Nick glanced at Jean and Sonny throwing bread crumbs in the air for the birds hovering near their hands. “I hope for Sonny’s sake you’re wrong, Payaso. I like that kid. That apple didn’t fall far from the tree, it fell into the next orchard. Damn, the Irish tastes good this morning after the Kaders. If Quinn wasn’t with me, I’d probably let the buzz float me through two or three more. He’s a hungry boy this morning. Quinn sucked down that whole bottle without a burp. That could be trouble. C’mon, up you go kid. Don’t decorate my windbreaker.”
Quinn let out a satisfying burp and laughed. Nick did a quick inspection. “Well done. Now that was a burp, little man, and no residue – very nice.”
A moment later Nick’s iPhone pinged. It was Paul Gilbrech. “Wow, that was fast, Paul. I don’t know whether to applaud your information gathering skills or get ready for a bomb of bad news.”
“Salvatore gave five completely vetted passports to an unknown party,” Paul said. “They’re not only firing him. The State Department is considering felony charges. The payoff was one million. One of his workers at the San Francisco office noticed all five passports were done by Salvatore, and all sent to a P.O. Box now closed. She jotted down the names and reported it. State gave it over to Justice, and they put an FBI team on it to track video from the post office where the P.O. Box was to no avail. The team did find the financial trail directly to the idiot’s bank account under his wife’s maiden name. When they went to the San Francisco office to check further on the passport info, the data had been scrubbed. They think the passports were used immediately and then discarded. The passport names were immediately flagged, but too late for them to not be used at the guess where Canadian crossing?”
“Douglas Crossing.” Nick took a deep breath while looking down at Quinn. “Do they believe Phil scrubbed the data too?”
“Affirmative. He was notified yesterday of his suspension and ordered to appear in the San Francisco office tomorrow where the FBI agents investigating the matter will be interrogating him. Salvatore was ordered to bring all his office materials with him. Here’s the kicker, Nick. I talked to one of the FBI agents. He told me it would have been standard operating procedure to not say anything to Salvatore before streaking down there with a warrant to confiscate everything in his home.”
“I bet you’re working on the identity of whomever took the laid back approach to Phil, aren’t you?”
“Working on it, but one name on the Senate Oversight of the Judiciary Committee that watches over the FBI is an interesting one: Senator Diane Cameron. This is serious, Nick. If not for the passport office woman stumbling over the discrepancy in time to jot down the names and report it, there would have been no trail at all. I hate to ask this, but could you have a friendly talk with Salvatore?”
“I will do so, but how friendly are we talking about?”
“Friendly enough so the man knows after he’s told you every single detail in this shit storm, he will also know better than to ever breathe another word about what you did to get the info. He knows something. I want to know what that something is. I’m sorry about how close you are to his son, so I’m giving you your choice. If you don’t want to do this, say so now, my friend, and you get a pass.”
“Thanks for that, Paul. I’ll do it. He knows too much about me already. This will give me the opportunity to teach him the basics of see no evil, hear no evil, and speak no evil. I’ve been considering it for some time. I put it off for too long because of his kid. You’ve heard of the reality show crap about ‘scared straight’? Well, I’m going to introduce Phil to a completely different dynamic of ‘scared straight’. I need something though for a light at the end of the tunnel scenario. Can you intercede so he keeps his job? I can sell this on the basis he returns to his normal life, owned by us and under our scrutiny. Otherwise, I’m afraid he’d be bitter enough to slink away and do something stupid I’d have to shoot him in the head to correct.”
Paul remained silent for a long moment. “I’ll do what I can, Nick. What you retrieve from the moron will go a long way toward my being able to work that magic trick.”
“Understood. I will call later.” Nick put the sleeping Quinn into his carriage again. He explained the situation in detail to an astonished Gus and John.
“How the hell are you going to handle this, Muerto? The only way I can even think of to approach it is leveling with a ten year old about his Father,” Gus said. “Sonny will know. Either he’ll guess or Phil will come right out with it, playing the victim.”
“This is a real mess, Muerto,” John added. “I do not have a clue.”
Nick smiled. “Oh ye of little faith. It all starts with a chat with our soon to be public servant hero, the redoubtable Phil Salvatore. He’s going on a field trip to our special question and answer room. He will reenter society and his job with renewed commitment to doing right.”
“Oh John… I don’t like the sound of this.”
“I agree. This does not appear to be a story with a happy ending. Do you plan to say anything to Sonny? He is not stupid, Muerto. Are you sure you wish to do this? Mr. Gilbrech did give you an option.”
“I have a plan for both Phil Salvatore and the Kaders.”
“Let me guess. You plan to let the Kaders stew until they come to a decision while Phil gets his lecture?”
“I know it sucks we’re in the wood chipper again so soon after Cincinnati. Let me remind you we have John’s marriage to barter. That situational action doesn’t count. It’s family business. We must allow the Kader idiots to reach a final verdict. Phil is actionable now. His crap appears to be a serious breach of national security. We’ll need his cooperation to keep him alive and solve the puzzle as to what the hell he’s been doing. We know he did it for money. What we don’t know is if he did it blindly for money or if he has any idea how serious this breach is.”
“I’m sending Jean to look after Quinn while I talk with Sonny. I need to get a feel for what the kid can handle. Watch the baby for a moment until Jean gets here.”
“Go on. Quinn will be fine.” Gus moved into Nick’s chair.
* * *
“Please watch your brother for me with your uncles, Jean. I need to talk with Sonny for a moment.”
“Okay, Dad,” Jean joined Gus, John, and Quinn without hesitation. Deke followed.
Nick sat next to the suddenly worried Sonny. “I found out some disturbing news about your Father’s job situation, Sonny. His involvement will require some harsh action. I may be his only chance to stay out of prison. I was given the option to either refuse involvement or help your Dad. I’ve decided to leave the decision in your hands. You’ve been around enough to know I do more than write novels. When I’m asked to consult in a situation, it usually means the law can’t handle the problem.”
“I…I’ve heard that Gerald Kensky guy has disappeared. The cops think he escaped into a foreign country. He didn’t escape… did he, Sir?”
No wonder this kid and Jean get along so well. “No. He didn’t escape, Sonny.”
Sonny’s hands clasped into fists. His mouth tightened in anger. “I knew my Dad was lying to me. He told me it was a misunderstanding that could be straightened out easily. Tell me what he’s done, Sir.”
“That may not be a good thing to know, Sonny.”
“I need to know! I can handle him lying to me. I know people lie. My Dad lies. My Mom lies. The only people I know who haven’t lied to me are on this beach and in your house. My Dad will die in prison. He’s not perfect but I love him anyway. I don’t want him to die. If you can fix this somehow, Nick, I don’t care how you do it. Please tell me what he’s done, Sir.”
Nick only hesitated for a moment. His first reaction to what Sonny said was to take stock as to whether he had ever lied to him. Nick then told him everything suspected along with the facts Paul had shared about the money trail. When he finished, Sonny was staring at his shoes.
“I never had parents, kid. I had foster homes. It was so bad t
hat if I hadn’t found the army I would have been in prison, probably for murder. You are an exceptional young man, Sonny. That doesn’t happen by accident. Your folks did something right, even if it was presenting an example of what not to do. You feel right and wrong. You have good instincts. Those are important qualities. Now that I know how you feel about some tough love for your Dad, I think we can help him out of this mess. I need you to promise me you’ll help him stay on the straight and narrow. I believe after I help him all you will have to do is mention my name when you think your Dad or Mom mean to do something sketchy. Can you do that?”
“I can. You’re right. They’re good to me. They can help me and as you say, I can help them. One thing, Sir.” Sonny looked toward where Jean sat, now holding Quinn in her arms. “I’m going to marry Jean someday. Will that be a problem?”
Nick grinned. “Not at all. Here’s my hand on it.”
Nick and Sonny shook hands. “You do know getting Jean to marry you may not be a sure thing, right?”
Sonny nodded. “She’s pretty intense.”
“Indeed.”
Chapter Seven
A Morality Play On Several Fronts
Sonny let Nick into his house while calling out to his Dad. Phil Salvatore rushed in from his home office, a worried look on his features. The worry intensified when he saw Nick standing in his living room. Clarice joined him from the kitchen with the same angst at seeing Nick also coloring her body language and tightening at the mouth.
“Hi Phil, Clarice… Sonny asked me to have a look at your job problem, Phil. I’m afraid I’ll have to get a bit more information after checking into it. Come with me. We’ll go sort this all out in a more private venue.”
“You’re going to kill him, aren’t you? We know what you are,” Clarice stated, pointing a trembling finger at Nick. “You’re an assassin. You won’t be sorting out anything. If Phil goes with you, we’ll never see him again!”
“Mom! If Nick wanted Dad dead, he’d already be on the floor with a bullet in his head. The same goes for you. Don’t mess this up! If Nick leaves, you’ll both be alive, but Dad will go to prison, and he deserves to.”
Phil took over for Clarice on the finger pointing. “Look! I don’t know what this bastard told you, Sonny, but-”
“Shut up, Phil! I’m here because I like Sonny. If you call me a liar again, I will walk out the door without a backwards glance. You’ll meet with the FBI agents tomorrow at the office. Afterwards, you won’t be going home, and your job will be the least of your worries.”
“It was that bitch Lily who ratted me out over nothing, wasn’t it?” Phil’s face still showed rage, but the stare-down with Nick was a no win situation.
“A decent honest professional noticed you were doing what was not only against the law but also against the security of the nation. She found out in the nick of time. I don’t know what ‘over nothing’ means to you, Phil. To the rest of us lowly citizens your ‘over nothing’ means you sold out your own country for a million dollars you will not be allowed to keep.”
Hearing Nick and whomever he had talked with knew about the payoff silenced Phil. His shoulders sagged. Clarice took over.
“You can’t take our money! That’s stealing! Phil earned the money. Who do you think you are? We’ll be exonerated in court. I want you-”
“It is stealing, Mom! You and Dad plotted this out. I heard you. I thought it was just another of your get rich quick schemes. You let Mom talk you into forging illegal passports, Dad. I thought you were speeding the process for friends. But you weren’t. You were making ones that could be used by terrorists! They’re going to send you to prison if you don’t let Nick help you. You wouldn’t survive prison. Like I told Nick, I know you lie to me, but I don’t want you to die.”
“I won’t be lectured by a ten year old! Say something, Phil!”
“Sonny’s right,” Phil admitted. “I should have never done it. I knew it was wrong when we convinced ourselves it was a simple money making scheme. We got caught. I’ll get my jacket.”
Clarice folded arms over chest, glaring at Sonny. “I’m very disappointed in you! Confiding in this murderer about our personal business. What were you thinking?”
“He was thinking about keeping Phil out of prison.” Nick’s deadly tone shut Clarice off. “Not only that, he kept your ass out of prison for aiding and abetting.”
“What? There’s no way in hell-”
“You hid the money under your maiden name, Clarice. Do yourself a favor and stay quiet. Every word out of your mouth drops your image in Sonny’s eyes if indeed it can go any lower. He knows the truth about the investigation and your role in it. He’s the best thing you two have. Instead of using him to cover your crimes, use him as your conscience when you consider selling out your country.”
Clarice, to her credit, shut up. Phil came out with his jacket. He hugged Sonny.
“I’m sorry I put you through this, Sonny. I’ve done some stupid stuff before, but this I admit is without doubt the dumbest move I’ve ever made. Thank you for getting Nick to agree to help me.”
Sonny glanced at Nick before nodding his acceptance of Phil’s apology. “I’m glad you got caught, Dad. I love you. I don’t want you going to prison, but I don’t want you part of something that kills thousands of our citizens. That is exactly what you were doing. Nick may be a very dangerously bad man, but he fights against bad guys. I hope you can change this so no one gets hurt and Nick can somehow manage to keep you at the passport office in your old job. I don’t want to move again.”
“I’ll see what I can do to at least earn your trust again. No more lies.” Phil turned to Nick. “I’m ready.”
Nick led the way out to John’s car. Gus was in the backseat. “You ride shotgun, Phil. We’ll talk when we get to the meeting place.”
“You’re not going to kill me… are you?”
“Nope. I gave my word to your son I wouldn’t kill you. I also promised to keep you out of prison. That will be a tough one coupled with helping you keep your job.”
Nick opened the passenger side front door. Phil hesitated but then slid in next to John. Before Nick entered next to Gus, Phil felt a sharp poke as with a needle on his neck. He grabbed over his shoulder at the stabbing instrument but missed. As he faded to black, he saw Gus waving at him, vaguely wondering if he would ever see another human face.
When next he did, Phil wasn’t sure he wanted to. Nick stood over him. Phil watched the black-lighted illustrations of mutilation, torture, and death with the terrified realization he may not die but he may wish he had. Strapped naked to a gurney with even his head held in place, Salvatore tried each of his limbs for movement to no avail. The soft eerie sounds of screams accompanied by a theme song he recognized as the one from the ‘Exorcist’, Phil could tell the screams were real recordings.
“Good Lord! Why… why have you brought me here like this?”
“That was a nice speech you gave Sonny. I liked it. I really did. Unfortunately, over the years I’ve become very cynical about the power of words. Because you were caught and facing a prison sentence, you figured to mouth all the right things, and I’d give you a stern talking to about apple pie, Mamma, and being a good citizen. I don’t work quite that way, Phil. I’ve found when I show a person what’s in store for them if they ever cross me or America again, they tend to actually live by the nice words they speak about honor. Once I’ve shown you the light, we’ll go over how we’re going to right the wrong you did.”
Nick took a deep breath as Gus walked over and handed him a stun-gun. “You’ll be one of the only people alive ever to emerge from this room alive. I’m going to repeat a movie line because it fits the situation so well. Say hello to my little friend.”
Phil started screaming before Nick even touched him. Then he learned why those screams accompanying the theme music sounded so real instead of a staged audio effect. A half hour later, Phil blubbered uncontrollably, sobbing out promises to do anything Nick to
ld him to do… anything. Nick handed the stun-gun to Gus again.
“What do you think, Gus? I can see in John’s eyes he thinks it’s only the pain talkin’, right John?”
“I see and hear some sincerity,” John replied. “I believe Phil knows you would do much worse if it were required. Is that not so, Phil?”
“Yes! I…I know what will happen… if I don’t make this right. Please…please let me!”
“He lives in our town, Gus. You’re the conscience of our little band. What do you say?”
“Phil will help us now. I’m not sure how long his good intentions will last. He’s spent a lifetime skirting responsibility and spending more energy pretending to be honorable than if he had simply lived honorably. He’s a fraud, but I do believe he’s your fraud now. When you have to remind him of it in the future, I don’t believe you’ll have to do much convincing.”
“I like your summation, Gus. Let’s do our question and answer session as a warmup. If I detect Phil might be telling us half-truths and fiction I’ll light his pecker off for a twenty minute interval. Does that sound reasonable to you, Phil?”
“God, yes! I…I can help you nail the one involved acquiring the five illegal passports. One of the intermediaries involved made an error when…when contacting me. I had a signal trace with each step. Until then, they bounced the signal around making my trace meaningless. I have a contact who is a first class hacker. He made me an ancillary device which probed and back-traced signals without setting off alarms or firewalls. It only worked the one time, but it was enough to then use the IP address located to hack in.”
“Not bad. I like this new attitude so far, Phil. Give me a reason I shouldn’t tickle your dick for having to do this investigation at all.”
“It came from Senator Cameron’s office! She’s behind this. After the blunder that night leading to my hack into her system. I found everything – her ties to a Muslim Brotherhood group with threads into Isis as well as Al-Qaeda. She’s in trouble financially. The Chinese whom she’s been in bed with for decades withdrew their support after her son Douglas was caught up in the Collister debacle. She needed tens of millions to turn negative public opinion around. Enter the Muslim Brotherhood offshoot. They-”
Cold Blooded Assassin Book 5: Nightmare in Red (Nick McCarty Assassin Series) Page 15