Chapter 19
You could hear a pin drop in the room after Jason’s announcement, and it was Ilsa that took up the story.
“This all happened after the accident my daughter was involved in. When she was exonerated, then when Michael Babcock was put on trial, and convicted for his crimes, this is what triggered everything.” She paused and looked directly at Chief Brant.
“We have evidence that several of your officers are involved in this.”
Jason watched the expression on the Chief’s face, and liked that he didn’t start yelling and screaming that they had it all wrong.
It took six hours, but the entire case was laid out before them, and at the end, with his hands on his hips, looked at the ‘murder’ board, the men in charge of the three departments turned and looked at him with raised brows.
“What do you want from us?”
“We’re working on getting warrants for their arrests.
Larry Mason, Ms. Miller’s ex-husband is in a secure location, and fully cooperating with the DA.
The only thing I can tell you is that his is not in the state of California.
We felt that if he was, then Grayson/Babcock would have gotten to him.
His information that he took to Anderson here blew the lid on this case.
However, we need to get our ducks in a row.
You guys from the DEA and ATF will be there in the initial arrests, but you’re going to have to step in and pick up the pieces.
I don’t know if you want him brought in before the arrests, or after, but I believe you need to talk to Duane Manchester. ”
“Who is he?”
“He worked for the FBI as an undercover agent for twenty-five years, but when Grayson was appointed Director of Narcotics, he was pushed out. He still had ten years left before he had to retire, but Grayson said if he stayed, he would ride a desk.” When his statement sank in, he nodded.
“He has information, which is all here, about things that he’s seen.
” He picked up the remote and pointed it to the screen, and everyone turned when they saw and heard the conversation between Duane and Grayson in Colorado Springs.
“This is the conversation the blew this case wide open.” He went on to explain how Katherine had gotten to her destination, without revealing where it was, and when the others asked, it was Clark that stepped forward.
“That’s not something you need to know. All you need to know is that we’ve gathered this information and it’s been substantiated to be true. Katherine Miller is safe, that’s the only thing you need to know about her.”
“What do you want from us?” Brant asked.
“Do not let your officers know that you know they’re on the take.
As for the DEA and ATF, there is a case that Manchester worked on where firearms were bought from Grayson’s organization, transferred over state lines, and used in a crime to commit murder.
The persons involved are still sitting in jail, and three men here in this room were witnesses to these crimes.
When we get Grayson and his team behind bars, I will be returning and taking on that case. ”
“But why us?” Agent Alexander from the DEA asked. “I can see us picking up the pieces once the arrests are made, but why before?”
“To let you know what you’re going to have to deal with. There’s only one piece of this puzzle we don’t know for sure yet, we’re hoping once the arrests are made, then it will come to light.”
“What’s that?”
“Is George Grayson the head of the snake that’s operating the guns, drugs, and sex trafficking?
Or is he just a pawn. Lyle Anderson and I will be going to the prison to talk with Michael the day we get the warrants signed.
The DA will go to the judges the day after tomorrow to see if they can’t get signed.
If so, we will be at the prison, so Michael can’t call his father to warn him we’re asking questions. ”
“Ah, keep George busy, and you can get your answers.”
“Correct, but, Agent Alexander, you and Agent Davis from ATF are here because your two agencies will be the ones to make the actual arrests. I don’t care if you have to walk into the FBI offices to do it, or pull him out of his home, but since the CIA can’t operate on US soil, and we’re going after the FBI, that leaves your two agencies to be in charge of taking these people down.
” Jason turned to Kevin who had brought another board over and lifted a sheet.
He revealed eighteen people’s photos when he did so.
“These are the men that will be arrested. Yes, Larry Mason’s there, but as I said, he’s not in the state, and he knows he’ll be arrested.
However, we feel that his life is in danger if he is returned to California.
” Jason looked at the men in charge of their agencies and shook his head.
“Trust me, he’s the one that gave us the information on the network of kidnapping prostitutes and selling them to people overseas.
He’s not getting off for his crimes, though he is fully cooperating with us in this investigation.
I know you might not like it, but it’s going a long way in getting the information we need.
” He paused to look at everyone, then sighed heavily and rubbed the back of his neck.
“Gentlemen, are we all on the same page here?” He breathed easier when they agreed and then he dropped his bombshell.
“You have forty-eight hours to get your teams together. As I said, I don’t know where you’re going to make the arrests, but if I were doing it, as soon as I had the warrant in my hand, I’d make a sensational splash. ”
“What do you mean by that?” Chief Brant asked.
“We don’t know if Grayson has someone in the courts in his pocket.
We already know he has police officers, and other FBI agents.
What’s to say he doesn’t have someone in the clerk’s office, or a bailiff or someone who has access to the judge’s chambers?
This is just my opinion, but with warrant in hand, my personal sensational splash would be to storm the FBI offices and take him and his cronies into custody in front of everyone.
I’m hoping the arresting officers will have body cameras on so they can catch anything he might let slip.
” Jason then turned toward the Chief. “I’m trying not to step on your toes here, Chief, but I also think Special Agents Alexander and Davis should have a team ready to storm your departments to take out these men.
” He walked over to the board and pointed out the six officers that were documented to be in cahoots with Grayson.
“As much as I want to argue with you, I’m not going to. Do you want me to keep them in-house?”
“No, we don’t want to give them any heads up that this is going down,” Ryan spoke for the first time. “We can’t arrest anyone, but we can be there as backup and even crowd control when and where we’re needed.”
They spent the next couple of hours listing the logistics of what they would do when they executed the arrest warrants, and by the time everyone left around midnight, they all felt like they had a great plan in place.
Four days later, Jason looked at the message on his phone, then with an evil grin, looked at Lyle Anderson and nodded.
It had taken a couple of days longer than they anticipated for a judge to sign off on the warrants, and when they got word that today was the day, Jason and Lyle headed toward the men’s prison where Michael Babcock was incarcerated.
They walked toward the entrance, and thankfully, they had brought their briefcases with them and retrieved them from the car.
Twenty minutes after receiving the message that the warrant had been signed, they watched as Michael Babcock sat down across from them.
“What are you doing here?” he demanded of Lyle, but Jason shook his head at the younger man.
“No, we’ll conduct this conversation. He’s with me, I’m Jason Black, I’m a federal attorney for the United States. We’re here asking you questions about the organization your father is in charge of.”
“The FBI?” Michael asked, and if Jason hadn’t been studying him intently, he wouldn’t have seen the fear in the man’s eyes.
“No, his criminal enterprise, the one where he sells guns, prostitutes, and rips off the drug dealers for his own cut.”
“How did you find out about that?” Michael demanded, then his eyes flared and he actually slapped his hand over his mouth like a little kid would. “I want my lawyer.”
Jason shrugged. “Fine, but know this.” Jason paused until he had Michael’s complete attention.
When he had it, he leaned in, and said clearly, “As we speak, your father is being arrested, along with seventeen other people we know are in his organization. We thought we’d give you the courtesy of coming clean. ”
“Will it reduce my sentence?”
“No,” Lyle said firmly. “It also won’t reduce the charges your father and the others are facing. We just thought you’d want to know that your own father might be a bunk mate of yours soon, and we wanted to know if you had anything to add about his organization.”
The emotions flitting across his face were shocking, from fear, to astonishment, then he settled into acceptance. With a heavy sigh, and using both hands to scrub his face, he looked at them. “What do you want to know?”
After asking for his permission to record the conversation, after receiving prior approval from the Warden, Michael talked for the next three hours. He told them everything he knew, and speculated on other things.
Three hours later, Jason and Lyle walked back to their car without saying a word until they were locked inside, only then did they look at each other and grin.
“More ammunition for the upcoming trial,” Jason said, and nodded when Lyle started the car and they headed back toward the city.
They stopped at a restaurant about thirty minutes away, and went in to sit down.
As they ordered their food, they paused when someone turned up the volume on the TV mounted in the corner.
Everyone in the small diner turned to look.
They all saw the news clip flipping back and forth from the FBI building to several drug houses, the police station, and several other locations.
They heard the commentary that a total of twenty-two people had been arrested.
The men exchanged grins, then listened to the patrons complaining that if you couldn’t trust the FBI, then who could you trust?
They took their time with their meal and by the time they made it back to Ilsa’s house, the men had returned.
“One question,” Jason said as he entered the kitchen and saw everyone there. He noticed they still had some paint on their faces, and it made him happy that they had covered up to conceal their identity.
“What’s that?” Ryan asked with a grin.
“What did Grayson say?”
“His first words were that it was all Larry Mason’s fault, that he was taking orders from him.”
“Ah, so he threw Mason under the bus?”
“Correct, but you need to know this.” Lloyd laughed as he looked at the others in the room with a grin.
“Oh, God, what now?”
“The judge took time in signing the warrant, not because he wanted to look at the evidence, it was for another reason.”
“Which is?”
“Apparently, the courts are taking a long weekend, like they will literally be closed on Friday, and Monday. Since it’s after five on Thursday, Grayson and the others will have to sit in jail until Tuesday morning.”
Jason couldn’t help it, he threw his head back and laughed.
When Ilsa brought him a bottle of water, he grabbed her, still laughing, danced in a circle with her in his arms, then bent down and planted a kiss on her lips.
They didn’t break apart for several minutes, and when they did, Jason saw all the men, even Kevin and Lyle had gigantic grins on their faces.
Six days later, eight men stood in the kitchen at Ilsa’s home with their arms crossed and each wore a scowl.
“Are you sure?” Clark asked as he studied the three people standing on the other side of the room. “One of us can stay.”
“No, you guys need to get home to your ladies, and I’m sure there’s still a lot of work to be done before the snow starts.” When they still seemed hesitant to leave, Kevin looked at them sternly.
“We’re grown ass adults, guys. I’m armed, there haven’t been any problems since we arrived.
We’ve cleaned up the mess with Katherine’s apartment, and since the neighbor caught it all on her doorbell camera, there are additional charges against the cops who broke into her apartment.
You have the things she requested, and you all listened when she told her mother to get someone in there and pack up the rest for donations.
You and I both know that now that she’s working at Broken, and for Caleb, she won’t be back here. ”
“Besides,” Jason said. “When it comes closer, we’ll reach out and have Duane return to testify.
It’s going to be a few months yet before this goes to trial.
We’re going to be stuck at the dining room table going through the paperwork and working with Lyle and the DA. Go home, get on with your lives.”
When they still didn’t want to leave, Ilsa smiled at them. “Besides,” she said gently with a motherly smile. “I can’t speak for Kevin, but once these trials are over, Jason and I will return to Fool’s Gold, and we will be taking on the case against Royal, Miller, and the Firths.”
“Shit,” Clark said as he scrubbed his face. “I forgot all about those assholes. Pardon my language.”
“Nothing to pardon. Go home, get Katherine’s things back to her, and call us when you arrive safely home.
” She walked up and gave them each a hug, and when they bent down to return it, she kissed each of them on the cheek.
It took another thirty minutes, but they finally left, leaving Jason, Ilsa, and Kevin by themselves.
Ilsa turned to them when the last person pulled out of the driveway, three pick-up trucks and Katherine’s car, which Scott drove because he was the shortest of all of them, and it wasn’t a very big car.
She turned to the two men beside her. “We good?”
“Yep,” Jason said as he went into the kitchen and they filled their coffee cups, cleaned up from their breakfast and went into the dining room to go over the paperwork for the upcoming trials again.
They knew it was going to be an arduous affair, but since Grayson and his goons were behind bars, they looked forward to taking on the task of putting the bad guys behind bars.