by JC Kane
“What was that all about? Was that Lee?” Green asked.
“Can you believe him? He called me to help with a pickup. He wanted me to send everyone there so they can divvy the shit up and start to get it out there.”
“Did I hear you say a large pizza at Maldanado’s?” Green asked. “I’ve never handled a drop that big before. What’s going on?”
“I have no idea. It was totally random. I know he was talking to some new people about growing the business, but I didn’t think he would go so big so fast. I guess he really wants to expand.”
“You told him no though, right? You’re not gonna help him out?”
Bruce shook his head. “Hell no. I don’t even know why he called me. I made it crystal clear, I’m done.”
“Good for you, man.”
“He still thinks I’ll come running whenever he calls. No matter how many times I tell him I’m out, it’s just not getting through his thick skull. I don’t know what I have to do so he gets the message.”
Green shook his head. “The first stage of grief is denial. It’ll take a little time, but I think it will eventually sink in. Just keep repeating the message and he’ll get it.”
Lee’s private jet landed at Moffett Federal Airfield in Mountain View. The jet taxied to the hangar which was not far from the passenger parking lot.
Lee had four members of his security team with him. They were responsible for moving the rolling suitcases to the vehicles in the parking lot. They knew where to go and each guy grabbed a suitcase. The guys filed off the jet as the Captain said goodbye and thanked them for their business.
Lee and his guys made their way off the airfield towards the parking lot. “Let me know when you complete the drops,” Lee said. “You know where you’re going, right? You got the locations?”
Lee and his team were almost to their vehicles in the parking lot when three police cars pulled up and blocked the exits. A tactical SWAT team jumped out of an unmarked van and swarmed Lee and his guys. The police were on them before they had a chance to do anything stupid.
Lee put his hands up in the air and three police officers threw him to the ground. One of the officers dropped his knee on the top of Lee’s back. The cops pulled Lee’s arms behind his back and quickly slapped the handcuffs on Lee’s wrists.
The cops cuffed the other four guys and secured the suitcases. Lee and his four accomplices were thrown into separate police cars and they all drove away almost as fast as they arrived.
Chapter 27
Lee Giordano sat at a table in the Santa Clara County Jail. Detective Wendell Hatchett sat across from him.
“A hundred kilos of cocaine. You’re facing some serious charges,” Detective Hatchett said. “Do you want to tell me what you were doing with all those drugs?”
“Let me ask you something,” Lee said. “Who’s your informant?”
“What makes you think there was an informant?”
“Oh, okay. I guess it could have been a coincidence,” Lee said. “You and your SWAT team just happened to be driving through the airport parking lot, you take a look at my guys and decide that they had cocaine in their suitcases, even though you had no evidence to support that conclusion, and then you take everyone into custody, all in about ten minutes. That makes perfect sense. Don’t you think?”
“I’d like to hear your side of the story. Do you want to tell me why you were transporting one hundred kilos of cocaine on a private jet?”
“I don’t know anything about any drugs. If someone traveling with me had cocaine in their luggage, it’s news to me.”
Detective Hatchett smiled. “You didn’t know the suitcases were filled with cocaine?”
Lee shook his head. “No, I did not.”
“Well, you did have a handgun on you when you were arrested. Why were you carrying a handgun?”
“Protection,” Lee said. “Why does anyone carry a gun?”
“Protection from who?”
“Criminals.”
“Okay, you had a gun. Each of your four mules had a gun. There were four suitcases filled with cocaine. And you want me to believe that you had no knowledge of the drugs? I thought you would be smarter than that. I expected a better story.”
“The truth is the truth. Would you prefer I make something up?”
“The flight records show that Leonardo Giordano, that’s you, chartered a private jet. You departed Moffett Airfield at eleven in the morning and you arrived back at Moffett Airfield just before midnight. Why did you fly to San Diego? What did you do while you were down there?”
“Do you have something against San Diego?” Lee asked. “San Diego is actually quite lovely this time of year. You should check it out.”
“Let’s start with something simple. How long have you been a narcotics trafficker?”
“How long have you been a police officer?”
“I’m here for you, Mr. Giordano,” Detective Hatchett said. “I’m giving you an opportunity to save yourself. If you don’t talk to me, then there’s nothing I can do for you. If you tell me your side of the story, maybe we can work out a deal, maybe we discover you’re innocent, I don’t know, but you have to talk to me or we’ll just have to let the evidence speak for itself.”
“Wow, that’s really nice of you to give me an opportunity to save myself. I must be really special to you and you must be the nicest police officer on the planet. I can tell by looking in your eyes that you really do care about me.”
“Do you know how long your prison sentence will be when you’re convicted for transporting a hundred kilos of cocaine? You’d be facing twenty-five years to life, depending on the sentencing enhancements. Do you really want to spend the rest of your life in prison?”
“Like I said, I didn’t know anything about any drugs. I don’t even know why I’m in here.”
“Okay, let’s talk about the drugs. You claim you didn’t know anything about them. Were you with your friends the whole time in San Diego? Is it possible that they walked away and picked up the drugs without your knowledge?”
“Of course it’s possible. It’s the only possible explanation.” Lee said.
“What were you doing in San Diego?” Detective Hatchett asked.
“What were you doing at the airport?” Lee asked. “Who did you talk to? Someone must’ve tipped you off. I’m very curious, how did you know to target my guys at the airport at that specific time?”
“Let me run this by you,” Hatchett said. “You tell me if this makes sense to you. You charter a private jet. Five guys fly to San Diego on a private jet. Five guys come back later that night with one hundred kilos of cocaine stuffed in four suitcases. You and your four friends each had a gun on them when they were arrested. You claim that you didn’t know anything about the drugs but you can’t tell me why you went to San Diego or what you did in San Diego. Does that sound like a believable story to you? Do you think any jury would buy that bullshit?”
“Like I said before, it’s the truth.”
“Did you find it odd that four guys brought four suitcases for a day trip to San Diego?” Hatchett asked. “Did you ask them what they had in the suitcases?”
“I didn’t pay much attention to it.”
Detective Hatchett leaned in closer to Lee. “You have a small window of opportunity here. If you want to talk to me, if you want to tell me where you got the drugs, who you bought the drugs from, then maybe we can work something out. Maybe we can set something up and I can help you out. Otherwise, you are going to rot in prison for a long, long time, possibly the rest of your life.”
Lee looked away. He contemplated the situation. He thought about talking to Detective Hatchett. He knew he was facing a lengthy prison sentence, but he wasn’t a snitch and he wasn’t actually carrying a suitcase full of drugs, so maybe there was a chance to beat the case. He needed time. He needed to think. He needed Bruce.
“I want my lawyer.”
Chapter 28
Bruce was in the garage at the
Firehouse. He opened a drawer on one of his toolboxes, looking for a torque wrench. His phone rang and the caller ID said Santa Clara County Jail. He took the call.
“Hello?”
“Hey, it’s Lee.”
“Lee?”
“Yes, Lee.”
“Are you calling me from jail?” Bruce asked.
“Yeah, I got a situation here and they let me call my lawyer, so I’m calling my lawyer.”
“What happened? Why are you in jail?”
“I can’t get into the details right now. I got a guard here that will barely let me breathe, but it was basically a misunderstanding. Turns out that some guys I was traveling with had some cocaine in their suitcases and the police arrested me because I happened to be traveling with them.”
“How much cocaine did they have?”
“Like I said, I didn’t know they had any drugs. But, the cops told me it was one hundred kilos.”
“Oh, shit.” Bruce knew this was bad. This is exactly why he pleaded with Lee to shut things down and it’s exactly why he retired. It was only a matter of time before one of them ended up in jail.
“Look, I need you to come down to the jail so we can figure out a game plan. You need to get down here now.”
Even though Bruce was retired, this could affect him. If people started talking, if the cops started digging into the evidence, it could lead to Bruce. That couldn’t happen. Bruce wasn’t about to let that happen.
“I’m on my way. Do not say anything to the police. Tell them you want to talk to your lawyer and that’s it.”
“That’s why I’m on the phone with you. I’ll see you soon.” Lee ended the call.
Bruce ran upstairs to his office. He hit a few buttons on his phone and called Green.
Green answered after one ring. “Yo, Bruce what’s up?”
“Lee was arrested with one hundred kilos of cocaine. I need your help.”
“Are you fucking with me right now?”
“I’m dead serious,” Bruce said. “If they have Lee, if any of his guys talk, the cops could be knocking down my door or they might show up at Oceanic. I don’t know how much they know right now so we gotta move everything. Everything has to be moved or destroyed.”
“Are you at the Firehouse?”
“Yeah, I’ll clean this place up right now. Call Morgan and have him move everything drug or money related out of Oceanic. Have him move it to a backup location, not a primary location. You and Nate hit the money houses and move all the cash. I’m going to take care of this place and then I have to get to Lee’s office. I have to get his computers, books, and money.”
“I’m on it right now.” Green said. “Go do what you gotta do.”
“Call me when you finish and I might have you meet me at Lee’s office, okay? I just hope the police haven’t gone there yet?”
“I’ll call you when it’s done.”
Bruce ran into Lee’s office and opened a cabinet behind Lee’s desk. He grabbed a laptop and set it on top of the desk. He opened another cabinet and grabbed a leather folder and set it on top of the laptop.
Green walked into the office and he threw a duffel bag towards Bruce. Bruce caught it and stuffed the laptop and leather folder in the bag.
“Can you put the rest of the files in the bag?” Bruce asked. “Take them all. Don’t leave any evidence.”
Bruce walked over to the bookshelf and pulled out three books, then moved the statue to the left side of the shelf, over a magnet. The shelves slid apart and revealed a hidden cabinet. Bruce opened the cabinet and started pulling money from the cabinet and stuffing it into another duffel bag.
“Do we have any more bags?” Bruce asked.
“There’s some room in this bag. I think I might have one more bag in my truck.” Green said.
“Go grab it. There’s more cash here than I expected.” Green ran outside to get another bag. Bruce filled the bag with money and once it was full, he started setting stacks of money on the floor next to the bag. They had too much cash to deal with. It seemed like a strange problem to have - too much cash and not enough bags to hold it all.
Green came back in with two bags. “I have two more bags,” Green said. He unfolded the bags and helped Bruce put the money into the bags. They filled the bags and then lined them up, ready to roll.
“Is that everything?” Green asked.
“I got all the files and the money. I think that’s everything.”
“Should we burn the place down, just to be safe?” Green asked.
Bruce looked at Green. “Burn the place down? No. I own this building.”
“Better safe than sorry.”
“We got everything. There’s no need to burn the building to the ground. Let’s go.” Bruce said.
Bruce and Green grabbed the bags and left Lee’s office.
Chapter 29
Pepper walked into Uno Martinez Restaurant and looked around for Severo Moreno. Uno Martinez was one of the most popular Mexican restaurants in downtown San Jose. They were famous for their green chili street tacos, but Pepper wasn’t interested in that now. He was interested in finding Severo.
The hostess approached Pepper and said hello. He was so focused, he didn’t even notice her as he walked right past her.
Pepper spotted Severo sitting at a table with two other men he didn’t recognize. He walked past a waitress who was taking an order from a family of four and quickly made his way towards Severo’s table. Severo was dipping a tortilla chip into a bowl of salsa while the other two guys were looking at the menus.
Pepper pulled out his Glock nine-millimeter handgun and aimed it directly at Severo’s head. Severo was stuffing a tortilla chip into his mouth just as he noticed Pepper. Severo jumped out of his seat and dove under the table next to him. Pepper pulled the trigger and popped off rounds faster than he could count them.
One of the men at the table jumped up and lunged towards Pepper. Pepper pointed his gun towards the man and hit him several times in the chest. Pepper continued firing at the man as he fell to the floor. The man didn’t move. He was dead. Pepper quickly changed the magazine in his gun as the other man at the table fell to the ground and pulled a handgun from his waistband.
The man fired at Pepper as he ducked behind a large column in the middle of the restaurant. Pepper fired a couple of shots at the man then scanned the restaurant for Severo.
People in the restaurant scattered. It was full-blown chaos. Three construction workers tried to run through the front door at the same time and two of them fell over. The third one ran out the front door as the other two quickly picked themselves up and followed behind him.
A few of the employees ducked behind the bar and others cowered next to tables even though the thin wood offered no protection at all if Pepper had decided to turn his gun on them.
Pepper wasn’t interested in killing anyone else. He knew what had to be done and that was it. He fired 10 rounds towards the man with Severo, loaded a new magazine into his pistol and tucked it into his waistband. Pepper had no idea where Severo was and he was not prepared to go down in a blaze of glory or go to jail. Not this time.
Pepper ran towards the back door. He ran by a waitress and she turned her head and screamed for no particular reason. The bartender looked at Severo as he ran towards the back of the restaurant. She was frozen with fear and she was in Pepper’s way. He shoved her out of the way and she fell into a barstool, knocking it over. Pepper ran out the back door and didn’t look back.
He turned the corner and ran down the street to his car, parked illegally in front of a fire hydrant. He jumped in the car and drove away as the sound of police sirens roared in the distance.
Chapter 30
Bruce walked into the lobby of the Santa Clara County Jail. He walked up to the bulletproof window and waited for the sheriff’s deputy to look up.
The deputy didn’t look up so Bruce tapped his knuckle on the glass. The deputy still didn’t look up. Bruce pounded on the glass and th
e deputy finally looked up.
“I’m here to see Leonardo Giordano,” Bruce said.
“Visiting hours are from eight to ten and two to four.”
“I’m his lawyer,” Bruce said. “I need to see him now.” The deputy looked at Bruce. Bruce didn’t look like a lawyer and wasn’t dressed like a lawyer. The deputy waited for Bruce to say he was just kidding, but it never came.
“I’m gonna need some ID,” the deputy said.
Bruce pulled out his driver’s license and his attorney bar card issued by the State Bar of California. The deputy looked at the ID and then Bruce. He did that three times before he was convinced.
“Do you have any weapons on you?” the deputy asked.
“No.”
The deputy slid Bruce his ID and bar card through the metal compartment. He called on the radio to another deputy and requested that he move Leonardo Giordano to Interview Room Four. “I’ll buzz you in through this door. Let the door slam shut behind you. When you get inside, wait right there. Do not go any farther. Do not wander around. A deputy will come down and escort you to Interview Room Four once the prisoner has been moved. Do you understand?”
“Yeah, got it.”
Lee was sitting at a small metal table in Interview Room Four. A guard opened the cell door and let Bruce into the interview room. It looked like a jail cell that had been converted into a meeting room. It wasn’t spacious or comfortable. The guard slammed the door closed behind Bruce and he sat down at the metal table across from Lee.
“Well, it’s about time,” Lee said. “What took you so damn long?”
“What the fuck happened?”
“I got arrested.”
“No shit, why did you have a hundred kilos of cocaine? Where did the drugs come from?”
“I didn’t have any drugs,” Lee said. “My guys had the drugs. I didn’t have a suitcase when the police showed up. Technically, I didn’t have any drugs in my possession. But, I did have a gun on me.”