Gibson & Clarke (Failed Justice Series Book 2)

by Rick Santini

  Several days later, Xiang received a most disturbing phone call. It came in on his private line, a number very few people in the world had access to.

  Choe Yu was one of the Three Wise Men. If the private enterprise had been a corporation, he certainly would have been the CEO.

  Xiang immediately stiffened up. This was not a social call. It could not be good news. Xiang listened carefully. He listened to the words, but more important, he listened to the inflection. He heard what was not said. Xiang knew there was a problem. The question was, was it his problem?

  Retirement appears not to have lasted very long.

  Xiang had made a promise to Mei Ling. He had also made a promise to himself. He made a pledge to honor the memory of his saintly parents. There was no way he could honor all his commitments. He needed to talk to someone. Someone who could look at the whole situation objectively. With understanding and compassion.

  There is only one person I trust with such a task.

  Xiang called the number by heart.

  “Welcome back. How are you? I trust you have fully recovered. I have a most serious business problem. It is one I cannot talk to anyone about except you. We must meet so I can explain in person. It is of the utmost importance.”

  Marta thought for a minute. No way would she ever go back to his home. That had been her first big mistake.

  “I can see you in my office at nine o’clock tomorrow morning. I will spend as much time as it takes, and I can assure you, whatever it is will be treated in the strictest of confidence.”

  Marta was not sure whether to call him Xiang or, now that it was strictly business, Mr. Yeung. She chose not to use either.

  Xiang picked up on the lack of a salutation.

  “Thank you, Ms. Clarke. I appreciate your willingness to help a foolish old man.”

  Marta hesitated.

  “Xiang, you are neither foolish nor old. You are competent, prudent, and very smart. All very admirable qualities.”

  “Thank you again, Marta. I will be at your office tomorrow at nine sharp.”

  What the hell just happened? she wondered.

  Marta buzzed her secretary to clear her calendar for the entire morning.

  Her thoughts then drifted to Rod. He was constantly on her mind.

  CHAPTER 53

  “We have received our first order from Mr. Scalesci. He is depositing twenty-five million US in our account today. Do you have any comments or suggestions?”

  Choe Yu turned to his two associates. No one was positive—though several had suspected—all three were brothers. Their paternal grandfather was a landowner in Myanmar and had almost fifty acres of poppy growing wild. He was approached by a group of foreigners to sell what was growing on the land. The old man readily agreed. Several years later, he came to understand the true value of his crop and the fact the foreigners had grown enormously wealthy on the fruits of his labor.

  It was his eldest son, now the father of the three brothers, who convinced the old man to let him, the son, take over the family business. The first thing the son did was invite the foreigners to a private banquet as a way of showing his appreciation for improving the lifestyle of his entire family.

  The foreigners, who were in constant need of more product, happily accepted.

  “Bring your associates, anyone connected to the business. We personally want to thank them all. We also have a small token of our gratitude that will be given to each guest that attends.” The affair was well attended.

  Near the end of the evening, the eldest son produced a most delicious dessert. No one knew it was filled with the seed of the poppy. By midnight, the foreigners and their entire entourage were sufficiently stoned. That was when the eldest son and his own brothers produced the small token of their appreciation, the dreaded long knife. With no warning, the heads of all guests were promptly separated from their greedy bodies.

  “With one swing of the long knife, we are now growers and distributors. We have cut out the middleman. All the profits will now be ours; it will allow us to buy more land and grow more poppy. It is written. It is done.”

  A generation later, Choe Yu and his two brothers were now some of the largest growers in all of the Golden Triangle. Their wealth could not be calculated.

  Twenty-five million was no more than a good day’s pay.

  It was Soon Li, the youngest, and the only one with an MBA degree, from the prestigious University of Singapore, who spoke up.

  “Not only are we honor bound to fill the order, but until we know who controls the distribution in Chicago and New Jersey, we should maintain all business relations. The time will come when our decision may change. But not today, my esteemed older brothers.”

  The two brothers agreed and bowed to the wisdom of the college boy.

  ***

  The transfer went like the workings of a fine Swiss watch. Anthony was elated. He knew he had made a smart move. That’s why he was the boss. He still did not understand why the Wise Men were so tight-assed.

  Why couldn’t they just accept the food, booze, and broads and not have made such a big deal out of nuthing?

  Anthony was not as smart as he gave himself credit for. Not even close.

  ***

  Marta personally steeped the special blend of tea. It was as close to a sign of peace and transition as she could think of. There was no question their personal relationship was over.

  “You are too kind, my dear. I understand this is a business meeting, so I will not ask anything of your personal life. I must comment you are looking well. I would go as far as to say you almost glow. I trust everything is tranquil in your life.”

  “Yes, it is, Xiang, and I do want to thank you for everything. You opened my eyes to things I did not know or understand, and I am grateful. Now, what can I do for you?”

  Xiang sipped from the bone china cup, closed his eyes to gain clarity, and began. He finished more than an hour later. Marta knew more than she cared to know. What she had learned was privileged, but too much knowledge was also a dangerous thing.

  “You have given me a great deal to contemplate, Xiang. There are no easy answers. I promise you I will not discuss this with anyone, including my partners, but I must reflect before I am prepared to give you any advice. You know, you are walking a very narrow tightrope.”

  “I understand perfectly, my dear. Call me when you have some answers. You have been most generous with your time. I would now like to offer you a personal gift. Please do not think of it as a fee or payment for anything. It is a token of my respect and feelings for you. To refuse a gift would be an insult, and I know you would never do that.”

  Xiang reached in his pocket and produced a small white box. There was no store label on it. It had a red bow.

  “Please, make an old man happy. Open it and then accept it.”

  Marta had a damn good idea. She was sure she recognized the box and knew Xiang was dying to give her the same gift he offered her months before.

  She held her breath and opened the box.

  I was right. It’s the black pearl he tried to give me before. As I recall, he told me it was a very rare perfect natural pearl. It has to be more than twenty-five carets. It has to be worth a fortune.

  “It’s beautiful. It’s perfect. I have no right to accept it, but I will. It will serve as a constant reminder of what a sweet, thoughtful, and wonderful man and extraordinary lover, you are. Thank you.”

  With that, Marta removed the ring and slipped it on. Not surprisingly, it fit perfectly.

  She stood up and gave him a sisterly kiss.

  She continued to stand, indicating the meeting was over. Yeung understood. He had given Marta all the facts he had and would now await her expert analysis.

  “Again, thank you for seeing me on such short notice. I may not have mentioned it, but Mei Ling is now staying with me at my home.”

  Marta was unaware of this and tried not to act surprised.

  “That’s very good news. Congratulation
s. Please send her my best. If she would like to talk to me, I would be pleased to meet with her. Have a good day, Xiang.”

  With that, she walked him to the front door.

  The black sedan was still parked at the curb.

  Marta watched her client enter the rear seat. She had a great deal to think about. For now, she removed the black pearl ring from her finger. It would be in her safe deposit box by the end of the day.

  CHAPTER 54

  No one was aware Jack Renaldo had spent the better part of the morning in the private offices of the US Attorney for the Southern District of New York. Had anyone checked, Mr. Renaldo had not made an appointment and the US Attorney, had no record of any meeting with his former colleague.

  In fact, for all practical purposes, the meeting had never taken place. There were no notes, no records of any sort. It could have been assumed Jack was in the building on other business and decided to stop by to ask Mr. Winters if he were free for a round of golf this weekend.

  Seth Winters, the US Attorney, had a bad back and had not picked up a club in the past three years. He was not about to begin now.

  The subjects of the non-meeting were Salvatore Bonnonnos and Anthony Scalesci. It was strictly quid pro quo.

  “Give me some time to verify the facts. I appreciate what you’re doing for me. For all of New York and New Jersey. I think we understand each other. No one will ever know where I acquired this information. Thanks, Jack.”

  With that, Black Jack Renaldo left through a side door. No one saw him enter Mr. Winters’ office. No one saw him leave, with one exception, Marta’s old friend, Josh Beckman, the one who tipped Marta off to the Sonny Banana’s investigation in the first place.

  Was it luck, coincidence, or my gut feeling?

  Josh did not believe in luck or coincidences.

  I recognize him from someplace but where?

  He casually asked Mr. Winter’s secretary if the boss had a minute to discuss a case.

  “Mr. Winters gave me specific instructions; he is not to be disturbed. I think he’s with a former colleague, a US Attorney from Virginia or West Virginia. I’m not sure.”

  Josh now knew exactly who it was. Marta’s new partner. He had seen his picture a half dozen times. Josh hesitated a split second and decided to gamble.

  “Did someone take the Salvatore Bonnonnos file from my desk?”

  “Oh, I think Mr. Winters has it on his desk.”

  “No big deal, I can find what I want in another file. Thanks, and please don’t bother telling Mr. Winters I was here. He’ll think I have nothing to do and just load me up with more files.”

  He winked at the older secretary, and she winked back. They now had a little secret between them. She did not know how big a secret it was.

  Why?

  The answer was simple; they were making some sort of deal. The question was, what was Renaldo offering? It had to be substantial.

  Josh decided to buy some fresh-cut flowers from a street vender at lunch time and give them to Beth Booker, Mr. Winters’ private secretary. Like chicken soup, it may not help, but it sure couldn’t hurt.

  The next morning, when Mr. Winters was out of the office, he again stopped by Beth’s desk to make sure she liked the flowers. Beth blushed like a teenage girl getting her first kiss. Josh noticed a new file on her desk. It appeared to have only a few yellow pages in it. The name on the file was ‘ANTHONY SCALESCI'.’ It was marked ‘CONFIDENTIAL.’

  Everything in the US Attorney’s office is confidential. As to the lawyers in the office, nothing is confidential.

  Are they connected and if so, how?

  Josh decided to do a little homework.

  ***

  Marta knew all the papers on the Yeung/Scalesci transaction were in Jack’s office. All she had to do was walk in, read the file, and determine what Xiang’s obligations were, if any. She decided not to. She had promised Xiang she would keep their meeting strictly confidential. She would have had no reason to look at Jack’s file—though, it was technically the office’s file and she was a named partner.

  Here’s my chance to kill two birds with one well-placed pebble.

  “Good afternoon, Xiang. I have given considerable thought to your question. I would like to review all the documents but don’t want to ask Jack. I would also like to congratulate Mei Ling on her wise decision. Would it be possible for the three of us to have lunch tomorrow? You could make copies of all the documents and give them to me then.”

  Xiang appeared delighted. He was concerned he had lost a dear friend. The luncheon would go a long way in repairing the relationship.

  “We would be honored and delighted. What time and where? May we pick you up, my dear?”

  “Thanks, it won’t be necessary. I’ll be in the area on another matter.”

  She then gave Xiang the time and place.

  ***

  The thin file contained photo copies for six passports. All six established the fact they were all in Zurich, Switzerland on the same date, less than two weeks ago. The names were: Jack Renaldo, Xiang Yeung, Simon Winthrop, Anthony Scalesci, Vito Barcolli, and John Nunziono.

  Within three hours, Josh had the profiles on all six. He already knew who Jack and Mr. Yeung were. The name Simon Winthrop was familiar, and it didn’t take long to figure out who he was and what he did. He was now looking at FBI profiles on Scalesci, Barcolli, and Nunziono. Scalesci was the name that stuck out. He ran all drugs, among other lucrative enterprises, in the metropolitan Chicago area. Barcolli and Nunziono were minor players. They were basically dressed up muscle.

  Winthrop was the key. There was only one reason a commercial contract attorney would travel to the financial capital of the world with two known drug lords. Some type of deal had to have been made. He had to put pressure on Winthrop to find out what and how. Winthrop knew damn well any matter he had was covered under attorney/client confidentiality.

  It has to be subtle, very subtle. The last thing I need is for my boss to find out I’m meddling in something that’s none of my business.

  Josh realized Winthrop’s office was a short three blocks away from the Federal Building he was now in. He knew what Simon looked like from the passport photo. He took a chance and called his office on a pretext of delivering a package. The receptionist was good enough to state Mr. Winthrop was about to go to lunch. He always ate at the same place, Nick’s Gyro’s on Houston Street. He would be back in about forty-five minutes.

  Josh was standing by the window outside of Nick’s when Winthrop walked out. He had been watching him for the past fifteen minutes.

  “Mr. Winthrop, I thought I recognized you. I guess you like Greek food as much as I do.”

  “I’m sorry. Do I know you? You don’t look familiar.”

  “No, we’ve never met. I was sitting next to you a few weeks ago at the coffee shop at the Renaissance Tower Hotel in Zurich. You were with your client, Xiang Yeung.”

  “You must be mistaken; I was never there—we stayed at the Hyatt Park.”

  Winthrop quickly realized his mistake. He didn’t think like a trial attorney. He had admitted where he was to someone he didn’t know.

  “You’re absolutely right; it was Anthony Scalesci and his two goons, Vito ‘Two Potatoes’ Barcolli and John ‘Gin Gin Johnny’ Nunziono posing as businessmen, who stayed at the Renaissance. Sorry for the mistake and having bothered you.”

  “Who are you? How do you know who I am, where I eat, and who my clients may or may not be?”

  Josh quickly flashed his credentials that boldly stated ‘OFFICE OF THE UNITED STATES ATTORNEY.’

  “I’m afraid I am not at liberty to answer your questions. Ongoing investigation. Have a nice day, Simon. Who knows, maybe we’ll meet again.”

  With that, Josh was gone. He was sure Winthrop had not had time to read his name on the ID. He had taken the precaution of wearing sunglasses and a New York Yankees baseball cap.

  He hated the Yankees. He had been a Red Sox fan for as
long as he could remember.

  That should shake him up a bit.

  Simon Winthrop was sorry he had a spicy gyro and Greek salad for lunch. Suddenly, he was feeling nauseous. He wanted to talk to someone, but there was no one to confide in. He had signed a confidentiality agreement and was not about to break it. Not if he valued his life and the lives of his wife and only son.

  Why did I get involved? It sure as hell wasn’t worth it. Too late now, I guess.

  ***

  Billy had a gut feeling. Something was wrong. Very wrong. It was not something he could see or touch. It was a feeling, and he was seldom wrong about it. He had made his living the past thirty years listening to his gut—ever since he was in moot court and knew his law professor was being dishonest. The professor had purposely lied to see if Billy would pick it up and, if so, do anything about it.

  The professor did not like Billy’s arrogance. He did not like Billy’s attitude. He did not like the fact Billy was usually right.

  Billy turned to the old time professor who was acting as both judge and jury in the mock trial.

  “Your Honor, I respectfully move that you recuse yourself from this hearing.”

  The law school moot courtroom fell silent. Billy Jo Gibson was challenging the authority of his own professor, one who had the ability to give him a failing grade and thereby terminate his desire to be a lawyer.

  “On what grounds, Mr. Gibson?”

  “Bias, Your Honor. You own more than a thousand shares of stock in the plaintiff’s corporation. I looked it up. If the defendant wins, it will severely diminish the value of your stock. You had a legal and moral obligation to disclose that fact. You did not tell anyone. That could be grounds for removal from the bench if this were a real trial.”

  “You are absolutely correct, Mr. Gibson. I must commend you on your thorough research. You have more than earned your A. This mock hearing is now concluded. Mr. Gibson, I would like to see you in my office after class. That is if you can spare me a few moments of your most valuable time.”