Days of Destiny

by Aiden Vaughan

  Jason and Daniel saved my life, and Mom’s too, by offering us a helping hand through Jason’s foundation and providing us with the opportunity to get on our own two feet again. I will be grateful to them for the rest of my life for what they did. Again it makes me sad to think that two teenagers did more for us in two days than you did in the last four years. Where was my father when I really needed him?

  I do thank you for sending that check for past due child support. Now I will be able to afford a lot of things that my friends take for granted. I also plan to work hard to get caught up in school and can now actually put money aside for college. For the first time in a long time, I feel that I have a good future ahead of me. For that I am very grateful.

  Your former son,

  Robbie

  * * * * *

  Jimmy Rae Chu and Chuluun Chau were indicted Monday for multiple counts of kidnapping, false imprisonment, running a domestic slavery operation, and child molestation. The federal prosecutor also added special circumstances to the indictments because Chu and Chau had actually had sold the young boys they kidnapped to other predators. They were being held without bail, and would very likely face life imprisonment if convicted on all counts of the indictment.

  At first Jimmy Rae Chu and Chuluun Chau were defiant about their arrest, and uncooperative with the investigation. After the indictments came down, their attorney explained to them the magnitude of the charges against them. He described how devastating it would be for them in court when their victims got on the witness stand and testified against them, especially if they were kids. “No jury will acquit you after that,” he told them, so they decided to cooperate to see if a plea deal could be worked out.

  The federal prosecutor told Chu and Chau in a meeting Monday afternoon that there was no way that they would avoid long prison sentences for their crimes, but it might be possible for them to avoid life imprisonment if they fully cooperated and helped the authorities to track down other victims and perpetrators from their human trafficking operation.

  As a result, Jimmy Rae gave up the names of several men who had purchased his young captives. They included a man in San Francisco who was about to pick up Jian-heng Chen from the utility closet, but couldn’t get his vehicle through the Chinese New Year traffic until after the parade. His plan was to use Jian-heng for child pornography videos and photos. The man who had bid for and tried to pick up Robbie Nelson at the Milpitas house didn’t have a police record, but when his home in the San Joaquin valley was searched, a huge amount of child pornography was found on his computer. Jimmy Rae admitted that Brandon Jacobs was kidnapped to replace Robbie when the man was unable to pick up the young boy he had bid for on the Internet auction.

  Jimmy Rae Chu and Chuluun Chau also confessed to kidnapping one other young boy and two young girls who they had treated in the same manner as Robbie and Brandon, holding them captive and molesting them before selling them off to other predators for large sums of money. The two girls were eventually found and returned to their families, but unfortunately the boy had been killed after trying to escape from his captor, who had been particularly brutal to him.

  Jimmy Rae and Chuluun had been running their domestic slavery business for several years, and the twelve young women they had brought into America this time were the third group they had smuggled in. Already some of the women brought in previously had been found. Eventually most of them would be tracked down and released from the onerous contracts and working conditions that they were forced to accept.

  All of this information was revealed to Jason and Daniel in a meeting that they had with Agent Evan Moore and Captain Garcia after school on Wednesday. Agent Moore had come down to have the boys sign formal statements about their involvement with the rescue of Brandon Jacobs and the search for the human traffickers who were now in custody.

  “You boys helped us take down two very cruel predators, and a number of their associates who participated in their human trafficking schemes,” Agent Moore said. “The FBI is grateful for your cooperation in this matter. I must say I was very concerned about you two just going into their farm property on your own! You should always let the authorities handle things like that!”

  “You know that we immediately contacted you through Captain Garcia when we had confirmation that Brandon was there,” Jason responded. “It was just speculation on our part until we had some sort of visual confirmation that either Brandon or the traffickers we missed getting in Milpitas were actually at that location. As soon as we found Brandon, we knew that we had to act fast and get him and us out of there! That’s what we did, and we let you handle taking those two men into custody! There was no way that we wanted to stay there and become sitting ducks for two vicious human traffickers with shotguns!”

  “I have often had this conversation with Jason and Daniel,” Captain Garcia said, entering the conversation. “Over the past two years, they have gotten much better about this, and they did work closely with us on this case. If they hadn’t been involved, Robbie Nelson wouldn’t have been rescued. Their rescue of young Jian-heng Chen and their desire to help him find his two sisters is what opened this case in the first place.”

  After Agent Moore completed his business with Jason and Daniel, he left to return to his headquarters. He told Jason and Daniel that at this time it seemed unlikely that they or any of the victims would need to testify in court about what happened.

  Jason and Daniel then received an update from Captain Garcia about the sports gambling scandal. “Our investigation is now complete, and all of the people involved have been indicted. That included the gamblers who directly threatened Chauncey Jackson, the mobsters who ordered them to do it, and even one of the janitors at the basketball arena where you played your championship game. He was responsible for putting that picture in Chauncey’s locker. The sting operation was a big success. It allowed us to get those men really in charge. By authorizing that kidnapping of our undercover agent posing as Adele Evans, we were able to indict the mobster who was truly behind this on conspiracy charges. It still galls me to think that he would stoop so low as to try and intimidate a high school athlete into throwing that game, just so his son could look good in the game and they could make a few bucks off of the rigged victory.”

  “It was a very selfish and stupid thing to do!” Jason replied. “And really unnecessary. The St. Bernadette’s team was very capable of beating us on their own! Instead that mobster ended up motivating Chauncey to play the game of his life!”

  “How is the young detective who played the part of Adele Evans doing?” Daniel asked. “From what Jason told me about the sting operation, she was roughed up by those bastards.”

  “Officer Jacqueline Buchanan is doing fine, now,” Garcia replied. “She did a great job of acting like a scared young high school girl. Most of the time, they just kept her locked up in a bedroom. The only time she was assaulted at all was when they grabbed her. She was bound, gagged, and blindfolded while they took her to their hideout, and later her mouth was taped for that picture they put in Chauncey’s locker. Other than that, she was left alone, which was a great relief to us. We did have her wired the entire time, and if they had tried anything else, we would have immediately gone in there and arrested those goons who kidnapped her.

  “Officer Buchanan wanted the sting to succeed as much as anyone, and I am very grateful that she was able to hang in there until the operation was successfully concluded.”

  “That is very good news, Captain Garcia,” Jason said. “I know that Chauncey will be very pleased to hear that those men who threatened him, Adele, and his mom are behind bars and going to prison.”

  After leaving Captain Garcia, the boys split up. Daniel had a rehearsal with his band early that evening. Jason wanted to go over to Chauncey’s house and tell him the latest news about the gamblers.

  When Jason arrived at Chauncey’s place, Adele and Chauncey’s mother were there also. Chauncey greeted Jason with his usual special handshake and
knuckles, while Adele and Chauncey’s mom gave him hugs. “We are so grateful for what you did for Chauncey and for us,” Chauncey’s mom said. “Those gamblers were real mean individuals!”

  Jason took some time to tell them all he had learned about the case from Captain Garcia. “The good news is that those men will be given serious prison time for what they tried to do to you. I am especially pleased that no harm came to you, Mrs. Jackson or to Adele!”

  “You must stay for dinner and celebrate with us tonight, Jason!” Mrs. Jackson exclaimed. “I have a whole lot of down home cooking I want you to try!”

  “Yeah, Jason,” Adele seconded, “please stay. Chauncey has always told me what a special friend you are to him, and now I understand what he means. I shudder when I think of what Officer Buchanan went through on my behalf. But thanks to you, we had a game plan that really worked!”

  “That sounds great!” Jason replied enthusiastically. “I’ll just give my mom a call and let her know that I won’t be home for dinner.”

  Chauncey’s mom prepared a dinner of baked spareribs, a sweet potato pie, collard greens, and homemade biscuits. The four dug into the food and had a great conversation about sports, their successful basketball season, Adele’s upcoming track meets, and Chauncey’s future.

  After they had finished eating and talking, and it was about time for Jason to leave, Chauncey said, “Before you go, I have something special to give you, Jason.” He went into his room and brought out a five by eight inch framed photo. “Mom found this snapshot in a box of old pictures that she thought might be worth putting into a scrapbook. I had it blown up and put into a frame for you.” He handed the picture to Jason.

  The picture was of Jason and Chauncey when they were five years old and attending kindergarten together. Chauncey had his arm around Jason who had a small basketball in his hands. “Look, Jason, you haven’t changed a bit,” Chauncey said with a smile. “You have that straw yellow towhead of hair and are wearing those red high top chucks even back then!”

  “And look at you!” Jason responded. “Dressed to the teeth in the latest basketball gear from head to foot. How awesome is that!”

  “I guess basketball and friendship was meant to be in our lives from a very early age!” Chauncey answered.

  “You can say that again!” Jason exclaimed.

  Chapter 34

  The Fabulous Offer

  (March 31)

  Daniel came home after school on Thursday somewhat dispirited and in a bad mood. His classes at school all seemed long and interminable. Even his music classes didn’t give him the lift that they usually did. There were concerts scheduled for next week in both choir and jazz band. Most of their rehearsal time was spent going over and over small passages of music that their directors wanted to perfect. Then at lunch Diana was busy with a committee meeting and it seemed his band mates and Jason were nowhere to be found. Daniel ended up eating his lunch alone seated on the ground by the door to his fifth period class. After school Diana had a dentist appointment so all day they had literally said hi and goodbye to each other instead of spending time together like they usually did.

  When he arrived home, both of his parents were there. His mother was meeting with a client and his father was working on tax returns. When Daniel went into his father’s office to say hi, his father said, “A package arrived for you, Daniel. Actually it looks like an overnight letter. I left it for you on the kitchen counter.”

  Intrigued, Daniel went into the kitchen, poured himself a glass of apple juice, and opened the large flat cardboard envelope that was addressed to him. Inside was a letter with several attached pages of documents. The letter was from a major booking agency. They were offering Daniel and his band a contract for a series of six concerts in June. They would be the opening act for a tour of some new bands that were starting to be recognized, headlined by the Biloxi Brothers, the latest boy band gaining popularity with the “tween” set. The concerts were all in major big cities on the west coast.

  Daniel hurried back to his father’s office. “Dad!” he exclaimed. “Look at this letter. It is offering my band a chance to perform at some major concerts in June! Is this for real?” Daniel handed over the letter to Gary Holmes.

  Gary put on his glasses and read through the letter. “This looks legitimate to me, Daniel. I would check it out to be sure. We should look carefully through the contracts they have enclosed to make sure you understand exactly what they are asking of you. I would think that because you are all under eighteen and still minors that all the parents of your band mates would need to sign consent agreements for you to go. It looks like the timing is good. You won’t be missing any school, and with everything on the west coast, travel arrangements should not be a problem. Most likely you will drive, since there is the issue of all of your equipment. I think the major issue would be who comes along to chaperone you and your band.”

  “So can I go, Dad?” Daniel asked.

  “If everything checks out, I don’t see why not. This looks like your first big break, Daniel. Congratulations!” Gary Holmes got up and gave his son a hug. “You have so much talent and now it is starting to be recognized by others! I’m so proud of you. We have to tell your mother!” Gary went over to Melinda’s office where she was meeting with a client. He peeked in the door, and gave her a look with raised eyebrows indicating that something important had come up.

  “Excuse me for a moment,” Melinda Holmes told her client. “I’ll be right back.” Melinda hurried out of her office and closed the door. “What’s so urgent, Gary?”

  “Our son has just landed his first major concert contract for six concerts on the west coast in June!” Gary told her excitedly.

  “That’s fabulous news!” she squealed with excitement. Melinda rushed over to Daniel and hugged her son. “My son, the rock star!”

  “I don’t quite think I am there yet, Mom,” Daniel replied. “We are just the opening act for a boy band tour.”

  “Yeah, but it’s a start in the right direction. How many other young bands are out there dying for this opportunity? How many other seventeen-year-old kids are taking their bands on tour with the Biloxi Brothers this summer? I’m so excited for you, Daniel.”

  “Thanks, Mom. That sounds like a ‘yes’, I can go, right?”

  “Daniel, we are not going to deny you this opportunity after all you have gone through to get this far! Of course you can go!” Melinda said with a big smile. “Have you told the rest of the band yet?”

  “No, I haven’t had a chance. But you can be sure that I will do that right now!”

  “I know they will all be thrilled as well. Now I have to get back to my client,” Melinda said as she went back into her office.

  Daniel quickly got on his cell phone to tell the others. He was able to talk to Nick and Jonathan, and sent text messages to Eric and Tim. Then he called Jason to tell him the good news.

  “Daniel, I knew you guys would make it some day,” Jason told him, “and now you have your first big gig. That is so awesome! I will get to work right away adding this important news to the band website. I’m sure glad we have those new pictures.”

  That evening, Daniel and the other band members met in the studio at Tim’s house. Everyone was very excited about the news. “I looked over the contract with my dad,” Daniel began, “and he thinks it looks legitimate. He said we should have an attorney look over it just to make sure we understand all of the fine points and requirements. From what I can tell, we will be the opening band for six concerts this June that will be in Seattle, Portland, Oakland, San Jose, Los Angeles, and San Diego. We will be given a half hour time limit to perform. Since we are minors, our parents all have to sign on, and arrange for chaperones for us. Will any of you have a problem with that?”

  “No way!” Eric exclaimed. “Why would they want to stop us from getting our first major break?”

  “This is our chance to promote our original music!” Nick said. “We have to come up with a dynamite
set that is good music, but also has appeal to the mostly ‘tween crowd that will attend these concerts, especially with the Biloxi Brothers headlining.”

  “We have to be ready for our performance tomorrow night which includes a lot of covers,” Tim added, “but after that, we need to concentrate on our original music, and make sure we have enough for a CD. This concert series is a big chance for us to promote our music and make some sales!”

  “I can’t believe this!” Jonathan exclaimed. “This is a dream come true! Let’s get our instruments out and get to work!”

  * * *

  After Robbie mailed out the letter to his father, he forgot about it. After all, he hadn’t heard anything directly from him in nearly four years. And writing the letter actually was good therapy for him. Dr. Agoura told him in his private counseling session on Tuesday that it was good for him to examine the emotions he had been feeling and express them in writing.

  “I’m very proud of you, Robbie” Dr. Agoura told him. “You are learning to deal with your emotions in a positive way. Your meeting with Brandon yesterday really helped to cheer him up. In fact, tomorrow I am inviting the two of you for a group session, if you are willing to try that.”

  Robbie felt very good inside about the compliment Dr. Agoura gave him. And he really did enjoy being with Brandon. When they met, they instantly bonded. Instinctively they both realized that they could talk to each other about what had happened when they were kidnapped, but that they didn’t have to, because their experiences were so similar. Instead they concentrated on talking about the normal things that twelve and thirteen-year-old boys liked to talk about.