Sunshine or Lead

by Adam Van Susteren

  “Do you know what was said?”

  Nat shook her head. “The call lengths were seven, thirty-four, and three minutes and they were all from prepaid cell phones.”

  “Do we know who took the call at the firm?”

  She shook her head no.

  “So how are Chinese spies, a flu vaccine, and Helen Cluntz related?”

  “I thought that was your specialty, Aaron.”

  Aaron closed his eyes for a second then said, “My first thought is they are not related. It’s a pretty big firm that does international law…” He pressed hard against his forehead. “But that thought’s probably wrong. Wai, that’s a Chinese name, right?”

  Nat nodded.

  “What if the firm reached out to Zhou, as a conduit to the Chinese government?”

  “Possible.”

  Aaron pulled out his cell phone and dialed the number for Enloe Burden.

  “Hello,” Enloe said cautiously as if the unrecognized number could be from a telemarketer.

  “E, it’s Aaron Baker. Can you do me a huge favor?”

  “Hey Aaron,” Enloe responded with his voice immediately warming up. “Sure, what’s up?”

  “I need you to talk to a prisoner, Nannette Allenby, about her relationship with her law firm and how she selected them. And ask about the NDS, it seemed to rattle her a bit before. Offer her a sweet deal on the San Diego murder charge, in exchange, if you have to.”

  “Come on Aaron, I’m an Assistant U.S. Attorney, not the Attorney General.”

  “E, I wouldn’t ask if it wasn’t important. Please, just go see what information you can get from her. She lawyered-up. Oseff, Wai & Cantwell is the firm so you better let them know you want to talk with her.”

  “This sounds serious.”

  “It is. I need someone I can trust.”

  “And if she won’t talk?”

  “See if you can take the lawyer out to lunch. Get to know a bit about his firm and how they represent so many international businesses to try and find out why they would risk their reputation on a potential traitor.”

  “Okay Aaron, you’ll owe me one.”

  “You’re the best. I’ll be in San Diego in five hours. I’ll call you for an update as soon as I land.”

  “Okay, I’ll put on a tie and head into the office. At least I can pick up Phil’s BBQ for the wife on the way home. And I am totally blaming you for making me go to work on Sunday afternoon,” Enloe said, happy to get out of the gardening duties.

  “Thanks,” Aaron said as he hung up the phone.

  “Are you sure you want to get more of your friends involved in this?”

  “Absolutely not.”

  “Any chance your friend can mess up the prosecution by talking with her?”

  “I doubt it, Enloe is experienced and smart. Chances are he won’t uncover anything, but who knows. At least I feel like we are moving forward. Speaking of which, how is James holding up?”

  “He doesn’t have clearance for this conversation, what we just talked about. I don’t even know how you do.”

  “Do we know where the girls are?”

  “Pay attention. Like I just told you, they are all up in the air.” She hit refresh on the secure internet satellite link on her laptop.

  “That’s right. Sorry.”

  Nat looked him up and down and snorted slightly. She looked at an email on her laptop and clicked on a link to a news story. When she finished reading, she looked up. “Hey Aaron, there’s a breaking news story claiming Ameriprobe has developed an antiviral drug that will cure influenza in humans and animals. They claim the FBI was investigating possible corporate espionage by Chinese interests and have a picture of Xiaowan and Aurora perfectly framed with the Ameriprobe campus in Barcelona behind them. It’s implying that Xiaowan is a Chinese spy without saying it.”

  “When did this happen?”

  “Just now. An Australian newspaper first broke the news and it’s spread all over as a developing story.”

  The pilot and copilot boarded the plane, followed by James. Even with the hangover, Aaron noticed the bags under James’ eyes from stress and lack of sleep. Nat handled the lack of sleep and stress better. Aaron asked, “How are you doing?”

  Manny boarded last and the copilot closed the door behind them.

  James shrugged his shoulders. “Xiaowan’s on a plane. She seems safe. But shit, I thought we were safe on this plane once the wheels were up. Life’s pretty messed up right now. I mean, I failed Xiaowan and didn’t get her parents back.”

  Aaron walked over to the bar and made two Bloody Marys. He handed one to James and took a long sip of his.

  Nat stood up. “What the hell are you doing? We need you sober.”

  “No you don’t. I’ll be dead to the world with a hangover in a few hours. I’m not fully hung-over yet. I need to ease the withdrawal with a few drinks and a lot of water for the next few hours. Tina explained all that to me a while back. If she were here, she would hook me to up an IV with saline and B vitamins.”

  James took a sip. “I always tell Shy that she needs to get Ameriprobe to develop a cure for the hangover.” He asked Aaron, “Any news?”

  Aaron shook his head.

  Nat informed him, “The three of us will catch a plane to D.C. after landing in San Diego and dropping the boys off.”

  Manny corrected, “The four of us, and I’ll cover the extra cost to stay on this plane. Either we’ll swap out pilots or see if they are up for continuing on.”

  “Thank you. The four of us will continue on.”

  James asked, “What do we do for the next ten hours?”

  Nat replied, “I’ve got three high-priced, bright lawyers here and we’ll have internet connection on the plane. Let’s do some research and planning.”

  Aaron finished his Bloody Mary, set it down, opened a bottle of water, and chugged half of it. “I’m in. Do we have anything to eat? I’m guessing those guys are going to be hungry when they wake up too.”

  Manny said, “There are sandwiches in the fridge and chips in the cupboard.”

  Ready to get started, James said, “Looks like I’m researching on my cell phone. It’ll feel good to be doing something to help, though. Let’s get started.”

  Chapter 26

  Enloe waited for Nannette’s attorney before he could meet her in the interrogation room and start talking with her. He looked at the evidence bin and saw a gun that was unloaded, bullet casings, wig, syringe, and other belongings that were found on Nannette. Unused bullets and anything dangerous were stored in a locked safe with identification. Nothing in the box was a functional weapon.

  Nannette’s fingerprints weren’t on the body of the illegal Mexican immigrant that she killed. She had successfully wiped them off. Even so, with the recent arrest of burnt-faced Carlos Jimenez, Enloe felt this murder charge against her was nearly ironclad.

  A buzzer rang to alert Enloe that someone from the outside was entering the interrogation room. An Asian man in his forties approached and extended his hand. “Good afternoon, Anthony Wai.”

  “Enloe Burden,” he replied as they shook hands.

  “Why do you want to speak with our client on a Sunday afternoon with such short notice? My co-counsel had to head back to Washington D.C. to attend to other matters. I happened to arrive yesterday for a working vacation. We’re still not sure who will be lead counsel on this case if it stays out in San Diego.”

  “That’s what I wanted to talk about. I appreciate your time. I am here to see if there might be something we can work out on our charge out here that will allow for a clean transfer to D.C. for the remaining charges. I don’t think anything can or will be finalized today, but we want to get a handle on the possibility of a plea before we look at the venue issues.”

  It seemed reasonable enough to Anthony. “How do you want to begin?”

  “I’ll just talk for a few minutes, lay out some of the highlights of my case, then give you and your client a few minutes to cha
t and see if there is any information you have that might help our country.”

  “Okay, let’s proceed.”

  Enloe pushed an intercom button on the wall and said, “Marshal, please take us to Nannette.”

  A few seconds later an armed marshal entered the room. “No cell phones, no personal belongings. Suspect will remain in handcuffs and leg cuffs. Pen and paper only.”

  Anthony and Enloe nodded, then Enloe pointed to the box asking, “Will you please bring that in?”

  “Once I get you guys situated, I’ll recheck it and bring it in.”

  “Thanks,” replied Enloe as the three men walked through another door that the marshal opened with an electronic sensor key. Enloe was already curious as to why this lawyer, a partner at a good law firm, was allowing him to meet with his client. Good criminal defense lawyers would never allow their client to speak directly to a prosecutor. There would always be a go-between so that there would not be any direct testimony, no admissions to use against the suspect. Enloe did not look a gift horse in the mouth and made no comment as to this unusual accommodation.

  The three men waited between two sets of electronic doors. The marshal nodded at a camera and a buzzer rang. The marshal stood with his right hip next to the wall so that when he pulled the door open, his sidearm was tucked against the wall. He was well trained, and this habit of his protected his weapon from a potentially grabby hand, a fact not lost on Anthony.

  Nannette watched Anthony Wai enter the room, followed by Enloe. When the door shut behind them, a look of puzzlement came across her face.

  “Ms. Allenby, I am Anthony Wai, a partner at the law firm representing you on these matters. I understand that the U.S. Attorney’s Office wants to ask a few questions and talk with us about the case. I’m advising you not to talk at all until we have a chance to consult.”

  Nannette looked warily at the two and asked, “Where is attorney Oseff that I met with before?”

  “Back in Washington D.C. on another case. I was headed to meet with clients in Beijing so I was able to stop here to help out on your case. If there are proceedings here in California, I’ll be lead counsel. If they are in D.C., Felton Oseff will be,” Anthony said reassuringly.

  Enloe made a mental note of the attorney claiming to be here on a stop to visit other clients in Beijing and his earlier statement that he was here on a working vacation. Enloe also recalled Aaron’s interest in a possible international connection with the law firm that could be more important than this murder charge.

  “Hello, I’m Enloe Burden with the U.S. Attorney’s Office. I called this meeting because I think there are a few ways that you can help our country, which would bode quite well for you with some of these serious charges.”

  Anthony sat down next to Nannette with Enloe across from him. Nannette remained silent but gestured with her shackled hands for him to move the conversation along.

  Enloe wasn’t exactly sure what he wanted to say. So he did what he would normally do during an opening statement in court. A great opening statement involves painting a picture, or more accurately, telling a story that the jurors can see in their head as vividly as any movie they had seen before. That way, they can later piece the evidence you give them into your movie. Enloe didn’t have a clear picture, so he was unusually uncertain and he stammered. “Uh, well, you are aware of the charges against you?”

  She nodded.

  Enloe bought himself some more time by reading the charges. “Here in San Diego we have stalking, evading police, resisting arrest, assault against a peace officer, kidnapping, attempted murder, and murder.”

  Anthony looked at Nannette and whispered to her, “That’s all?”

  She chuckled slightly.

  Enloe was thrown further off his game by this. Very few people would make jokes at such a serious rap sheet of federal charges in one state plus additional charges in the District of Columbia.

  The door to the room opened and the marshal walked in with the evidence box. Enloe thanked him and felt steadied by these props that will assist him in telling this story, which he was going to have to make up as he went along.

  Enloe opened up the box that he had a chance to briefly scan prior to the meeting. He begged the contents to tell him a story, to give him something that will get him on track to finding some information for Aaron. He picked up the syringe, looked at it for a few seconds, and then asked himself softly, “Etorphine?”

  Anthony asked, “Excuse me?”

  Enloe glared into Nannette’s eyes with the confidence and resolve that said ‘I know how to put you behind bars so you will never get out and have a chance to hurt anyone again.’ With that resolve, Enloe changed his strategy. Instead of using a factual opening statement presentation, he would now use a closing argument that weaves in all parts of the story. He confidently said, “Etorphine.”

  Anthony looked at him questioningly. Enloe relished being in the know and again changed his style to that of a professor about to teach. “Yes. Etorphine, a semi-synthetic opioid approximately two thousand times more powerful than morphine. Used at times of extreme equine emergencies,” Enloe said, feeling proud of his execution overdose.

  Enloe had seen a racehorse in severe pain on the track that was drugged with etorphine after it shattered a leg during a race years ago. After that, he took it upon himself to learn a little about the drug.

  “You see, the largest animals, like elephants or rhinos, need to be sedated at times. Etorphine works quite well for them. Horses are generally too small for etorphine but, because it works nearly instantaneously, it is often used at the racetrack to help ease a horse’s extreme pain. The problem is, it is incredibly easy to overdose. It doesn’t work in the way the serial killer on the television show Dexter uses it. Sure, naloxone or diprenorphine counters the effect quite well and can wake an animal or even a person, but dosage is much harder, especially in people...”

  “Fascinating, but so what?” Anthony asked.

  “I just noticed the list of charges didn’t include possession of a controlled substance without a proper veterinary license. And of course, we have your client on tape placing the purse into the security scanner, showing that this syringe of etorphine was in your client’s possession. And we have the toxicology report on the Mexican American. I’ll bet you dinner at the Del Mar Turf Club that our medical examiner will state the cause of death was an overdose of opioids that exactly matches the chemical makeup in this syringe.”

  Anthony nodded. “Okay, so you feel the government’s case is strong. We won’t dispute that you feel that way. What do you want to talk about?”

  Enloe beamed on the inside, getting that feeling that comes when he cross-examines a witness into admitting a lie or otherwise takes the advantage. “Let’s talk about how you can help your country, Ms. Allenby.” Brimming with confidence, Enloe bluffed, “You worked for Helen Cluntz, this NDS, because you had a vision to help the country. Your vision was wrong, but your heart was in the right place. Now is your time to help.”

  Anthony asked Enloe, “What’s the NDS?”

  “Why don’t I let your client tell you about it? See if you can come up with some good information that will help her avoid the death penalty and get a pick of federal prisons instead of being placed at Hazelton or Coleman.” Enloe hoped that they believed he knew more about the NDS than only knowing it was three letters that Aaron told him to ask about.

  Anthony asked her, “Should we excuse Mr. Burden from the room so we can talk about what, if anything, you know about this NBS?”

  Enloe knew right then and there that Anthony Wai knew more than he was letting on. By previously stating NDS, then swapping to NBS, he was trying too hard to feign ignorance. Enloe saw it as pure BS.

  Enloe pressed the intercom button and waved at a camera in the corner. The door buzzed and as he opened it he heard Anthony call out, “I understand that you will be so kind as to turn off the audio recording in here even if the video remains on.”

>   “Of course, Mr. Wai. Just wave when you’re done and I’ll come on back,” Enloe said as he closed the door behind him. He had to wait for the second door to open for him after the first one locked.

  After Enloe exited and the door buzzed shut, Anthony looked Nannette in the eye. “There is an automatic lock on this door, then a marshal’s key card opens the next door. After that, we will need that marshal’s key card to get into the stairway that we will take to the roof. We need to get on the roof and wait for a helicopter to take us across the border; it’s twenty miles to Mexico.”

  “Who are you with?”

  “New Deal Soldiers,” Anthony responded with a wink.

  “Irish,” Nannette stated.

  “American.”

  “Irish,” Nannette stated again.

  Anthony thought for a second and said, “Coffee.”

  “Bat,” Nannette said with a smile.

  Anthony’s mind wandered for a second and then he said, “Boy.”

  Nannette said, “I’m glad you didn’t say man, Anthony. How do we get started?”

  “We’ll need to get the marshal in here to open this door and then take his key card. I need you to push me against the table and then fake an attack. Then I’ll wedge the door open and we’ll overtake the guard.”

  “Ready?” Nannette asked.

  “I hope so…” Anthony responded as Nannette shot her handcuffed hands underneath his chair and pulled up hard. He felt himself flipping over and reached his left hand out to the table, pulling the evidence box with him to the floor.

  Nannette set her chair on her leg cuffs and pushed down with the chair. Nothing happened. She realized she couldn’t shred the shackle, so she shuffled and fell on top of Anthony who had been crawling towards the door. She jumped on his back and wrapped her handcuffs around his neck. He spun over, looked her in the eye, and slammed the etorphine syringe into her leg and depressed the contents.

  Her eyes widened with recognition and she said, “Oh no.”

  Anthony looked at her, and as the electronic door unlocked, the last thing Nannette Allenby heard was Anthony whispering, “Oh no is right.”