The Hunter Ch. 02 - Chicago Mission

We went to the van so we could talk in private. "What do you think?" I asked.

Ashley thought for a moment and said, "Well, I think the first thing is to go to the gang unit and get as much intel on the Vice Lords and this Marquel Russell. We know where he is, and he isn't going anywhere. But we need to understand as much as we can about people close to him. Who he communicates with. We also need to understand the mechanics of the Vice Lord's organization who the enforcers are and as much information about them as possible. I also believe that we need to get that witness out of their safe house ASAP."

"I agree, sounds like a plan." I said. We left the parking area $30 poorer and went to the police headquarters not too far away. Parking was at least easier to find and a lot less expensive. Imagine parking meter for a buck an hour, what a bargain. We walked a couple of blocks and talked to the duty sergeant. He called a lieutenant up from the gang squad who met us at the front desk. We introduced ourselves and what was going on. Yes, the arrest of Marquel, had created quite a stir in the Vice Lord Nation (VLN) and had triggered inside turmoil as to his successor. Even though he has not been convicted yet. The DA had made a convincing argument to get bail denied. But Marquel is still calling the shots from the inside. They have monitored the phones from inside and have not been able to break the code used in communicating. He believes Marquel has access to a cell phone, however, repeated shakedowns have not delivered a cell phone tied to Marquel or any of his associates. He showed us a map of the Chicago area with the area controlled by VLN. Wow, they have about half of Chicago, that is a lot of area to cover. Thankfully, we don't have to cover it, we got the bait, they will come to us. He gave us a rundown of the working of the VLN as much as they knew. He explained about the "set" that Marquel came from and his security and enforcers. He gave us a folder that had names last known addresses of associates, wives, girlfriends. I asked about Chicago gun laws. He smiled and said the Mayor and the DAs office had already set up an agreement with the owner of Chicagoland Detective Services. He gave me the address and said they would be expecting us. In the eyes of the Chicago police department, we would be private investigators, contracted by the city/ county. We exchanged phone info, giving my burner phone number. I thanked him for his time, shook his hand and left. We walked back to van in silence, thinking about what we had just learned.

"Well, what do you think," I asked.

"Well, I think we have stepped off in it." Ashley said, "We have a lot of information to process. We don't know how much of it is accurate or up to date. I don't think we need to pursue it right now, but if/when something happens, this information will be valuable to have in case we need to do some hunting. Right now, we need to go and get legal for chi-town. Then we need to gather the witness. I think we will have an hour or so to move the witness before the VLN knows that we have taken custody. Let's go by Chicagoland Detective Services and get gun legal, then do a drive by of the DA's safe house."

"Good thinking," I said. "Let's get going." We arrived at a non-descript building a short time later.

We went inside to be met by an older bleached blonde woman. She wore way too much make up and was well past her prime. She reminded me more of a madam than someone I would want to meet the public for a business other than a whore house. The once pretty gum smacking bimbo asked, "What can I do for you sweety?"

"Well," I said, "We, are here to get legal for carry in this fine city. I was told that the mayor and the DA's office had set up with you guys for us to become employees so that we could carry weapons legal in cook county."

She picked up the phone and pressed a button that lit up red, I head a click when someone picked up the other end. She said, "Donnie, your new employees are here." She hung the phone up, looked at me, and said, "Mr. Hawoth will see you now." She got up and started walking towards a back office. The button up dress she was wearing was about a size too small, and all the buttons were straining to contain the awesomeness trying to bust out. I struggled to contain my giggle as her ass when she walked looked like two dogs wrestling inside a burlap bag. I got punched from the back. She knocked on the door and then opened the office door. She politely said, "Let me know if you need anything sweety." and winked at me. She backed out and closed the door.

Mr. Hawoth, stood and came around the desk to shake hands. "I'm Don," he said, "Welcome to Chicago."

I shook his hand and said, "I'm Jed. Nice to meet you." He then reached his hand toward Ashley and shook her hand.

"I'm Ashley." She said, "Nice to meet you."

Don started, "Every place is different. Here in Chicago, it is quicker and easier to be legal to carry if you are employed by a detective agency. I need you to fill out some forms, make copies of your IDs, and you need to sign an affidavit about criminal history, blah blah blah. Then watch a video for training purposes and viola you are legal. In case something happens, you will need to call me. But from what I hear, I don't know, and I don't want to know. Do you have any questions?" I shook my head. Forty-five minutes later I had a Chicagoland Detective Agency ID card, complete with photo and thumbprint. We shook hands and left.

"Do you flirt with all the ladies?" Ashley asked.

"Whaaaat?" I replied innocently, "Please tell me what I said that could be construed as flirting."

Ashley laughed and said, "I'm just busting your balls. But you did just about loose it when you were watching her ass, didn't you?"

I smiled and nodded and said, "Let's go do a drive by, and see what we are dealing with." It was about 1 or so when we arrived at the address. I told her to make a video and I would drive slowly so we can check it out later when we make our plan. The address was a three-story brick apartment building. It was mid-block, there was an alley on one side and another apartment building with two apartment buildings between it and 68^th street. The apartment buildings were separated by narrow walkways (maybe three feet wide) that were overgrown. There did not appear to be any entry points from the basement. There were porches with zig zag wooden stars off the back. We circled once and left the area. Driving home, pieces of a plan was coming together in my mind. I said, "Let's take our tac gear with us. We can wear our civies to the turnover and change after that."

She said, "Sounds like you got a plan already."

"I don't believe that we can just walk out the front door and everything will be OK." I said, "We are going to have to sneak out. We will take our tac gear and weapons in a duffle bag, along with rope and climbing harnesses. After we take custody, and the Leo's have left, we can change into out tactical gear and take the witness up to the roof. After dark, we will cross over the narrow gaps between the buildings to 68^th street then you can rappel down and I'll pull your climbing rig up. I'll lower the witness down and the duffle, then I'll meet you two in the van. How does that sound?"

"I think it will work," she said, "I hope the witness isn't afraid of heights." I don't have a better idea. I say let's go with it."

We parked on 68^th and walked around the corner. Of course, the apartment was on the third floor. We knocked on the door. Everything got quiet. Then I heard, "Who's there?"

"Valhalla Consulting, we are here to relieve you." I said. The door opened slightly, and a partial face appeared in the opening.

"Look we don't know anything about no relief". He said, "We just got here, we ain't supposed to get relief until 9"

"Let us in and I'll explain everything." I said. The door opened and we entered the apartment. Another man came in from a bedroom, I could see the reflection of a woman in the mirror. I continued, "The DA has contracted us to take over for you guys in watching the witness until the court date. We are here to take custody of the witness."

"Well, we don't work for the DA." he snarled. The obvious feelings toward the prosecutor were starting to show.

I shook my head and said, "How about I call her, and let her know about our situation, and she can call someone in your food chain, and then they can give you information on how to proceed. Will that work for you?" He nodded in agreement. I called the Prosecuting Attorney and explained the situation. She said she would take care of it, and it should only take a few minutes.

Sure, enough about thirty minutes later, one of the Leo's got a call on their cell. He was all "yes sir, I understand sir, right away sir." He looked at his partner and said, "They are legit. Let's get the hell out of here." and with that, they shook our hands and left. We looked around the inside of the apartment and knocking on the bedroom door before opening it.

A voice from inside said, "Come in."

I motioned for her to come out of the bedroom and into the living area. I said, "Why don't you come out here and let's talk." She slowly moved toward the living area. She looked scared and wouldn't look at me directly. I nodded at Ashley hoping she would understand to take the lead.

She nodded back as if she understood. She said, "Come over here and sit on the couch. I am Ashley, and that man is Jed. I know you must be scared; we understand. We are here to protect you until you are scheduled to testify. What is your name?"

The lady, who was about the same size as Ashley said, "Loretta, Loretta Gonzalez, Call me LoLo."

"Alright LoLo," Ashley continued, "I want to be honest with you, and in return I need you to be honest with me. Can you do that?" LoLo nodded in agreement. While Ashley was continuing the conversation with Loretta, I took the duffle bag into the bedroom to change into my tactical gear. Ashley told LoLo that we didn't trust this safe house. That we wanted to move her to another location. She told her about our plan and asked her if she had any fear of heights. LoLo said she was more afraid of dying and smiled a weak shaky smile. I came into the living room. LoLo looked shocked and jumped when she saw the AR dangling behind me. Ashley told her it was ok that these are just our work clothes and that we are here to protect her. Ashely told her that she was going to go change into her work clothes and then we would go up on the roof. Ashley went to the bedroom and changed into her tac gear.

I asked LoLo, "What do you have that you want to take."

She replied, "I just have one small suitcase. That is all they would let me bring." I thought 'we will have to make arrangements, oh well, just another wrinkle'

I told her, "When Ashley gets sorted, then I need you to pack what you need, and get ready to move out. If you have dark clothes, why don't you wear them." she nodded in agreement. Ashley came out, 'Damn I thought she even makes tactical gear look good.' I told Ashley, "LoLo needs to pack her suitcase, then we will be ready to go up." I noticed the brightness outside changing and the sun was blocked intermitted by clouds. Hope I don't rain, but a darker than average night would be best for the great escape. LoLo got squared away and he headed up to the roof. The clouds were getting a little thicker, which was a good thing, a person can still cook even on a nice day, in the sun on a black tar roof.

We closed the roof hatch and got as comfortable as we could. We talked using our quiet voice to stay as hidden as possible and still trying to put LoLo at ease. I guess we were up there about an hour and a half. And we heard some bang on the apartment door that we had recently vacated. I held a finger up to my lips to shush the conversation. I heard someone yell, Pizza! Then I heard a crashing sound, yep, they had kicked in the door and simultaneously there were a couple of shotgun blasts. Booom!,... Booom! LoLo jumped with the shots but stayed quiet. I had my AR at the ready. If that hatched moved; someone was eating lead. I heard noises of crashing and things being thrown in the apartment. The place was being ransacked all the while two voices cussing to high heaven. God damn it, Tre said those motherfuckers would be here. Where the fuck are those motherfuckers? Doesn't even look like any mother fucker has even been here. We got to find that cunt or Tre is going to have our ass man. Tre said those fucking cops left her here just a couple of fucking hours ago. God Damn it. Check the trash see if there is a clue as to where these fuckers went. Damn it, Damn it. They had a tirade that lasted about 30 minutes. We heard some sirens blaring in the distance. The intruders shouted Fuck it! We got to get the fuck outta here. Come on let's go. They pounded down the stairs and out the front. We heard tires squeal as they took off in a car.

I whispered we'll stay here until the cops leave and then we'll head out. The sirens were getting closer, and it wasn't long before the apartment building was crawling with police. Sirens blaring, lights flashing, I guess it must have been a slow day. There was about a dozen cop cars on the usually quiet neighborhood street. I whispered let's just lay down and take a nap it may be awhile before everyone leaves. I was getting dark and there was little evidence to be found other than fingerprints ours', the cops', LoLo's, and the intruders', if they weren't wearing gloves. It took about four hours before it started to get quiet. I carefully looked around after the last of the flashing light disappeared. There was a cop car across the street. It looked like everyone else was gone.

We proceeded to cross over to the building closest to 68^th Street. I took the rope and climbing rigs out of the duffle. I secured the rope and threw it over the side of the building. Ashley slung the duffle over shoulder across her body and rappelled down the side of the building. She sent took off her climbing gear. I pulled it up with the rope and lowered LoLo's suitcase back down. I helped LoLo into the climbing gear and tied the rope on the dead man loop on the back of the climbing gear. I used my carabiner to act as a break when lowering LoLo. She looked scared and I told her to keep quiet and enjoy the ride. Face the building and use your feet to walk down and keep from scraping the side of the building. She managed not to scream but I could hear her panicked breathing. After LoLo was safe on the ground they grabbed the duffle and her suitcase and went across the street to the van. I rappelled down, collected the rope, and made it to the van. I took off the climbing harness, secured my AR and stored the rope. LoLo was in the cargo area and gave me a nervous smile. I smiled back and told her it was going to be alright.

We took off in the van, and went a long and convoluted pathway home, making sure we were not followed. It was close to 11:00 PM by the time we got home. I cooked spaghetti for dinner because it was quick and easy. We talked about waiting it out here. We needed to set up a watch rotation. LoLo could help around the house if she wanted because it was going to get boring. We just needed to keep curtains closed and stay away from windows as much as possible. I figured both the VLN and the police were going to be looking for us. I did text the DA with an OK emoji. We decided at least for Ashley and me to use a 6 on 6 off. Sleep or do whatever on your six off. We chose 2 AM, 8 AM, 2 PM, 8 PM as our trade times. We told LoLo she could choose where she wanted to sleep. She didn't want to be a bother, but she didn't want to sleep alone. Well Ashley is taking the first turn in the rack. I looked at Ashley and she nodded. Ashley said you can either sleep in the same bed with me or sleep up here on the couch. She settled on the couch I got a pillow and a sheet from the spare bedroom. Ashley went to bed in the lower bedroom.

I started to set up the control stations and computer set up. That took longer than anticipated. I had to use my original phone for a WIFI hot spot. The house was dark except for a lamp in the back spare bed. I looked over the inventory of cameras and drew out a plan for covering our safe house. Between the cameras and the motions sensors and the motion activated cameras I felt pretty good about the layout. I wanted to tell Ashley about it in the morning before I stated setting up the gear. I looked out in the garage to see what tools there available. There was a ladder hanging on the wall, and a work bench that looked in pristine condition, and a very limited selection of tools in a toolbox that looked like it had never been opened. I started to assemble the camera gear and synch it up with the computer. Both the steady streaming and motion activated cameras worked without issue. I cooked pancakes for breakfast. It didn't take long for the place to come alive when the smell of frying bacon filled the house. Ashley smiled when she came up the stairs. LoLo must have been wiped, she just rolled over on the couch and started to snore again. Me and Ashley made our plates and went to the garage. I showed her my plan for cameras and motions sensors. She was stuffing her face and grunting in agreement or disagreement. She was cracking me up with the different octave grunts and facial expressions. I also pointed out the ladder and limited tool selection. I then took her to the spare bedroom to show her the monitor set up and computer station. (note -for future reference batteries-lots of them, and a label maker would be nice for organizing. Also, a toolbox so we know what tools are available.) She congratulated me on the progress I had made. I gave her a high five and went to crash.

While I was asleep Ashley continued to set up our perimeter security. She waited until neighborhood emptied and all the working people had left their castles to face the rigors of employment. About 9:45 she started with motion activated cameras up under the eaves of the house in the front. She set up continuous streaming cameras using a stash of dowel rods she covered with dirt, to hide the white at various locations in and around the house and in the bushes. (Note for future reference matte black spray paint and black ty raps and 1/2" and 3/8" dowel rods and some glue or sticky stuff.) She had the front of the house set when she came to wake me at 2 PM. She showed me the set up on the monitor station. The top two monitors had the screens split and showed multiple cameras. She stayed up with me and we moved to the side of the house basically the side just needed a motion sensor and a camera set up under the back eave looking down the side of the house. I gave her a high five and she went to bed.

LoLo had gotten up and cleaned around the house she had unpacked her stuff in the remaining upstairs bedroom. The head of the police's gang unit called and said, "I don't know what you guys did, but the streets are buzzing about the missing witness. The set crew that went to shut her up missed and the VLN heat is coming down hard on them. They are going to be patrolling the streets of Chicago in an organized manner trying to find her. She is public enemy #1. And the VLN has put up a healthy sum to anyone that can point them in the right direction."

"Thanks for the heads up." I replied. "So, what I am hearing is we got about 30,000 sons of bitches looking for her/ us."

"Yes, no pressure, right." He laughed.

"Yes. Thanks." As I hung up. I looked at LoLo and smiled. "Girl, it looks like you have won a popularity contest, and not the kind to enjoy." I said, "But don't worry, you got the A team with you. I pity the fool." Doing my best BA Baracus imitation. She smiled but I could tell she was still worried. "Hell, I'm worried, and that is ok, it helps keep the senses sharp." I told her. "It's even ok to be scared as long as you don't let the fear paralyze you." She nodded in understanding. "I think our most vulnerable position will be when we go to the courthouse. I mean everyone will know we have to be there and what time we are supposed to be there. We need to think of a way to get you in without anyone knowing it is you/ us." I said as I looked at LoLo.