by Ralph Rotten
It was more than the way that he locked eyes with her as he stood in the sliding door. Where Jack would have looked her over twice before focusing on her eyes, Jamie never even noticed she had a body below her neck. His posture was different; where Jack moved in a fluidic motion, as if he were ready to hit the dance floor at any minute, Jamie stood ramrod straight with hands folded neatly behind his back. After a long moment he finally raised a single eyebrow and addressed her.
“Agent Jaramillo, I see that you made it through the security gauntlet of the front office.” Slowly turning his head the tiniest bit he looked sideways at Marco. “And at the same time I am less than pleased to see that Agent Asanté survived. I would have liked to have seen that battle in the recreation yard.”
Smiling wanly, Professor James enjoyed taunting Marco with the fact that he had significant inside knowledge of their recent conversation.
“How’d he know what you said…?” At a loss for words, Marco looked back at the Colonel. Shaking his head, the camp commandant had no desire to answer questions he did not know the answer to.
“Anyhow,” Jenna tried to move things along, “We’re here to see through the technology exchange. Just so we have a baseline, my understanding is that these men have made it clear that you are to remain in protective custody for the immediate future.”
“They implied a slightly longer period…” Professor James trailed off sarcastically.
“It’s just until we get our scientists working on the technology.” Marco flashed that confident smile of his.
Jenna saw the expression on Marco’s face and knew right away he was lying. It had taken her a few years to learn to spot his tells, but she knew when he was departing from the truth. It was at that very moment that she heard the pair of chirps somewhere in an air vent.
“Continuing…” Giving a grimace, Jenna kept the discussion going. “I am told that you want your payment in palletized cash. Is that correct?”
“Twenty pallets, one hundred million each.” James agreed with a curt nod.
“And you want them brought here?” Her voice held a note of disbelief. Though she had been told of this wrinkle earlier, she needed absolute confirmation.
“Indeed. As well as the other items specified in the contract.” Firm in his response, Professor James was resolute.
“Here? You want two billion dollars in your cell?” This time it was Jenna’s turn to raise a Spock eyebrow.
“Obviously not. That much cash would require roughly four hundred and fifty five cubic feet of space. However, once you factor out the space lost to the bed and commode, my cell has a usable volume of only four hundred and forty-one cubic feet.”
“So you want the money out there, in the dayroom?” Jenna thumbed back towards the hard-mounted tables.
“Yes.” Jamie answered succinctly.
“In a high security prison? We can’t just write you one of those big lottery checks?” Giving a laugh to break the tension, the agent was already trying to imagine the scene.
“Checks can be cancelled or held, cash cannot, and American hundred dollar bills are essentially a universal currency, accepted worldwide.” Showing a terse smile, it was as if it pained him to stretch his facial muscles that way.
“Not gonna spend a lotta cash around here, are ya?” Raising both eyebrows as she leaned in, Jenna had a playful tone to her voice. The idea of what he demanded made her think that Jamie was either mentally unhinged, or an evil genius. He certainly had the pedigree. Regardless, she could not deny feeling a sense of fascination with whatever the savant was planning.
“Yeah,” Marco chimed in. “All this cash is bustin’ our balls. Just give us the secret and we can have the cash waiting for you at your new safe-house.”
The words had only just left Asante’s mouth when Jenna distinctly heard the twin chirps again. At the same time she noticed a tiny deflection of Jamie’s attention as he too processed the sound. Glancing back, she could tell that neither of her counterparts had noticed the chirping at all.
“How I dispose of the money is external to our financial agreement.” Remaining contrite, Jamie never wavered.
“So you two don’t think it’s a little suspicious that he wants two billion dollars here at this specific place and time?” Turning back towards her compatriots, Jenna was not surprised to see them both shrugging.
“It’s not as if anyone’s gonna find this place.” Marco saw no threat from the scientist.
“I found this place.” Jenna reminded them dryly.
“This is a secure facility.” Quinn seemed to dismiss the notion of a setup right away.
Shrugging, she looked back to Jamie. “So what’s next? What do these people need to do in order for you to give them the technology they so desperately want? Let’s kick this pig and get this contract closed out, right?”
“Well sheee-ite, let’s get ‘er done!” Country Jimmy stooped a little as he flashed a toothy grin.
“Now we’re talking.” Marco beamed, “So how’s about you just start writing down the secret on some paper and we’ll start bringing in your cash?”
At roughly the same time that the cricket in the air vent chirped twice, Jamie’s face changed from happy to irritated in a split second. Reaching out with an open hand, Jersey Jimbo grabbed Marco’s face and shoved it away roughly.
“Shaddup, the adults’re talking.” Dismissive, Jersey Jimbo left no debate how he felt about the man. “Why’nt you go make yerself useful and get us some coffee.”
Agent Asanté’s first reaction was to lash out, but feeling himself being held back by Colonel Quinn, he quickly realized that attacking Jamie would only delay the process even further.
“Well, where the hell is my money?” Stopping in the middle of the dayroom, Jersey Jimbo gestured to the room that was empty except for the two metal tables bolted to the concrete floor.
Back to Country Jimmy, Jamie was all smiles as he chatted with Jenna. “So what I needs is the pallets laid out in a specific pattern with a minimum of twenty inches of open space betwixt each”
“Oh?” She had a feeling there would be a logical explanation.
“For verification purposes; do you have any inkling of just how long it would take to count two billion dollars manually?” Back to Professor James, he lectured with a flawless British accent. “However, if they are laid out properly, then I will be able to verify the total in a much more timely fashion.”
“He wants the money laid out in a specific pattern.” Turning to Quinn, Jenna shrugged as if it were not negotiable.
As if on cue, the first of the cash had arrived at the main door into the pod. The guard pulling the pallet jack was a little flushed from the physical activity.
“Just put it wherever he tells you to put it.” Thumbing towards Jamie, the Colonel gave a sign of resignation as he made it clear that they were to take direction from the savant.
Climbing up onto the nearest table, Jamie folded his arms before directing the guard. “Put it there by the column.”
He stayed there, perched atop the metal table issuing directions to the guards as they each struggled to literally drag a ton of cash into the room using a pallet jack. Pausing between loads he took a moment to fish about in the box of miscellaneous items that had been demanded by the contract’s small print. Finding what he was looking for, Country Jimmy pulled out a tape measure and began to verify the gap between the loads of cash. If the gap was off, then he would make the guards reposition the pallet to his exact specifications. Although they would have objected to taking orders off a prisoner, Quinn had made it very clear that they were to deal with it until he said otherwise.
“I don’t understand how this will speed up the counting and verification.” Marco confided in Jenna as they watched from the far side of the dayroom.
“That’s because you’re a simpleton.” Jenna said in a matter-of-fact manner. While she enjoyed the opportunity to degrade her ex-husband, deep in her own mind she had been wonderi
ng exactly the same thing. By her accounting all he really had to do was count the pallets. Since each of the immense bricks of cash was $100,000,000, the calculations would have been simple enough. It was this inconsistency that suggested that Jamie had something planned. While the federal agent in her felt a natural instinct to stop him, she also had an inexplicable urge to see what the savant had in store for them. It occurred to her that this was the first time in her career that she was actually rooting for the other side.
That thought shocked her; the very idea that she would side with a prisoner over her own agency was treasonous by her way of thinking. Yet despite all the fake news that had been regurgitated by the press and White House, she knew that the brothers had been nothing more than the victims of a technology heist. Even more troubling was her role in the process.
“See, here’s a picture of the safe house where we’re gonna move him and his money as soon as we make the exchange.” Marco was all grins as he showed Jenna a series of photos of a little country cottage. Somewhere in the air vent a cricket chirped twice.
Still oblivious to the chirping, Marco continued to cycle through the photos. Jenna turned to find herself looking into Professor James’ eyes. From his vantage point atop the metal table, he said nothing as he raised a single eyebrow. Turning back to her ex, she knew it was all lies; there was no cottage, there would be no freedom for Jamie, and the money would likely be taken back to the bank as soon as she was out of sight. In that moment her stomach felt a little queasy at the thought that she was a participant to an amoral act.
“What would Jesus do?” Her words came out as a whisper.
Across the room Marco had begun poking through the box of miscellaneous items. Showing a disapproving frown he cycled through the odd collection of items before pulling out a small wooden box. Opening the mahogany case with the utmost care, the federal agent revealed the golden crown. Though a replica of the original used on the TV show, it was still a work of gilded art.
“Hey, why don’t ya wear your faggoty crown.” Showing a smug grin, Marco taunted the savant.
Atop the table, Jamie’s posture changed noticeably. Fists balled tightly, Jersey Jimbo scowled as he stepped down onto the ground. Walking directly to Marco he used one hand to grip the wooden box while he slapped the agent across the face with his other hand.
“You’se the only faggot in this room.” Turning away, Jimbo’s disdain was evident.
Marco’s first reaction was to strike back, but with Jenna there to block him he had no choice but to watch the savant climb slowly back to his perch atop the metal table.
“He struck a federal agent!” Marco’s voice revealed the depth of his anger. It had been bad enough to be struck by a prisoner, but the fact that Jamie had chosen instead to slap him like a bitch truly upset the man.
“Agent Assanté!” Quinn called out in a commanding voice. From his spot by the main door to the pod, the Colonel had no desire to call his higher echelon to report that the price had been jacked up another quarter billion dollars. As it was he was already under far more scrutiny than he cared for. The way things stood now, his entire career was dependent on this single transaction, and he had no desire to let Marco’s pride interfere with the process.
Returning to his spot on the table, Jamie resumed his organization of the cash.
Watching from the main door, Jenna could hear the intermittent chirps that occurred. While she had figured out that one chirp meant yes or true, and two chirps was no or false, she had no idea what the longer strings meant. Watching Jamie’s eyes as the cricket in the air vent tapped out a lengthy message, it was apparent that he was listening to the coded sequences.
“That’s some cricket you got.” Turning to Colonel Quinn, she made the offhand comment.
“So we have bugs, so what? It’s hard to get an exterminator out here when the place doesn’t exist.” Shrugging, the military man seemed to consider the chirps nothing more than background noise.
Maintaining a poker face, Jenna never revealed what she knew. By her way of thinking, they deserved whatever Jamie had in store for them. If anything, it would be karmic justice for the things they had done so far. Even more troubling had been Jack’s macabre warning that once they had what they wanted; she too would find herself on the outside. While she would have liked to have believed that she was a valued member of the FBI, she knew that if they were willing to kidnap and kill for this technology, they wouldn’t even hesitate to steamroll over a single agent. With this in mind, she would complete her assignment, but would leave them to stew in whatever mess Jamie had in store for them.
It had taken ten trucks to ferry all the cash. With twenty tons of hard cash filling every inch of the dayroom, the only open space in the whole dayroom was the two metal tabletops. As the room had filled up, Jenna, Marco, and the Colonel had found themselves being pushed out of the dayroom and into the hallway. Only when the last pallet was being set into position did Jamie finally climb down off the table and approach them.
“I need to begin the verification process; get out!” Blunt in his delivery, he gestured for them to step over the threshold.
“Excuse me?” The Colonel raised his eyebrows in surprise. “Are you asking me to leave you alone in there?”
“Exactly.” With hands clasped behind his back, Professor James was succinct. “Step out of the room, secure the door, and I will verify the cash and miscellaneous stipulations.”
“Bullshit.” Marco dismissed it with a sneer. “Look Kunta Kinte, you can count money just as easily with the door open as closed, now get to counting.”
Raising a single eyebrow, Professor James resisted the urge to let Jersey Jimbo deal with the agent. Though he had greatly enjoyed slapping the man earlier, it would derail the process. Instead he decided to let another of his personalities resolve the dispute.
Stretching and yawning as if he were tired, Country Jimmy pretended to be sleepy.
“Well, shite, all that organizing just plumb wore me out. Think I’ll go take me one of them quarter-billion dollar kinda naps. Y’know what I mean, Vern?” Poking his smug grin into Marco’s face, Jimmy turned and began to make his way towards his distant cell.
“Alright.” Exasperated at being so close, Colonel Quinn waved a hand. “It’s not like he’s going anywhere. Just count the damned money so we can get this deal closed.”
Next to him Jenna shrugged as if it mattered not to her. While she suspected it was all a ruse, part of her wanted to see it play out.
“Bullshit!” Ever defiant, Marco shook his head. We’ll close the door, but I’m staying in here with you to make sure you don’t pull any bullshit.”
Jamie’s posture changed noticeably as Country Jimmy morphed back into Professor James. Displaying an impassive look he quickly ruled on the change to his plans.
“Fine, you may remain, but only if you stay right there by the door. I cannot have you interfering with the process.”
As the main door to E-pod began to slide shut, Marco considered the request. In classic Asanté form, he shook his head yet again.
“Yeah…no.” Turning abruptly the agent began to skinny his way between the stacks of cash until he made it to the table where Jamie had spent most of the morning.
Seeing his adversary climb up into his spot atop the table, Jamie simply gave a grunt of disapproval. Reaching into the miscellaneous box of supplies he fished about until he located a painter’s mask and a pair of safety glasses. Strapping both into place on his face, the savant reached back into the box for a pair of ear plugs. Working the foam plugs into his ear canal he stood looking at Marco as if he were expecting something.
“What the fuck?” Perplexed, Marco’s mind scrambled to make sense out of the scene.
“You may begin.” His voice muffled inside of the mask, Jamie simply remained at his spot by the door.
“Begin what?” Marco asked unsure.
“I wasn’t talking to you.” Raising a Spock eyebrow, the savant await
ed what was to come next.
Marco Asanté was just beginning to realize that he may have played right into the savant’s hands when the ceiling above him erupted in a cloud of dust and debris. Immediately the agent was struck by chunks of concrete that rained down from above.
In the hallway Jenna and Colonel Quinn watched as the ceiling ruptured above Marco. While they both witnessed the same event, their responses were quite disparate. Where Jenna stood marveling at the way Marco had been tricked into the path of destruction, beside her the Colonel was already shouting into his radio for backup.
“What the hell…?” Quinn was surprised when the lights in the hallway winked out. With his handheld radio turned up all the way, there was nothing but static.
Peering through the window, Jenna watched the dust begin to clear. Still standing by the door, Jamie was in the process of removing his earplugs when the cloud of concrete dust finally dissipated enough to make out Marco’s prone form on the table.
“We need backup at Echo pod!” Quinn continued to summon help even though it was obvious no one could hear him.
“Are there manual keys to the doors?” Pointing to the lock mechanism on the security door, she made the observation.
“Yeah, but they’re in a safe in the admin wing, which is separated from us by several big, steel doors.” As he said it, Quinn had a sinking sensation in the pit of his stomach. He reckoned it was his career fleeing the scene.
“And who has the combo to the safe?” Resisting the urge to grin, Jenna could see it all coming together now.
“Only the facility administrator has the combo.” Quinn admitted reluctantly.
“And that’s you, right?” Already knowing the answer, Jenna could not help but poke at him with her queries.
Inside the pod Jamie looked up at the hole in the ceiling as he grabbed a roll of duct tape from the box of miscellaneous supplies. Dragging Marco by his collar, he pulled the unconscious agent off the table and towards the open cell. Roughly depositing him on the floor, he used the thick tape to bind the agent. Once done, the savant dropped the tape before turning his attention back to the task at hand.