Convoluted Journey (The Mercury Black Authority Book 1)

by Finian Blake

  “What is the deal with Father Cash?”

  “He distributes the cash. He gets 1.7 million for distributing the money and doing the banking. I will cover all the fees. We can’t put this kind of money in a checking account. They call him Father Cash because he is a priest. If we use the Roman Bank, to process the funds they do not pay interest, but we can get at the money anywhere in the world and the money comes out clean which is important. The hang up is that they tend to deal only with Roman Catholics. They are much tighter than the Swiss, plus nobody has the crust to question the Roman.”

  “Are you saying that a church is involved in money laundering?” Francesca was stunned.

  “No, I am saying that is where we are putting our money, but it is just a coincidence that it will come out clean after we make a donation.” Noah held up his hand to interrupt her next question. “I need to move on to the next call,” Noah dialed the phone again.

  “Hermes. ‘Mercury Black Authority’. I need a full ID, birth, drivers, pilot’s license passport, and school records. Hours? 973. Use Father Cash to invent the records. Yes, the normal fee. Francesca Garcia. Middle name? Noah looked at Francesca. Anna?” She nodded her approval. “Anna. Pictures. Near LAX, got it. Finger prints? Same place as the pictures. I will put her on.” He put his hand over the mouth piece of the phone.

  “Answer all his questions accurately,” he handed the phone to her. Noah’s attention turned to the envelope that Bob handed him. When he opened it there were two sheets of paper in it. One of the sheets had a key taped to it. Noah read the sheet with a key taped to it. All that was on the sheet was an address and number. He turned to the other sheet. It was a note:

  TOM YOU HAVE BROKEN EVERY PROMISE THAT YOU HAVE EVER MADE TO ME WHEN WE MOVED HERE. I DON’T WANT TO BE EXPOSED TO YOUR LIFE AND I DON’T WANT OUR DAUGHTER EXPOSED TO IT EITHER. TOM I LOVE YOU, BUT I CAN’T STAY WITH YOU. PLEASE STAY AWAY FROM BOTH OF US. I MOVED ALL OF YOUR THINGS TO A STORAGE LOCKER AND YOUR TRUCK IS STILL IN THE PARKING LOT. I TRANSFERRED THE TITLE AND PLATES TO NOAH BODY. THE KEY ON THE SHEET IS FOR THE LOCK ON THE STORAGE LOCKER. WHEN YOU TAKE A BREAK FROM RUNNING ALL OVER THE WORLD WE CAN GET TOGETHER SOMEWHERE OTHER THAN THE RANCH, I JUST CAN’T LIVE LIKE THIS ANY MORE.

  PAT

  Francesca was still on the phone. He put his head on his hands and tried to think. After ten minutes she tapped him on the shoulder, and handed the phone to him. He took the phone and listened.

  “Right, I’ve got it. Thanks a lot,” The energy drained from his voice. “We are all set. We need to go down near LAX and finish the process.”

  “What is going on? What was in the envelope?”

  There was genuine concern in her voice. He handed the note to her. She read the note. When he finally said something Noah’s voice was flat and emotionless.

  “I guess when I can do all of this I thought I could get away with anything. I wasn’t looking in that direction.”

  “What are you going to do? She could expose you.”

  “She won’t. Pat wants to get away from this sort of thing. She knows that I will be fair. She is right about everything. I had to leave Chicago because I pissed off the wrong people and we moved out here changing our names. Her mother and brothers moved out here a little later. We bought the two ranches across the road from ours. We own about one hundred and eighty acres between us. I promised to stick to normal employment and go straight. Well things kept escalating to the point that I managed to break every promise that I made just in the last week. I even broke a few that I meant to make and didn’t.”

  “So are you going to threaten her?” Francesca thought he was sure to do something nasty.

  “No, threats are stupid and tend to put you in positions that you don’t want to be in. I know that she is a good woman and I believe that all she wants is to be a safe distance from me in case the shit hits the fan. If she turns me in I can disappear. As you have probably guessed Noah is a name that I am currently using.” He shrugged. “I will probably give her exactly what she wants because I have gone way past what she will forgive.”

  “So, you are going to give her a divorce no hassle.”

  “That is about it.” He moved to the door. “Enough of this, I need to move or go crazy.”

  Noah found the truck right where he left it when he pulled in for his trip, never thinking to check the parking lot because he asked Pat to move the truck. It felt good to touch something familiar. He got on the I-10 heading east. It felt good to get out and move. He looked across the seat at Francesca. That tight tee shirt looked good, but was not good for official pictures.

  “We need to get something for ID pictures.” They pulled off at a shopping center. It was not difficult to find five or six likely shops. Strolling through the mall Noah noticed a salon. “Let’s start here.” As luck would have it they had time for a walk in with one of the newer girls. He needed to do the full treatment on this beautiful woman to erase all signs of the jungle. Noah paid for all the trimmings plus a very hefty tip in advance. There was a coffee shop across from the salon, so Noah decided to get a cup while he was waiting.

  Noah sat with his hands around the coffee cup considering his options with Pat. His first consideration was would he call Pat this evening or wait until the end of the assignment? She was a good woman and he was trying to figure out a way to save things. Noah had made some real firm promises to get her to move from Chicago and Pat was very unhappy about moving her family out here. The Antelope Valley reminded her mother Chloe of the premium land in the old country only this land was irrigated and that was a saving factor. Did he think that there was any chance? That would be slim odds because Pat had been specific about the consequences for breaking his word to her. Now that a baby was involved, she would take even more of a hard line. Noah knew that he was very good at what he did. Were there any options to a divorce? Noah stewed on this thought for a while and nothing came to mind that looked promising. He finally tried a sip of coffee finding that it was cold. Taking the coffee back to the counter he ordered a fresh cup deciding to back off those thoughts electing to watch the people pass by in order to keep from going crazy.

  Noah was staring into the bottom of his empty cup when a pair of muddy jungle boots came into view. He looked up, wow. Maria’s hair was pinned back on the sides and trimmed up to just below her shoulders. They did a full treatment on her removing the dead skin off of her face, hands, elbows, knees and feet after that they did a full manicure and pedicure. She lost the jungle smell and looked suburban fresh. Francesca was totally transformed, what a difference! She had a really big smile on her face. Francesca did not look out of place in the jungle, but the successful suburban look suited her equally as well. Noah knew that she was a good looking woman, but wow.

  Next to the salon was a shop called ‘California Lady’. They started there. Francesca found four casual outfits that were knockouts. They had an excellent selection of undergarments and accessories. She found a fragrance that was more floral than musky which excited her. Noah insisted that she buy and wear a white blouse and black pants. They walked down to the May Company. She bought a selection of makeup, a few more outfits and three pairs of shoes and before leaving, they purchased some luggage.

  She bounced all the way back to the pickup. He could tell that she loved the luxury treatment. Within a few hours there was no trace of the jungle on her. Noah dropped the tailgate of the pickup and they packed the luggage with Maria’s new clothes. Noah disposed of the bags and receipts. He spotted a Longs Drugs across the parking lot from where they were parked. They drove over and purchased whatever toiletries she felt that she needed. They jumped back on the I-10 heading to LAX.

  “All those nice clothes and you have me go black and white. What’s with that,” she pouted letting her LA accent from her college days slip out.

  “For the pictures I want you to have a particular look. You are not going to like this either. I want you to pull your hair back tight to your head in a ponytail
with no bangs. I need you to have the right look.”

  “They just did my hair. Why did you even bother?”

  “I told you I need a certain look. I will take you in for a rework if you want, but I do need that look.” They drove on in silence.

  Noah did a few freeway changes getting through to Century Boulevard pulling into a parking lot, in front of a storefront with a simple one-word sign in the window, ‘UNIFORMS’. Once inside he asked for Brian.

  “Bob over at Everywhere Air said that he would call. I am supposed to talk to Brian.”

  “I’m Brian. Yes, Bob said to outfit a new pilot. Are you him?”

  “They are for her not for me.” Brian looked at Francesca. “I think we can do it. Let me get my measuring tape.” It seemed that Brian’s measuring was overly careful for what he had in stock since all of the uniforms on hand were basically for men and nothing seemed to work with her figure. Within a half an hour they were out the door with three sets of uniforms, a jacket and a female pilot’s hat. Bob had given Noah a set of pilot’s wings off of a jacket that had been left in the office and they were ready for the next phase.

  Noah pulled up in front of a high rise building taking the elevator to the seventh floor bringing the luggage and the uniforms in with him. They walked down to room 716.

  “I’m looking for Jeff.”

  “And who are you?”

  “Noah Body, Hermes arranged for a rush job. He said that you would want extra.”

  “Do you want a complete set or installments? I can get something for you today. For double I can get you everything but passport and SS card. They can be done by the end of the week.”

  “I need a badge for Everywhere Air too.” Noah was hoping to get her a set for the next trip in five days.

  “Do you have a badge that I can use for a sample?” Noah produced his. Jeff looked it over.

  “No problem I can have the driver’s license, pilot’s license and Everywhere ID by three. The SS number and passport can be done in four days. Don’t you want a birth certificate? I can do that in four days.” Jeff thought for a few minutes. “The price for the rush will be six. Are you good with that?”

  “Absolutely, can I give you the money this afternoon when we pick them up?”

  “That will be good.” Jeff turned his attention to Francesca. He handed her four forms and a blank sheet of paper. “Take the blank sheet of paper and sign your name 15 or 20 times so that it becomes natural and then fill these forms out.”

  “This looks like the form that you fill out at DMV.”

  “It is a real DMV form. You also have a real passport application and real social security forms. Just fill out the forms and we will do the rest.” Jeff handed her a piece of paper. Here use this address. I need it in your hand writing.” Jeff turned to Noah. “You haven’t explained things to her?”

  “I wanted to talk to you first. I wanted to know if you were doing the whole job or if I would have to go to Chicago for Wanda.”

  Jeff shrugged, “I will do the full job out here.”

  Noah took Francesca by the shoulders. “Follow his instructions to the letter. I’ll do the explanations later.”

  Jeff went to work having Francesca change into the pilot’s uniform pinning it up so that it would be a better fit doing the Everywhere ID pictures. Jeff sent Francesca to change to street clothes and rearranged her hair. He took her driver’s license picture. He did the same with every picture changing the clothing, hair and makeup each time. When he was done Francesca went back to change. She came out in with her tight designer jeans, a midriff top and gold leather sandals. Her thick raven hair fell loosely over her shoulders. Noah knew that he was really going to need all his concentration to get through the rest of this day because this gorgeous Latina beauty looked nothing like the woman that he came out of the jungle with.

  “One more thing,” Jeff held up an ink pad. “Has she ever had a California license?” Francesca shook her head no. “We need a thumbprint.” Jeff quickly rolled her right thumb in the correct box on the application. Jeff then took out a federal form for finger prints. “Have they ever taken your fingerprints before?” Francesca shook her head no. “We need a set for Everywhere Air. If you ever want to be Maria Baca again, it will take some work to change you back. After I take these prints you are permanently Francesca Anna Garcia. Is that what you want?” Jeff wanted to be sure that she knew that a casual return to her old name would be difficult. Having an afterthought, “With all of this I might as well put in for a Federal firearms permit and a concealed carry permit for you. I can just print up the permits and insert the information in the record.

  Francesca thought for a minute and nodded her head. The name would be different but the person would still be the same.

  The tailor was the next stop. A quick rundown Sepulveda Boulevard put them in Fox Hills Mall. The tailor had a shop behind the mall. When they arrived the owner and his wife were watching the shop while the others were on lunch. They measured Francesca and marked everything. The standard men’s uniforms did not work with her knock out Latin figure and the uniform jacket was also cut for a man. Anything that would fit her waist would not work for the hips and Noah wanted her to have the polished look that would shout professional.

  “We can have them ready in two days. If you want a rush job they will be done tomorrow night after six. That would be twenty percent more.”

  “Would they be ready tonight if I paid triple?”

  “Come back tonight about seven thirty.”

  “Thank you sir,” Noah was trying to free up a day, so that he could talk with Pat.

  Francesca interrupted his thoughts, “What was the fingerprint thing? Why did he have me fill out a regulation DMV form?” Francesca was rolling through questions.

  “We have contacts in the witness protection agency. What we are buying is the real thing. That’s why they are so expensive. That form will be inserted in the California records. You are buying a real birth certificate, driver’s license, Social Security number and a passport that will be good all over the world. The fingerprints are fed into the witness protection program and they divert any inquiries away from your fingerprints. We piggyback their system and no witness information is sought or leaked so absolutely nobody reveals any information about witnesses. When you think about it we are protecting people too. Plus, we go one-step farther than they do. I found a way to create an entire life for ten thousand dollars more. Father Cash is in touch with several schools that desperately need money. For a sizable donation he plugs you into the school records, teacher reports and extracurricular activities. Did you know that you were a cheerleader in sixth grade? Various charities have a lot of residential property. For a substantial donation, we get a residential history to match the schools. Father Cash makes all the arrangements for a donation and your history goes back to the day you were born and Jeff will make family photos that cover the same time period that Father Cash creates.”

  “It sounds prohibitively expensive. How can anyone afford it?” Francesca was stunned by the expense.

  “Not everyone can afford it, and many of those people that can pay, will not pay, so there is a tiny audience. The other point is that only a few people know about the service.” Noah leaned back in his chair. “That’s the rough layout. Just remember they will pass any inspection. If the police pull in behind you just pull over and hand them your license. You can be confident that all inquiries will match the records.”

  They found a restaurant in Marina Del Rey and after eating Noah started looking for a Bank of America. They finally found one just off of Pacific in Marina Del Rey. Noah and Francesca walked in the bank looking for the manager. Noah wrote down an account number from memory. I have a commercial account at another Bank of America and I need to withdraw some money. The manager choked a little when he saw the request for $50,000. After some checking the withdrawal was approved. He came back to his office with an apologetic tone in his voice.

  �
�Mister Body I am sorry, but all we can give you is $30,000 on short notice because we need to keep enough cash on hand to do business for the rest of the day.”

  “I understand perfectly. Thirty will work. I will call my branch and make the arrangements for the rest of what I need,” Noah loaded most of the money in the belt giving Francesca $2,000 in mixed bills. “You need some walking around money.” She loaded up her new wallet and they were off.

  They drove back to the high rise on Century. It was just after four. Jeff buzzed them in. “I have been ready for a while. As soon as we’re finished I’m out of here.” He produced an envelope handing it to Noah. Inside it were a driver’s license, pilot’s license, the Federal gun permit, the concealed carry permit and the Everywhere Air ID.

  “That’s it?” Francesca said over her shoulder. “It looks worn. I thought you just made it.”

  Jeff smiled at the comment, “I did put a little wear on all the IDs. Women’s IDs usually have less wear on them than men’s ID’s. They all have different dates on them. One sure sign of a fake identity is that all your dates and pictures are the same. These are true works of art with all of the niceties and you may use them with confidence.” Noah laid the IDs on the counter. He removed $7,000 from the belt and handed it to Jeff, “I have $7,000 here. This is quality work. I have three more complete sets that I will have need of in a few weeks. I was going to run them through Chicago, but this is really good work.” Noah was hoping to get a bite.

  “Oh yes Wanda, she does do fine work. We cooperate every now and then.” Jeff thought for less than a minute.

  “I can handle that. We can talk about the same price. Give me the names and I can have Father Cash do the background. Lately it has been 10,000 a pop. After all it is a charitable deduction.”

  Noah laughed at the comment, “I will be sure to put it on my tax return as a deduction, right under bribes.” He turned to the newly made Francesca, “Jeff is expensive, but it’s beautiful work.” He handed Francesca the ID’s, she put them in her wallet.