As he felt the car coming to a smooth stop, James Calloway jerked out of his reverie and stared out the window. "Don't stop now. Keep driving," he instructed his driver.
"Where to?"
"Anywhere," James answered. "As long as it's far from here."
He could strike that appointment off his calendar. James had come to meet with the head of Major Imports to discuss an upgrade in security for the company. Calloway's own business, Volcam Securities, specialised in computerised security systems and boasted that they could specifically design a system to suit any type of business or personal needs. Naturally, any one of James' executives, or even technicians, could have attended this meeting. However, security was only a small portion of the discussion James had planned. The rest of the time was to be used to organise the delivery of illegal arms shipments to and from overseas.
Obviously, the FBI had changed his plans. James was sure that it was Larabee he had just seen walking out of the building as he drove passed. Not that he'd ever met the man personally, but the blond hair and set featured matched the picture he'd been shown of the infamous Chris Larabee, besides, that guy had the determined stride of a Fed and he was wearing a long, black overcoat. How much more proof did he need?
After having one of his smaller arms warehouses shut down; a sale go sour and an associate's organisation busted, James had made sure he knew who exactly was arresting his people. Chris Larabee's name had come up as team leader of an illustrious team. However no one else on that team was mentioned by name and Calloway's help hadn't been able to track down any further information on them. So, James assumed that the older, slightly taller gentleman with Larabee must be one of Chris' team of FBI or ATF or DEA or whatever the hell the initials were.
James shuffled himself deeper into the plush leather of the car seats and stared out the window at the scenery rolling by. He was being targeted, there was no other explanation. The fact that this was the fourth time that something he'd been involved with had that Larabee character involved was too much of a coincidence. And this time he'd almost made his own grand entrance, right into the FBI's net. As the panic of the situation he'd almost found himself in faded, James realised with a sudden clarity that there must be a snitch working for him.
Having steadily moved up in the ranks of his organisation, the syndication had given James Calloway his own division. This involved relocating to Denver, starting his own cover business and hiring new staff. Now, after less than a year, he already had a turn-coat in his midst. Naturally, he had screened everyone he'd employed, including the people that worked for the legitimate business. Ethan, one of the first people James had hired and the only person that the syndicate had recommended, had helped investigate the employees' backgrounds, however the final check and decision had all been James'.
As James mentally ticked off the names of his employees that might be snitches, he became aware that they were headed back towards his home. The driver had opted to take the longer way through the mountains, taking the twists and swerves in the road with an unhurried, graceful ease, which was why James had hired him in the first place. A chauffeur wouldn't find it too difficult to transfer information to outside sources, James thought as his mind flicked back to the problem at hand. Any business that was of a sensitive nature was only ever conducted from the house, so it was highly unlikely that a staff member in one of his legitimate companies would have knowledge of his less legal dealings. On the other hand, staff members that resided on his estate, from executives to maids, could obtain access to the information, the difficulty would be getting that information off the estate. The company James ran was dealing in computer security and it would be risky to try and transfer any data via one of the computers in his own house. Of course they could always leave the grounds, but that rarely happened with the estate employees and never without James knowing about it. Except a driver - Vin would have the perfect opportunity to slip away and make a call from a phone booth whilst chauffeuring James, making a deliver, or taking the vehicle to be repaired. Hell, he'd probably have time to meet with a cop or two face to face.
James watched the blue eyes in the rear view mirror, their attention never leaving the road, and shook his head. What was he thinking? He never conducted business in the car, legitimate or otherwise. James always used that time to relax and calm his mind before heading into a meeting or returning from one. Besides the state of James' vehicles, what possible information could Vin pass on?
The car turned into the long, winding driveway of James Calloway's recently purchased estate, and James felt relieved to be home. He knew his thoughts were bordering on the ridiculous. James was sure there was a snitch, but he'd have to come up with a more plausible suspect than the chauffeur. Soon he'd be able to talk to Ethan, and James would be able to share the burden.
+ + + + + + +
"That was an unnervingly close call."
James had only just walked into his office when he heard the familiar southern drawl, before Ethan appeared in the doorway that connected both their offices. "You've heard," it was more a statement than a question. James knew without a doubt that Ethan would have been contacted the minute Major Imports had been raided.
"Except for yourself, no one else working for us was anywhere near the vicinity and therefore weren't arrested. The charges were for laundering money and the fact that our negotiations with them were only preliminary, I don't think the police would have been able to connect you to the charge. Although I did try to call and alert you," Ethan stepped further into the room as he spoke and took a seat behind James' desk.
James' lips curved into a small smile, trust Ethan to have everything under control.
When James didn't answer, Ethan continued, "I've also deleted and shredded any scrap of evidence of our association with Major Imports. Even if they talk, we had never entered into any type of contract with them, so we should be clear. Considering the charge I mentioned, I don't think the police were after us anyway."
"Yes they were," James' smile faded. "They were after me."
"What makes you think so?" Ethan asked.
"It was Larabee," James answered. "I saw him as we drove passed."
"Larabee?"
"Yeah," James nodded. "You remember, I showed you the file on the guy after they raided our warehouse. Then he arrested our buyer and closed down Dats Enterprises just as we were about to buy ammunition from them. Now this. I'm sure he's been the one behind the smaller busts around town, the sellers on the streets and the smaller pawn shops."
"I suppose..."
"He's dogging me," James interrupted, noting the conviction in his own voice. "Larabee wants me, and he must be using a snitch."
Ethan knew better than to argue, especially faced with the facts, "Who?"
"It has to be someone from the estate," James stated what he'd already thought about in the car. "This is the only place where anything remotely illegal is organised, so it would have to be someone who's able to snoop around. Unless...."
"Unless?" Ethan prompted.
"Unless, they're getting information from the computer," James finished. "We had Allan and John from Volcam out here a month ago going through our computer security. Maybe John downloaded or uplifted information, hell he still could be."
"The kid?" Ethan looked thoughtfully at the blank screen of the computer. "What makes you assume it's the kid? Why not Allan, he has more experience."
"Oh please. John may be young, but he knows computers," James said. "I couldn't keep up with everything he was doing, and I don't think Allan could either, although the old guy would never admit it. John could have programmed our security system to shut down so that he can siphon out information, or maybe he worked out a way around it."
"I'm not completely computer illiterate, and neither are you," Ethan stated. "I'm sure we'd notice information being stolen or copies at some point. There is no possible way that could go undetected."
"Have you been looking for it?" When Ethan shook his head slightly, James continued, "Well then, from now on you will. Check to see if anything is missing that should be there, or if there are any strange programs lodged in there somewhere."
"I'll get right on that," Ethan nodded. "But I'm still not so sure it's John. Volcam Securities is a legitimate business, we don't hire criminals to work there."
"No, just hackers," James lifted an eyebrow at Ethan.
"Fair enough," Ethan conceded. "What are we going to do about it?"
"I'm going to have them checked out, see what they do when they're not at work, see if they're living at higher standard than what I pay them," James answered. "I'm sure Larabee's paying whoever the leak is a fair amount of money. In the meantime, we lay low, no more sales for a while, just stick with the small street stuff."
"We should also check into anyone on staff who may have been arrested in the last year or so," Ethan stated. "They may be betraying us for immunity."
"Do it," James agreed, glad that he'd brought this up with Ethan. That man always thought of the things James seemed to miss.
"What about the substantial shipment that has just come in?" Ethan inquired. "We cannot just leave the weapons in the holding bay, they'll be discovered."
"It's too risky to try and sell them, we'd need to find a new buyer, someone the Feds don't probably already know about," James frowned. "Maybe we can move them."
"I'm afraid that would be riskier. We should be disposing of them as quickly as possible," Ethan watched James' reaction, and noticed his boss didn't think too highly of the opinion. "I haven't logged that shipment into the computer yet," Ethan's eyes lit up as he thought about this. "So the information couldn't be leaked from that source. If I record this transaction manually, and the police are informed, then our leak must be internal as you first suspected."
"And if the leak is John, or maybe Allan, then they won't find out about it and the sale will go ahead." James caught Ethan's thread. "And, we should be able to get enough money to lie low for a while."
"Exactly," Ethan grinned. "I should be able to find a buyer discreetly."
"I'm sure you will," James nodded. "I'm pretty sure the leak's coming from Volcam, which I'll take care of this afternoon."
James was definitely feeling better about this now. He knew from now on that he'd have to keep a careful watch on everyone, but now he had Ethan to help him. "That's much better than my first theory."
Ethan had been heading back to his own office when he heard James' words and stopped, "I thought John was your first theory."
"No," James shook his head. "I thought it might have been Vin."
"The driver?" Ethan looked shocked. "I didn't think you conducted any business in the car."
"I don't," James confirmed.
"Neither do I," Ethan drawled. "So besides the condition of the vehicles, what information did you think Mr Tanner would be giving the FBI?"
"I didn't say it was a perfect theory," James scowled, now he felt he needed to defend himself. "But he could be getting the information from someone here, and then passing it on when he's on the road. I don't know where he goes when we're not in the car."
"A conspiracy?" Ethan cocked an eyebrow.
"Maybe," James snapped, he didn't like how paranoid he sounded and that Ethan was pointing it out to him. "That is possible you know. There are some powerful people to bring down, besides you and me."
"I suppose so," Ethan agreed reluctantly. "Although, besides myself, you and the occasional mechanic, I've never seen Mr Tanner converse with anyone at all."
"No," James nodded. "He's not very sociable. He only came to mind because he was the first person I saw after seeing the Feds at Major Imports. And he does have a rebel look about him with that long hair, I just compared him to all my other staff who are clean cut. Maybe if I got him to cut his hair, I'd feel better about it."
James caught the amusement in Ethan's eyes and shrugged, "Okay, I know it won't actually solve anything."
"No," Ethan smirked. "I think it's a brilliant idea. You should definitely make Mr Tanner cut his hair."
James shook his head and grinned as Ethan stepped into his office and closed the door behind him. With any luck, James will have weeded out the snitch and taken care of the son of a bitch by this evening.
+ + + + + + +
James didn't bother knocking as he walked into Ethan's office and slumped into one of the spare chairs.
"No luck," Ethan stated rather than questioned.
"How'd you guess?" James mumbled.
"It was difficult, considering how well you hide your desolation."
James let the comment slide. "I couldn't find anything on John or Allen. I thought for sure that Kid would be our rat, but he appears clean. Of course he could be covering his tracks. I've fired him anyway, and we'll see if Larabee's supply of information slows down in future. But we'll have to keep looking out for anything suspicious."
"I'm still checking over our recently interrogated employees, however I haven't located the snitch. Besides, I don't see how some of them could have obtained the range of data that the police have procured." Ethan decided to get the bad news out of the way first before moving on, "However, I have found a buyer for the shipment. Naturally all details have been kept away from my computer, and therefore his. So I have arranged a preliminary meeting with him tomorrow morning at Plyman's Clearing."
"Mind if I tag along?" James asked, relieved that the large amount of illegal weapons would be leaving his care soon, and completely trusting Ethan's contacts, although he still wanted to meet them and see for himself that everything would be alright.
"Of course not," Ethan smiled slightly. "The appointment is at 11.00 am."
"Couldn't make it any later?" James cocked an eyebrow, he'd learnt early on how much Ethan hated early mornings.
"I didn't choose the time, I merely agreed to it," Ethan drawled.
"That's fine. Let Vin know when we'll be leaving," James said as he walked out the door, ready to leave the day's events behind him for the rest of the night.
+ + + + + + +
"What's the matter, honey?"
James heard the throaty whisper against his ear, and tried to concentrate on the slender fingers running across his bare chest. However his mind kept going of lists of possible suspects, the hurt and betrayal he would feel when he finally uncovered the leak would be nothing compared to the anger and hate he was already starting to build up inside him. Before the hand could travel any lower, James grabbed the wrist and thrust it aside, "Nothing's wrong, I'm just not in the mood."
"What do you mean - not in the mood? You're the one who called me at work and said you wanted company."
The petulant tone in Abi's voice grated on James' already raw nerves. "And now I don't," James barked as he got out of bed and headed for the bathroom without turning back, he didn't want to see the pout that was undoubtedly playing over Abi's full lips.
James splashed cold water on his face as he heard Abi slam out of the room, and knew she'd probably wake the whole house up as she departed. He'd begun to think that Abi was the snitch, she had the access and usually she could wind him around her little finger. James shook his head as he looked at his reflection in the mirror, there was no way Abi would turn on him. She worked at one of his favourite clubs as a cocktail waitress. Hell, it had become his favourite club because she worked there, and continued to do so even though there was really no need for her to anymore. James was willing to keep her in any style that suited her. No, Abi wasn't the leak, and James knew it. He also knew that he'd have to make tonight up to her later.
Sighing, James climbed back into bed and, without a warm body to lose himself in, hoped that a deep, dreamless sleep would come quickly.
+ + + + + + +
James noted the concerned glances Ethan directed at him before the question was voiced.
"Are you alright?"
"I'm fine, just tired," James answered.
"I did notice that Abi dropped by last night," Ethan commented.
And he would have heard her leave as well, James thought to himself. There was no way he was going to go into his problems with his woman with Ethan right now.
"Perhaps you'd would prefer to stay home. I am perfectly capable of meeting this buyer on my own."
"It's a bit late now," James observed, they were in the car halfway there. "Besides, I said I was fine."
"Have you come up with any fresh suspects concerning our little matter?" Ethan queried, changing the subject.
Calloway's eyes flicked to Vin who was studiously watching the road. "I'm not discussing that here," James snapped, edgy because he hadn't come up with anything even though he'd stayed awake thinking about it all night, not because he didn't trust either of the two men in the car.
Thankfully Ethan decided to stay quiet for the rest of their journey, tactfully staring out the window.
Finally James realised that the car was rolling to a stop, and that Vin had driven right into the middle of the clearing. Usually, James always took the brazen approach to show that he wasn't intimidated by anyone, and so did Ethan. But today, James would have preferred to stop further back from the clearing so that he could observe this new buyer and size him up. Of course, he'd totally forgotten to tell Vin and the man had just done what he would normally have. James shook his head as he glanced out of the window, within the space of just 24 hours he was already turning into a mistrusting wimp.
A tall, dark-haired, moustached man took one step closer to the vehicle and waited. James took in the garish clothing, and larger than life demeanour and decided that this looked like a typical arms dealer - they usually had more money than taste. "What's the name of this guy?" James asked Ethan.
"Bucklin," Ethan answered getting ready to exit.
"Is that a first name or last name?" James wanted to know.
Ethan just shrugged as he straightened up, and James was left to follow suit. Before closing the door, James indicated that Vin should also step out of the vehicle. It wasn't as though Tanner was armed, or that he was even hired to be muscle - something James never felt he needed at these type of deals - but something about the way Tanner lingered by the car seemed to put people off their game, and James had gotten into the habit of using the driver whenever he was meeting anyone for the first time.
Knowing that Bucklin wouldn't have come alone, James automatically looked around and spotted the dark-skinned standing man a few steps behind Bucklin. Although he was wearing dark sunglasses and James couldn't see where his eyes were focussed, as expected the bodyguard's stance was directed towards Vin. And when James flicked his gaze back to Bucklin he noticed the larger man was also watching his driver.
Realising he was the focus of attention, Bucklin turned to face James ready for the introductions. However, this was Ethan's contact and Ethan would be running the meeting. James stepped back to indicate this and Bucklin turned to Ethan instead. "Mr Standford," Bucklin held out his hand.
Ethan shook hands, "Mr..?"
"Bucklin," the other man grinned.
James rolled his eyes, who did this guy think he was some kind of rock star? Bringing his expression back into check, James took the offered hand as Ethan introduced him.
Allowing Ethan to take control of the discussion, James let the conversation wash over him, only taking note when figures and amounts were discussed. James had never heard of this guy before, nor had he ever seen Bucklin or his bodyguard. But then, that had been the point, to find someone who had never been associated with any of Calloway's enterprises. Thankfully, Bucklin was eager to buy the weapons and he seemed to be in a big hurry. Which was exactly what James and Ethan wanted, however James hated appearing too keen and never closed a deal at the preliminary meeting. To this end, Ethan let Bucklin know the name and address of the club they were to meet the following evening to finalise the numbers, which would give James and Ethan time to discuss what they would accept and allow Bucklin to revert to any associates he may need to.
James felt a little better as they bid their farewells and headed back to the car. This deal was going ahead at full speed and once this shipment of weapons was out of the way, he and Ethan would put a hold on their more questionable enterprises and concentrate on the legitimate businesses until this situation with Larabee was sorted out.
+ + + + + + +
James' high spirits after the preliminary meeting with Bucklin didn't last long. Now that it was just a couple of hours before they were to meet again at the club, James's mood was becoming darker. Some of his contacts, buyers and suppliers had realised that the problems with the Feds only seemed to happen when they did business with James Calloway, and had cut him off. Actually, they'd offered to put their association on hold until everything was back on track, but James knew that it would be difficult to re-establish the foundation he'd built. Luckily he still had the people in the syndication to back him, and he felt sure that one word from his bosses would give James a second chance. However that didn't help him right now, especially considering that just half an hour ago an employee from Volcam Securities called to say that the police had been in and whether he should disclose the confidential security files on some of their customers. James had instructed them to stall the police, called his lawyer and had him go down and deal with any warrants or whatever else the police thought they had. Besides Volcam was legitimate and so were most of its clients.
At least James knew that he'd been right, the snitch had to have been John. As soon as James had let him go, the young man must have run to the Feds. Firing had been too good for the Kid, and if James ever got his hands on him, John would have hell to pay.
"This should be good news," Ethan observed after James had finished venting. "We've discovered our leak, the police will run out of information, and after this deal we can go underground for a while so there will be no reason to continue an investigation."
"I suppose," James conceded. "I just don't need certain people finding out that I can't run my business."
"Prove you can," Ethan suggested.
"How?" James raised an eyebrow.
"By running it the best possible way through this," Ethan stated.
"That would mean ensuring that everything would continue running, even if by some huge misfortune I did get caught."
"I guess that would mean handing over access to the syndication to someone else, to enable him to receive direct orders when necessary," Ethan said quietly.
"I suppose," James shrugged. "I'd probably have to talk this over with my bosses first though." James stood abruptly and headed towards the door, "Besides right now, we have an appointment, and I'm guessing Vin's already waiting out front."
+ + + + + + +
When James and Ethan arrived at the club, the immediately spotted Bucklin at the bar laughing and flirting with one of the waitresses. Looking around James noted that Bucklin had bought along the same bodyguard he'd had at Plyman's Clearing. The black bodyguard would have probably blended in much better if he hadn't been wearing his sunglasses at night and inside the club.
Noticing the two men, Bucklin waved in acknowledgment before following them to the table that was always reserved for James.
Catching Abi's eye, James was sure he'd only receive an icy glare in return, especially since he hadn't bothered calling her since the other night. Instead, she made her way over to their table with a spring in her step and a swing to her hips. Smiling engagingly, Abi exclaimed, "James! Ethan! How nice to see you both." Turning towards Bucklin, Abi lowered her voice to a purr, "And whose your friend?"
"The name's Bucklin," the man himself answered as he stood taking Abi's hand and brushing his lips over her fingers.
Abi giggled delightedly and lingered over taking Bucklin's order. So this was payback, James thought as he watched Abi unashamedly flirt with their buyer. But then every woman in the place had their eyes on Bucklin, whether it was just furtive glances or a straight out stare. What the hell was going on? What did Bucklin have that any other male didn't. He wasn't any better looking that James himself, well at least James didn't think so, the man seemed only to introduce himself as the one stupid sounding name, and he had terrible taste in clothes. James shook his head, he'd never figure women out.
Their business didn't take long. Ethan had already figured out the payment and organised any paperwork that was required, and Bucklin readily agreed to the terms.
Knowing that they shouldn't all be seen together for too long, James and Ethan decided to leave first. Before heading out the door, James turned back to see Bucklin head for the bar, three ladies already flocking around him when they realised that he was free. "What is it with that guy?" James asked.
"Don't ask me," Ethan shrugged.
+ + + + + + +
James rapped on the door to Ethan's office before entering. "I'm about to head out," he told the man sitting behind the desk.
"Where are you going?" Ethan asked without looking up.
"To sell the weapons to Bucklin," James answered.
This caught Ethan's attention, "We still have four hours before we're due to meet with him."
"I've decided to finish this deal myself," James stated. "And I've changed the time and place at the last minute, just in case."
"Would you like me to call the driver and let him know you're ready now and the destination?" Ethan offered.
James shook his head, "I've already talked to Vin."
"Are you alright? You seem edgy this morning," Ethan observed.
"Just want to get this over and done with," James answered.
"You and me both," Ethan drawled. "Are you sure you wouldn't prefer we both go?"
"No, I can handle it," James's smile was strained. He did feel edgy, and he couldn't shake the bad feeling that seemed to permeate the air around him.
Before pulling the door closed behind him, James turned and watched Ethan as he lowered his head back to his work, "Just one more thing Ethan..."
+ + + + + + +
As they approached the warehouse where he'd organised to meet Bucklin, James noticed that there were way too many cars in the area. "What the hell's going on?"
Just as he'd uttered the question, James saw the tall, blond agent turning the corner. "Goddammit," James snapped. "Get us the fuck out of here."
"I don't think so."
James was startled by the quiet Texas drawl, Vin rarely spoke and when he did it was never to disobey and order.
In shock, James started to babble, "They can't arrest me, or Bucklin for that matter. Nothing changed hands and I'd deny knowing about the guns in the warehouse. Even if they're holding Bucklin now, and the idiot talked, it would be his word against mine. They don't have anything on me. So if you're worried about being caught, don't, they've got nothing on me."
"Actually, we have plenty on you," Vin stated as he brought the vehicle to a complete stop.
"We?" James' eyes widened. "You're a damn cop?"
Vin didn't answer just stepped out of the car and opened the door for James just as he always did in his duties as the chauffeur.
"I've been waiting a long time for this," James heard Chris Larabee's voice.
Before James had the opportunity to try and escape out of the passenger door opposite, a strong pair of hands grabbed him and he was hauled out of the car by the large oaf of a guy he'd seen Larabee with the other day.
James barely listened as his rights were read to him, he would damn well stay quiet until he had a chance to talk to his lawyer. Right now he'd focus his attention on one Vin Tanner. James had been right from the very beginning, Vin had been the damn leak, and he wasn't just a snitch he was an actual Fed, part of Larabee's team no less. At least James knew who to plan his revenge against when he got out of this.
And he would get out eventually. In the meantime, Ethan would keep his enterprises running. Luckily, James had followed his instincts and had given Ethan the names and contact details of the syndication. Yes, his businesses would still be backed by the people who controlled the crime in most US states, and when this was over he'd offer Ethan a full partnership in his district of Denver for his right hand man's loyalty.
The End
