Chapter Twenty-Two
MIGUEL
I was feeling sick to my stomach as we sat in the conference room. Mac, Damon, and Mark had excused themselves from the room to huddle in SAC Connor’s office to fill her in as to what was going on. I knew they wouldn’t share anything classified with her even though she possessed the same TS/SCI clearance all the ATF agents did, but she deserved to know what the big meeting was all about and who John Sutter was. Thayne and Jarrett had excused themselves to go pick up food for everyone since it was well past dinnertime when Sutter finished his explanation.
I was stunned as I sat in the conference room with Sutter at my side. It was hard to believe that John had lived through everything they did, but in hindsight, all of it made sense to me now. His never contacting us after living through it, him running from us at that first sighting at Sagebrush, all of it. Raven was across the room, quietly speaking to Dolly as he asked her to stay the night again so we could work out a plan to rescue Niloufar and Daniel and go after Mendez, and the others before they realized Sutter was no longer working as a slave to them.
I turned to him as something occurred to me. “How does Rosina Cassanova fit in with all of this?”
John pursed his lips like he’d tasted something sour. “Cassanova’s an asset, one Mendez has been running for as long as I remember. She’s a fence, taking the goods they smuggle out of the Middle East, and selling them to the highest bidder. I suppose it’s because she can easily pass as an upper-class European. She speaks five languages including Arabic and walks into their rich homes as easily as an aristocrat. She meets her buyers at art galleries, benefits, formal balls, anywhere she can. She organizes auctions and sells off the looted goods. Her connections are with several European royal families and she’s often invited to state dinners at their palaces. She hangs around with foreign dignitaries all over the world and princes in Dubai and Saudi Arabia. Her beauty opens a lot of doors for Mendez, Bishop, and Fillmore.”
“That makes a lot of sense. Is she Mendez’ lover?”
“Bishop’s,” he said. “They’ve been together a long time, but she screws anyone, and everyone he wants her to if it makes the cell more money.”
“Jesus Christ,” I swore, hating the bitch even more than I did before.
John smiled at me.
“What?”
“She was planning on seducing you too,” he said.
I gaped at him. “What?”
“Mendez showed her your picture before they went to the Getty that night. He needed her to know who she was supposed to approach.”
I was taken aback. “How did she figure out we were going to the Getty?”
“Benedict Flores was one of Rosina’s acquaintances, introduced to him by that attorney he keeps around...Gregory Aston. I’m pretty sure he gave her your pictures because I sure as hell didn’t. That’s why I ran out of the Sagebrush Cantina so fast. Mendez was waiting in the car parked down the street, but he didn’t see you. If he thought I backed off on purpose, he would have killed both of us. I think that he wanted me to confirm it was you at the meeting. I told him I didn’t get a close enough look, but that’s why I said back at Vonne’s that things are in motion. When Mendez ordered me to take care of the problem once you and Mathis recovered the ruby, I think it was meant to be a test of my loyalty to them.”
I nodded. “That makes sense.”
“It makes sense that the attorney is involved with them somehow, right?” John asked.
“Yeah, she called me Trigg at the museum,” I said. “And they would have known me from Afghanistan even if I never interacted with any of them one on one. I bet they flipped out when they heard that I was trying to recover the ruby for Mrs. Flores.”
“Did I hear you talking about Gregory Aston?” I looked up as Raven spoke. He walked around and sat down beside me, and I pushed out my chair so that we could all see each other.
“Yeah. I was just telling Miguel who Rosina Cassanova was,” John replied.
“Wait. What?”
John explained as Raven looked on in shock.
“So, let me get this straight,” he said. “This Cassanova is a fence who takes the stuff you guys loot and—”
“She takes the stuff the cell loots, not me, Mathis.” John frowned. “I’ve never been anything other than a slave to them.”
“Okay, and somehow, Gregory Aston is involved in this?” When John nodded, he looked at me. “Maybe Aston knew Cassanova from one of Mrs. Flores’ parties or something. Maybe that’s how she found out who had the ruby.”
“Well, she was wearing it in the newspaper clipping Judy found,” Raven said, glancing over at me. “That means Benedict Flores must have lied to Mrs. Flores about the ruby. She told us that he said it had been in his family for generations. This whole thing is getting smellier and smellier. While I was at the office, I put in a call to Aston’s investigator. He never called me back. Judy ran a background check on Mancuso, Mrs. Flores’ bodyguard. He came up clean, but she found out he spent some time in the Army and was deployed to Afghanistan about the same time you were, Miguel. I bet he’s somehow up to his eyeballs in this crap. For all we know, Aston could have written those threatening letters sent to Mr. Flores himself.”
I nodded then asked John, “Was the ruby part of a stash Mendez and the others looted?”
John looked guilty. “Yeah. That and a diamond owned by some L.A. socialite.”
Raven’s eyes widened. “Mrs. Mulberry?”
“Yes, that’s it,” John confirmed. “The stash was stolen by a Pakistani broker Cassanova and Bishop used as an intermediary with a Belgian jeweler who recuts gems they steal to make them harder to identify at auction. When they found out about the Pakistani’s deceit, Mendez killed him and traced the stolen shipment to L.A. One of the gems had already been sold to the socialite, and Mr. Flores purchased another—the ruby—for his wife. They decided they wanted them all back, so Mendez had some homeless dude steal the diamond from the socialite and killed him before the police could recover it.”
“Lyle Trench,” I said. “The homeless dude. He overdosed.”
“Mendez had him killed in jail,” John said. “He was bragging about it.” He frowned at me. “Wait. You know—knew—him?”
“We’re recovery agents, John,” I said. “It was one of our cases. Maybe that’s why Aston brought us into this,” I said, looking over at Raven.
Raven nodded, frowning. “Things are starting to fall into place, especially if they’re trying to reclaim all the goods the Pakistani stole from them.” We all looked up as Thayne and Jarrett walked in carrying several bags of food from a Chinese restaurant, setting it down on the conference room table. Sarah, Mac, Damon, and Mark followed them in as we paused our conversation for the time being.
“We should let everyone hear this,” I said, reaching for a bag of delicious smelling food.
“There’s more?” SAC Connor asked.
I figured they’d all briefed her on our earlier conversation with John. I dug through the bags, finding a box of eggrolls and pulled out several, handing one to Raven and one to John. “Sutter was just telling me who Rosina Cassanova is and how she’s connected to the cell,” I said.
“Who is she?” the SAC asked.
John repeated what he’d told us as we all dug into our food, eating hungrily. “She was planning on seducing Miguel so that she could find out what he and Raven knew but as soon as I found out that Bishop put her up to that, I shut it down.”
“You told her I was gay,” I said.
John turned to me and nodded. “Yes. I told her the way I knew that was because you tried to get me to sleep with you back at the base. She was so fucking disgusted, that she wanted to kill you then and there.” He stared at me. “I shut that down too.”
“How?” Raven asked, frowning.
“I said you two were much more valuable to them if they kept you alive until you found the ruby, but she still wanted to see if she could coax a gay man into bed. She did agree that they would wait until after you gave it to them before killing you.” John smiled and shrugged. “I would have never let that happen. I hope you know that. I’d already decided to kill all of them.” He frowned deeply. “I think they trust me but it’s hard to know for sure.” He checked his watch. “I have to check in with them at eight. They sent me out to spy on you today because they had other things to do. Some Arabian sheikh she knows is in town and since Bishop also knows him, she’s bringing him along with Mendez hiding in the trees to keep the sheikh in his sights.”
“What about Fillmore?” Thayne asked.
“He’s in the Middle East, Saudi, I think,” John said.
“Mendez is a sniper?” Jarrett asked. He exchanged a glance with SAC Connor before looking back at John.
“Yeah, and a damned good one. He used to be an Army scout sniper but was dishonorably discharged before somehow hooking up with the CIA and going to work for them.”
Mark clicked his tongue, disapprovingly. I knew he hated the fact that any of this scum used to work for the agency he’d so proudly served for over thirty years.
“Sarah and I are also snipers,” Jarrett said, chewing around a bite of food.
“Real good ones,” Damon reiterated.
“Good,” John said. “Maybe you’ll get your chance to take them all out which will solve all of our problems.”
“Not until I know what they know,” Mark said, frowning deeply. “Who knows what secrets they’ve shared over the years.”
John nodded, and I had to agree. Their positions as intelligence officers could put a lot of lives in danger if we didn’t find out what they knew before any action was taken.
“Well, the first thing I need to do is to call them and tell them something,” John said, looking at me. “If I don’t, they’ll get your address and go there looking for you. If they don’t find you, they might hurt the people you say you need to protect.”
Raven gasped. “My nana? Dolly is there tonight but neither one of them…oh, God!”
I reached over and squeezed his arm. “We’ll keep them safe, Raven,” I said. “No one’s going to hurt our family.”
“I’ll take care of it,” SAC Connor said, standing. “I’ll call in the rest of my team and send them over to keep watch. Give me your address and I’ll make sure that no one can get to them, Raven.”
He glanced at me, eyes wide with fear, before turning back to her. “I’d—I’d really appreciate that. Please…my grandmother is blind, and her caregiver is elderly. They’ll be afraid.”
“I’ll tell them not to go in or even knock on the door. We’ll watch the front and the back of the house.”
Raven turned to me. “Maybe we should tell them something.”
“They know we’re working tonight, right?” I asked.
“Yes, I asked Dolly to spend the night.” He bit his lower lip, but fear clouded his features.
“That’s okay,” I said. “Call her and tell her that a friend called and said his TV was on the fritz or something. They asked if they could watch ours.”
“Okay, but don’t you think she’s going to be suspicious if she sees someone outside in the yard? She’s not stupid, Miguel.”
“Raven is right, Miguel,” SAC Connor said. “Tell her the truth, Raven. In fact, come into my office and we’ll both talk to her.”
“That’s a better idea,” Raven said, looking at me with worry in his eyes. “God only knows she’d call the cops if she saw someone lurking around the house.”
“Okay, Raven.”
He got up and left the room with Sarah Connor. I glanced at John. “What are you going to tell them when you call?”
“I’ll tell them…I… ah —what should I tell them?” John asked.
“Why can’t you tell them Raven and Miguel drove out of town somewhere and that you’re followin’?” Jarrett asked.
John nodded. “Yeah, that’s a good idea. That’ll give me time to pick up Niloufar and Daniel and stash them somewhere.”
“Where are they?” Damon asked.
“Here in L.A. I have them in a long-term rental house in Van Nuys, not far,” he replied. “They’ve been living under an assumed name.”
“Bring them here then,” Thayne said. He looked at Mark. “That’s the best way to keep them safe until we can get them into WITSEC or something.”
“You have contacts with the Marshals Service too, I suppose,” John said.
When the others nodded, he just snorted. “Well, that’ll work then.”
“I think you should bring Vonne when you go to pick up Daniel and his mother, Sutter,” I said.
John frowned at him. “I don’t think that’s a good idea, Miguel. He hates me.”
“No, he doesn’t…or he won’t when he hears about everything,” I said, clapping him on the back. “Raven and I can go with you to collect them if you want.”
He sighed, clearly wondering what the best thing was. No matter what, Vonne was going to be hurt, but he’d understand when he heard what John had been going through over the past eleven years. He’d be sick about it just like I was. When John’s gaze finally met mine, he nodded.
“Okay, but we’ll ask Vonne to come here to us so we can explain everything before I go get them,” he said. “We should hunker down and figure out a plan to scoop these fuckers up while we wait. Like I said, I have to call them. Hopefully, they buy my story but if they don’t, they’re going to go looking for me and they’re gonna start with your house.”
“Then there’s no time to waste,” Mark said.
We all looked up as Sarah and Raven came back into the conference room. Raven looked much more relieved as he sat down in the chair beside me.
“She’s armed,” he said with a grin on his face.
“What?” I asked.
Raven chuckled. “Dolly carries a gun in that massive purse she lugs around with her. She said that no one—and I’m quoting here—“no one is gonna hurt this big ol’ black woman or anyone she loves.”
I laughed as the others groaned. “Well, she doesn’t live in the greatest neighborhood,” I said, “but I never knew she was armed. Did you tell her not to shoot SAC Connor’s agents when they turn up at the house?”
“I told her myself, Miguel,” Connor said, grinning. “And I respect a woman who takes care of herself.”
“What’d you tell her?”
“That there was a threat and that I was sending four of my finest agents to watch over her. I also called Cassidy Ryan and Mike Williams. They weren’t happy that you haven’t been forthcoming with everything you and Raven have been going through lately, but I explained that this all happened in the last week. Cassidy said he’ll meet my agents over at the house and they’ll all stand vigil until we have these people in custody.”
“And I said we’ll owe them a huge favor when this is all said and done,” Raven said.
“Or barbeque,” Jarrett drawled. “They love a good barbeque.”
“Who’re Cassidy Ryan and Mike Williams?” John asked.
“Friends at the LAPD,” I replied.
His eyes widened as he nodded. “So, you really do have friends in all the right places, Trigg… ah …Miguel. That’s good to know.”
“It’s nearly eight,” Mark said, looking at his watch. “You should make your call, Sutter.”
“Oh, God, yeah,” he said, pulling out his phone as he started to get up. He looked around. “ Um …where?”
“Why don’t you make your call from here?” Damon suggested, not so subtly.
“Oh, yeah, of course.” He sank back into his chair. “I wouldn’t tip them off or anything. I just want you to know that.”
I shot Thorne a look. “He wouldn’t do that.”
“I’d prefer it too, just until this is all resolved,” Mark added.
“Yeah, yeah, sure.” John dialed the number and then put the phone on speaker. Someone picked up on the second ring and the minute I heard the voice, chills went down my spine. I could’ve sworn it was the man from the stairwell as he began to speak.
“Where are you? Why haven’t you checked in?”
Raven squeezed my thigh, and I looked over at him, holding my finger over my lips as everyone remained silent. He nodded, eyes wide, obviously recognizing the voice as well.
“You told me to check in early only if they did something,” John said.
“And?”
“Well, they were at the office all day and then they headed to a house and came out an hour later with a suitcase. I’m calling from a filling station in Ojai. I think they’re going out of town on some weekend getaway or something. Do you want me to follow them?”
“Of course, I want you to follow them, you idiot. Make note of any stops they make in case they’ve got a lead on the ruby and when they head back to L.A. I want to hear about it right away. We should put a stop to all this shit. Rosina is tired of waiting. She has a buyer for the ruby and the other gems and they’re not going to wait.”
“Right,” John said, looking at me. “Well then, I gotta go. They’re coming out of the convenience store.”
“Check in again at 0800.”
“Okay.” He hung up and breathed a sigh of relief. “Well, that’s done.”
“Good,” Mark said, glancing at me. “Now, you should call your friend Vonne and have him come here so we can brief him before he and John go and pick up Daniel and his mother.”
I nodded, checking with John. “Do you want Raven and I to come with you?”
He thought about it for a minute. “No, I want to be able to talk to Vonne alone. He’s my brother and it’s not going to be a fun conversation. We might say some things to each other and…I don’t know.”
I shook my head. “You’re underestimating him, John. You know he has more heart than all of us put together. We’ll all hang around and help you explain things once he gets here, but you may have a point. I think if we’re all here, he’s gonna be intimidated to ask questions he needs answers to.”
John nodded. “Yeah, you’re right. Okay, just call him then. Tell him I’m here, though. I don’t want him to be surprised.”
“I will.” I pulled out my phone and looked over at Raven. “I’m gonna take this in the other room, Sunshine.”
Raven grabbed my arm. “What if they’re monitoring your phone and they hear that John is here?”
I looked over at John who was shaking his head. “They’re not. They act like they’re sophisticated, but they’ve pissed off a lot of people in Langley.” He glanced at Mark. “You can confirm that, sir.”
“We know that, John,” Mark said. He glanced at Damon. “Thorne and I did a quick search when we were in the SAC’s office. They’re all on a watchlist and their own communications are being monitored by Langley.”
“You’re shitting me?” I said, hurriedly clearing my throat. “Sorry, sir. I meant to say, you’re kidding, right?”
Damon and Mark shook their heads. “After I called to plug that hole in the CIA’s computer systems, my friends began investigating all the operatives who rotated in and out of that base,” Mark said. “Even if Sutter hadn’t turned up here today, we would have suspected those three because they’re being targeted by several different countries where they’ve spent time over the last decade. In each country, rare stolen gems have traded hands in private auctions where one of their aliases were on guest lists.”
“Rosina Cassanova is quite the globetrotter, and Bishop is usually on her arm, always under an assumed name,” Damon added. “It wasn’t hard then to extrapolate Mendez’ aliases from the same flight manifests that Cassanova and Bishop have been traveling under. Correct me if I’m wrong, but he is probably the muscle of the outfit, right?” When John nodded, he went on. “It makes me wonder how arrogant they’ve been all this time, not to have even considered that legitimate operatives often infiltrate auctions where looted and stolen items trade hands.”
“Jesus Christ,” I said, looking at Mark with new respect. “You guys are something else.”
“I probably should’ve never retired.” He smiled widely, looking at Jarrett and Thayne. “But then I met Thayne’s mom, Dot, fell in love, and decided that I needed to get out of that business.”
“But you obviously still keep in contact with the right people,” Raven said, respect in his tone.
“That I do, son.”
I sighed. “I’m gonna go call Vonne.” I stood and looked down at Raven. “We have a long night ahead of us, Sunshine.”
Raven smiled at me. “Yeah, we’re among friends now.”
I smiled back. “That we are.”