Chapter 17 Chapter Sixteen

One of the next things that can happen after stalking scumbags for a while is that you get a little jealous of the way they live their lives. Uh, it’s nothing special. Driving a $60,000 luxury car, living in a million-dollar mansion, and getting a seat near the fifteen-yard line when the Patriots play in American football. Although you can choose to ignore it, these things Things will really come to your mind.It's the little daily sweetness of being a prominent drug convict, but it's foreign to other people who work for a living. For example, during the time we watched them, I barely saw Chris.Moran or Faro.Gutierrez obeys any traffic signal.Red lights are obviously for little people, stop signs are for idiots to obey.As for the fifty-five mph speed limit on the freeway?please.Why limit yourself to fifty-five when driving at ninety mph will get you there early?Why bother with passing lanes if no one is using the shoulders?

Also, there is the issue of parking.Parking in Boston is as common as skiing in the Sahara.Older ladies in mink shawls can get involved in shootouts over parking spaces.In the mid-80s, some idiot actually paid $250,000 in bond for the Beacon Hill parking lot, not including the monthly warranty. Boston: We're not a big place here, and it's cold, but we can kill for a good parking spot.Come on, bring the family with you. In the next few days, Gutierrez, Moran and several of their minions we followed did not have this problem.They simply park side by side: whenever and wherever they please.

Once, on Columbus Avenue in the South Corner, Chris.After lunch, Mo Lan walked to Hammersley Street, and found a big artist with a signature goatee and three earrings on one ear waiting for him.Chris's plush black Mercedes blocked the artist's dirty, tattered Camellia.The artist had to make a fuss because his girlfriend was by his side.From half a block across the street from where we sat, we couldn't hear what they were saying, but we still got the point.The artist and his girlfriend yelled and gesticulated.As Chris approached, he tucked his cashmere scarf under his Armani raincoat, smoothed his tie, and kicked the artist nimbly at the kneecap, knocking the guy down before his girlfriend was too startled to say anything. Great.Chris stood close to the woman, and people might even misunderstand the two as a couple.He put his forefinger on her forehead and cocked his thumb, which was about a year long for her.Then he let go of the hammer, took his hand away from the woman's forehead, and blew on her fingers.He smiled at her, leaned over her, and gave her a quick peck on the cheek.

Then Chris went around to his car, got in, and drove away, leaving the girl staring at him dumbfounded, I'm thinking, she might not even realize her boyfriend was yelling in pain, on the sidewalk Writhing around like a cat with a sprained back. In addition to the two of us, Brusa and Bohr, several members of the child abuse prevention and control team also carried out monitoring work together; in addition to Gutierrez and Moran, we also monitored Cheese.Oramon and his gang.These include Carlos Razor, who always carries a stack of comic books with him wherever he goes, and takes care of the daily operations of the residential planning area.Orlando; Jay.McNally, who fought his way to become the pimp boss of non-Vietnamese prostitutes in North Dorchester, but dated and doted on a Vietnamese girl who appeared to be fifteen;Green and Hitch.West sits in Cheese.Oramon is located in the Elsinore Bar in Lower Mills, responsible for lending money and keeping accounts;Perry and Brian.These two Boxers are so dumb that they need a map to find their bathroom.

Even at a cursory glance, these people are not really think tanks.Cheese knows how to give, show respect, declare allegiance to anyone who can hurt him, and show his face where power gathers, which enabled him to climb to where he is today.The most important of these, going back a few years, was the Irish faction godfather Jacques who was both Dorchester and the South End.Rolls, and his most loyal follower, Kevin.Heliyi's head is like a hornet's nest, and the blood flowing in his body is like industrial corrosion materials.Cheese showed intent in Dorchester when they went missing, and something went off.Cheese is very smart, Chris.Moran is about half as smart as Farrow.Gutierrez seems a little shrewd.Cheese's other men followed his strategy: except for the character of greed itself (which Cheese believed to be the norm in the industry), he never hired anyone who was smart enough to do anything for greed.

So he hired some jerks and adrenaline-fueled guys who, besides holding rubber bands around bills, talked like James F.Caan (Annotation: James Caan, American actor), and loves boasting, very few other ambitions. Whenever Moran or Gutierrez enter any indoor apartment, warehouse, or office building, there will be a member of the Child Abuse Prevention Team following the location immediately, and within the next three days, every second counts. Just infiltrate search. Through the bug installed in Mo Lan's home, we know that Mo Lan calls his mother at seven o'clock every night. Dating nice girls, and why was he so pale when he had such a good chance working for the Forest Service.Every night at 7:30, he will watch "Risk! "Witty quiz show, and answering questions aloud, the probability of correct answer is about 30%.He had a gift for geography, but nothing about seventeenth-century French artists.

We heard him talking to a few girlfriends, babbling with Gutierrez about cars, movies, and the hockey team, but like other criminals, he seemed uncomfortable talking about business on the phone. For Amanda.McCready's search was otherwise fruitless, and police manpower was slowly being diverted away from the Child Abuse Prevention Team and diverted elsewhere. On the fourth day of monitoring, Brusa and Boll received a call from Captain Doyle, asking them to report back to the bureau within half an hour and to take us with them. This might not be a good thing, said Pohl, as we headed downtown.

Why should we go too?Angie said. That's what we call bad, Ball said.Angie laughed when she stuck out her tongue at him. Doyle doesn't seem to be having a good time.His skin was ashy, with dark circles under his eyes, and he smelled like cold coffee. Close the door, he said to Pole as we entered. As we sat across from Doyle's desk, Pole closed the door behind us. Doyle said: "When I set up the Child Abuse Prevention Unit and looked for good detectives, I looked everywhere, but I didn't go to the Criminal and Drug Enforcement Unit.Why is this happening, Detective Brousser?

Brusa plays with his tie.Because everybody's afraid to work with someone from the Criminal and Narcotics Squad, sir. And why, Detective Rafterboles? Pol laughed.Because we're too good-looking, sir. Doyle made a gesture to continue talking, and nodded himself. Because, he finally said, CID detectives are like cowboys, crazy cops who like to do things their own way. Pol nodded.Usually with missions, there are unfortunate side effects, yes sir. But your team leader of the 06th Bureau assured me that you two are upright people, very efficient, and very observant of the rules.Yeah?

That's a rumour, sir, Brusa said. Doyle gave him a tight smile.You got promoted to Detective Class last year, didn't you, Brusa? Yes, sir. Want to be relegated back to Tier 2 or Tier 3?Or a patrolman? Um, no, sir.It won't make me too proud, sir. Then don't mess with me by being smart, Detective. Brusa coughed into his fist.Yes, sir. Doyle picked up a document from the table, read it a little, then put it down again.You've got half of the Child Abuse Squad detectives on the trail of Oramon's men.When I asked about the reason, you said that there was an anonymous report pointing out that Oramon and Amanda.McCready's disappearance.He nodded to himself again, then looked up into Pohl's eyes.Are you going to amend this statement?

sir? Doyle looked at his watch, then stood up.I'll count down from ten.Before I count to one, let's be honest, maybe you'll still be able to keep your jobs.Ten, he said. sir. Nine. sir, we don't know oh.eight.seven. We believe in Amanda.Macready was murdered.Oramon was kidnapped to ensure that her mother would return the money stolen from Oramon's organization.Pol leaned back, shrugging at Brusa. So, this is a kidnapping case.said Doyle, and sat down. Possibly, Brusa said. under federal jurisdiction. If we can be sure it's a kidnapping, Ball said. Doyle opened the desk drawer, took out a tape recorder, and threw it on the table.For the first time since we entered the office, he looked Angie and me in the eye and hit play. First there was a scratching noise, then the phone rang and I recognized Liona's voice saying: Hello. A woman's voice on the other end of the line said: Tell your sister to send that old cop, the handsome cop, and those two private eyes to the granite track quarry at eight o'clock tomorrow night.Tell them to come up the old railroad slope from the direction of Quincy. Excuse me, who are you? Tell them to bring over what they found in Charleston. ma'am i'm not sure Tell them to exchange what we found in Charleston for what we found in Dorchester.The woman's low, monotonous voice lit up.Did you hear me, sweetheart? I am not sure.can i get a piece of paper There was a low laugh stuck in the throat.You are so funny, sweetheart.real.It's all on tape.Who else is listening?Besides the four just mentioned, if we see someone else turn up at the Granite Track quarry tomorrow night, the Dorchester package will be thrown off the cliff. no one is there Goodbye, sweetheart, be good, you hear me? no wait The click was followed by Leonor's heavy breathing, and then the dial. Doyle turned off the tape recorder.He leaned back in the chair, pointed his fingers crossed, and gently leaned against his lower lip. After a few minutes of silence, he said: What did you find in Charleston, guys? No one spoke. He spun in his chair, watching Pol and Brusa.Do you want me to start counting down again? Pol looked at Brusa.Brusa held out his hand, palm up, and swung it back in Ball's direction. Thank you, sweetheart.Pol turned to Doyle.We are in David.Martin and Kimmi.Two hundred thousand was found in the backyard of the Nihaus family home. The bloated corpse of Charleston, Doyle said. Yes, sir. The 200,000 yuan has of course been confiscated as evidence. Ball moved his hand in the direction of Brusa. Brusa looked at his shoes.Not quite, sir. real.Doyle picked up a pen and was scribbling in a notebook at his elbow.After I report it to the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the two of you will be dismissed by this department immediately. Do you plan to work in any security company? uh, that's it Still working in a bar?Doyle's smile widened.Common folk love this bartender who knows himself best as an ex-cop.Many stories of shootouts can be heard. Captain, Pol said, no offense, but we want to keep our jobs. I believe you will think so.Doyle jotted down more words on paper.You should have thought that before misusing murder evidence.It's a felony, gentlemen.He picked up the phone, pressed two numbers, and waited.Michael, help me find David.Martin and Kimmi.The name of the officer involved in the Niehaus murder.I am waiting.He stuffed the microphone on his shoulder, tapped the rubber end of a pencil on the table, and whistled briskly through his teeth.There was a small voice from the microphone, and he leaned towards the receiver again.OK, made a note of it.He scribbled on a note, then hung up.Daniel.Gooden and Mark.Detective Leonard.do you know it? A little bit, Brusa said. That said, I can assume you didn't let them know what you found in their victim's backyard. Yes, sir. Yes, sir, did you inform them?Or, yes, sir, you didn't let them know? The latter, Pohl said. Doyle put his hands behind his head and leaned back in the chair again.Tell me from the beginning, both of you.If things aren't as bad as they seem right now, maybe I'm really just saying maybe you'll have jobs next week.But I can vouch for it: it definitely won't be on a child abuse prevention team.If I wanted cowboys, I'd watch Rio Bravo. Ball told the truth, from the time when Angie and I discovered Morean on the news tape, until now.The only thing they didn't mention was the extortion note found in Jinmi's underwear.I played again the phone conversation between Leonor and the woman in my head, and realized that without the note, the caller hadn't had any real proof of asking for money in exchange for the child.There was no evidence of any kidnapping, which is to say: no FBI agents needed. where is the moneyAfter Pole finished speaking, Doyle asked. Here I am, I say. Is that right where you are?He said he didn't look at me at all.That's good, Officer Ball.Two hundred thousand in stolen money, may I add: also stolen evidence in the hands of a civilian private investigator whose name has been linked to three unsolved murders over the years, and some One might say so with Jack.Laws and Kevin.Heliyi's disappearance is also related. Not me, I said, must be me and the other one also called Patrick.The Kentish guy got mixed up. Angie kicked my ankle. Pat, said Doyle, leaning over in his chair and looking at me. It's Patrick, I said. I'm sorry, Doyle said, Patrick, I can claim you took stolen goods, obstructed justice, and obstructed major investigations and concealed evidence.Do you want to give it a try and keep messing with me, to see what I can dig up if I really don't like you? I squirm in my chair. What?Doyle said, I did not hear. no, i said. He put his hands behind his ears.say it again? No, I said, sir. He smiled and patted the table with his finger.Very good, boy.Someone speaks to you to answer.Otherwise, keep your mouth shut.He nodded to Angie.I like your partner.Always heard that you are the head of the action, lady, and it seems to be true.He turned to face Pol and Brusa.So you two geniuses decided to fight Cheese.Olamond made a move and exchanged money for children. Mostly yes, sir. So why should I not refer the case to the FBI?He opens his hands. Because, there was no formal ransom demand, Brusa said. Doyle looked down at the tape recorder.What did we just hear? Uh, sir, Pohl leaned over the table, pointing at the tape recorder.If you listen again, you'll hear the woman suggest exchanging what she found in Charleston for something from Dorchester.She's probably talking about exchanging stamps or baseball cards. Wouldn't the fact that she called the mother of the missing child interest us federal law enforcement? Well, technically, Brusa said, she called the brother of the missing child's mother. Then say, tell your sister, Doyle said. True, but, sir, there's no real evidence that we're talking about a kidnapping.You know those guys from the bureau, they fucked up Ruby.Li Qi and Wa Ke's case, negotiating an incredible deal with the gang in Boston, they Doyle raised a hand.We're aware of the bureau's recent mistakes, Detective Brusa.He looked down at the tape recorder, then at the scrawled note at his elbow.Granite track quarries are outside our jurisdiction.The place is run by the State Troopers in conjunction with the Quincy Police Department.So he clapped his hands together.good. good?Brusa said. Well, that said, no specific mention of the McCready kids, which means we're proposing a partnership with the State Troopers and the Quincy police, leaving the Bureau alone.The caller said there should be no more cops at the Granite Track Quarry besides the two of you, all right.But we're going to seal those mountains, folks.We're going to blockade the Quincy quarry, and as soon as the kid's out of the way, we're going to drop a net on Moran and Gutierrez and whoever's going to take two hundred thousand dollars.He tapped his finger on the table again.how does it sound As ordered, sir. As ordered, sir. He showed that cold smile to the two of them.Once the matter is over, I will immediately transfer you out of my team's jurisdiction.What if anything goes wrong tomorrow night at the quarry?I'll transfer you to the bomb defuse team.Until retirement, you can slowly count the time to climb under the car and hope the bomb doesn't go off.any questions? No, sir. No, sir. Turn around again and come back to us.Mr. Kenzie, Miss Gennaro, you two are civilians. I don't like you coming into this office to take care of tomorrow's mountain, but I don't have much choice.The condition is this: you absolutely must not fire at each other with the suspect, and you must not speak to the suspect.If there is any conflict, you have to get on your knees and cover your heads.After the matter is over, you are also not allowed to discuss any details about this operation with the media.Also, you are not allowed to write a book on the case.is that clear? I nod. Angie also nodded. If you fail to meet my requirements on any of the above, I will have your licenses and guns revoked and the cold case team investigate Morian.Sohia's case, and asked them to track down Jack.Laws and Kevin.Harry's disappearance.Understand? We nod. Say yes, Captain Doyle. Yes, Captain Doyle, Angie muttered. Yes, Captain Doyle, I said. great.Doyle leaned back in his chair and spread his arms wide toward the four of us.Now, get out of my sight. Good guy, Angie said as we walked down the street. He's just a good old man with a soft heart, Ball said. Really? Pol looked at me like I was sucking glue, then shook his head very slowly. Oh, I said. The money is safe, Mr. Kenzie? I nod.Do you need it now? Pol and Brusa looked at each other, then shrugged. No need, said Brusa, we'll have a combat meeting with the state troopers and the Quincy police sometime tomorrow.Bring it when the time comes. Who knows?Pole said, We have so many men to monitor Oramon, maybe tomorrow we can catch one of them taking the child out to the quarry.By then, the whole thing might be over. Yes, Pol, said Angie, that's not it.It's that easy. Pohl sighed and swayed on his ankles. Dude, said Brusa, I don't want to work in some bomb squad. Pol giggled.This, he said, is as good as the bomb squad, buddy. We sat on the front porch steps of Beatrice and Leonor's house, keeping them up-to-date with the latest developments in the case as best we could, and hiding any details that would expose them to federal indictment should the affair fall through. So, when we were done, Beatrice said, all these things happened because Helen did some bad trick of hers and started stealing people who shouldn't be stealing. I nod. Leona pulled the hard callus on the side of his thumb and exhaled through his mouth regularly.She's my sister, he said at last, but this is Unforgivable, Beatrice said. He looked back at her, and then at me, as if bubbly water had been splashed in his face.yes.unforgivable. Angie came to the armrest, and I stood up, feeling her warm hand slide into mine. If that's any consolation, she said, I don't think anyone expected it to turn out this way. Beatrice walked across the porch and sat on the steps beside her husband.She took his two large hands, and they looked at the street in the distance, and after a minute or two, the faces turned back, empty, angry, and resigned all at the same time. I just don't understand, Beatrice said, really don't, she whispered softly. Will they kill her?Liona looked back at us. No, I said, there's no reason to do that. Angie squeezed my hand and supported me against the heavy lie. When I got back to the apartment, I showered first to wash off the feeling of having spent four days in a car stalking scum around town, and then it was Angie's turn. When she came out of the shower, she stood in the doorway with her honey-colored skin wrapped tightly in a large white towel, brushing her hair, watching me sit in an armchair and jot down our meeting with Captain Doyle. I looked up and met her eyes. Her large, caramel-colored eyes are stunning.Sometimes I feel like they'd be enough to swallow me up if they wanted to.It's not bad, trust me, it's absolutely fine. I miss you, she said. We were locked together in the car for three and a half days, what do you miss? She tilted her head slightly and stared at me until I understood. Oh, I said.You mean, you miss me. yes. I nod.How much do you want? She let the towel fall. Think so, I said, choking in my throat.God, God. After the tenderness, I lived for a long time in the echo and flash memory.I lay in the dark, with Angie's heart beating above me, her back squeezing my fingertips, her hips warming my palms, and I could hear her soft croon echoing after we were exhausted, A gasp, and a low chuckle; she threw her head back slightly, dark hair falling from her face to her back.With my eyes closed, all I could see was her upper teeth biting her lower lip; the curve of her calves on the white mattress; the shoulder blades pressing down on her body; the wet dreams and desires that suddenly flooded into her eyes , and her dark pink fingertips pressing into the top of my belly. After making love to Angie, I couldn't do anything for about half an hour or so.Most of the time, even if I'm going to make a phone call, someone has to draw a diagram for me first.Mechanical skills are largely out of the question, let alone conversations that require intelligence.I can only float in echoes and flashes of memory. Hey, her fingers are on my chest and her thighs are pressed against my own inner thighs. What? have you ever thought about Not at all. She laughed, put one foot around my ankle, lifted my chest slightly, and licked my throat.Seriously, a second is fine. Damn it, I'm trying to hold on. Did it ever occur to you, I mean, that a life could be created if we just let things happen while you were in my body? I tilted my head, opened my eyes, and looked into hers.She looked back quietly.A smudge of mascara under her left eye was like a scar in the soft darkness of our bedroom. Now, this is our bedroom, isn't it?She still has the house she grew up in on Howe Street, with most of its furniture, but hasn't slept there for almost two years. our bedroom.our bed.Our sheets, our two bodies lying side by side, and our heartbeats are all entangled, and we are so tightly attached that it is almost difficult for others to tell which part belongs to which person.It's also difficult for me sometimes. A child, I said. She nods. Bring a child, I say slowly, into this world.Never mind our present occupations. There was another nod, and this time, her eyes sparkled. Do you want it? I didn't say that, she whispered, leaning over to kiss the tip of my nose.I mean, have you ever thought about this?Have you ever thought about the power we have when we make love in this bed and the springs are rattling, we make noise, every feeling is um, it's amazing, and it's not just from physical sensations, it's because of us Where do I join you?She put one palm on my groin.We have the power to create life, baby.me and you.How much do I just need to forget to take a medicine, only once in 10,000 times?There will be a life growing inside me right now.Your life, mine.she kisses me.our. Lying together this way, so close, warmed by each other's body heat, so deep, drawn to each other, it was so easy to hope that there was life beginning in her womb right now.The fears and mysteries of women's bodies in general and Angie's body in particular seem to be tangled in the wrapping sheets, soft mattresses, and wobbly beds.Suddenly everything seemed so clear. However, this bed is not the whole world.This world is as cold as cement and has sharp edges and corners.The world is full of monsters who were once babies, were once fertilized eggs in the womb, emerging from women with the last remaining miracle of the twentieth century, but with anger, madness, or doom fate.How many other couples have curled up under a similar drape, in a similar bed, felt what we feel now?How many monsters did they create?How many victims? Speak, Angie said, pushing the wet hair off my forehead. I've thought about it, I said. Then what? It awes me. Me too. scaring me. Me too. Not to a lesser extent. She narrowed her eyes.How to say? The child found in the cement bucket, Amanda, who disappeared without a trace as if she had never been alive.McCready, the pedophile who hangs out with electrical tape and nylon rope.The world is a shitty place, sweetheart. She nodded.Then what? then what? Then it's a shitty place.OK, but then what?I mean, our parents probably knew it was a shitty place, but they still had us. And we still have a wonderful childhood. Would you rather have never been born? I put my hands on her lower back and she leaned back.She lifts herself off me, the sheet falls from her back, she sits on my lap and looks down at me, hair hanging from her ears, naked, beautiful, with almost anything, anything Man, or any fantasy I know is as perfect. Would I rather have never been born? That's the problem, she said softly. Of course not, I said, but Amanda.Will McCready? Our child will not be Amanda.McCready. How do we know? Because we're not going to steal money from a drug criminal and let him trade our kids for it. Children go missing every day for probably no more reason than that, and you know it.Children go missing because they are walking to school, turning the wrong corner at the wrong time, or getting separated from their parents at the mall.Then they'll die, Angie.They will die. A teardrop rolled down her chest, and a moment later, it dripped from her nipple onto my chest, and was already cold when it touched my skin. I know, she said, but nevertheless, I want your baby.Not today, and maybe not even next year.But I want to.I'm going to make out of my body someone who is both us and not at all like us. You want a baby. She shook her head.I want your baby. We dozed off at some point. Or rather, I dozed off.I woke up a few minutes later to find her out of bed, so I got up and walked through the dark apartment into the kitchen and saw her sitting at the table by the window.The moonlight shone through the cracks in the shutters, and reflected thinly and palely on her skin. With a notebook at her elbow and the case file spread out in front of her, she looked up at me as I walked through the door.They won't keep her alive. Cheese and Mo Lan? She nodded.This is a stupid move.They will definitely kill her. So far, they've kept her alive. How do we know?Even if they kept her alive, maybe only until they got the money.Just to confirm.But they will kill her after all.She will cause trouble. I nod. You already knew that, she said. Yes. So what about tomorrow night? I expected to see dead bodies. She lit a cigarette, and the lighter's flame briefly illuminated her skin.can you accept? No.I walked over to her side at the table and put my hands on her shoulders, clearly aware of the nakedness of the two of us in the kitchen, and found myself thinking again about our strength in bed, and our bodies; My third life was floating between our naked skins, like a genie. Baba?she asked. Of course. Pol and Brusa won't be happy. That's why we don't tell them that he will be there. If Amanda was still alive when we got to the quarry, if we could find out where she was, or at least point her out Then Baba will bring down whoever is holding her hostage.Dispose of them like a bag of waste, and disappear, back into the darkness. she laughed.Are you going to call him? I pushed the phone over the table.please. When she made a call, she crossed her legs and tilted her head to the receiver.Hey big guy, she said after he answered the phone, want to hang out tomorrow night? She listened for a while, her smile widening. If you're lucky, Baba, sure, you can shoot somebody.