One Night In Bangkok Ch. 04

"He'd be the first person on my list, anyway." Teresa whispered out loud to him. Cindy nodded vigorously in agreement.

"So when we found the names in the password-protected file," I said, "only McGinty was still alive, which was one pretty big clue to his involvement. So I was zoned in on him from that moment on."

I continued: "We went to meet McGinty at the strip club 'Bangkok', As soon as I saw him, I knew he was the guy. He was trying to play the sleaze, but his clothes betrayed him; they were too clean. We got him out of 'Bangkok', where none of us were safe though I didn't realize it at the time. We went to another bar, where a couple of FBI Agents sat nearby and listened in on our talk. They also made observations that McGinty was play-acting being a bum P.I."

"I asked them to be there for two reasons." I said. "One, to observe McGinty; and two, for McGinty to observe them. I knew he'd see that they were Agents... sorry guys, but it's obvious to the world that you are..." I said to Sandra and Julius, then went on: "And I was hoping that McGinty would think I wasn't very competent to be doing such obvious things."

"Ahhhh," said O'Brady, "that's why you were coddling him all along, being so agreeable to everything he said."

"That was some of it." I said. "Telling McGinty how good the criminals were in the hit on Cash was massaging his ego, as well. That definitely was one of his weaknesses, and I played it to the hilt."

I went on: "McGinty had crafted a story where he could be seen as guilty or innocent. In that, he really was acting brilliantly, and I would even suggest that he had help in concocting his persona of 'Birdie Edward'..."

"Yes," I said, seeing everyone's looks, "McGinty is not 'Birdie Edward', and never was; that man is the perp I'm really trying to hunt down. McGinty was Birdie Edwards's lieutenant and front man. When someone began getting too close to the operation, it was McGinty that was set up to be the contact man, and the man who could lead the Detectives astray... and into ambushes, if called for."

"What about McGinty saying that Sullivan had whispered 'Mr. Big.' before dying?" asked O'Brady.

"According to the City Police notes of the case," I said, "no one verified that. I think Sullivan had to have been dead already when McGinty and the others got there. McGinty made up the 'Mr. Big' reference to get our interest, and how could anyone possibly prove otherwise now?"

Everyone nodded as I went on: "So I acted like I believed everything McGinty said. McGinty described Birdie Edward as the opposite of himself: clean, older, distinguished, wearing a suit and tie. And that was part of the ruse. It made it look like McGinty was leading us away from the truth that Birdie Edward was a bum P.I. Double secret deception, designed to confuse."

"That's a risky game." said Sapper Warren. "I'd never follow a guy like that into a stakeout if I wasn't sure of him."

"Yes, that's what I want to know." said Chief Engle. "Cash was a smart guy, who'd been in dangerous situations in Iraq. He was not going to follow a guy like McGinty into a warehouse, no matter what the potential reward would be, not without backup."

"From what I've learned of Paul Cash," I said, "he was an honorable and very brave man and an outstanding Police Officer. And like you said, Chief, he'd handled himself in some situations in Iraq, and likely thought he'd be able to take care of himself."

"Also," I said, letting my voice drop a little, "well, let's just say that in the past he was up against someone that was too much for him... Pastor Raymond Westboro, the Consultant of Crime. In fairness, the Consultant almost got a lot of us in this room killed." Cindy and Teresa nodded vigorously in agreement.

I went on: "This ring that Cash came across was a remnant of the Consultant's widespread organization, and is now being led by someone else. Unfortunately, we didn't find it when the Consultant was defeated, but Cash did find it, and thought it would be a great cap to his career by busting it before retiring."

"So he took some chances that he might not otherwise have taken." I continued. "And one reason why he might have trusted McGinty could have because McGinty set up a situation to make himself be trusted... like having a car nearly hit and kill him."

"Just as he did with us!" O'Brady exclaimed.

"Oh yes." I said. "I saw through that like a sheet of Saran wrap. That car busted my driver-door mirror, and I'm still pissed about that. But if that had been a serious attempt to kill either McGinty or myself, I should've been fixing a badly dented-in car door. Also, if they seriously had wanted to kill either of us, they'd have sprayed us with machine gun fire, maybe even stopped the car to wipe us out. No, it will take a lot more than that little bit of play-acting to fool me."

"So the intent was to make us trust McGinty." I said. "I went along with it, and acted like I did trust him. And then came a fly in the ointment: someone broke into McGinty's office and stole his files."

"One thing I learned was that McGinty had been getting dirt on high-level politicians and other figures." I continued. "At the time of the break-in, I wondered if one of those people that he had dirt on had commissioned the break-in, to take any data McGinty had on them. And then I considered that it was McGinty himself, that he was making it look like he was the victim. But if that hypothesis were true, it also meant that he was about to disappear and start over somewhere else."

I explained: "McGinty had to know that with O'Brady and me coming up so quickly behind Cash that his cover was being blown, and his name was coming up with more and more dead Police Officers. So I reasoned that he would create one last ambush, for O'Brady and me, then he would vanish completely."

"So," I said, "when McGinty called about a big drug operation, I acted like I was swallowing the bait hook, line, and sinker. I fully anticipated there would be a last-second change of location, which may have been done to Cash and which lured him to Pottsville and the shop where he was found dead."

"In our raid," I said, "with the original location in Westphalia, it was logical to consider that the new venue would be across the river, in Eastphalia's jurisdiction. Close by, but in another jurisdiction, and it had to be a limited time situation so that we couldn't get Eastphalia to mobilize a SWAT Team and get them to the location in time. That's why I had Commander Ross and Captain Croyle here; they were listening in on the microphones in my vehicle and on my person, and were ready to bring those of you who participated in your raid into action."

"We found the perps already subdued." said Martin Nash. "How'd that happen."

"We're just that good." said the Iron Wolf, Teresa Croyle. "And don't ask questions you really don't want the answer to." That garnered a sharp look from Sandra Speer. Jack Muscone just let it go, as did Nash.

"I believe that will be the final word on that subject." I said. "Okay, any questions?" That generated some laughter.

"So who's the real ringleader?" asked Dwight Stevens. "I really can't see McGinty maintaining the role of a bum P.I. if he's really the big shot of a massive smuggling ring."

"I agree." I said. "The real ringleader could be Dick Granger of SPS." I said. "It could also be Edward Blassingame himself, and he was the namesake for McGinty's 'Birdie Edward' nom de plume. And that's why McGinty shot himself; he knew a much worse fate awaited him if he were captured, and he talked... and he would have talked."

"Any idea what happened to the files stolen from his office?" asked Detective Chester.

"No." I said. "The City Police will have to find those, if they care to."

"And that pressure is already being applied." said E.J. Jefferson.

"What about the other death in all this?" asked Jack Muscone. "Butch Harmony. Who killed him, and why?"

"And to that point, who exactly was that 'Mitt' guy?" asked Martin Nash.

"Ahh, sheer coincidences do happen, in spite of what Dame Agatha Christie teaches us." I said with a smile. "Harmony just happened to get a job at 'Bangkok', which was the City's hot spot for BDSM activities, as Whippet's used to be in my Town & County. And yes, a woman on the FBI's Ten Most Wanted List was one of the clients there. It's possible my appearance there spooked some people, and caused them to panic. Harmony may have been eliminated as a precaution, and the woman has gotten clean away. I hate it, but it was just bad luck on that one."

Muscone nodded. "May have been good luck for you, though. If she'd been prepared, she might've tried to bump you off."

"I do think you were lucky." said Chief Engle. "McGinty could've just shot you both in the empty room, and that would've been that."

"That is true," I said, "and that was the worst threat to us. But McGinty had never done the dirty work himself; he'd always had a large number of perps ambush and obliterate his targets. I expected that he would do that this time, as well, and he did. And I made sure to keep him talking while we were in the empty room. More talking by him, less shooting by him."

"As to who Mitt is, and Mitt is not his real name," I said, "it definitely was interesting who showed up as his legal representation... but only after I'd left the building. Yes, Martin... Mitt is someone very much worthy of the FBI's full attention..."

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

As the party was breaking up, State Rep. Gloria Bernstein came up to me. "Very well done, Commander." she said. "But are you really going to testify before the Committee on Monday?"

"Yes ma'am." I said. "I'll be there, Lord willin' and the Creek don't rise."

"Just be very careful." Bernstein said. "Justin Madoff is a mean son of a bitch. He'd love to entrap you on something."

"I'll be telling the truth." I said. "What can happen as long as I tell the truth?"

"It depends on if that truth is what they want to hear." warned Bernstein. "See you Monday." She nodded and left.

"She's right, you know." said Lt. Governor Sharon Marshall, coming up to me. "That testimony is nothing but a trap for you... though from what I've heard tonight and several times in the past, you have a way of walking into traps, and getting out of them. Just make sure this time is not the one that overcomes you..."

Part 20 - Secrets

Sunday, March 24th. The sun was setting on the other side of the mountain finger as Sheriff Griswold and I sat in front of the fire in his fire pot in his backyard. The day had been fairly warm for this time of year, but the night-time chill was coming in over Lake Reservoir.

"So," said the Sheriff, "who was behind that cyber attack on the TCPD? The FBI? And was the timing just a coincidence?"

"Sheriff," I said, "you know what Dr. Eckhart says: there are no coincidences in the Universe. That happened the morning after I showed up at the bar where Keiko Shimono had been hiding out. She alerted her cohorts, who had 'The Geek' make that cyber-attack on us. The first wave was to get at our files, and was made to look like the FBI was behind it. The second, more malicious attack was The Geek's personal calling card."

"He's working with Shimono and Barsbane?" queried Griswold.

"Maybe." I said. "I thought he was the NSA's meth lab slave, so to speak, having made a plea deal with the Government to work for them after he was caught hacking bank algorithms. But either he got out of that somehow... or he's working with the Shimono gang at the request of those Government entities."

"Oh, geez." muttered the Sheriff, who was deeply aware of the implications of that.

"So," I said, "this case brought back some memories of the good ol' days, did it?"

"Yeah, Crowbar. Anything but good." said Griswold. "Those days before you got here were really rough for all the Police Departments in the State, and maybe further out. The SBI under that bastard Jack Lewis was totally corrupt, and more of a help to the criminals than to us local LEOs. I had Malone to deal with, and he was a pussycat compared to some places, especially Southport and the City. And then, there was Westboro. What he did to the Westphalia Police to make them shut down Cash... despicable. But typical of him."

"And he never tried to do that to you, to shut me down?" I asked.

"No." said Griswold. "He couldn't come to me, even disguised; I would've known who he was immediately. And he didn't send subordinates to do things like that, which might've put him in their power, or backfired in some way. They did sabotage Charlie's car, but other than that I think he tried different tactics here at home. You said that you always had the option to kill him in your back pocket. I'm surprised he didn't just have you shot in the street."

"I think he tried that." I said, remembering a day on the Ides of March, years before. "But I think he knew that my death would've been his death. My mother knew who he was, and if I'd died she'd have told Laura... and Cindy. And then nothing on the face of this earth would've saved Westboro. Both Laura and Dr. Eckhart had the power to find him, no matter where on earth he went, and Cindy and Teresa would've gone and taken him out with extreme prejudice."

"Probably true." said the Chief. "Even so, I always thought we were lucky, as well as good. You got Westboro, Cindy found the way out of First Baptist through the baptismal pool..." He did not mention that I had pressed the button; he did not need to.

"Yes sir." I said. "We lost some good people along the way, too. Pete Feeley, Mrs. Veasley..."

"And they got Charlie." the Chief said sadly. "After the Consultant's time, but they got him."

"That was my fault." I said. "I should've been on guard, and had him protected----"

"I'm going to tell you what Captain Perlman would tell you if she were here." growled the Sheriff. "It was not your fault. Do not blame yourself. And do not ever let me hear you blame yourself for Charlie's death again, ya hear?"

"Yes sir." I said, though still knowing I'd not done enough. After several minutes of silent contemplation, I asked "How's Mrs. Griswold doing?"

"Getting worse, every day." said Griswold. "She can't tell time anymore. She often says she wants to go home, but she doesn't know where that is. She remembers childhood things, but she's getting where she doesn't remember my name, nor that I'm her husband of over fifty years. The Church Ladies and the Ladies Auxiliary Club ladies help take care of her during the day, but it's getting to the point..." He paused, collecting his emotions, then said "It's getting to the point she's going to need more care than we can give her."

"I'm sorry." I said glumly, knowing how much it was hurting him, and that hurt being compounded by the fact that there was nothing he nor any of us could do about it.

After some more time had passed, I said "Well, I need to get on home, sir."

"You've got a rough day ahead of you tomorrow." said Griswold. "Val has told me he appreciates you doing all you've done to help him, and for you to just tell the truth tomorrow."

"And when I do," I said as I stood up, "I will be accused of perjury, and the TCPD will have Commander Croyle to deal with. But let not your heart be troubled, Sheriff. As it's written in the Bible, in the Gospel of John 8:32: And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free."

Griswold peered up at me, his mustaches twitching. "You've got something up your sleeve, don't you Crowbar?"

I just smiled. "Good night, sir." I said, and then walked away...

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

I did not immediately go home to the Mountain Nest. I went over the mountain to The Cabin. It was empty, everyone who normally stayed there over the weekend having gone back to their first homes.

I went inside, not turning on any lights. I checked for bugs, finding none. Then I unlocked the door to my office, which was between the front room and the far garage that housed the Black Beauty.

Once inside, I engaged the steel bar locks in both doors, like those of a bank vault door, then flipped the switch that turned on the Faraday Cage. When I'd had the new Cabin built, I'd had a mesh of wires set into the cement walls, ceiling, and floor of this office room, with electric current running through the metal to set up a screen of interference.

I moved the filing cabinet and then opened the trap door in the floor, which led to the underground wine cellar old Mr. Bonniker had built into the side of the mountain underneath the front of the house. Going down the stairs, I moved back a rock, which revealed my secret server and some other stuff that most Citizens did not have. I pulled out a box stuffed with papers, and then a laptop computer.

No, the City Police would not be finding Bundy McGinty's treasure trove of information on a great many people... unless they somehow figured out where that data now was, and had the artillery to blow up The Cabin to get to it.

As I began going through the laptop, which had files indexing all of the papers, I marveled at the success McGinty had had in amassing it. He was not a fool by any means. He'd survived for all those years, and only died because he tried to kill me first, then chose death over the dishonor of capture. And now all that dirt... was in my hands. As Tanya would say, the power was all mine, mine!

And how did I do it? you may wonder. Well, Cindy was leading the DEA and other agencies to the Eastphalia warehouse in her capacity as SBI Reservist. So why was Teresa there?

Ah, there be ninja here! My ninja. They were the ones who ransacked McGinty's office, but that was just a ruse itself. Of course McGinty didn't keep that stuff in his office; indeed, even he did not know where the material was!

Yes. If they moved against him and tortured him, he knew he'd die, but he knew the material would be made public, very public. Revenge from the grave, which is what kept everyone away from him while searching for his dirt. A scheme worthy of the immense mental power of the Consultant of Crime.

McGinty didn't just hide information. He hid money. Shane O'Brady had been shocked when I'd handed McGinty $10,000... which was my money, not the FBI's... but I had an ulterior motive, and it was worth every penny of that money to achieve that ulterior motive.

The money had some special technology embedded in some of the metal strips that are in $100 bills. When he mailed the money to an address that would move whatever he sent to a storage pod, one Professor Marvin Milton, who was already pissed enough at the FBI, helped me trace the money to its location.

And then the Iron Wolf and my ninja succeeded in finding and retrieving the data, while the paid minions of those persons desperate to recover that material failed, and failed for years.

Stupid to fail. Unforgivable.

Hmmm, I thought to myself as I went to work, let's see what he had on Senator Samuel Russell... and Karl Handel...

Part 21 - Epilogue

"This is Bettina Wurtzburg, KXTC Channel Two News!" shouted the redheaded MILF reporterette from the grounds of the State Capitol in Midtown at 7:00am, Monday, March 25th. "We shall finally get the truth about Governor Val Jared's abuse of power and harassment of women!"

Bettina began: "Town & County Police Commander Donald Troy is expected to answer a subpoena from the State House Judiciary Committee today, where he will be forced to tell the truth about the incident where Governor Jared allegedly ordered him to use the power of the SBI to harass two women who made credible claims of sexual harassment against the Governor. State lawmakers expect that this will be the 'smoking gun' that will lead to the impeachment and removal of the Governor! Channel Two News will bring you the hearing live, beginning at 9:00am..."