Red Dragons

by K W Frost

  ‘Over the next few days, my house and garage is searched by more intruders, but they don’t find anything, as nothing is there. Then I place my advertisement in the paper and get to meet the boss man… but I’ll get back to him later. Right now, I want to concentrate on the local contact. Why did you do it, Lou?’

  The suddenness of Child’s accusation caught everyone off guard.

  ‘What do you mean?’ replied Chappell, his face reddening.

  ‘Oh come on, Lou, everything points to you’ said Child, his manner remaining calm and collected. ‘Who else knew that Steve and I are in the fire brigade? Who else knew my exact address and could direct a recovery operation? Who else knew which ward I was staying in at the hospital? Who else could gain access to my room and then skillfully interrogate me? Almost persuade me to reveal the location of the computer board? Also, the only reason the intruder would disguise their voice would to prevent me from recognising it. Of course, I can’t remember much from that night, but I can remember a large, shadowy figure.

  ‘Oh come on, this is a joke,’ Chappell replied with false confidence. ‘Anyone could find out that kind of information, anyone at all.’

  ‘True,’ nodded Child. ‘But it’s not a question of finding out information, it’s a question of already knowing — the time factor is important here. It takes time to investigate, but you didn’t need to. You already knew everything.’

  ‘Bah, you’re talking rubbish,’ Chappell sneered.

  ‘Am I?’ countered Child. ‘Who else has the intelligence and skill to search my house? It had to be someone trained. Someone who knew how to bypass my security systems.’

  ‘Most seasoned burglars can bypass those things in a couple of minutes,’ defended Chappell. ‘Ask Bender, he knows.’

  ‘He is right, Simon,’ said Bender. ‘Most good burglars laugh at security systems.’

  ‘That’s the point though — I wasn’t burgled,’ explained Child. ‘Nothing was taken. Why search my home if they weren’t looking for stuff to sell? Someone looking for the computer board.’

  ‘We only have your word that the house was searched,’ said Chappell, a confident smirk on his face. ‘I think you’re making it all up. If this is all I came down here for, I’m leaving now. I’ve got real work to do.’

  Chappell started to get up from the settee.

  ‘Sit down,’ demanded Child.

  Chappell looked taken aback as he sunk back down again. Child’s voice commanded obedience.

  ‘Is there more to this charade?’ Chappell growled at Child.

  ‘You don’t want to miss the best bit, do you?’ said Child. ‘Or would you like to call your lawyer now?’

  ‘A lawyer?’ replied Chappell, his voice not quite matching his relaxed pose on the settee.

  Chappell’s mind was racing now. What else did Child know?

  ‘Why would I call my lawyer? You have no facts or proof, Child. Nothing to link me to your claims.’

  ‘Don’t I? Why did you not report the drug smuggling to the drug squad in Auckland, Lou?’ Child questioned further. ‘Bill here gave you my evidence, yet when we checked there was no record of your reporting it.’

  Child’s accusations were flying like bullets.

  ‘Okay, so I didn’t report it,’ Chappell admitted, keeping his voice restrained. ‘Look, I know those drug squad boys. They’d have come storming up here and cause complete chaos. I thought we’d have a better chance of solving the crime if we kept the whole thing quiet for a while longer. I wanted to buy myself some time to snoop around and see if anyone was acting suspiciously. That’s probably why you saw me out at Leigh over the past few days. I was looking into things.’

  Chappell’s excuses seemed plausible. They also gave him a reason to be near Child’s residence. Chappell looked around at each person: Bender, Ritson and Samantha all looked accepting of his fabrication. However, Child’s ice-cold eyes never left Chappell’s face. Chappell, unable to withstand Child’s cold stare, looked away first.

  Child knew it was all a lie.

  ‘Are you sure you don’t want to call your lawyer, Lou?’ Child asked mildly, feigning concern. ‘You do have your cell phone with you, right?’

  ‘Yes, of course I do, but I don’t need to call my lawyer,’ Chappell replied sharply, unsure about what Child was up to.

  Child turned to Bender.

  ‘Bill, do you know Lou’s cell phone number?’

  ‘Of course I do,’ said Bender defensively.

  It seemed to Bender that Child was way off base this time, and he didn’t like such brazen accusations being thrown at a fellow officer. Then again, it wasn’t like Child to go in half-cocked without good reason. Bender thought for a moment.

  ‘Well, I know Lou’s police cell phone number,’ Bender added. ‘With current budget cuts everyone has to use the same ones.’

  ‘So Lou will have his own cell phone, just like Steve and me?’

  ‘Yes, I have a private cell phone,’ Chappell interjected. ‘So what? Everyone has one, that means nothing.’

  ‘Just checking in case you wish to ring your lawyer, Lou, that’s all,’ Child explained coolly.

  ‘Will you leave this lawyer business alone?’ Chappell snapped at Child. ‘I don’t need a lawyer!’

  Chappell was feeling unnerved by Child now, and his patience was waning.

  ‘I presume that you can ring Lou at any time?’ Child asked Bender.

  Chappell answered the question for Bender.

  ‘No, he can’t — I have an unlisted number. He can ring me on my landline when something is urgent and I’m off-duty.’

  ‘Oh, right,’ Child answered, sounding disappointed.

  Child stood up and picked up his bag from the floor. He pulled out a cell phone with a clear plastic cover over it.

  ‘Hold on, I just need to make a call,’ Child said to the group.

  He quickly punched in a speed dial number. Almost immediately, a soft bleeping sound was heard coming from Chappell’s front jacket pocket. Child wasn’t sure how Chappell would react.

  ‘Why don’t you answer the cell phone, Lou?’

  Chappell slowly took the cell phone from his pocket. He glanced at the screen for a moment before he turned the phone off.

  Chappell was fuming now. How did Child get his private number? He turned to face Child, his voice tense from the immense pressure building up inside.

  ‘Yeah, you have my private number — so what?’ Chappell said to Child, fighting to maintain some calmness in his voice. ‘What did you do? Bribe someone at telecom or something?’

  ‘No, Lou,’ Child replied softly. ‘This phone was given to me by Jake Heki. Turns out he’s a friend of yours, so you must know exactly who he is.’

  ‘Jake Heki… Jake Heki…’ Chappell repeated quietly. ‘No, I don’t I believe I recognise the name.’

  ‘Oh, come on, Lou,’ Bender interrupted. ‘We both know exactly who Jake Heki is. He’s one of the leaders of the Auckland chapter of Black Power. Most cops around here know him at least by name.’

  ‘Oh, of course, that Jake,’ Chappell said much louder than necessary. ‘Yes, I’ve heard of him — so what?’

  ‘Well, this is Jake’s phone, with your private number on it,’ Child stated again.

  ‘Rubbish, that could be anyone’s phone,’ replied Chappell. ‘Once you found my private number you could put it on any phone.’

  ‘It’s not just any phone though, it’s Jakes phone,’ Child explained again. ‘It still has his fingerprints on it. With some simple background checks we could find out who’s been paying the bills for it too.’

  Child paused, looking around at the alarmed expressions in the group.

  ‘You see, Lou, I think an even more interesting thing would be to see if Jake’s number is saved in your cell phone,’ Child pushed on.

  A look of anger crossed Chappell’s face.

  ‘An innocent man would let me check their numbers, wouldn’t they?’ Child asked politely.


  ‘No, this is a load of crap,’ Chappell snarled back. ‘I don’t have to put up with any more of this.’

  Chappell stood up and took two steps towards the door.

  ‘I know who was financing the drug deals,’ Child said plainly.

  Child’s words stopped Chappell dead in his tracks. He stood frozen to the spot, facing Child head-on. Only four feet of faded carpet separated the two men.

  ‘What did you just say…’

  ‘I know who was financing the drug deals,’ Child repeated.

  ‘How could you possibly work that out?’ Chappell replied in a whisper, his eyes almost pleading with Child to stop his accusations.

  ‘Fairly easily, actually,’ Child explained. ‘You see, your moneyman showed up to a meeting with Jake the night before last. He wasn’t expecting me to live, so he wasn’t concerned about showing his face. But I escaped from the situation with a clear image of him firmly planted in my mind. Then I saw his car again. How many big American cars like his are there in New Zealand? Not many. Lastly, I had injured his shoulder in a scuffle at the meeting, so he wasn’t too hard to find.’

  Child looked steadily at the now desperate Chappell.

  Chappell took a deep breath. He realised now that he couldn’t escape these accusations. He knew that the circumstantial evidence combined with a few cold, hard facts would be enough to convince most jurors. Chappell considered how Whittingham had always left him with the impression that he would crack under pressure. Under the heat of accusations like these, Chappell knew Whittingham would have looked for the first available scapegoat. There was only one thing to do now.

  ‘Alright, it’s true what Child is saying,’ Chappell muttered.

  Chappell’s sudden confession stunned the group.

  ‘I’ve been doing it for years in different parts of the country…’

  As Chappell spoke, he casually placed his hand into his jacket as if to retrieve the incriminating cell phone. Instead, he pulled out his police issue pistol and pointed it directly at Child’s chest.

  Everyone in the room froze, their eyes on Chappell.

  ‘However, you’re not going to take me in,’ Chappell continued calmly. ‘I knew that this day would come eventually. I am prepared. Actually, you have very little that would hold up in court, but I’m not going to take that chance. Now, Child, hands up and back against the wall.’

  Chappell gestured with his left hand, keeping his right hand holding the gun rock steady. Only a slight tightening of his finger on the trigger and Child would be a dead man.

  Ritson, Samantha and Bender all remained seated, frozen to their chairs. They were safely out of the action. Only Child stood between Chappell and the door.

  Child took a step backwards and stopped with his right leg at a forty-five degree angle.

  Ritson and Samantha recognised the signs and knew that Child was a coiled spring waiting to explode. As long as Chappell made no mistakes, Child could do nothing but bide his time.

  Child’s gaze locked onto Chappell’s eyes.

  ‘Inspector Walters, now would be a good time for you to come out.’

  Chappell chuckled openly. Now that he was back in control of the room, he seemed more his relaxed, confident self again.

  ‘Come on, Child,’ Chappell smirked. ‘You don’t expect me to fall for that one, do you?’

  Inspector Walters had arrived at the motel suite half an hour earlier. He had secretly taped the whole conversation from the next room. Gray had been with him as an independent witness. Child had agreed to have the conversations taped so that they would be submissible in a court of law.

  Tentatively, Inspector Walters opened the door into the lounge area. When it was half way open, the hinges creaked loudly.

  Chappell jerked his head around to see what had caused the noise.

  As soon as Chappell’s eyes were off him, Child sprung into action.

  Child’s left arm rose with his forearm swiveling in an anti-clockwise arc. His wrist contacted with the gun and Chappell’s fingers, forcing it away from his bodyline. The gun exploded and the bullet narrowly missed Child’s twisted midriff before blowing a hole in the wall. As his left hand moved, Child’s right hand flattened simultaneously. His fingers became hard and rigid as he drove his right hand up under Chappell’s sternum.

  It was a stunning blow.

  Chappell gagged and collapsed onto the faded carpet.

  Inspector Walters was a tall, thin man of almost thirty years. Over time, he had become good friends with Sergeant Bender. Walters entered the lounge area with long, jerky strides. He had an air of competency about him. He swiftly bent down and picked up the pistol. He unloaded it and pocketed the shells. Unclipping the pair of handcuffs from his belt, he pulled Chappell’s hands behind his back and locked them together.

  ‘Are you okay, Child?’ Walters asked Child.

  ‘Yeah, I’m fine, thanks,’ replied Child, looking down at the slowly recovering

  Chappell.

  ‘What will happen to him now?’ Child asked.

  Slipping on a pair of latex gloves, Walters removed Chappell’s cell phone from his jacket and placed it in a plastic evidence bag.

  ‘Oh, I think with the circumstantial evidence you presented in your statement, plus these cell phones and a voluntary confession, Lou will be going down for quite a stretch of time,’ Walters replied.

  Walters then turned to face the group now gathered over by the window.

  ‘Well done, people,’ Walters said with a respectful nod. ‘One of the tidiest entrapment jobs that I’ve seen for a while. We will need statements from each of you, of course, but I think Sergeant Bender here will be able to handle those.’

  Helping Chappell up from the floor, Bender’s face was contorted with rage.

  ‘Let’s get rid of this scum,’ he said, and began to walk Chappell out the door, Inspector Walters following closely behind. Once outside, Chappell was placed an unmarked police car and the door was slammed shut.

  The rest of the group stood out in the car park, reeling from the events of the past half an hour. Bender took a deep breath and turned to Child.

  ‘I’ll have to go down with Inspector Walters, Simon. I’ll ring you later though,’ Bender said. ‘And well done, buddy. For a minute there I didn’t know what you were up to, but I never doubted you,’ he added.

  Inspector Walters opened the driver’s door, pausing for a moment with his hand on the roof of the car. He looked across at Child with a puzzled expression on his face.

  ‘Mr Child, you wouldn’t mind clearing up a couple of points for me, would you?’ Walters asked.

  ‘If I can, Inspector, I’ll try,’ replied Child.

  ‘Thanks, Mr Child,’ Walters nodded. ‘I was just wondering how you happened to get Jake Heki’s cell phone? He died in his car when it exploded yesterday. You also said you know who was financing the drug deals but you didn’t name him… you wouldn’t mind telling me who he is now?’

  Walters and Child looked at each other in silence for a moment, searching out the capabilities of the other man.

  ‘The answer to your first question is that Jake gave the cell phone to me yesterday morning, as he longer had any use for it,’ Child replied. ‘Secondly, I can’t name the financial sponsor as I have no solid proof, other than what I saw with my own eyes.’

  Child paused before adding some extra information.

  ‘However, Inspector, I can tell you that you will have no more problems from that quarter.’

  Child answered the questions with a bland expression on his face.

  Walters gave a wry smile and shook his head slightly.

  ‘Somehow I don’t think we will. Goodbye, Mr Child.’

  After the unmarked police car drove away, the group headed back into the motel suit. Samantha turned to Child, a dazed look on her face.

  ‘Well, now what do we do?’ she asked.

  ‘We go out for an early lunch,’ Child replied with smile.
/>   He turned to Wardell and Ritson, who had flopped down in the lounge area.

  ‘I’m sure these two can find something else to do,’ he added with a wink.

  ‘I knew it,’ Ritson grumbled to Wardell. ‘I knew we’d miss out on the good food again.’

  Chapter Thirty-Seven

  Kioki answered Tagahasi’s call immediately. It took him only a few minutes to reassure Tagahasi that everything was fine. Kioki added that while he could expect company early today, they would keep him safe.

  The death of Whittingham tied up a lot of lose ends for Kioki, and if the police got sidetracked investigating him then so much the better. He was now freed up to concentrate fully on this project.

  Henry J Smaille looked across a busy Queen Street to the front of the grey weathered building that housed Blue Water Securities. His team was about to penetrate the small securities firm, and he hoped that they found the evidence required. This was the last chance to gain anything from this venture. Experience and instinct told him that time was running out, and he was still in the dark about how high the threat level really was. What was this precious computer board supposed to do?

  Smaille recalled the team briefing earlier that day.

  There wasn’t much to it. Inspector Harrison from the New Zealand police and Eagle Three, James Goody were to remain outside, only to be used on call. Goody had already been identified, as he was Whittingham’s tracker who was tripped up by the old man on Queen Street, so he couldn’t be used in the actual penetration mission. Harrison needed to be kept away from any complications, as he was their main liaison officer between the team and the various government agencies that they could come into conflict with. This meant that Smaille and Eagle Two were the final two-team members available to personally investigate Blue Water Securities.

  Eagle Two, alias Jerome Stulz, was the complete summation of American culture all rolled up into one. His heritage was a mixture of American Indian, Mexican, Negroid, Irish, Italian, German, with a splash of French and English as well. This combination gave him a dark, handsome appearance with jet-black hair, and he was tall with a strong build. He was the muscle in the team. It had been decided that Smaille would approach Blue Water Securities as a potential client. Once inside, he would look around to see what security they had, and what type of operation they were running.