Racketeering （n.） – Jameson
RACKETEERING (N.):
THE FEDERAL CRIME OF CONSPIRING TO ORGANIZE TO COMMIT CRIMES, PARTICULARLY AS A REGULAR BUSINESS ("ORGANIZED CRIME" OR "THE MAFIA")
JAMESON
Nate
Mr. Hunter decided to wait until 4 p.m. for arraignment, sir.
He let me handle a few things, but he wants YOU representing him in court. Not me.
Igroan as I steer my car into the courthouse’s parking lot.
Grabbing my briefcase, I take a breath before stepping out into bullshit.
“Mr. Tate!” “Did you know about the federal investigation or were these indictments a surprise?” “What’s going on with the attempted murder charges?”
Reporters surround me, shouting questions they know I’ll never answer.
I pull a pair of sunglasses over my eyes and continue walking, ignoring them.
When I near the front doors, a familiar security guard moves behind me.
“He’s clearly not answering anything,” he bellows. “Back off the steps, please.”
“Thank you,” I say to him.
“Anytime, Mr. Tate.”
I walk through the metal detectors and sign in at the processing office. Then I head straight for the room where Lucas is being held.
“There’s my lawyer.” He smiles at me from behind the glass. “Something crazy must have happened for you to send a silly intern for me.”
“Nate is a senior lawyer at my firm, Mr. Hunter,” I say. “He’s more than capable of helping you.”
“I’m sure he is, but I only want people to see you helping me. Your name is on the doors, remember?”
“Sure.”
“You’ve been looking a little under the weather these past few weeks.” He tilts his head to the side. “Is everything alright?”
“You tell me.” I cross my arms. “You’re the one being charged with attempted murder.”
“Don’t forget the racketeering and the wire fraud.”
“I’m sure the judge won’t,” I say. “Anything you want to tell me?”
“I didn’t do it.” He shrugs. “You need to prove that so I can get back to my life.”
“Lucas Hunter?” A guard calls at the door. “You need to follow me into court now. Your lawyer will use the other entrance.”
“Yes, sir.” Lucas winks at me. “See you on the other side.”
I make my way to the courtroom, deciding which of my arguments will get him out fastest.
“Good to see you again, counselor.” My favorite prosecutor, Julia, smiles at me. “I was beginning to wonder why I hadn’t sparred with you in a while.”
“I was thinking the same,” I say. “I almost forgot you existed.”
“That’d be a really sad world, wouldn’t it?”
“You don’t want me to answer that question.” I hold the door open for her and make my way to the lectern.
“Case 789675,” the court clerk reads as soon as I take out my folder. “The State of New York versus Lucas Hunter.”
“Okay.” Judge Ashton clicks his pen. “Multiple counts of racketeering, wire fraud, and—” He stops reading and looks at me. “Let’s cut straight to the chase, Mr. Tate. Why should I grant your client bail?”
“Your Honor, my client is a loving father who has deep ties to this community.”
“Yeah, mob ties.” Julia coughs.
“Let Mr. Tate finish.” He taps his gavel. “This isn’t a trial.”
“Thank you, Your Honor.” I slip into character with ease. “Like I was saying, my client keeps a rooftop garden full of prized rose bushes that he would never risk leaving. They depend on his touch and care to survive.”
“Also—” I clear my throat. “He hasn’t traveled anywhere for the past thirteen months, which clearly shows he’s not a flight risk to the great state of New York or this amazing country.”
“He’s determined to fight these charges, restore his name, and make sure that justice is served at the highest level.”
“Save your Oscar-worthy performance for your trial, Mr. Tate.” Judge Ashton rolls his eyes. “Bail is set at five hundred thousand dollars and the defendant will surrender his passport to the court.”
“Sold.” I shoot him a look of appreciation. “Thank you, Your Honor.”
“You’re welcome.” He bangs his gavel. “Court is in recess until this evening.”
Turning around, I look at Lucas.
“You’re welcome,” I say to him.
“I’ll have to save my thanks until you get me completely off,” he says, smiling. “You understand, don’t you?”
No. “Sure. I’ll handle the paperwork and pick you up at the back. Your sons are at my office waiting to talk to you.”
His smile dissolves. “I need to tell you something in confidence before we leave here.”
“I’m listening.” I signal for the attending officer to give us five minutes alone.
“Look.” Lucas lets out a sigh. “I’ve decided to get my sons their own private counsel. They’ll each have separate lawyers.”
“Why?” I ask. “It’d be easier if I represented them, too.”
“Not if they take plea deals,” he says, frowning. “We may have to go with a different approach, given how things are starting to look.”
“Come again?”
“Let’s just say I have an inside tip,” he says. “We can’t all be in prison.”
“That’s literally my plan for you, Mr. Hunter.”
“But if some of us have to make special arrangements—in order to save the business—it’ll have to be them instead of me.”
“What the hell are you even saying right now?”
“I doubt I have to spell it out word by word for you.”
“What happened to you saying, ‘I don’t want to see any of my sons in prison for what I asked them to do?’”
“I still don’t,” he says. “But I need to be prepared for a worst-case scenario.”
“What does your wife think about this?” I ask.
“I don’t ask my wife for permission on anything.”
“What about Scarlett?”
“What about her?” He grits his teeth at the very mention of her name. “I don’t even know where she is. As far as I’m concerned, she might be the one who fucking snitched on me to the feds.”
“I highly doubt that.”
“You ‘doubt’ it, or you know for sure?”
I don’t have an answer for that.
“Anyway, if my sons get fifteen to twenty years, they still have a lot of life to live when they get out. I won’t.”
“With all due respect, I would like to stay on as their lawyer,” I say. “It’s what’s best for them.”
“I’m not concerned with ‘them’ right now, Mr. Tate.” He looks me dead in my eyes. “I’m concerned with myself, and since I’m paying you, you need to do what’s best for me.”
“So, you’re going to abandon your sons on a sinking ship? Just like that?”
“I’m not abandoning them,” he says, signaling for the officer to take him back to the holding area. “I’m just deciding who deserves the last life jacket.”