Code Name: Crescent: A Matt Preston Novel

by Paul Shadinger

  “I’ve heard he doesn’t look like much, but then looks can be so deceiving.” Boy did I know that. Just looking at Mouse you’d never know he had his fingers in just about every important business deal and every important political happening in the state. He was truly the puppet master, the man behind the scene. I couldn’t help it, I laughed out loud. If anybody’s looks are deceiving, it’s Mouse’s. He seemed to understand what I was laughing at and as he smiled at me, he turned his hands over with the palms facing up. The gesture made him more endearing; he knew what he looked like, but he also knew how people viewed him.

  Mouse said, “But, that’s where the problem comes in. The pilot from Nam and the pilot who was later for hire have been described as looking totally different. To me, it sounds like there may be two people, and the second one is riding the reputation of the jockey from Viet Nam. Anyway Matt, the pilot from Nam is also someone I wouldn’t trust. Too many things just don’t add up.”

  I leaned back and stared at him. I was dying of curiosity, I just had to know. “Mouse, may I ask you a question?”

  “I think I know what you’re going to ask, but go ahead anyway, and I promise I won’t take offense.” He leaned back in his chair.

  I took a breath and then started, “I’m going to ask this right out. How do you know all this… this information?”

  In a hushed voice he said, “I guess my answer should be, ‘if I told you, I’d have to kill you.’” When he saw the look on my face he started to laugh. I knew he meant it as a joke, but I also knew there was a grain of truth in what he said. The look in his eyes didn’t match the laughter in his voice.

  “Seriously Matt, let me put it this way. The way I make my living could be considered by some as living outside of the law.” I leaned forward to say something and Mouse held up his hand. “Please let me finish. I’m a broker of information. I know many things about, well many things. If I don’t keep on top of them, then I have nothing to sell. I gather information, and I’m lucky enough to be in a position where I can sell it. Everyone seeking to purchase this information has their own set of laws. I listen to everybody and make my decisions based on… well, based on my judgment. Because I move back and forth between these groups, I pick and choose the laws I wish to respect. I do not believe in harming others and that is a law I will respect. So many laws are actually rather gray if you think them through. As you were raised, were you taught, thou shall not kill? Yet, if somebody in the correct position decides it’s right, then one person kills another. Which law was violated? Which law will you uphold? Do you understand?”

  “Yes and no, but it really doesn’t matter to me. There have been parts of my life, and things I’ve done in my past I would prefer not to have anybody judge, so I’m in no position to judge.” I realized Mouse had not really answered my question, but I didn’t think it was wise to pursue an answer either. “Who you are, what you are, all of it is none of my business. I just wanted to let Cox know I want to talk to him and I thought you were my best resource.”

  Mouse extended a finger towards me and said, “Thank you for the vote of confidence. And, may I offer you a piece of advice? And since it’s free, you know what it’s worth. Watch the colonel and the flyboy very carefully. I know you call flyboy the suit, but in reality, if he is who he claims to be, at one time he was a very gifted helicopter pilot. Both of them in their own ways are very dangerous. Looks can be very deceiving. Don’t sell anybody short.” Mouse leaned back and smiled at me, “And so ends the lesson, grasshopper.” He stood. I could tell I was being dismissed.

  “Goodbye, Matt.”

  As I shook his hand, I said, “Goodbye, Mouse. I want you to know I think you’re a very impressive individual. I have the utmost respect for you. There are not a lot of people I respect as much as I do you. I fear that when we first met I may have sold you a little short.”

  He looked back up at with a mischievous look on his face. He asked, “Is that a short joke?”

  I was so embarrassed. “Oh no, that’s not what I meant. I’m…” He dissolved into a fit of laughter.

  “Goodbye Matt.” He took my arm and turned me towards the door. “I do hope you come back and see me again. I’ve enjoyed our visit, more than you will ever know.” I stepped through the door and into the darkness of the front room. As I passed through what I had thought of as the drug den, I looked around a little harder this time. There were shapes sitting around the room, but none of them were moving. They tables were empty, just a couple of candles providing the dim illumination. Besides the large bouncer and me, there was nobody else in the room. It was all an elaborate ruse. Why the room looked the way it did I had no idea, just something else to add to the “Mouse Mystique.” When I reached the exit, the large black man reached out and opened the door for me. “Have a good day, sir.” His voice was warm and friendly.

  Even though the light was still dim, for the first time I could make out his features. He looked familiar. In an instant the thought ‘football’ flashed through my mind and I wondered if his size made me think he played ball, or if I recognized him from his playing days. The door shut behind me with a click. The fortress was now closed and locked.

  I had done what I could. I had put out the word I wanted to see Bud Cox. Kim was safely hidden away with Sharon and she would let me know when Kim wanted to meet with her parents. Now I just had to wait for Cox to find me and see just what kind of person he was. I wondered how much of what I had heard was true. I had a very difficult time believing Kim was lying, and an even harder time believing Gladys would lie to me.

  Now I was ready to deal with my other problem. I had to get a handle on the colonel and the flyboy. Hopefully Walter would have some ideas. I’d written him earlier in the week and tomorrow I was going to catch a ferry and go over to see him. I didn’t know how much light he could shed on Crescent, or my two strange shadows and the rest of the mess, but I’d found in the past talking things over with him seemed to help.

  CHAPTER 12

  WALTER

  I’m always excited when I have the opportunity to go over and visit Walter. I don’t know if it’s seeing how happy he is with life, or looking at the amazing structure he’s constructed to live in, or if my happiness is over something I was involved with that turned out so well. I was the one who saw Walter’s picture in the Seattle newspaper and read that he had been picked up for being in a disturbance down in the International District. I’d instructed my attorneys to do whatever was necessary to get him out of jail and deal with his legal problems. Basically, it turned out that after Walter’s time in Viet Nam, he never really was able to fit back into society. I gave him a chunk of land I owned over on the Olympic Peninsula where he doesn’t have to deal with very many people, and he built what he calls a cabin. It’s more like a work of art and calling it a cabin doesn’t do it justice, but that’s another story. The point is, it never fails to bring me enjoyment to visit my friend Walter and his lovely wife, Thien.

  I pulled up to the ferry ticket window, paid my fare and then parked where the attendant indicated. In just a few minutes, a ferry pulled in and I sat in my vehicle and watched as people drove off. Soon it was my turn to drive my rental car onto the boat and then head across the Sound. I considered getting out, but my mind was so full of things to think about, I decided to just stay in the vehicle. Bean crawled into my lap and promptly fell asleep.

  As I sat there petting her furry little body, my mind started to wander. My very first concern was about whoever had been following me off and on, and what their intent was. I was sure I had taken the proper steps to cover my tracks, and I doubted if the gray van was following me now. But so far I’d been surprised by the colonel’s knowledge about me and I was taking all of the precautions I could. I had no idea what he knew about Walter, but I wanted to keep Walter as safe as possible.

  Since the colonel knew all of my vehicles, I decided to drive something neithe
r the colonel nor the suit had seen before. I parked my truck up in my man cave, and then I used a back exit from the building into an alley. I cut down the alley and then walked over a few blocks to a rental car agency. Even though I was now driving a strange vehicle, I was still being cautious. Once I was close enough to Walter, I knew a place where I could pull off and see several miles behind me and make sure I wasn’t being followed.

  My next concern was a bit more selfish. I have for the most part put away a good deal of what happened back in rice paddy land, and usually I’m at peace with it, or at least as much as one can be at peace having done some of the shit I’ve done. Basically, I just made sure I didn’t dwell on my past very much. I think those who want to relive horrible events need to find a way to move on. We all have to find a way to deal with our past. Having to revisit the past again now, so soon after my last encounter, was difficult. I found myself returning to memories I had worked hard to keep locked securely away. I also wondered if any unresolved issues with Sharon weren’t making things difficult as well. And now to cap it off, here I was on the ferry headed to see Walter again. Even as pleased I was to see him, who knew what doors this visit was going to open? And more to the point, did I want those doors opened? Did I really have the choice?

  The ferry pulling up to the dock roused me from my contemplations. I was one of the first ones in line. On the off chance I might be followed, I sped through town and headed towards the mountains. When I reached the pull off, I looked in my rearview mirror and there was no traffic to be seen for miles behind me. I parked behind a large rock and got out. I sat on the rock for better than fifteen minutes and watched back down the road. Only five vehicles passed by and none of those was a gray van. As far as I could tell, I wasn’t being followed.

  When I pulled into the graveled spot where I usually leave my vehicle, Walter was sitting on a stump next to the clearing waiting for me. We hugged and then he teased me, “I’ve seen you more in the last few months than all the years since Nam. What gives? Did ya miss me?”

  I was amused. Walter was correct. “Well, hello to you too. I need to talk to you about something that’s come up. Since this is the only way to see you, I had to come over.”

  “Come on. You can talk while we walk.”

  I didn’t want to tell him my real reason for coming over yet. I had no idea if he knew anything about what the colonel had asked, but I wanted him to be able to tell me what he knew, if anything, without any interruptions. “Sharon sends her love to you and Thien.”

  “How are the two of you doing?” he asked.

  I hesitated for a moment. “Well… she moved out and lives on the houseboat now.”

  He stopped so quickly I almost ran into his back. He turned and asked, “What! Why?”

  “Go on, don’t stop like that.” I gave him a push to start him walking. He just stood there and I started to tell him what was going on with Sharon. “Well, we just do better living apart. We still see each other and we even spent the night together, but day to day it just doesn’t seem to work for us.” He was still standing there and I gave him another push to turn around and get going.

  “Damn. And I was so happy for the two of you,” he said.

  “Well damn, why can’t you still be happy for me? I’m happy for me.” And we both laughed.

  Thien was overjoyed to see me; she once told me that if I hadn’t helped Walter back in Seattle he probably would have died of a drug overdose, or worse. They now have a son, my namesake, and I was proud they named him after me, but I was also embarrassed. Little Matt was just barely able to walk and he really was a cute little guy. I could see how proud Walter was of his son and it made me feel good. The three of us sat and talked a while and finally Thien excused herself with “I will make us something to eat.”

  After she left, Walter looked at me and said, “Okay. Now, why did you come over? I’m glad you’re here, but I know it isn’t because of my winning personality. I know something’s up.”

  I had planned this conversation many times in my head but now that it was time to tell him, I didn’t know exactly where to start. “I guess I might as well just tell you the whole story and hope I don’t miss anything.” I told him about my two late-night visitors and then about the strange meeting we had at the old playing field. I told him about the van that was following me, and its involvement with the colonel and the suit. I told him about the license plate but I also assured him the van had not followed me to his place, and that I was sure he was safe.

  I concluded with, “Walter, the two of them keep asking me the same thing every time I see them. It doesn’t mean a thing to me, but does the word Crescent mean anything to you?”

  He gasped and went pale. It actually frightened me to see the change in his demeanor. “Walter, are you okay?” I asked.

  He gulped and said, “Matt, are you sure they said Crescent?” I raised my eyebrows and gave him a grim look. He leaned towards me, the tension apparent. “Listen to me. Listen to me very carefully and do what I tell you. Have dinner with us and then take Bean and go back to your car and go home. Go home and forget all about this. And most importantly, never… I repeat… never, say that word again. Leave this alone. Do you understand?”

  “You mean Crescent?” Walter held a finger to his lips and made a shushing sound. He nodded his head yes and I shook my head no. There was no way I could walk away now. “No Walter, I don’t understand. I had a strange vehicle following me. When I asked Jeff to run the plates for me he got a huge ration of shit over it. I had two very weird men come to my apartment and then demand to meet me again at an old deserted sports field, asking strange questions, and, all I know about this is that it’s somehow all related. The two strangers are obsessed with something called Crescent. So I’m asking you again, what is this Crescent thing? Come on Walter, talk to me. This is, me, Matt… your friend. What’s going on?”

  Walter excused himself and went into his cabin. In just a few minutes he returned with his glass pipe in hand along with a lighter and some weed he had grown in his garden. He putzed around cleaning the pipe and then slowly filled it with weed. I have always thought that pipe smokers use their rituals to stall for time to mull things over, and as I watched Walter, he was no different. Eventually the pipe was filled to his liking and he lit it and took a long draw. He took another puff and passed the pipe to me. As I held it in my hand, it dawned on me the only time I smoked anymore was when I was visiting Walter. I wondered if perhaps Walter was a bad influence on me. But then I quickly decided, Naw! I can be bad without any influence! Walter slowly let the smoke out of his lungs as he slid down in his chair and put his feet up on the big wooden ottoman.

  Just by his posture, I could see he was mentally back “in country.” There was nothing to do but wait. Wait until he returned. He lit the pipe again and took another long puff. As he released the smoke, he started to talk. His voice was just above a whisper and I had to listen carefully to hear him. “God, I hope I never regret telling you this.” He looked over at me and I could see in his eyes he was questioning himself about talking to me.

  “By the way, all of this is AM!” I know I had a questioning look on my face. Walter leaned close to me and said, “After Matt.” We both chuckled. “Crescent was the code word for a mission that happened back in Viet Nam after you were gone.” I had that part already figured out. “It was top secret; a fucked up very top secret mission. Even at the briefing I knew the mission came from a long way up the food chain… if you catch my drift?”

  I murmured agreement and he continued, “It was me, Price, Hollis, some captain Green Beret dude and a warrant officer. The warrant was a hotshot chopper flyboy. Captain was a tall skinny dude, but in amazing condition. I don’t remember much ‘bout the warrant officer, except he was a dumpy looking little fellow and he was a helicopter pilot… a very, very good one. The story on him was once he went out and picked up a bunch of wounded in
the middle of an ugly firefight. Bullets flying everywhere and this warrant knew he only had one shot to get as many wounded out as he could on the one try. His chopper was full and he was ordered to dust off a couple of times, but he ignored them and kept waiting while they stuffed more wounded into his bird.”

  The way Walter stared off into space, I could tell he was reliving the memory. He took a puff and then handed me the pipe. Finally, he continued, “The helicopter was so overloaded it barely made it off the pad. Those rice balls kept pouring bullets into it and by the time he returned to base, there were so many holes in the bird that when it landed, it actually fell apart. Matt, it was like a cartoon. He got the thing landed, they pulled all of the wounded people off and as the warrant walked away, it literally just disintegrated behind him. There was just this pile of metal. He was a legend. Nobody could understand how he got the thing in the air, or how he kept it in the air or how he ever landed it without crashing. I never did hear how many he had on his bird or how many lives he saved, but he got a big-time medal for it.”

  Walter got quiet and I knew he was thinking about his story. He gave a short bark of laughter and continued, “Weird looking little dude too. Looked like a pear with legs, but man, could he fly a chopper. Nobody could ever figure how he made it through flight school. I mean, they like would run all the time and there was a lot of physical training. It must have damn near killed him.” Walter laughed again at the memory. From Walter’s description, the colonel and the suit sounded like the two he was describing.

  “Anyway, back to Crescent. The warrant flies us into this remote location to a place that was as off limits as it could be. I was sitting where I could see the compass over his shoulder and I watched our heading for a long time. Matt, we were on a course that took us to a place we were never supposed to go.”

  “When we got there we met a couple of village leaders. The two chiefs had some gold bars and they wouldn’t tell us how or where they got them. They just told us they could get a lot more and what they wanted was stuff… military stuff. The captain promised them everything they asked for and they made a deal for a shit ton of gold.