hurriedly, sounding worried.
“Who was?”
“Them. Jacobs and the other guy. They were just here in my office.”
Mallette sounded surprised. “What?”
“They came right in and were talking to me.”
“What did they want?”
“You. They wanted me to give you up. Sacrifice you somehow.”
“It doesn’t surprise me that they would make the offer. What did you tell them?”
“I told them that I wouldn’t.”
“Did they say anything else? Anything about the other night at your house?”
“Not much, just a casual reference to it.”
“What about anything else, something that might indicate where they are, future plans, anything like that?”
“No, nothing,” Berry said. “Everything seemed to be based on me telling them about you.”
“And you said nothing?”
“I didn’t say a word.”
Mallette thought for a few moments. It seemed like an odd choice for Jacobs to make. Trying to turn his lawyer, though he’d done it before. This time, it seemed like an odd turn of events, though.
“How long was he there?”
“Not long,” Berry answered. “Just a few minutes, really.”
“And he was only there to turn you against me?”
“That’s how it seemed.”
“Very strange.”
“Why?”
“How hard was this pitch?” Mallette asked.
“Oh, I don’t know, medium, I guess. Said a few things, tried to change my mind, then just left it alone. I guess he figured I wasn’t going to, so he didn’t push it any harder.”
“He just barged into your office?”
“Well, not exactly. He was already there when I got there.”
“He was?”
“He apparently made an appointment, then my secretary showed them into the office before I arrived. He was sitting waiting for me.”
“He was already in your office before you got there?” Mallette asked, his voice slightly raised.
“Yes.”
“Where was he?”
“He was sitting in front of my desk. The other guy was by the door, standing there.”
“Did either of them scramble around when you came in, like they were looking for something before you got there?”
“No. They were just sitting there, calm as could be. Why, what are you thinking?”
“I’m thinking they were trying to find something to use against me,” Mallette replied. “The meeting was just a ruse to get them into the office.”
“There’s nothing there to be found, even if that was the case. I have nothing here that implicates you in any way.”
Mallette kept thinking, assuming that Jacobs had something else in play, besides just talking to his lawyer in hopes of turning him. That seemed like a very simplistic move, and one that Jacobs wouldn’t necessarily do. There had to be something else going on. Mallette continued thinking of all the options available. And there was one that kept popping into his head over and over again. A listening device.
“I should send someone over there.”
“Why?” Berry asked.
“Because I don’t think that Jacobs showed up there just to talk you to death. He had something else in mind.”
“Such as what?”
“Maybe he planted a bug in your office.”
“A bug? Like a listening device?”
“Yes.”
“Well, that’s illegal.”
“You wouldn’t be able to prove that it was him, even if you found one.”
“Wait a minute.” Berry started thinking about Jacobs’ final minute in his office. He was standing near his desk.
“What is it?”
“Let me just check something.” Berry got down on the floor and started checking underneath his desk. It didn’t take very long before he found a small, square-shaped black object sticking to the underside of his desk. “What is this?”
“What? You found something?”
Berry put his fingers on the device and removed it from the desk. He crawled out from under the desk and sat down in his chair, looking the object over. “I think I found it.”
“A bug?”
“Right where Jacobs was standing, underneath the desk, this little object.” Berry kept analyzing it, holding it up to the light.
“Get rid of it. Smash it.”
Berry dropped it to the ground, then stomped on it several times with the heel of his shoe. It cracked into several pieces. “It’s done. It’s no longer intact.”
“Good. Get rid of it, just in case. Put it in the trash, take it to the dumpster in back of the building, whatever, just don’t let it stay in that room.”
“Consider it done.”
“It seems as if Jacobs was hoping to pull a fast one,” Mallette said. “Hoping we would slip up and say something that would lead him to me.”
“Well, we don’t have to worry about that now.”
“Just the same, take a look around your office to make sure that he didn’t plant another one, just in case that one was found.”
“I will. I’ll let you know if I find anything.”
“I’ll send someone over to help. He’ll be there in twenty minutes.”
“I really don’t think I need the help.”
“He’s coming,” Mallette said. “I need to be sure. I can’t afford any slip-ups. Especially not now.”
Jacobs and Thrower were still in the area. They gave the appearance that they were leaving, assuming that Berry would be watching them to make sure they left. In reality, all they did was go around the block and come back to the same street, parking a little further down the road, away from the view of Berry’s window.
And they were still listening. The bug they planted in Berry’s office was not the only one. In fact, Berry finding it was all part of the plan. They’d hoped he would. They actually wanted him to. Once he found the one under the desk, they both would breathe a little easier, assuming they found it, and there weren’t any more.
“You sure this is gonna work?” Thrower asked.
“Well, I never make guarantees. But I think it’s got a good chance.”
“You heard him. Mallette’s sending someone over to help him clear the room.”
“Let him,” Jacobs said. “They won’t find it.”
“You’re sure?”
“Like I said, I don’t make guarantees, but I’m pretty confident they won’t find it. I put it just where we talked about. There’s a groove by one of the wheels on his desk chair, and I put it right in between. I’m pretty sure they’d look right over it. They’ll go through the desk, the bookshelves, the walls, the floor, probably even the ceiling. But I doubt they’ll be looking under the w
heel of his chair.”
“What if they do?”
Jacobs shrugged. “Then I guess this thing won’t work. We’ll just have to see.” Jacobs then crossed his fingers and held them up. “Let’s cross our fingers.”
“Should I do my toes, too?”
“I don’t think we need to get ridiculous.”
Thrower grinned. Then they waited. They didn’t have to wait long, though. Twenty minutes later, a familiar face to them walked into Berry’s office. They recognized the man as one of Mallette’s men.
“Here we go,” Jacobs said. “Let’s hope this goes as planned.”
They continued listening in as Berry eventually greeted the man in his office. After the initial greeting, there were no words spoken. They could hear what sounded like the office being searched. Things were getting picked up and moved around. They seemed to be doing a thorough search.
Jacobs looked at the time, wondering how long it was going to take. Considering they could still hear, that was a good sign.
“Should’ve planted a camera, too,” Thrower said.
Jacobs shrugged. “This is all we need.”
“Won’t be if they find it.”
Thirty minutes after the man first went into Berry’s office, they finally heard him speak again. The noises made from shuffling items around had stopped.
“Looks like it’s clear,” the man said.
“Good,” Berry replied. “I told Mallette that I already found the one.”
“He likes to be sure.”
“Well, now you can tell him. Goodbye.”
Jacobs and Thrower gave each other a high five.
“Looks like we’re in business,” Thrower said.
Jacobs finally smiled. “Looks that way. Now we just have to hope he says something we can use or act on.”
“Oh, he will. There is no doubt in my mind… this guy’s gonna say something that we need to nail this thing down.”
“I hope you’re right. He might be the key to ending this.”
15
After a day, Jacobs and Thrower had taken their operation back to the house. They could listen in just as well from there. The only reason to be closer would be if they had to move quickly, and it would have been better if they were right outside Berry’s office to do that. But they weren’t far away and being at home was a much more comfortable environment. There was no chance of being spotted like there would be if they continued to wait on the street. Plus, they figured if they overheard something they needed to act on, they would know where it was.
They were at the kitchen table, listening to the goings-on in Berry’s office with Franks and Tiffany also sitting around. They had it linked to a laptop, so they all could hear.
“Can I ask what you’re gonna do if this dude just gets up and leaves?” Franks asked.
“I assume you have a point in there somewhere?” Jacobs replied.
“Yeah, man, I got a point. What I’m saying is, it’s all nice and cozy and hunky-dory that you guys are sitting here able to put your feet up, but what if this guy goes out and splits, leaving you behind?”
“If he gets a call, we’ll hear it.”
“But what if he don’t get a call? What if he just gets a text message? We do live in a century where texting is more popular than calling.”
“Not for Mallette.”
“Why not?”
“Texting leaves a trace. It’s physical evidence.”
“Well, I don’t know if it’s physical,” Franks said.
“You know what I mean. It leaves behind evidence. It can be saved, stored, and eventually used against you if it’s an address or something, and later there’s a shooting there or something. It proves you knew about it.”
“So?”
“Say he texts Berry an address. A day later the cops find a dead body there. A week later, Mallette and Berry have a falling out and they part ways. Who’s to say Berry won’t give that text to the cops? It proves Mallette knew about the address.”
“But it doesn’t necessarily put him there.”
“It doesn’t have to,” Jacobs said. “Not by itself. It’s just one more piece of evidence, and that compiled with a bunch of other things, would be enough to convict him if it came to that.”
“But it won’t come to that,” Thrower said.
“No, it won’t. Because Mallette won’t allow something like that to happen. That’s why he’ll either call, or he’ll do it in person.”
“Well, if it’s in person, you’ll miss that too,” Franks said.
Jacobs gave him a salty look. “Can we just assume for a second that I know what I’m doing?”
“Only one?”
“Just trust me. If Mallette does anything, he’ll call.”
“Why? What if Berry’s phones are tapped?”
Jacobs threw his hands up. He was done trying to explain things. “I don’t know, then. I guess we’ll have failed and wasted our time.”
Franks shrugged and looked at Thrower. “I was only trying to play devil’s advocate, man.”
Thrower faked a smile and nodded. He was about to look back at the laptop, but his eyes glanced at Tiffany briefly before he did. She was at the end of the table. She had a book in her hands, but she wasn’t reading it. It didn’t look like she was paying much attention to the conversation either. She was staring straight ahead, over the book at the wall. She looked like someone who had something on her mind. Or multiple things.
Thrower put his arm out across the table and waved his hand around a little. He was hoping to silently get the attention of Jacobs. He succeeded. Once Jacobs looked his way, Thrower pointed at Tiffany.
Jacobs looked over at her and saw the same thing that had alarmed Thrower. She had a worried look on her face. Jacobs slowly reached his arm over and put his hand on Tiffany’s forearm. She jumped at first, not expecting to feel his touch. She quickly got herself together, taking a deep breath, and smiling at him.
“You OK?” Jacobs asked.
“Yeah.” She rubbed her arms as if she were cold. “Yeah, I’m fine. Why?”
“You seem like something’s wrong. Or something’s bothering you.”
Tiffany shook her head, not wanting to admit anything. “No. Of course not. What would be bothering me?”
Jacobs tilted his head down and gave her a glance, as if he didn’t believe her. He knew her better by now. “Tiff?”
“Yes?”
“What’s wrong? And don’t tell me nothing, because I can tell that there’s something.”
Tiffany closed her eyes and scratched her neck, still not wanting to say anything. She knew if she said what she was thinking, it wouldn’t go over well.
Jacobs persisted, though. “You know you can tell me anything.”
“I know. It’s just… it’s nothing.”
“Tiff. We can all see that something’s on your mind. Just let it out. Maybe we can help. Or maybe it’ll be something that’ll help us and we can use.”
Tiffany let out a laugh. “I doubt that.”
“Why?”
“Because you won’t like or agree with what I’m thinking.”
“There’s only one sure way to know.”
Now it was Tiffany’s turn to give him the glance. “Brett, I know how you think. And you won’t like or approve of what I’m thinking.”
“Well, that settles it,” Franks said, slapping the table. “Now we gotta know what it is so we can figure out which one of you is right.” Jacobs slowly turned his head toward his friend. Franks recognized the look he was getting. “Or we cannot. You know, no big deal on my end or nothing.” He looked at Thrower and shrugged.
Now it was Thrower’s turn to try to convince her to open up. “Tiff, if it’s about what we’re doing here, there’s no harm in saying what’s on your mind. If it’s good, and it can work, and it can help us, maybe we can use it. If it’s sketchy, we can work through it and figure it out. And if it doesn’t work, then it doesn’t work. But there’s no harm i
n saying it, even if we think it won’t work.”
Tiffany sighed, realizing she was going to be forced into talking about it. Jacobs reached out to hold her hand.
“Hey, if it’s really something you don’t wanna talk about, you don’t have to.” Jacobs rubbed her hand with his thumb. “I’m not gonna force you. But if it’s something you think might help, we’re all ears.”
She looked at him and smiled. “I want to help. I do. That’s why I’m thinking about this.”
Jacobs looked confused. He wasn’t sure where she was going with this. “About what?”
“What I can do to help.”
“Which is?”
Tiffany took a deep breath. “Use me as bait again.”
Jacobs raised his eyebrows. He couldn’t believe what she’d said. Even she was surprised at what she’d said. She’d been thinking about it for a few days, and while she wasn’t eager to put herself in harm’s way again, it certainly seemed to speed things up. It did the last time.
“Now, I know what you’re gonna say.”
“Well, if it starts with an N, and ends with an O, you pretty much got it,” Jacobs said.
“Just hear me out.”
“No. There’s nothing to hear out. The answer is no. We’re not doing that again. I didn’t even want to do it the last time.”
“But it did work. And I didn’t even get close to getting hurt.”
“Yeah, that time. We can’t just keep trying that and hoping for the best.”
Franks and Thrower looked at each other, neither wanting to get involved unless they were asked for their opinion. They didn’t want to risk getting on either one’s bad side. So they just sat and watched.
“Do you really think I’d want to put myself in that kind of situation again?” Tiffany asked. “I mean, I’ve been kidnapped, tied up, almost blown up, shot at… it’s not exactly fun for me, you know.”