Generation Lost (Gray Wolf Security #17)

CHAPTER ELEVEN

Ghost, Ian, and Antoine walked into city hall, hoping to speak with the city inspectors and those approving new builds. When the chief of the department saw them coming, he literally closed his door and pretended to be on the phone.

“Well, I think we found one problem,” said Antoine. He pushed the door open, and the man stared at them, shaking his head.

“I’m on the phone,” he said nervously. “It’s going to be a while.”

“We can wait,” said Ghost, taking a seat. Ian stood against the wall while Antoine took a seat at the corner of the desk. The man stared at them, then let out a long, slow breath, putting the phone down.

“What do you want?” he asked.

“A little courtesy would be great,” said Ian. “How much did the Rizzolis pay you?”

“Look, I didn’t take anything from them.”

“Nothing? So, they were doing all of this without anyone checking in and determining whether or not it was legal?” asked Ghost.

“I didn’t take anything. I refused. What I couldn’t refuse was looking the other way. They knew I had two daughters in middle school and a son in college. They knew their names, their ages, and had photos of them. They’ve already scared the shit out of my wife twice.”

“Why didn’t you call the cops?” asked Antoine.

“Antoine, you and I both know how this works. There’s always someone willing to help them out. Always somebody willing to take the cash or look the other way. I wasn’t willing to risk my family.”

“You could have called us, Calvin,” said Ian.

“It must be nice, you know.” Ian stared at the man. “None of you have ever been terrified that someone will actually follow through on their threats, killing the only people you’ve ever loved.”

“You’re wrong,” said Ghost. “We’ve been worried about that very thing, but we’ve never caved into it. We understand what you did, Calvin, and why you did it. Now, we need help to stop them.”

“Haven’t you created enough problems? They’ve let everyone know that they’re after your mother and your family.”

“We know who they’re after, Calvin. Listen, we know that Marie Rizzoli is running her sons. She’s the one behind all of this,” said Antoine.

“Here.” Calvin looked at them, and they waited patiently for him to continue. “Jesus, you have no idea what you’ve done. You’ve literally opened Pandora’s Box. The Rizzolis are one of several families working together. Marie thinks she’s the head of the organization, but she is not. It’s not just their family. It’s other families involved as well.”

“What’s their game?” asked Ghost.

“They’re creating a network of casinos they can use to launder money, send women through, drugs, all of it.” Ghost looked at the others, realizing they were right.

“Why attack the senior community?” asked Ian.

“Come on,” said Calvin, shaking his head. “They’re an easy target! They don’t have a lot of money, most don’t have kids who give a shit about them any longer, and they won’t fight back! Unless they’re you guys.”

“That’s right,” nodded Ghost. “We’re going to fight back for them and for all of the others that they’re attacking out there.”

“Listen, I know how good you guys are, but you’re pissing in the wind on this one. We’re talking ‘families,’ the mob, hundreds of them, maybe thousands. You can’t fight them.”

“We can. And we will,” said Ghost, standing. “Do yourself a favor, Calvin. Take a leave of absence. A month if you can. Take your wife and kids and go somewhere else. If you don’t, they’re going to come for you no matter what.”

Calvin shook his head, rubbing his hands over his face.

“Help us out, Calvin. Where can we find them? How do we stop them?” asked Antoine.

Calvin stood, staring out the window of his city hall office. Below were the bustling streets of New Orleans, people moving like ants on a sugared hill.

“They’ve been squeezing the other casino owners. So far, they’ve been able to hold out and keep them at bay, but they’re causing all kinds of trouble every night. Fights breaking out, accusations of cheating by the dealers, you name it, and they’re throwing it out there hoping to ruin their businesses.”

“They want all the business for themselves?” said Ian.

“They could give a shit about the gambling,” said Calvin. “That’s a miniscule part of the business. The biggest thing with the gaming locations is running counterfeit money through there. Every night, the two youngest Rizzoli brothers go to a different casino and gamble. I’m talking thirty, forty, fifty thousand worth or more.”

“Okay, so they have money to burn.”

“You might say that. It’s all counterfeit. There’s always a young girl on their arms. Different one every night. If someone is interested in the girl, she’s delivered to their rooms for whatever they want. Minimum is two grand per hour. The counterfeit is so good it’s not caught by anyone at the casino right away. Some poor schlep that wins is given the money and takes it to his bank, only to realize it’s not worth the paper it’s printed on.”

“What about the girls?” asked Ghost.

“They’re not kids. At least they were smart enough to get that right. Most of them are nineteen or twenty,” he said with disgust. “Someone who was there said one of the girls was told she would be a dancer at their new club. To earn her ‘keep,’ they said she had to entertain clients until the new casino was ready. Those sick bastards watch. They sell the girls for the night, but part of the deal is they get to watch.”

“Why build in that area? It’s far away from the downtown area and the other casinos,” said Antoine.

“Yep. But what is it close to?” he asked. They all looked at one another and frowned.

“The docks.”