“Inside the Addams’ Family living room is the place to do it,” Nick said. “I don’t think it would be a good idea to do so anywhere uninformed ears can hear those witty one-liners, Cousin Itt.”
“Understood.”
“Is Gus on the Deck?”
“He didn’t want to watch ‘Malificent’ with us, so he adjourned upstairs.”
Jean sat down with them instantly. “I’ll watch that one again.”
“I’ll keep Gus company. Has Deke been out lately?”
“He’s been in and out a few times,” Rachel answered.
“Good. C’mon Deke. I’ll spring for a beer. You were a-”
Before Nick could finish the sentence, Deke was staring down at him from the stair landing. “That’s a very unique way of finishing my sentence, Deke.”
* * *
Tina gulped some wine down, and motioned for Rachel to wait a moment while she went to pour another portion from the bottle on the living room serving stand. “I sure stepped in it for a moment there.”
She sat down again. “You two could have giggled a little to take the edge off the silence.”
Jean hugged Tina. “Don’t worry, Aunt Tina, Dad would never hurt you… unless he had to.”
Tina frowned at the smiling Jean. “Not funny. You’re getting to be a scary little girl, Miss Wednesday Addams.”
“I hope so. It’s the only way to survive in this family, Cousin Itt.”
“Wednesday’s right,” Rachel agreed. “The good part - it’s never boring. The bad part – it’s never boring. Take for instance this book tour to Washington with the added ingredients of serial killers, and terrorists.”
“I have to keep in mind, Cousin Itt was a visiting character, and sometimes disappeared for long periods. Someone throw Cousin Itt a lifeline if you see her heading for the quicksand.”
“We will,” Rachel said, patting Tina’s hand.
“Give us a chance though,” Jean advised. “Don’t dive into it before we can throw.”
* * *
Gus was laughing as Nick and Deke came out on the deck. “Planting that bug in the living room was pure genius, Muerto. Tina’s worried she’ll get a quick burial at sea if she doesn’t watch her mouth.”
Nick sat down with a shot and beer after pouring Deke one. “I thought to record a few insights from my surprise visitors like Sergeant Dickerson. I see you’ve found a dangerous form of entertainment. If Tina ever finds out you’re spying on her, it’s the doghouse for you, Payaso.”
“Duly noted. I heard about your visit with the Salvatores. That sounded a bit ominous. I see you’ve brought the satellite notebook on deck. Does that mean you’re going on a fishing expedition?”
“It seems like the right thing to do. Paul gave me unfettered access to the CIA infrastructure. I may as well use it.”
“The Salvatores’ arrival from D.C. does seem too much of a coincidence while Formsby’s empire is getting smashed, especially with the people we know he’s been paying off.”
“That’s my take on it too.” A moment later, Nick cursed under his breath, downed his shot, and chased it with half the beer. “Guess who worked under Nancy Pettinger for a few years at the DOJ, before being promoted to the State Department. He also ran across Ken Schilling more than a few times while in his liaison position.”
“Oh boy.” Gus filled his shot glass. “You’re turning our hometown into a hotbed of government minions who seem to be pursuing a course unfavorable to our survival, Muerto.”
“It gets worse. He’s the head of the liaison office at State which deals directly with the CIA. I’m not certain I’m the only one fishing in these waters. Would they move a State Department Chief into a West Coast town without an agenda, or a job cover of some kind? You would think they’d figure out something other than sending him here with his family in tow. There’s a note in here about Phil being on assignment. Maybe that’s the clue we need to follow. I’m alerting Paul first, so if there’s a plan in the works to screw his Formsby moves, he’ll at least know where it originated.”
“Nick?”
“Yep. I have a guy out here slipping into my personal life with a wife and son, named Phil Salvatore. He worked with Nancy Pettinger, and brushed shoulders with your traitorous buddy, Ken Schilling. I see in his file he’s listed as on assignment. His last job title was Chief at State’s CIA liaison office.”
“He’s in Pacific Grove?” Gilbrech’s surprised tone worried Nick.
“Yeah, right in my backyard.”
“First off, I didn’t know they had reassigned him to the West Coast. Everyone who ever knew Pettinger or Schilling was demoted, including Salvatore. He ain’t the chief of anything. I’ve seen his file, because of his circumstances, and connection to CIA. He’s clean, but apparently a bit too trusting. Hold on… I’m almost through the… yes… Phil’s been demoted to the San Francisco Passport Agency. They probably let him work out of anywhere he wants on the coast. That he picked where you live is a bit disconcerting. How did you run into him?”
“His kid goes to school with Jean – same class. They’re friends, which seems genuine, but Phil may have guided his Son into the friendship. With all the crap flowing around from Didricson, Sadun, and Lawyer Wargul who has an office in San Francisco, I’m wondering if my pal Phil knows something about me he shouldn’t. I talked to him tonight. He made a point of letting me know he didn’t believe I could be consulting with multiple government agencies. Now I’m curious to know what he does believe. You know me and coincidences.”
“I can make a call, and he’ll be filling out forms in a cubicle at the Passport Office.”
“Let’s leave him be for now. I’m changing modes for fixing my Lawyer Wargul problem. I’ll be calling soon. Thanks for the update, Paul.”
“Anytime, Nick.” Gilbrech disconnected.
“This is becoming a regular chess match with all the pieces materializing out of nowhere on the board. I have to make the Wargul sanction look and feel like a professional hit, or Timmy and Grace won’t get permission to move Sadun. With this unknown rogue bishop scampering here from Washington D.C. assigned to an office in San Francisco, I’m hesitant to plug Wargul from afar as I planned. Salvatore knows too much about me.”
“Damn, Nick. It would be the shits if you have to whack the Dad of Jean’s friend.”
“Tell me about it. His questions seemed too off base. Anyway, I’ll hack into Wargul’s office, and get his day planner for tomorrow. Maybe he has something on his schedule where I could snatch him, take him somewhere quiet, and put a .22 caliber bullet in the back of his head, gangland style. That should make the US Marshal ploy to move Sadun work. I think we’ll have to cut our ties to Sergeant Dickerson. He’s a jinx. We have some down time, kicking back on the beach with Irish coffees, and he calls me in for a consult. Then, before you can blink your eyes, we have traitors, assassins, gangsters, flag protestors, terrorists, and a serial killer all for attention on our horizon. If that isn’t a jinx I don’t know what is.”
“I doubt Dickerson’s a jinx,” Gus replied. “More likely, these days of danger are due to your Karma train steaming into the station, late on arrival.”
Nick’s head thudded on the table. “Not you and your damn Karma train again. You only play the Karma train card when you’ve had too much to drink. That’s what comes of guzzling booze while creepily eavesdropping on your wife’s conversations – out pops the Karma train.”
Nick straightened while Gus enjoyed the Nick’s slam. He lanced into Wargul’s office network without a glitch, chuckling a little in appreciation. “Thank you, Brook. Guess who went smartphone nuts, and had his security system wired into his network so he can check on everything from anywhere?”
Nick’s chuckle turned to laughter. “Well what have we here? It looks like my new good buddy, Brook Wargul, has an eye for the ladies, Payaso. Then, he allows his other body parts to reap what the eyes doth desire.”
Gus moved around behind Nick
. A man, Gus knew to be Brook Wargul, was in the middle of a carnal act on top of his desk with a woman bent over it face first. Her face was turned toward the side angle camera Nick had accessed. “Oh man, this goes to show, there really can be too much technology. I know what you’re thinking, Muerto, but there are too many security cams in those buildings. You can’t waltz in there, pump a round into Brook, and disappear.”
“We need to find out if this is a regular thing, or a one timer with a client. Keep an eye on the door, Payaso. I need to turn this up a little so I can hear their after sex chatter.”
When the sex act ended, Nick increased the volume, listening intently to the participants’ conversation while they dressed, and straightened the office. Before they left the office, Wargul embraced the dark haired woman with passion.
“I love this with you. I can’t wait for the end of the day. Watching you parade around at work drives me crazy. All I can think about is this time we have before the cleaning crew gets in here. I hope to God you’re not thinking about ending us.”
“Why would you say that? I’m here. This is so kinky. I can’t believe I’m doing it. I have to go. My husband will be home soon. I can only stretch the delay business so far. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“I can’t wait.”
Nick and Gus watched Wargul gather his briefcase, and leave, locking the place before he left. “I’ll find out who she is from the employment records. Now, we have to wait and see how long it actually takes for the cleaning crew to hit his floor.”
The professional cleaning service began on Wargul’s floor twenty minutes later. “Oh, this will be sweet, Payaso. I’ll hack into their building security, and avoid most of their cams. You’ll have the easy work. We’ll use my downstairs safe-room, where I have the multiple monitors in place for this kind of op.”
“You can’t break into the building without being seen, Muerto. You’ll be on video somewhere approaching the building. They have cams everywhere.”
“Who said anything about breaking in? I’ll drive to SFO International, stash my gear in a locker, and then take BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit) into the city tomorrow morning after we walk Jean to school. I’ll have my lawyer Muerto disguise on, complete with briefcase, three piece suit, long coat, and hat. I’ll find a quiet place to wait for day’s end, drifting into position somewhere near his office. At the proper moment, I’ll come in with Muerto mask in place, zap Brook, and administer a sleepy time shot to his paramour adulteress. I’ll duct tape Wargul into a chair, and shoot him in the head with my .22 auto with stainless steel titanium noise suppressor. I’ll let the janitor discover him while I hightail it to BART for my ride to SFO. I should be back home before ten.”
“You rattled that out of your psychopathic mind in seconds after noting Wargul nails his secretary after hours. You are a very bad man, Muerto.”
“Thank you, Payaso. I try to be thorough. Your job will be to watch everything around me on building security. I’ll be observing their security people during the day. I’ll let you know if I spot anything funky that could disrupt my exit from the building. The important check will be watching me on their cams as I avoid them, going all the way to his office in the morning.”
“You’ll need to note down how well I do at each checkpoint,” Nick continued. “I can probably do it a few times without arousing suspicion in the morning with people arriving for work and appointments. After that, I don’t think it would be a good idea. If I can find and disable any type of alarm at an emergency exit door, I should be able to disappear into the night without even a stir from security. You’ll be watching for exactly when the body is discovered, where I am at that time, and when the police finally arrive in relation to my journey home.”
“One thing’s for sure,” Gus replied, “if you can pull that stunt off without a hitch, it will definitely rate as a cold blooded professional hit. Tim and Grace should have no problem requesting and being granted a change of venue for Sadun. Do you want me to fetch Jean home from school too?”
“No. I don’t want you moving from the screens. I’ll have Rachel drive over for Jean. She won’t have to explain where I am, but if she does, the answer will be writing my new manuscript. That is exactly what I’ll be doing all day tomorrow, while avoiding excess scrutiny.”
“It will be one stress filled day. You are going to ask John to come over on this too, right? I don’t want to be the only one on the monitors.
“Of course.” Nick poured another half beer for Deke, and sipped from what remained in the bottle. “I need John in on this too in case I have to go to ground for a while, and avoid all public places. If that happens, I’ll find a spot along the docks on the Embarcadero to wait until he can make his way into the city. I plan on making sure that safety valve doesn’t get opened though.”
“When you steamroll one of these suicidal ideas into motion, do you ever get even a slight twinge of anxiety?”
Nick met Gus’s curious stare with a malicious looking grin. “Here’s the deal, Payaso. As you know, I kill people as a vocation, and I’m good at it. I’m good at it, because I don’t hesitate. I don’t care what the mark does for a living, what brought him or her to a position where I’m ready to execute their asses, or who will be wailing in sorrow at their funeral. Sure, I may have an assortment of reasons why I decide to kill someone, but once it’s decided, it’s a done deal that either the mark or I will be dead. Wargul’s going to die tomorrow, or I am.”
“I sure picked the right comic book character for you, Muerto.”
“Remember who talked me out of retirement, Payaso.”
“Believe me, you haven’t let me forget that for a day since I did it. I shouldn’t have bothered. You were only about a week away from a rampage or going back to work on your own. Even your fictional psycho, Diego, on a killing spree mimicking your own real life adventures while earning you a fortune wasn’t enough. Admit it, and take me off the blame list. You used me.”
Nick chuckled. “Yeah, you’re right, Payaso. I’ll stop needling you on that point. I was done with retirement. Even going back into the sand was preferable. When you hit me with the Muerto thing, it came at a great time. I hate when I can’t wear the mask and make videos now. I want to do the hit tomorrow as El Muerto, and it’s disappointing I can’t.”
Gus held his beer for a toast, which Nick clinked with his own. “To Muerto.”
“And Payaso, and El Kabong,” Nick added.
“We are lunatics. You know that don’t you?”
“We’re deadly ones though, and I can’t wait for the road trip to Washington. I want that ‘Seattle Ripper’ guy. I have some ideas for his doubtful longevity. He will be going out in style with El Muerto’s tag on him. Don’t worry, I haven’t forgotten about our Isis compound problem either. All in good time, Payaso. All in good time.”
* * *
After parking his car in the short term parking at SFO International Airport, Nick exited in his three piece dark gray suit with dark tan long coat, lapels up, and pinch front gray fedora hat. His leather briefcase held Nick’s .22 caliber automatic and noise suppressor under a layer of reinforced leather at the bottom. He also carried a syringe kit, laptop, foldable black windbreaker with hood, and a black scarf. He had studied the layout of the security system within Wargul’s building until he knew where and what triggered the moveable security cams.
The exit Nick decided on for his escape from the Wargul building was a first floor fire exit he needed to be certain would not be locked. The building also had a break room with every conceivable vending machine, along with tables and chairs. Nick planned to spend the day there writing in a corner, out of security cam sight.
Leaving on the BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit) train out of the terminal inside the airport, Nick arrived in San Francisco’s downtown Market Street BART station by shortly after 9 am. He checked in with Gus and John before walking the mile to Wargul’s business location, testing communications, and cam signal.
&nbs
p; “It’s all good, Payaso. I’ll text you from the break room inside the building. It will be in your hands after that to let me know when Wargul plays around with the office help. I’ll proceed directly to his office the moment I get the all clear sign from you.”
“I’ll send you the video from all cam’s perspective at the moment you enter the building. I’ll work on erasing you while you move from one station to the next. We should have plenty of time while you’re in the break room to go over what we have to keep or change. John wants to know if you’re going to check the make of the office door lock. Once in there, you won’t be able to simply pick up and leave.”
“Tell him I have that covered. I’ve picked countless locks like this office has. After all, they don’t have a nuclear weapon in there, Kabong.”
“We’ll get off the line then, and attend to our business here, stalking the ‘Seattle Ripper’,” John joked. “Gus explained the intricacies of finding out a few starting threads ‘in the Ripper’s life. By the time you get back home, maybe we’ll know who the ‘Ripper’ is in reality.”
“Fine by me,” Nick replied. “We’ll simply confirm it when we get to Washington, and then lay in wait for an opportunity to catch him red handed. One thing at a time though. We have a Wargul to teach his last lesson to, followed by the infamous Sadun. How’s our after-hours lady doing today?
“She’s hot, Muerto. Our little Heather Durst dressed to the nines for Brook. Short black skirt, and a red silk shoulder-less blouse. She’s working it too. Ms. Durst and our buddy Brook really have the office erotic romance going for them. I’m sure Heather plans to walk on the wild side again after work.”
“I’m depending on you guys to make sure I come in at that wonderful moment of release, when our Brook will be enjoying those flowing endorphins of happiness. It will then be a special moment for his lady friend adulteress, Heather. Let’s concentrate on making it memorable for all of us. Get busy, and keep me informed. We don’t want to disappoint our lovely couple.”
Bloody Shadows Page 15