“I’ll fix him for waking up in a weird place. You guys pick up everything and get the Cleaner into position in ten minutes. Don’t leave as a couple. Split up on returning to the Ford. Keep Cleaner moving around the block. I’ll be along shortly and meet you all out front.”
Gus and Johnny moved to do Nick’s bidding. Nick shouldered Lance and took him into his bedroom. Nick stripped him of everything but his underwear. He positioned Lance in a relaxed position on his bed, covers over him. He then gave Lance an eternity shot in between his left foot ‘this little piggy went to market and this little piggy stayed home’ toes. Nick checked over every moment the ‘Unholy Trio’ had been in the house. When satisfied, Nick watched for headlights from Gus’s Ford SUV to move slowly down the street in front of Lance’s house. He ran out and slipped inside the rear passenger compartment, holding the door closed until they were out of hearing from anyone on the street. Nick closed the door quietly then.
“Shit!”
Gus’s exclamation from the front seat drew an inquisitive glance from Cala. “What’s wrong, Gus.”
Gus did a thumb gesture backward at Nick with his left hand, never looking into the backseat. “Muerto killed the lawyer.”
Silence, multiplied by Nick’s neglect to refute Gus’s claim, confirmed it. At the first red light, Cala turned toward Nick. “Did you kill the lawyer, Muerto?”
“Drive, Cala,” Nick ordered. When the SUV was moving again, Nick spoke,” I couldn’t leave an unknown at our backs. He made his choice. I made mine. Sure… we could have all done barbeques and birthdays together but this is reality, kids. We leave no one at our backs to cause problems.”
“Did you at least give him last rites, Muerto,” Johnny asked.
It was many moments before any of them could speak, including Cala, who parked alongside of the road. She pointed at her husband accusingly between gasps of air. “You…you got that from Jess and Dev. I…I remember when they told us John Harding wanted to make the fighter called ‘Dragon Hands’ see Spongebob with a squeezing death grip in their match. Jess told Dev to give the Dark Lord an exorcism, and Dev complained because he had only recently memorized ‘Last Rites’. Very humorous, my husband.”
“That…that was good, Kabong,” Gus stuttered out.
“In answer to that,” Nick replied finally, “no, I didn’t. Like Dev… I don’t know last rites. I will learn it and the exorcism ritual for no other reason than pronouncing it over the Dark Lord when he goes astray.”
“I’ll learn it for you, Muerto,” Gus promised.
“May I remind you that I didn’t make a joke of lawyer Lance expiring? The moment I admitted to killing him… all there’s been is laughter. Cowboy up. We need to collect Biff and Ray. We need a decoy, Cala.”
Cala pumped her fist without looking away from the road. They were already headed toward the Sea Breeze motel. “Yes! Cala the Cleaner strikes again! I don’t have a uniform. Hey… I could approach like a hooker with bored expression. When they claim they didn’t ask for a hooker, I’ll pretend interest, claiming I’ll do anything not to make it a wasted trip.”
“Damn… that’s good, kid,” Nick said. “Chances are they won’t be around on a Saturday night. If they are, that ploy would work. We have your back but I will let Johnny have last word.”
Johnny sighed. “I see your heart’s into it. I cannot oppose what my love wants to do. I will be backing her. I doubt there will be very little protestation once they see her prostitute actions. The only problem will arise when they ask about her connection to the motel or who could have sent her. What if they’re gay?”
Cala’s snort of unhappiness shut Johnny up before he began again. “Okay… it doesn’t meet all our criteria other than surprise. We will be nearby. I will be at Cala’s side no matter how they take our alterations. We need to focus. Stopping will get us nothing. Once inside though, Cala will need some cover story.”
“I believe you’re right, Johnny,” Nick admitted. “We’re overthinking this. Cala gets sultry enough to answer the door and the moment the door gets unlatched, I’ll throw a flash-bang into their room, hold onto Cala, and then jog inside to find out what we can about the operation. The big deal in this will be making sure we have both Biff and Ray present. Otherwise, we’ll have to hunt them down.”
“Enough talk,” Cala said. “I am ready. I am no Snow White. Let’s get this done so we may find out where Biff and Ray found out about the gang in this town. Then, it will be a decision as to when we hit the Carone’s Mother Ship, and how.”
“Muerto’s in charge, my love,” Johnny reminded her. “You are sounding a bit like the T-Rex. We don’t want that.”
Cala gasped as the others enjoyed Johnny’s comical upbraiding. Cala giggled. “I did… didn’t I? She is very forceful. I thought to emulate her somewhat but maybe I am going too far.”
“We like your input, Cleaner,” Nick said. “You don’t have to tone down for us, but it would probably be to Johnny’s liking if you sound like yourself rather than like Tina. I’ve been getting too wild lately. The moment we’re working on a plan to take a couple guys, I start thinking about grenades and flashbangs. The Sea Breeze isn’t the Hilton, but I’d rather not damage one of their rooms with exploding devices. I’m becoming careless. I’ll take surprise to another level with Cala.”
“How do you mean, Muerto,” Gus asked. “For once, I didn’t think the flashbang was such a bad idea.”
“I have FBI and CIA credentials along with being a United States Marshal. I’ll have Cala get them to open the door – then, I’ll arrest them with you guys there to make the restraining arrest. They’ll think they’re being detained by the regular federal authorities. We move them to our interrogation facility without any disruption in the Sea Breeze room décor, or in public displays of mayhem. It’s a win/win situation.”
“I like it better than your other ideas but it will be more dangerous,” Johnny said.
“Oh, step up, Johnny Five,” Cala joked with her husband. “Once Muerto has the drop on them, they will believe they are really being arrested. I could probably measure them for their disassembly and deposit in the ocean while we are transporting them.”
Johnny threw his hands into the air. “Allah… spare me… I have created a monster.”
“All in favor of arresting these dastardly gang enablers.” Nick raised his hand. Gus and Cala followed his lead with Johnny slowly raising his. “It’s unanimous. Although they won’t understand why they’re blessed, the Sea Breeze Motel will be pleased with our operation.”
“Finally, a lead on mission for the Cleaner,” Cala said excitedly. “Let us go quickly before Johnny Five finds some way to derail Cleaner’s first black op. Is it too soon for renaming our squad… maybe Cleaner and her Unholy Trio?”
Nearly five minutes passed before anyone but Cleaner could move. After many attempts to stem the amusement of the Unholy Trio, Cleaner sighed and walked out.
* * *
Biff Cantor refilled Ray Genaro’s drink glass and then his own. They played gin rummy, the stakes minimal in terms of money, to pass the time until they could get a meeting with the gangbangers Fernando had marking territory in the Monterey area. He and Ray teamed doing jobs for Fernando Carone nearly four years ago. Carone paid them very well. Biff and Ray acted as competent intermediaries between Carone and the public, never allowing the law or the people they dealt with get close to Fernando. They lived aboard ‘The Tempest’, Carone’s Mother Ship for ‘Panga Boats’ to dock with and do business. ‘The Tempest’, a luxurious two hundred forty foot super yacht, acted as both a gambling pleasure cruiser and Panga boat dock for trafficking in anything from drugs to girls marked for transfer to Middle Eastern ports.
Biff and Ray originally acted as Los Zeta Cartel enforcers in the East LA area before Fernando Carone bought their contracts. They lived like kings now, killed anyone or anything Fernando pointed at with displeasure. They handled all expansion details, including collections,
once gangbanger trade annexed an area’s business with protection and extortion rackets. Fernando assigned one of his craziest gangster run crews to the Monterey area. After losing contact with Jay Parks, the leader of the gang, Carone waited impatiently for accurate word about his holdings in the area. With only jumbled news paraphernalia about a drug war with many dead, Fernando sent his best men down to find out the truth.
“Lawyer say Jay dead, so what we meetin’ with the punks for, Biff?” Biff’s partner, a black man no one messed with in East LA since Ray reached puberty, sipped from his glass with a nod of satisfaction.
Biff, a medium height, thin, mixed race broker of pain and death, smiled at his partner. When anyone needed finished off, Biff made the kill shot. He lived for the sight of death. “You know Fernando. We do everything until we get it done in detail, including burying Jay’s two jailed idiots in the desert. Remember… we nice as pie until we get them alone where we can find out what the fuck went wrong. One minute Jay’s crew ‘bangin’ and extortin’ – next… all but these two are dead.”
Ray nodded. “Fernando looked worried when he sent us. Fernando never worried… ever. Somethin’ bad here, partner. Rocky cliffs, bustin’ big waves crashin’ against the rocks, foggy salt smellin’ nights, and no threat in sight. What’s that all about, brother? We can’t whack nothin’ to make anything right here. I say we collect the garbage, bury them in the sand, and go tell Fernando the area toxic.”
Biff chuckled, sitting down in relaxed manner with drink in hand. “We don’t get paid to bring fairy tales back to the man. He find out… it’ll be us eatin’ sand. Tell you what, brother… now on… we go slow… step by step. The lawyer say the ‘bangers don’t know what happened to Jay and his crew. They damn sure can explain better than him about what the hell happened to them.”
“Yeah… I hear you. I-”
A knock at the door startled them. Embarrassed, Ray shoved away from the table. “I got this. You got me wantin’ to kill somethin’.”
Ray looked through the peephole at a beautiful, mini-skirted woman in her early twenties with long black hair. She looked up at the inspection peep hole with a sultry pose and smile. Ray chuckled, turning to Biff. “Hey, blood… you order a hooker?”
“Nope.” Biff walked over to glance through the seeing-eye peephole with interest. “Damn… she fine. She don’t belong here. What she doin’ knockin’ on our door?”
Ray grinned as another soft knock sounded. “Don’t know. She can’t be here entrapping us. Maybe Sea Breeze has connections. They ought to at least have her in one of those sexy maid uniforms.”
Biff snorted. “I’m good with finding out. Want me to meet and greet?”
“Yeah… I’d probably scare her away,” Ray replied, moving out of sight.
Biff unlocked the deadbolt on the door and opened it. He eyed the woman with undisguised lustful notions. “Hey, baby doll – you lost?”
She reached over to run a slim hand over Biff’s cheek. “I don’t think so. Fernando said you two might like some entertainment. I can make the time pass for you and Ray in ways you two never dreamed of.”
All suspicion left Biff’s features at the woman’s mention of Fernando and Ray. “You know who I am too, baby?”
“You bet I do, Biff honey. Fernando told me not to come in unless you and Ray asked me.”
“Damn… you hear that, Ray?”
“Hell yeah, brother.” Ray moved from his place of concealment to stand next to Biff. “You are one fine lookin’ piece. Did Fernando tell you we like the rough stuff, baby. He know-”
A dead eyed man whipped around the doorway with a silenced MP5 machine pistol pointed at their faces, his finger hovering over the trigger with almost a caress of desire. “Move a finger and I blow your faces off with one burst! Interlock your fingers behind your heads and carefully kneel on the floor. Miss a step and this will be an execution rather than an arrest. Now, ladies!”
“Fuck!” Ray watched the woman stifle amusement and scamper around behind the man he could tell was a killer. “Do what he say, Biff! He wants to pull on us. I tol’ you this fuckin’ place is jinxed. We in it now.”
“What’s this all about, officer?” Biff interlocked his fingers behind his head as did Ray. He switched tone of voice to cultured confusion. “May we at least see some identification? We have done nothing wrong.”
“Oh, yes Sir, I’m sure this is a misunderstanding,” the dead eyed man said. “Once you have knelt and are restrained, I will show you badges from both the FBI and US Marshal’s Service. I am US Marshal, Nick McCarty. Kneel now with care, gentlemen.”
Ray began to get suspicious. “He’s a killer, Biff. There’s-”
“Kneel or die!” The man claiming to be Nick McCarty looked a split second from murder. His finger closed on the MP5 trigger. “Ever see that TV show ‘Justified’? That’s the kind of US Marshal I am. I don’t give a shit whether you kneel or die.”
Ray saw instant death in the man’s eyes. He interlocked his fingers and knelt as ordered with Biff following his lead. Two men came around the entrance with professional ease to restrain their hands behind their backs. They were then helped by the two new arrivals to their feet. They were shown both identification from the FBI and the US Marshal’s Service as promised. Ray relaxed slightly.
“It’s the law, Biff.”
Biff searched the trio’s faces, who were professionally patting them down, and confiscating everything they had on them. The little whore in the mini-skirt brought in a bag. She searched through the small room, bagging anything of an electronic nature. “This don’t look good, partner.”
“We want our lawyer.” Ray cursed himself for their smartphones and electronic tablets. They got stupid. No way should he or Biff been found with anything other than burner phones. A happy thought crossed his addled mind in a brief streak of relief. “Where’s your warrant? Are we under arrest? You can’t just take whatever you want. We’ll have your damn badges!”
“All of your questions will be answered shortly,” the man named Nick answered. “Once you’re in interrogation you can speak with anyone you want to call. Are we ready, Cleaner?”
“Yes, Muerto. I will be right back.” The woman hurried off with the bag in hand. A Ford SUV drove into the Sea Breeze parking lot. It turned with doors opening automatically for them.
“Here’s our ride. Let’s go. This way, gentlemen.” The US Marshal guided Ray, with Biff following at the prompting from the Marshal’s cohorts into the SUV.
Once inside the vehicle, driving away from the motel, the large black guy with the man claiming to be Marshal McCarty approached them with syringes in his hands. Ray began to battle, only to have the MP5 pressed to his head.
“Go ahead and fight, Ray. It won’t matter.”
Moments later, Ray and Biff lost consciousness.
* * *
“You were exceptional today, Cleaner,” Nick complimented Cala as he strapped Biff into place on a gurney inside the nightmarish Carmel Valley interrogation room. “Your suggestion of using a supposed gift from Fernando of a hooker was perfect. The performance you acted out netting Biff and Ray without tearing apart the Sea Breeze elevated you from minion to valued soldier of the Unholy Trio.”
Cala took the compliment with a squeal of delight, embracing Johnny. “I am Cleaner Cala, soldier of the Unholy Trio. Yes! Thank you, Muerto!”
Nick shrugged. “I can’t turn ten year old Jean away from this business. I’ve given up trying to figure out the attraction. With Jean, it was seeing bad guys being dealt with violently, instead of running from them. I suspect not being at the mercy of your whacko male family members turned you to our dark side, Cala.”
“You know those cretins very well, Muerto,” Cala replied. “They would still kill Dimah and me at their first opportunity. The only thing stopping my honor killing monster relatives is that they will have to face violent men. The cowards have been raised to think all men will allow them to do anything the
y want to do to women considered their chattel. Johnny has been training me. I will not ever lower my head in deference again to them. I do not know how dark I am inside, Muerto, but it is a good darkness. I know what is right and what is wrong.”
“That’s the key, Cleaner,” Gus said, patting her shoulder. “Until I met Lynn Montoya Dostiene, I didn’t know if any woman could embrace what we do. She’s so far above what I think of as cold blooded killer mental skill, I don’t even compare with her. You have the mental outlook to be as deadly and as cold blooded about what we do even now. You surpass her in the hands on skill level, Cala.”
“Really, Gus? I do?”
“Her husband Clint told us she can’t clean anything. She would leave a murder scene without a backward glance. Only Nick is better at you in crime scene cleaning, and you learn at an incredible rate, both on the ground and in the air, Cala. We’re lucky to have you. You’re like Nick and Johnny. Nothing bothers you about this bloody business.”
Cala’s features revealed her disgust. “You are right, Payaso. Cutting up vicious bastards, who would kill countless innocents, for disposal does not bother me at all. I am not affected by the sight of much blood or the cutting. Naturally, I did not know this until being with all of you. I will be the Unholy Trio’s ‘Cruella Deville’. She is amazing. Did you watch the cutting Lynn did on the gangbanger she called ‘Darla’? Oh my… that woman was fast with a blade, but could not hold a candle to Lynn.”
“I saw the video, and it is as you describe it, Cala,” Nick agreed. “I hate to say this, but I think Jean will be just as proficient. She loves the knives.”
“Cala is very good at martial arts, as Lynn is,” Johnny said. “Even if caught alone somewhere, she will surprise the cave dwellers.”
Biff and Ray began to groan. Cala ran around to start the eerie music and begin the black light show of the walls shining torturous images beyond description. The Cleaner and Unholy Trio watched in anticipation as Biff and Ray awoke to a nightmare. Biff impressed Nick with his grasp of the situation.
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