“Are you prepared to tell me who the boss is?”
“If I tell you, do I get a chance to keep my house?”
“I think I can arrange that, if we’re able to get to the top of the drug ring.”
“Well, I’m a little scared. She’s gotten a lot of people killed.”
“She? Is it Judge Maxwell?”
“Are you kidding? ‘Miss everything by the book?’ She raises a fuss about a traffic ticket. No way. She’s not even that smart.”
“Well, who then?”
“What kind of protection are you offering?”
“I wouldn’t worry about that right away. The jail will keep you safe. If it becomes necessary later on, there are witness protection programs. We won’t just cut you loose, especially if we need you to testify.”
“The big brain was Anne Ackley. You know her as Your Honor. What a joke that is.”
“Are you saying Judge Anne Ackley devised this scheme to use Judge Maxwell’s division?”
“That’s what I’m telling you. She thought up the whole thing, even sold Liz on getting her signature on a stamp. Good old gullible Liz.”
“Did you meet with Judge Ackley yourself, or did your orders come through Billy? How did it work?”
“I met with her a few times and sometimes she’d tell Billy what I needed to do.”
“Did she approach you first or Billy?”
“Billy already knew her before I met him. He put us together.”
“You said a minute ago that you were scared because she had people killed. Were you talking about Judge Ackley?”
“Who else? You must be a little stupid. That’s who we’ve been talking about.”
“What people did she have killed?”
“Well, Jimmy Carillo for one. He was about to give us all up. Poor Jimmy. He was just in it for the drugs for himself. He didn’t even care about the money.”
“Who else?”
“The informant, Malaga. He was really playing on both teams. He worked for Ackley for a while and then he started working for the cops. Anne advised Liz how to set up the deposition. Liz was always asking Anne for advice. She even showed Anne the order bringing Malaga to the State Attorney’s Office. Ackley would have liked to shoot him herself. She’s good with a gun, you know, but it was too risky so she had one of her many boyfriends take care of it.”
“Anyone else that you knew about?”
“I think she was involved with the guy who got offed at the Floridian Inn. Billy knew him. He was one of the rebel guys from Colombia. Billy and Jimmy met with him. Jimmy may have killed him. Jimmy was spooked. He thought everyone was an informant for the cops after what happened with Malaga turning on him.”
“How long did Billy work for Judge Ackley?”
“I’m not sure. He introduced me to her as his boss. That was around the time we got engaged.”
“Gladys, did it ever occur to you that Billy was one of Ackley’s boyfriends? Maybe he married you to get to Judge Maxwell.”
“So what. I loved him, and I’m the one he came home to.” Gladys pounded her free fist on the table.
Detective Morris stood up and put his hand on her shoulder. “Calm down. I’m not here to hurt you. You rest a minute. I’ll be right back.” Morris left the room and in a minute was hurrying toward Jason and me. I was still in shock. Anne Ackley, the presiding judge of the criminal division, was a criminal herself.
Jason was on his feet. “We’ve got to get a warrant immediately, before Ackley flees. What time is it?”
I looked at my watch. It seemed like midnight. “It’s five fifteen,” I said.
“She may have left the courthouse already,” Jason said.
“Maybe not. She’s been presiding over that child abduction trial for the last week. She may not know what’s going on,” I said, “and she may be stuck in court tonight. I heard they were almost ready for closing arguments.”
“Well, Mary, I will be able to tell the chief judge of Liz’s innocence tonight. I’m going directly to him to sign an arrest warrant. I’ll have my secretary call him to stay put,” Jason said.
“And I’ll call Judge Ackley’s chambers and see if she’s in court. If she is, I’ll tell her bailiff to have her wait for me; that I need her to sign an arrest warrant in a murder case. Hopefully, we’ll grab her tonight.” Detective Morris pulled out his cell phone.
Jason left quickly. I sat transfixed, listening to Morris on the phone. “She’s there in court,” Morris said as he dialed another number. “I’m calling my partner to come pick up Gladys and take her to the women’s jail. They’ll process her, and I’m leaving word to have her kept in isolation.”
“I guess I’ll leave unless there’s anything I can do,” I said.
“You’ve done a great service, Mary. If you hadn’t continued to investigate on behalf of Judge Maxwell, we might not have cleaned out this courthouse operation. We will probably need Judge Maxwell as a witness. Better alert her.” Detective Morris shook my hand, which made all his jewelry shake and rattle.
CHAPTER FIFTY-SIX
I couldn’t help laughing as I walked out of the State Attorney Building. I envisioned the incongruous sight of Bennie Morris in his drug dealer getup, getting ready to go to see Judge Ackley who really was a drug dealer, and Judge Ackley believing she would be signing a warrant for a killer’s arrest, but being arrested herself because she is a killer. It was all too ridiculous. I couldn’t stop laughing. People turned and stared at me for a minute, but then lots of nutty people walk the streets in the Civic Center, so nobody stared for long.
I approached the street where I had so hurriedly parked the Explorer. I saw the sign that said “authorized personnel only.” I didn’t see my car. I had left it so quickly that my first thought was that I might be on the wrong street, so I walked swiftly around the whole block, checking each “no parking” sign. Finally, it dawned on me. My car must have been towed. I sat down on the curb. It had begun to drizzle again. I tried to think of what to do or who to call. I was too exhausted to move. Suddenly, I looked up. A man was standing over me. I wanted to scream, but nothing came out of my gaping mouth.
“Here,” the man said, “get yourself a hot meal.” He extended his hand and dropped a five dollar bill in my lap.
“Oh, no, you don’t understand,” I said, trying to hand it back to him.
“I do understand. Everyone gets down on their luck sometime,” he said and walked quickly away.
“Oh, great, now I looked like a homeless bag lady. I began to laugh again as the rain got heavier.
I pulled out my cell phone and called Marco. He always knows how to fix almost everything.
“Pit Bull Investigations.” Marco was still in his office.
“Marco, it’s Mary. I’m in the Civic Center on Twelfth Avenue and Fourteenth Street. Someone has towed my car away, or it’s been stolen, but since I was illegally parked, it’s probably been towed. Do you know how I can get it back?”
“Geez, Mary, it’s dangerous there. How do you get yourself into these things? I don’t know about car towing, but Franco does. He knows everything about cars, including where the towing yards are. I’ll call him. You stay there, and he’ll come and get you. He’s over in Little Havana, not far from you.”
While I waited, I called Liz and left her a message. “You’re cleared and you’ll never guess who is getting arrested as we speak. I’ll call you later with details.”
Franco pulled up ten minutes later. “I brought cash and I know which lot is near here. That’s probably where your car is. By the way, you look awful.”
One hour later we had paid off someone named Cheeko who opened the padlocked yard. We walked past hundreds of cars and finally came to my red SUV that was now missing both its side mirrors.
“You’re lucky to have your tires. These tow guys use this place as their own chop shop. Then they sell the parts.” Franco watched me drive off after assuring me he’d be by in a few days with new mirrors for th
e car. I saw him walk over to the security guard. No doubt he was buying back my mirrors.
•
It was after seven when I drove into Carlos’s driveway after stopping to pick up my files for Luis’s hearing. Catherine had finished putting every paper in order and had typed all my notes.
Carlos came out the door before I could turn off the motor.
“Marco called me. Are you okay?”
“Aside from being mistaken for a bag lady and being given five dollars so I could get a hot meal while I sat on the curb without my car, after hearing that Liz — well, it’s a long story that I need to tell you.” Carlos opened his arms and I walked into them. For a minute all seemed right with the world.
“Carlos, it’s safe for me to go home again. I need to see my house, but I want you to come with me. I can tell you everything now. Please, let’s get Sam and all my stuff and go there now.”
CHAPTER FIFTY-SEVEN
Carlos followed me home. We pulled into the driveway and Sam went wild pawing at the windows of the Explorer. I felt the same way. We ran into the house. I couldn’t believe what I saw. The place was cleaner than it had ever been in the years I lived there. Sam and I ran from room to room. The bathroom that had been left with the ugly mirror message and the black fingerprint powder covering all the surfaces was spotless. There were fresh flowers in the dining room. The kitchen had been scoured. I opened the refrigerator and found a bag from Katz’s Kosher Market brimming with goodies.
“How did all this happen?” I asked Carlos.
He smiled his sexiest smile. “So you’re finally pleased about something. Marco had the place cleaned days ago. And your mother ordered the food and flowers delivered yesterday. I knew you’d be coming back here as soon as it was safe. Catherine called me this afternoon to say things were concluding in your super-secret case.”
“You’ve been speaking to my mother?”
“Yes, she likes me. She thinks I’m a positive in your life.”
“That reminds me. She thinks my dad isn’t well, and he won’t go to the doctor. I’m supposed to talk to him.”
“She told me. It’s all taken care of. My father noticed that Abe wasn’t himself. Remember, they’ve been playing poker almost every week. Last week he walked my dad out to his car and he could hardly catch his breath, so Hope and Dad and I talked. Dad told your father that he wasn’t feeling well, and he asked your dad to go with him to see Doctor Andreas. He convinced your dad that he was afraid to go alone. Then your dad said maybe they could both see the doctor, and they’re going next week.”
“I don’t deserve you,” I said. I pulled him into the bedroom. It didn’t take a lot of pulling.
An hour later we opened a bottle of wine and filled our plates with the treats from Katz’s. “I need to explain to you why this case was so important and so confidential.
“My client is Judge Elizabeth Maxwell. She was being investigated for allegedly fixing drug cases. Jason Jimenez-Jones believed that she orchestrated the murder of that informant and of Jimmy Carillo, but it wasn’t Liz at all. Her bailiff, Gladys, and Gladys’s husband were using Liz. Gladys was arrested today. She gave up the real boss of the operation. It was Judge Anne Ackley, the chief judge of the criminal division.”
“My God, Mary. How did they find out that it was Gladys?”
“They didn’t. I did.”
“You did? How?”
“I sort of cooked up a trap and, lucky for Liz, Gladys walked right into it. I’m sure that everything that happened to me was done by Gladys’s husband. Judge Ackley wanted me to keep out of the investigation. She gave the orders. So the break-in here and the phone threat had nothing to do with Luis’s case. I’m so glad it wasn’t the federal government, just a bunch of drug dealers.”
Sam put his head in my lap and sighed. He appeared to be listening to my explanation of why he and Carlos had both been neglected. Just as I stopped speaking, he raced to the front door barking. Then we heard a knock.
“I will go,” Carlos said. He put his hand in his pocket as he went. I was sure he was fingering a gun.
Carlos opened the door a crack.
“Is Mary Katz here,” a male voice said.
“Who are you and why do you want to know?” Carlos was speaking in his Al Pacino voice used for intimidating rival builders.
“I’m Jason Jones, the state attorney.”
I went to the door when I heard Jason. He was showing Carlos his badge.
“What do you want with Mary?” Carlos was saying. His hand was still in his pocket.
“It’s okay, Carlos. Come on in, Jason. What’s wrong?”
“I’m sorry to come over here so late. I thought you needed to know what we found out when we arrested Anne Ackley.”
“So you got the warrant in time to get her? Oh, Jason this is Carlos Martin, my uh — boyfriend. Carlos, you know who Jason is. We were just talking about you, Jason. You can tell me anything about this with Carlos here. I’ve finally been able to talk to Carlos about this whole case.”
“When we got to her chambers, Judge Ackley was still in court. Bennie and I asked for her to come to chambers. We had a back-up unit down the hall. She walked in and Bennie said he had a warrant for her to review. She sat down at her desk, put on her glasses, and started to read the warrant. When she saw her name on it, she reached for her desk drawer, and got a gun half out of the drawer. Bennie was standing almost next to her. He grabbed his gun and pointed it at her head. She tried to get up, but Bennie was on top of her. She struggled. I ran around the desk, and between us we got her cuffed. The back-up boys came in, and we got her out to the judges’ elevator and into the squad car in the garage.”
“Someone could have been killed. So it’s true that she has guns stashed everywhere,” I said.
“I came over here for a couple of reasons. When we went to Judge Marconi for the warrant and told him about Gladys and how she used Liz, he was astonished. He claimed he never suspected Anne of being involved in anything. He was a little shakey when he signed the warrant. I wanted you to be able to tell Liz that she’s been completely cleared of any wrong-doing.”
“I’ll call her tonight. Thanks for letting me know.”
“That’s not all. I was present while Ackley was interrogated. She said Liz was a fool. She also admitted that she was the person who accosted you in the parking lot at your office. She really hates you. Her exact words were, ‘Liz was so stupid that she would have been the one arrested if it hadn’t been for that smart-ass lawyer Mary Katz.’ She said she’d see that you got paid back one of these days. I thought you ought to know. I need to know if you want to have us add an aggravated battery charge against her. It would mean that you would have to testify.”
“Are you saying that Judge Anne Ackley beat me over the head herself?”
“That’s exactly what I’m saying. She’s not going anywhere for a long time, but I thought you better know how vindictive she sounds.”
“We appreciate your coming here right away to warn Mary.” Carlos said.
“There’s one other thing before I go.” Jason said. “You and Mark Epstein have done a great service to our justice system. I don’t want you to worry about any bar complaints because you used that fake drug case. On the other hand, never do that again.”
“I wouldn’t dream of it,” I said.
“I do want to be sure that you and Mark get credit for ending this misuse of the courts.”
“I don’t need anything, but it would be nice if you arranged an award for Mark, a plaque and a little ceremony. He misses his days in the spotlight.”
“We can arrange that. The media is all over this story already. Bennie and I told them that you and Mark and Liz were responsible for the apprehensions. I know I told Liz I’d keep her name out of this, but it seemed better to treat her as one of the good guys. Her name has to come out if we call her as a witness.”
“Okay. I’ll prepare her.”
So finally Jason left
and I was in my own house in my own bed with Carlos by my side and Sam huddled on my feet. Just as I was turning out the light, Carlos sat up.
“Mark Epstein? Your old boyfriend? What’s he got to do with anything?”
“Never mind. All that’s important is that you’re here.” I fell asleep in seconds.
CHAPTER FIFTY-EIGHT
The next morning I was awakened by my reliable alarm clock, Sam, who was pacing up and down the bedroom waiting for his morning chow. The clock said six a.m. I started my morning wake-up agenda on automatic pilot. Throw on some shorts, feed Sam, and start our morning walk. I was still feeling euphoric about Liz’s case, and being back in my own house when I remembered that Luis’s hearing was this morning. I hadn’t had time to look over his file again, and I still had to call Liz before she left for work or read the morning Herald.
My phone call to Liz was made before seven. I knew I had awakened her. She sounded like she was talking from an underwater location.
“Mary, what’s wrong now?”
“Everything is fine. I just need to let you know some new wrinkles before I leave for court. Gladys gave up the head of the drug operation and an arrest was made last night. It’ll probably be front-page stuff in this morning’s Herald.”
“Who was it? Someone we know?”
“Better sit down. It’s Anne Ackley. She was arrested at the courthouse last night.”
There was a long pause. Then I heard a sob or a gulp. “Liz, are you there? Are you okay?”
“I’m here, Mary, but I’m not okay. This is like being run over by a truck driven by my best friend. Are you sure it was Anne? Maybe you can help her.”
“Liz, you don’t get it. She gave all the orders for the drug ring. She set you up. It’s possible that Billy Martinez was one of her many bedroom buddies. It turns out that she’s the person who beat me over the head in my own parking lot. Jason wants to add charges of aggravated battery to the laundry list she’s already facing. Now I need to tell you that you will be called as a witness at her trial. So will I. Jason told the media that you and I and Mark broke this case. He let them know that you’re one of the good guys, so no one will believe any rumors about you being investigated. I know Jason promised to keep your name out of this, but this is the best way.”
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