“How are we going to get him out of here unnoticed? We’d both have to carry him. And where would we take him?”
I thought about rolling him up in the comforter and throwing him over my shoulder.
“Leave him right here and don’t look back,” Karla said.
I didn’t want to deal with Gustavo when he woke up. Plus, he probably wouldn’t talk anyway. “I think you’re right. Let’s go. We can take his vehicle for the time being.”
Karla ran to the door. I grabbed her before she made it out. “Let’s be casual and not draw any attention.”
“You’re right,” she said.
I grabbed Stanley’s laptop, then we walked to the parking lot, not slow, but not fast either. Fortunately, the keys had a fob attached. I pushed the lock button and saw some lights flash from a grey Chevy Suburban in the rear part of the motel lot. The SUV was a couple of years old and had regular plates, not government plates. The windows were tinted, which was a bonus.
After piling in, Karla asked, “Are you okay? Your nose looks bad and both eyes are turning black already.”
“I am. Did you catch a glimpse of his face? His wasn’t pretty either.”
“Was he waiting in the room or did he ambush you? Tell me what happened.”
I fired up the Suburban and pulled out of the lot. As I drove, I relayed the story to Karla.
When I finished, she said, “Good thing we didn’t pay with a credit card. You two did some serious damage to that room. How did he know we were there?”
I glanced at her. “I’ve been thinking about that. We didn’t call or text anyone about finding a base of operations. Stanley wasn’t with us when we decided to go to the motel, and Eva had no clue of our whereabouts. So he must’ve tailed us from the governor’s place. I didn’t notice anyone tailing us, but that’s the only explanation I can think of. He either picked up our tail at the governor’s house or he was tailing us before that and I just didn’t see him.”
“Who was he? Did he say anything?”
I shook my head. “Not about himself or his employer. I tried. All he wanted was Stanley’s laptop.”
“Interesting,” Karla said. “What about Mick? We need to warn him not to show up at the motel.”
“Text him.” I handed her the snapcell. “Tell him to meet me at the abandoned warehouse on Pier 42 in Long Beach.”
“Just you? Not us?”
“I have a plan for you.”
She eyed me. “Which is?”
“It’s pretty late for any agents to be at your field office, right?”
She nodded. “You think I should go back to my FO?”
“We need to find out as much as we can about Gates, and also this Enriquez character. Eva O’Connor, too. Since we can’t trust anyone else for intel, I think you should go to your FO and see what you can dig up. You haven’t been named in the APB or arrest warrant. It’s just me they want. I don’t think you’re in any trouble, or at least not too much trouble. Plus, you have some time right now to come up with a story about where you’ve been the last twelve hours, in case you run into someone at the office.”
“And what are you going to do?”
“I need to check out the pier and come up with a plan. Something tells me our meeting won’t go smoothly. Who knows what’s going to happen.”
“This is a conspiracy I couldn’t have dreamed up. For all we know, it’s a huge setup. I’ll see what I can find out at the office. Maybe I can crack the password for this phone. I’ll meet up with you and Mick as soon as I come up with some useful intel.”
I nodded. “We’re on, then. Text Mick and let him know what’s up.”
She did, then I let her have some time to think about a story.
It took eighteen minutes to get to the LA field office. Mick texted back during the drive, saying he was on his way back and would meet me at the pier. When we arrived at her FO, Karla said she had a good story to tell about her recent whereabouts in case anyone asked. She grabbed my hand, squeezed it, and told me to be careful. She left before I had a chance to reply.
On my drive down the 710 toward Long Beach, I thought about the Enriquez character and who was giving him orders. Was it Eva, or Stanley, or someone else?
I couldn’t come up with an answer or a decent theory, so when I arrived at the docks I shut my mind off and studied the surroundings. The Long Beach harbor was massive. There were an inordinate number of docks, tankers, cranes, and shipping containers. Even a few cruise ships were moored there. The farther I drove, the less busy it became. When I reached Pier 40, I pulled over and parked because I wanted to walk the rest of the way to Pier 42. Not only so I could do reconnaissance of the area, but also so I wouldn’t draw attention to myself. I had no clue what was waiting for me at the abandoned warehouse.
As I approached the warehouse, I studied the run-down structure. It was definitely abandoned. The once-red paint was faded and peeling. Beneath the paint were planks of worn, weathered wood. Not a soul or car were in the immediate area. The place was deserted, and had been for some time. It was a good place for a discreet meeting.
The wooden warehouse was large, probably fifty feet wide by a hundred long. It was perched right at the end of the pier. No other structures were on the 200-foot length of dock. Half of the moorings on the pier were ripped out, which meant a boat couldn’t tie up, at least not a big one. Nobody had set foot on the pier in three years or more. That was my guess, anyway.
From my current viewpoint, there were only two visible windows on the structure. The windows were twenty, maybe twenty-five feet up on the west side of the warehouse, near the top of the building. Both windows were crusted up by the salty air and impossible to see through. There was one set of sliding, heavy steel doors on the west side of the building.
I walked past those doors, wrapped around the north end, and saw that there were no doors or windows there. There was, however, a steel door in the middle of the east side of the building. A rusted padlock dangled below the handle. There was only about a three-foot walkway behind the building. The west side was clearly the front of the building and would have received the shipments.
After a full perimeter sweep of the building, I tried the sliding doors. They were big enough for a large truck to pass through. To my surprise, the doors weren’t locked. I grated them open, slipped in, and quickly shut them behind me. A sliver of moonlight forced its way through the crusted windows, helping to light up the warehouse.
The first thing I noticed was a giant shipping container in the middle of the warehouse. Along every wall were towering metal shelves, like the kind used in Costco. On the shelves were tons of empty pallets and various sizes of shipping containers. Everything had an inch-thick layer of dust on top and the place smelled like a musty, old dog.
I walked to the eastern side of the building and examined the locked metal door. Essentially there was only one way in or out of the warehouse. That made for an easier plan.
To the left of the metal door were two construction lights. They were about six feet tall and had their own base of support. I plugged one in and was shocked to find the building still had power. The light cascaded across the floor, casting a large shadow around the shipping container. I plugged in the other light, then maneuvered both so they pointed directly at the sliding doors. Anyone entering the warehouse would be blinded. My hope was to control the meeting from the very beginning. Since I really didn’t know what was going on, or what to expect, I needed to call the shots.
Next, I climbed the shelving in the northeast corner of the building. The tops of the shelves were about thirty feet in the air. Before anyone arrived, I planned to be tucked away high in the corner, the farthest point from the light, alone and in the shadows. I also planned on having a rifle and scope in hand. One way or another, I was going to force Stanley and Eva to come clean.
I sat on top of the shelf in the northeastern corner for a few minutes, surveying the scene until I felt confident in my plan. While I
was sitting, my beeper buzzed. I’d forgotten it was in my pocket. I fished it out and saw Gina’s number scrolling across the screen. Why was she calling so late? It must have something to do with Simon. Maybe she had changed her position concerning the restraining order. A long shot, I knew, but it was good to be hopeful. I made a mental note to call her back as soon as the meeting was over.
While climbing down the shelves, I heard footsteps outside the building and assumed they were Mick’s. Just to be safe, I hid behind the large shipping container in the middle of the room and drew my weapon. The footsteps circled the building slowly, then stopped in front of the sliding doors. The doors opened a fraction and the blazing lights split through, lighting up Mick’s face. He quickly closed the doors.
I stepped out and lowered my gun. “It’s just me, Mick.” I walked over and pointed the lights away.
The doors screeched open and closed. Mick slipped in. “That’s pretty good. Definitely going to put anyone entering the building on edge.”
“How are Julie and the girls?”
“The girls are fine. They think they’re camping. Julie’s a little on edge.”
“Understandable. But everyone’s safe?”
He shrugged. “They are for now. We just need to figure this out fast.”
“We do. And it’s gotten way more complicated since you left, way more. I don’t even know where to begin.”
Mick walked over. “I can tell by your face.”
I started to update Mick on the latest, but he stopped me.
“Let’s talk on the way to my Bronco. I brought some supplies.”
Mick had parked a pier farther away than I did. Along the way, I recounted what had happened with Eva and Stanley, then the cops, then Gustavo Enriquez. I kept things broad and to the point, not dwelling on every detail. Mick didn’t ask one question. He listened intently to the whole story.
When I finished, he stopped walking. He calmly turned toward me and said, “Let me get this straight; you’ve been dating my boss, the actual chairman of the Special Collection Service? Who I ultimately take orders from?”
I nodded.
“And she may be responsible for all this; my boss, that is. And if she’s not involved, then the kid is. The son of the California Governor.”
He paused. I let him digest the information.
Mick rubbed his temples. “I don’t know what to say. This is a lot to take in.”
I nodded. “It is.”
“You were really dating the chairman, chairwoman, whatever? And Stanley originally thought she was trying to vet you for an SCS position?”
“I know it sounds crazy.”
“Doesn’t sound crazy, it is crazy.”
“I know.”
“The chairman thinks Stanley is behind everything? That he broke into her computer and planted incriminating arms evidence on her computer, then sent the kill orders to me?”
“That’s her story.”
Mick scratched his head. “Why? Why would either of them do this?”
“That’s what I don’t know and have to figure out.”
“So we really don’t know who’s responsible for the kill orders and setting you up? What does your gut tell you?”
I paused and thought a moment, then said, “The problem with Stanley’s version of events is that he’s a liar. I can’t trust what he says. But Eva’s version asserts that the kid is some sort of mastermind, a criminal genius.”
Mick nodded. “Which I have a hard time believing, too.”
“Maybe Anfernee Gates and the Italian thug are behind all of this, though that’s the least plausible theory in my mind. Karla’s working on that angle.”
Mick looked at his watch. “I guess we’re going to find out soon.”
“We’re going to find out something. So we need to be prepared for anything.”
“We will be.”
Mick walked another fifty feet and stopped at his vehicle. He opened the Bronco’s trunk. There were two rifle cases, a few handguns, some night binoculars, and some communication equipment.
Mick grabbed an earpiece and handed it to me. “You and I should probably split up. Obviously you need to be in the warehouse.”
Grabbing the rifle case, I said, “I’ll set up in the northeast corner with the Weatherby.”
“I think I should be outside the warehouse, scanning the area. That way I can relay information to you about who’s showing up. And let you know if anything odd is happening.”
I nodded. “Sounds good.”
Mick pointed at a loading crane on Pier 40. “I’ll set up on the crane. It’ll give a wide, elevated view of this whole area.” He took the other rifle case. “I’ll have you covered.”
“Like the old days,” I said.
Before we could discuss any further plans, the snapcell rang. I dug it from my pocket. I didn’t recognize the number, so I figured it was the governor.
“Governor Tuchek, is that you?”
I heard heavy breathing, then: “It’s Karla, Chase. I’m in trouble; big trouble.”
CHAPTER 30
What’s wrong?” I said.
“He’s here.” Karla took a quick breath. “The NSA agent from the motel, all battered and bruised, with a crooked nose and some dried blood on the back of his head.”
“Where are you? Still at your FO?”
“In my office. He just showed up, along with Frank and Hornsby.”
“Have they seen you?”
“Not yet, but they’ve been pointing in the direction of my office, so I’m pretty sure they’re here for me.”
I thought about the implications. Hornsby and Frank being called in so late to Karla’s FO was terrible news for us. “You gotta get out, Karla.”
“That’s part of the trouble. I can’t.”
“What do you mean?”
“My office is in the corner of the building. And they’re all in the conference room, which is basically a fishbowl of windows. I have to walk by that room to hit the exit. There’s no other way in or out of the building.”
“Shoot.”
“Worse,” she said. “They’re leaving the conference room right now and are headed my way.”
“Can you hide?”
“Not really. They’ll find me quickly, then it’ll look really bad.”
I ran my hand over my head. “Right.”
“Do I come clean, Chase? What do you think? I don’t want to say anything in front of the NSA guy.”
“You don’t. Is Frank with them?”
“He is.”
“Try to get him alone and explain everything, but only to him. He’s the only one I trust. Did you find out anything, by the way?”
She sighed. “Couldn’t hack the phone. Sorry, Chase. Gustavo Enriquez is a complete mystery. It doesn’t appear he works for the NSA, not according to any federal intelligence database. I couldn’t find any hits for his name on the NSA interlink. That’s all I know. I gotta go, they’re here.”
Karla put down the phone, but didn’t hang it up.
“Agent Dickerson,” Hornsby’s voice said, “the NSA has some questions for you, and apparently you have some questions for them as well. Agent Enriquez says you’ve been on their interlink for the past half hour from this very location. You need to go with him now.”
“But, sir—”
“That’s an order.”
“I can’t go now,” Karla said.
“As I said, it’s an order, Agent Dickerson.”
There was brief silence, then the phone hung up. I stared at the cell.
Mick nudged my shoulder. “Who was that?”
“Karla. The NSA thug from the motel room, the man who probably drugged your family, just showed up at her office looking for her.”
“She going to be alright?”
I shook my head. “I don’t know, I really don’t. Like you said, we need to figure this out fast. That’s the only thing I know.”
“We will. Let’s stay in touch.” Mick poi
nted to his earpiece.
We did a quick sound check, then went our respective ways. Since I couldn’t wait any longer, I called the governor on my walk back to the warehouse. He didn’t pick up.
After placing the lights back in position, I climbed the shelving. The snapcell buzzed just as I reached the top. I stabbed the talk button.
“Governor?”
“I’m taking a big chance calling you, Agent Chase.”
“I understand. I’m glad you called. And I appreciate the risk you’re taking. Did you find out about Gates?”
“You do know the feds think you killed him, right?”
“You have to know that’s not true.”
The governor didn’t respond.
“Someone’s framing me, Governor. I promise I had nothing to do with killing a federal agent.”
He cleared his throat. “What about my son? Have you heard from him?”
I wasn’t about to tell the governor about Stanley’s involvement, not until I figured out his exact role, so I said, “We’re meeting soon, sir. He and I are about to have a heart-to-heart and figure everything out.”
“Don’t you dare hurt my son.”
“Of course I won’t, sir. We’re just talking. What about Gates? Did you learn anything?”
“It took some probing, but I found out a little. He definitely worked for The Company. Apparently he was on special assignment. My understanding is that the CIA had been given information that somebody in the SCS was dirty. That somebody had been selling arms secrets. Gates was assigned the investigation. So it’s not like it was a spy operation on American soil. It was an internal investigation.”
“I suppose you don’t know who Gates was specifically investigating?”
“That’s what I meant by a little, Agent Chase. That’s all I know about the situation. It took all my connections and political clout to get that far. I hope it’s somewhat helpful.”
I paused and took a breath. Pieces were starting to fit. I could rule out Gates now. It appeared he was trying to figure out everything, just like I was. “It definitely helps. Thanks, Governor.”
“For the record, Agent Chase, if it wasn’t you who killed Gates, then who did?”
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