by R Weir
“Hard to disagree.”
“They also pay men more money and promote them faster,” Mandy said. “Women just aren’t looked upon as computer experts. Much like many other fields out there where women are discriminated against. The Old Boys network is hard to crack through. So we did this and made it work. Aaron was promoted several times at WANN. Probably wouldn’t have happened if it wasn’t for me.”
“So why not be up front and tell me?” I asked.
“Hard to say. I do have trust issues at times, especially with men I hardly know. Though you came highly recommended I felt it wasn’t important for you to know to do your job. I wanted to make sure I didn’t fall victim and be killed.”
“No, instead your friend is now dead.”
I think I stunned her again and got an unpleasant stare from her.
“Sorry,” I said. “I didn’t get much sleep last night.”
“You don’t need to spell it out for me. I understand what I’ve done and who has paid the price.”
“We don’t know before he was killed, if Wilmar talked. It’s possible they know you are the true hacker and person they have to shut up. The question is, what do you know now? He called me saying he had new information.”
“We really didn’t have much new. Since Aaron’s death they shut off our access and tightened up security significantly. We’ve been attempting to get in. Haven’t had a lot of luck. Been trying a lot of different avenues.”
The killer must have convinced Wilmar to call me, as a trap, but was killed trying to get away before I got there. He had fought back, it would appear, said Floyd at the scene. A frightened man would often grow courage in the face of death.
“Whose access would be the best to have to get into WANN’s network?” I asked.
“Anyone on the security team, security engineers. Though they likely change their passwords frequently and use complex ones that are hard to break.”
“What about those in upper management?”
“Good question. But they often use easier ones to guess. Family names, and birthdates. And likely don’t change them as frequently. They generally complain if they have to remember something complicated. Often will use the same ones over and over again.”
“I may have an avenue to a possible password for one of the higher-ups. I will have to get back to you on this. For now, we need to think about your safety. I don’t need a dead client on my resume. Do you have somewhere else to stay for now? A friend or family member?”
She stopped to think for a second. You could tell she wasn’t overjoyed with moving out.
“No, not really. No family in town. And I’m not thrilled about leaving this house. Can’t you stay here and protect me?”
“I can’t detect and watch you at the same time. Nights, yes, but during the day I’d need someone else. And it will cost you more. Twenty-four-hour protection isn’t cheap.”
“Money is no object. Besides I can work from here and still see if I can get more dirt on WANN.”
I thought over my options. If I got Rocky, there’d be no issue. I knew I could trust him and she’d be safe. But I had no idea where he was or how to get ahold of him. And most of my other contacts seemed to be uninterested in helping me. I had a stupid thought, one I might regret later. Since he was already involved, maybe Adam King would be an option. Yes, he was creepy, but I had him in my pocket right now on Wilmar’s murder. The question was, could he do the job properly. I’d heard he was a pretty good shot with a gun. And if he could act like a human being, it might work, if no other possibilities were forthcoming.
“I will check around for some options and get back to you. For now, please lay low and stay home. If you need to run an errand, tell me now and I will take you there. Don’t do any more hacking until I call you. I will have someone by the end of the day.”
“So I’m fine staying home for now?”
“If anything suspicious happens, call 911 and then call me. I don’t care how trivial, make the call if you think something is out of the ordinary. If someone calls, don’t answer unless it’s me. Anyone knocking at the door, ignore it. Keep all your windows, blinds and curtains closed. Doors always double-locked. I will do a walk-through to verify before I leave.”
“Do you think you’ll find someone capable of protecting me?”
I said “yes” as I started my walk-through, trying not to snicker. Capable probably wasn’t the word I’d use to describe King, so Mister Creepy might have to do.
Chapter 40
I didn’t have a lot of luck finding anyone else. I reached out to Bill to see if he wanted to make some extra money, but he couldn’t take time off because of the vacation season leaving the Denver PD shorthanded. Calls out to my other contacts got me nothing but static. I checked with April’s brothers, at least the two I could get ahold of, but they couldn’t commit to watching every day since I didn’t know for how long I’d need them. For now, only one person seemed to be around or available. It looked more and more like King would be my only option. Since he was working for Tony Bristol, I needed to talk with him first. I owed him at least that much. I called and arranged a late lunch with him in downtown Denver.
I arrived at the Rock Bottom Brewery at around one, and strode in to find Tony already seated. He was dressed dapperly as always, expensive dark blue suit and tie, the jacket hanging over the back of his chair. He stood up to shake my hand, his 6’ 2” height taller than me, though thinner. His dark hair was showing grayer these days, his gold Rolex and massive diamond ring still adorning his left arm and finger. We had a decent relationship, though a businesslike one. Certainly much better than I had with his younger brother Don. He had ordered me a beer, while he drank some wine. The waiter brought out some ball-park pretzels he had ordered. We both sat, and I grabbed a menu to see what sounded good today.
“Jarvis, you are looking fit these days,” stated Tony. “Good to see after all you’ve gone through these last couple of years.”
“Been busy, which is good,” I replied. “Some of the results were not ideal, but I’m still standing and making a living.”
“Sorry to hear about you and Melissa,” he said. “She is a great lady. Too bad you screwed that up.”
Straight and to the point.
“Not ideal either, what happened. A mistake I will live with the rest of my life.”
“It would seem she still cares for you. Though trust is no longer there. Once you lose that, it is hard to reclaim.”
The waiter returned and we each ordered. Tony had the chopped BBQ chicken salad, while I ordered a hickory bacon chicken sandwich. I handed over the menu and rested my arms on the table, like mother taught me not to do. I planned to be direct with Tony as well.
“Enough of the small talk,” I said. “I need a favor. One that may prevent the death of my client.”
“I’m listening.”
“Our paths have been crossing on my current case. You’ve been bailing out your clients, who were trying to injure and even kill me.”
“Not our clients. But our clients asked our assistance to get them released. And the term is ‘allegedly’ tried to injure or kill you.”
“Nothing alleged about it. I was there, I know what happened.”
“The lawyer in me must spell that out.”
I made a face and decided against using one of the many lawyer jokes out there as a response.
“Because of the current situation my client is at risk and needs protection. And I can’t protect and detect at the same time. So I need assistance.”
“Surely you have other avenues to obtain help.”
“All my previous helpers are unavailable at this time. So I’m scraping the bottom of the barrel. I want to use Adam King.”
“He is currently employed by me at this time.”
“I’m aware of this, and is tracking Cong and Lok. You need to pull him off of this and allow me to hire him.”
“Why should I agree to this?”
“Be
cause we have a good business relationship that is in our best interests to maintain. I can tell you what Cong and Lok are up to. They are trying to prevent me from solving this murder, which now has turned into murder number two. They dropped off the possible murderer at the scene.”
“You know this how?”
“Adam King. I found him at the scene. He told me how he got there and what he saw. I’m now covering for him. The police don’t know this, but that can change.”
Tony sipped on his wine and took several bites of pretzel, dipping it in hot mustard. Somehow, he was able to avoid getting any on his shirt. Must be his upbringing that taught him the secret.
“This sounds like a threat.”
“Not at all. We can work together. I have no need to make it any messier than it is. All I need is his help making sure my client lives through this.”
“So, you think King is capable enough to provide protection?”
“I certainly hope so. Right now, I have little choice. If someone better is available to you, then by all means give me a name.”
“You’ve tried Brandon Sparks?”
“Appears to be out of the state and not taking my calls.”
The waiter returned with our lunch. I took a bite and found it delicious. Tony took several mouthfuls and asked for a refill on his wine. I’d only drank a little of my beer, but another frosty mug was placed beside it.
“I’m willing to agree to this, on one condition. Stay out of my brother’s business.”
“If his doesn’t cross over into mine, that won’t be a problem.”
“He is a decent litigator, but an excellent salesman who brings in a fair amount of business for us. Our success is much of his doing.”
“Even if the clients are of the shady kind?”
“Oh please, Jarvis. You’ve worked with some as well. There would be no work for any of us if it weren’t for the criminal element.”
“There are criminals, and then there are those who kill in the name of profit only. It is hard to side with them, in my book.”
Tony poked at a couple of large pieces of chicken and swallowed them down, followed by more wine. He took the cloth napkin and patted his face. More learned behavior from high-end breeding.
“You can play the high moral ground. I like you, Jarvis, but in the end I will choose my brother over you every time. I’m sure you understand this after what happened with your brother. Leave Don alone, or else we will come down hard on you.”
“Even if Melissa asks you not to?”
He laughed after two more bites of his salad.
“Melissa is like a daughter to me. She will be a great litigator who will join our firm one day as a lawyer, once her schooling is done. Maybe even get her name on the outside door as a partner. Even so, Don is blood and helps our profit margin with his work, allowing me a lifestyle my wife and I relish. Melissa knows this and would never put me in a position to choose.”
I saw where he was coming from, and the defiant one in me wanted to tell him to go fuck himself. But I wasn’t in a position to argue. I needed his help, and for now was willing to agree to the stipulations.
“I agree to your terms.”
I put out my hand and he shook it. Our food was finished and the check arrived. Tony picked it up and, after reading it, put down his credit card.
“So do you have any say in the matter on keeping Cong and Lok off of my back,” I asked.
“No. Simply doing a favor for our client.”
“WANN Systems?”
“You know I can’t divulge that information.”
I nodded.
“Besides, you must have some strings of your own to pull,” stated Tony. “You made the Russian brothers disappear, or so it would seem.”
“Their cousin nearly killed a friend of mine, before she killed him.”
“Do you know where they are? I might be able to sweeten the pot some with a little hint of their location.”
“They are being detained.”
“Illegally, I presume, without being given their civil rights for counsel.”
I gave him a wicked smile before responding.
“Allegedly!”
Chapter 41
We finished up our conversation, and Tony was tasked with letting King know of our new arrangement, while I would deal with Mandy. She did not like King at all, from his hounding her previously, so I needed to break it to her gently. Since I’d take the night shift I decided I’d cover the rest of the day with her and let her know over dinner. But first off I needed to call Dezmond Price and see what he knew about Cong and Lok. When he answered the phone he was a joy to talk with.
“Do you have a target on your back, stating you want nasty people to accost you?” he said.
“I’m naturally gifted at attracting attention. What do you know about them?”
Hearing a few taps on his keyboard, it appeared he was retrieving the information on his computer.
“We are pretty sure they work for the Chinese government. High up in their cyber division.”
“I doubt Lok has ever even used a computer.”
“No, he is an enforcer. Came from one of the many Chinese gangs, though not sure which. But he is deadly with his hands. Never touches a gun, from what I’m reading. May use other martial arts weapons, but never a gun. Doesn’t feel he needs one.”
“Yeah, I learned that the hard way. I won’t make that mistake again. And what about Cong? He dresses and talks like a businessman. Very classy and professional, yet doesn’t seem like he would hesitate to order Lok to rip out your heart if necessary.”
“Not a lot on him. Seems to have climbed up the ranks quickly. Likely for the reasons you just stated. Moves around a lot, going from place to place. Goes where he needs to go and scare people, I’m guessing.”
“That seems to be his mission with me as well. Any connections to WANN Systems?”
“No obvious ones. But again, the rumors were of an influx of cash that saved them, coming from overseas. Could have been China as well. Hell, they own the US government with all the loans to cover our debt, why not the corporations as well. Do you have anything new for me?”
“Someone killed a computer tech who was feeding me information on WANN. Cong and Lok may have dropped off the killer at the building where the murder happened.”
“So it wasn’t them that did the killing?”
“I don’t think so. Though they could have farmed it out to someone else so as not to risk getting caught.”
“Their connections are deep. Am I going to need to bring them in as well?”
“For now I’d say no. I’d like to see what they do next. Maybe this time I can fend them off.”
“If not, I’ll be sure to send flowers to your funeral.”
At least I’d know there’d be lots of flowers at my burial!
“What about the Platov brothers? Where are they at now?”
“Out of my hands. Off to Miami. From there they will be sent on. Left here a couple nights ago on a military cargo plane out of Buckley. They will be processed and sent on from there within a few days. Why, do you miss them?”
I chuckled. “Hardly. Just making sure you were following through and they didn’t fall through the Bureau red-tape cracks.”
“Fuck you!” he said before hanging up.
It was good having such close friends in the FBI.
Next, I wanted to check in with April. Should have been home by now, so I wanted to see how her recovery was going. I called her cell phone and she answered right away. There was joy in her voice.
“Jarvis! When are you coming by to see me?”
“Are you home?”
“Yes. So happy to be in my own bed.”
“Well, I will try and stop by. But I’m pulling double shifts right now. I have to protect my client, so I’ll be watching her at night, staying at her place. Then sleuthing during the day.”
“Hard to sleep on the couch?”
“I’ve done it b
efore. Nothing new. Better than my client ending up dead.”
“It’s gotten that bad?”
“Yes. To the point where I had to bring in someone I don’t care for to protect her during the day. But I had no other choice.”
“Can you trust him?”
“I think so. I have something over him, so he must toe the line.”
“My brothers would be willing to assist. All you have to do is call.”
“I did, but they couldn’t commit to taking a shift every day. But could help out to cover a night shift here and there if I needed a break. Right now this should work. How are you feeling?”
“Better each day. Still hurt, but at least I was able to cut back on the pain meds. I don’t like taking pills if I don’t have to.”
“So is Jessica there helping you?”
“Yes, she is. I’m so thrilled she is helping me get around. Just simply sitting on the toilet still is an adventure. She mentioned you helped her out the other night. Very gallant of you. Says she almost seduced you if you hadn’t had work interfere. I guess I should be happy that happened.”
I really didn’t want to comment on the situation with her friend. Yes, I probably would have slept with her, had it not been for the murder. One would never know. Maybe it was a convenient excuse.
“I think it was probably for the best, no matter how tempting. It likely would have only been a fleeting moment of pleasure.”
“That would be Jessica. It would have been quite fun for both of you, but nothing permanent. I’d like to think there is more out there for you.”
“Anyone you have in mind?”
“I might have a better answer once I’m healed. But yes, I think there is someone you are more suited for.”
“Let’s hope so. Picking up a woman in a bar is fun, but not the life I want when I’m old and gray.”
We talked for a few more minutes before hanging up. There was certainly a spark between us, but only time would tell. I’d felt many a spark through the years and always seemed to douse them with the water of infidelity or the brisk breath of cold feet.