Genesis, Part V

[Robbie C.]

“Look, Lou. We’re as sure as we can be. Hector did call Tubbs, didn’t he?” Sonny Crockett looked down at his scribbled notes. “They want to deal, and we need money to make the deal. The only question is how much weight do you want to bust them with?”

“And keep our covers intact.” Ricardo Tubbs, kitted out in full glory by Armani, looked bored. “This Cooper cat’s a good fit for what we’re doing. I don’t want to blow him all over South Florida.”

To Sonny’s surprise, Stan spoke up. “We hung around a bit after Sonny and Rico left, lieutenant. The Rojas boys left about five minutes later, and they looked excited.”

Larry nodded. “Yeah. Like they’d just won an all-access pass to the South Florida Golden Dildo awards. I think they took the bait.”

“That was not an image I needed in my head, Zito. But you made your point.” Lou looked down at the file in front of him and Sonny hid a smile as he heard giggles from Gina and Trudy. “Do either of the Rojas cousins have phones we could tap? I’d like more information before we walk into something.”

“I’ll do some checking an’ let you know, lieutenant.” Stan shot Sonny a look. “Unless Sonny knows something.”

“Naw. I usually ran into Ernesto in bars. And today’s the longest I’ve been within a mile of Hector. They used to live in some of those new apartments on the edge of Edgewater, but now that they’re makin’ moves I don’t know.”

“Switek, you and Zito track them down. Let me know once you do, and I’ll put in for a warrant on their phones.” Lou made a note on his pad. “It’s a good start, but we need more before we agree to a meet.”

“We can’t stall them too long, lieutenant.” Sonny locked eyes with Lou. “They ain’t the most stable, and Hector in particular might get skittish. Ernesto thinks he knows Burnett, an’ he’s greedy on top of it. Cooper looks good to him. But Hector…”

“Yeah. Hector will try to make calls. Might have already for all we know.” Rico leaned back a bit in his chair. “I know Cooper’s backstopped pretty well, but we start draggin’ our feet now it won’t look right.”

“Fine. I’ll put in for the buy money. But I want those taps first. And you will have backup for that buy. End of discussion, Crockett, so don’t give me that look. We can’t afford for anything to go wrong, especially if this Hector Rojas is as unstable as you say.”

Back in the squad room, Sonny turned to Rico. “You that confident about the Cooper cover?”

“Yeah.” His partner did a little dance. “He’s movin’ an’ groovin’. Hell, I put the background together myself and then looked over the shoulder of the Metro-Dade guy puttin’ it in the system. He’ll come up sold gold and ready to deal if they pay someone off to run it.”

“And you can bet they will. Well…Hector anyhow. I don’t think Ernesto knows anything about computers but where to put the quarter when he wants to play Pac Man.” Sonny dropped his notes on his cluttered desk, knowing there was work to do but not really feeling it. Since the divorce had been finalized he’d felt himself drifting, and staring at paperwork only made the feeling worse. And finding Arthur Lawson in that bathroom brought some other things into focus.

“You ok, partner?”

“Yeah, Rico. Just feelin’ a little tired is all.” He flopped down in his desk chair with a sigh. “We get these guys wrapped up for the chief with a pretty bow I might take a day and go catch some fish for Elvis. You ever been out…”

“Man, the swordfish steak at Demario’s is as close as I want to get to fishing.” Rico ran his hands over his suit. “Salt water does not agree with these threads or this smooth complexion. You dig?”

“Yeah, I dig.” Sonny leaned back, his brain running through its own index of places tourists didn’t want to go in Miami. Then he shook his head. “I was thinking maybe we should go kick over some rocks an’ see what the Rojas cousins have been up to, but word would get back too damned fast and they’d start askin' questions. Especially Hector.”

“Yeah, I had the same thought. All the way down to them gettin’ all suspicious and tellin’ us to pound sand.” Rico shook his head. “Like it or not, partner, all we can do is wait. For the warrants and the money.”

“And I don’t like sittin’ on my hands. It’s like one of those old Westerns my dad used to watch…it’s too damned quiet out there.”

 

“You’re sure this Burnett only moves product?” Miguel Mendoza looked over at Esteban Morales from his club chair.

“Si, jefe. He only moves product. He seems to be fairly good at it, but the word I get is he’s a man of little ambition and quick temper. Not any kind of threat to us. He does bring in buyers from time to time, usually from outside Miami.”

“And we already know about the Rojas cousins and their idiots. Your plan is good, Esteban. Let the police chase them while we continue to grow.” Miguel paused. “I’ve been hearing about rip-offs down around Little Haiti.”

“It seems to be a localized problem. None of them have taken place near our shipments. I have added men to Enrique’s deals just in case. Do you want me to…”

“No. What you’ve done is perfect.” Miguel nodded, thinking back to the run he’d made with Ricky. He’s good with that side of the business. And he was right about my needing to get out and be seen by the boys. I think I’ll do it once a month. To stay sharp. “What have you learned about the Hermanos organization?”

“They seem to be following our lead. Shifting from other products to cocaine. They may be ahead of us on the supply end.” Esteban smiled. “One of them has a cousin who’s part of a Columbian operation and the Hermanos are focusing on their product exclusively. But…”

“That makes them vulnerable. If anything happens to that one source they have to scramble to find another.” Miguel nodded, his brain processing the information. “Let them play with their relatives. I hear they’re good at that, anyhow. Ricky’s man Pasqual has made contact with two organizations in Columbia and one in Bolivia, so our supply is secure if one is interrupted. And Ricky’s making good progress on the Miami side as well.” He got to his feet. “Keep an eye on the Rojas. We may have to slap them down if they forget their place. But I am more concerned about the Hermanos and their people. They think with more than their balls. At least some of the time.”

Once Esteban left, Miguel allowed himself the luxury of a drink. The rip-offs still worried him, but so long as they avoided his product he was content to let them serve as another distraction. Sooner or later word would reach the police, probably when they occurred in the wrong neighborhood, and resources which could be used against him would go there. The idea of Metro-Dade eliminating his enemies for him brought a smile to Miguel’s face. It was always better to have a fool do your dirty work for you, especially when they didn’t know they were doing it.

Drawn to the big window, he walked over and looked out, catching a glimpse of his own reflection as he moved. Ricky’s right…I do look like one of those old pirates from the right angle. It had been their joke ever since junior high, and Miguel had always denied it. But now…why not embrace it? Just as Jesus Estevez had embraced his “old fisherman” look while building his profitable fleet and their own father had played the ignorant peasant while restoring some of the glory his grandfather had built for the family.

Still, it was a different time, and Miguel recognized that. Running rum might have been illegal, but the majority of the people didn’t care. It was all about volume. But the violence remained the same. He knew his grandfather had to protect trucks from hijacking crews, and his boats were occasionally burned by rival gangs. He also was sure his grandfather had contributed his share of meat to the gators in the swamps around Miami.

Turning away from the window, he walked back to the desk and dialed a number. “Get Ricky for me. Yes, it’s Miguel. The purchase we were speaking of? Do it.” Adding another two boats had been Ricky’s idea, and a good one. They had reliable people to pilot them, and it just increased their options for breaking down larger loads. But it also gave their opponents more targets. Soon, he knew, he’d need to send another message. Jaime had been effective in that role, but the crews in Miami had short memories.

 

Sonny Crockett stared at the briefing room through narrowed eyes, his hand just touching his third cup of coffee since coming in. Rico gave him a sidelong look and chuckled. “Long night, partner?”

“Let’s just say I’ve made better choices in my life.” Sonny smiled in spite of himself. “And it wasn’t a long night so much as it’s a rough morning.” I’m just glad I didn’t call Gina. At least I don’t think I did. I know I didn’t call Caroline. That I’d remember.

Lou’s voice was louder than usual as he came into the conference room, and Sonny winced. “Good morning everyone. The warrant came through late yesterday afternoon, and Switek and Zito were able to work their black magic in what must be record time. We have taps on the main phones used by the Rojas cousins. That’s the apartment phone, the pay phone in the back of Aces, and a phone attached to a boathouse down by the water.” He looked over at Switek and Zito, who looked like they’d been up all night. “What do we have?”

Larry Zito opened with a jaw-splitting yawn. “Well, we know Hector has a thing for phone sex. And I mean a major thing. He made like twenty calls last night, and at ninety-nine cents a minute…they must move a lot of coke to keep up with his audio habit.”

Lou shook his head. “Is there…”

Stan jumped in before Larry could start describing exactly which lines Hector was calling and what he asked for. “The interesting one is Ernesto, lieutenant. He made his calls from Aces, and later from their boathouse. He was lookin’ into both Burnett and Cooper.”

“Who’d he call?” Sonny shook off the lingering fuzziness of his hangover. Things were getting interesting now.

“Sounded like a couple of his boys for Burnett.” Stan flipped through his surveillance log. “Guys called ‘Pancho,’ ‘Gears,’…you get the idea. Four of ‘em all told, and they all had nothing bad to say.”

“What about Cooper?”

Stan shot Larry a glance. “That’s where it gets interesting. From the number of dimes he dropped it was outside Miami. We’ve got Ma Bell workin’ it now, but that takes a bit of time.” He gave a lopsided grin. “Maybe some day we’ll be able to see all that crap in real time. Anyhow, call got shuffled to someone he called Fritz. That guy said he’d check and get back to him. Call came back fifteen minutes later with a clear.”

Rico leaned forward, nodding. “And you got no idea who Fritz is?”

“No. But Larry and I have a hunch. We think he’s a cop.”

Now it was Lou’s turn to lean forward, and Sonny could see some heat in his eyes. “What makes you say that, Switek?”

“The way he talked. I had Larry listen to the tape and he agrees with me, lieutenant.” Stan looked at his notes. “First off, when this goof called he asked for Fritz and said ‘tell him it’s Ernie’ when the person who answered the phone said there wasn’t a Fritz there. Sounds like a CI code to me, or at least he wants to pass as a CI. Then once he gets to Fritz all he said is he’s got a name for him. Fritz says he’ll run it and get back to him. Not he’ll look into it or check it out, but that he’ll run it.”

“Sounds like a cop to me.” Sonny looked up at Lou. “It sure as hell wasn’t the operator.”

“We have to have proof before it goes outside this room.” Lou looked around. “Everyone’s a bit…sensitive after the Wheeler and Lawson things.”

“Not to mention Calderone buying his way out of custody.” Rico’s voice was hot. “Yeah, I bet they’re damned sensitive.”

“That’s enough, Tubbs. Switek, put a rush on that number and let me know as soon as it comes through. I’ll work it personally.” He looked around the table. “The operation is still on. It sounds like Cooper and Burnett are still viable, and we need to take the Rojas’s off the streets. You’ll have your buy money, Tubbs. By this afternoon, even if I have to go over there myself and sign it out.”

“Where do you want us, lieutenant?”

“Gina, you and Trudy keep trying to gather intel on these guys. I can’t afford to pull you off your current assignment, but if you can work this in around that…”

Trudy nodded. “You got it, lieutenant. There’s some overlap anyhow, since good old Jasper’s trying to expand his stable into Wynwood.”

“I gotta ask. What kinda pimp uses the street name Jasper?”

“One who’s not very smart, Rico.” Gina smiled, and then her face turned serious. “He’s a nasty customer, though. Likes to cut his girls if they hold out on him.”

“But we’re getting closer to being able to bust him good.” Trudy tapped the table. “One of his girls said he’s looking at getting into drugs now. Might be why his girls are showing up close to the Rojas.”

Sonny turned to Lou. “Does that mean we string ‘em along a bit, Lou? Go for a package deal?”

“No. The chief wants a head on a pike, and the Rojas have been elected to provide a couple. If we can get Jasper at the same time, great, but the Rojas have priority when it comes to an arrest.” He turned to Gina and Trudy. “Sorry, but…”

“I know, lieutenant.” Gina’s voice held a hint of bitterness. “Politics.”

Back in the squad room, Sonny stopped beside Gina’s desk. “We’ll do what we can to get ‘em both, darlin’. If we can.”

“I appreciate it, Sonny.”

“No problem.” He paused. “Feel like getting a drink later?”

“I…I’d like that, Sonny. Give me a call?”

“I’ll do that. Not sure when this thing with the Rojas will kick off, though. The ball’s kinda in their court.”

Rico shook his head as Sonny walked back to their desks. “I’d ask if you wanted to go hit the clubs tonight, partner, but it looks like you got other plans.”

“Yeah, yeah. Odds are we’ll be trading shots of bad tequila with the Rojas cousins tonight, anyhow. Bozos like that always like bad tequila.”

“Yeah. They seem to. Up north it was always nasty-ass brandy.” Rico paused a moment. “Be careful, though. Been down that road an’ it didn’t end well.”

Sonny started to snap a reply, then thought better of it and settled for a nod before sitting down behind his desk. Hell, Rico’s just tryin’ to look out for me. Guess someone has to…I sure don’t do a good job of it myself. He looked over at Gina and Trudy reviewing their notes before heading off to change and hit the streets. Yeah, I know it’s a mistake. It was a mistake before the divorce went through. But some mistakes just feel too damned good. “You gonna call Hector back?”

“Not until the lieutenant shows me the money. Last thing I want to do is set up a meet and then have to back out like a chump. No, Cooper don’t call until he’s ready to deal and has the cash in his hand.”

“And if he calls you…”

“I tell him my associates need some more reassurance but we’re close. Hell, Calderone flying the coop upset business both here and in New York. Even those two chumps gotta know that. New York money’s gonna be skittish about coming down here until things settle down.”

“Yeah, I guess.” Sonny shrugged. “I just pick up and deliver. Hell of a lot easier.”

The buy money came through just before three, about the same time Stan got his report back from the phone company. “I had to request a priority flag, lieutenant,” he said, handing the paper to Lou. “Someone was trying to hide the number. But it tracks back to the Narcotics squad at Tampa PD, and the call was forwarded to a phone linked to one of their detectives. I can’t get any deeper than that without some serious juice, though.”

“Thanks, Switek. I’ll have to turn this over to IA so they can follow up with Tampa PD.” Sonny watched as Lou stared at the number. “I don’t believe it.”

“Believe it, lieutenant.” Rico’s voice was flat. “These chumps spend more on lunch than we make in a week. That much green floatin' around is one hell of a temptation. Especially if you’re a cop with kids and college to pay for.”

“If they can buy off Feds, it shouldn’t surprise anyone they can pay off someone in Tampa PD. Even small-timers like the Rojas cousins.” Sonny held Lou’s gaze for a moment before turning back to Rico. “You still wanna go through with it? It was your cover he was checking.”

“Yeah. Cooper’s solid. He said so on the tap, and I had them backstop the hell out of this cover. No, I think we’re good. And they didn’t look too hard at Burnett.”

“I’ve been tryin’ to keep him kinda low profile. More of a redneck with a fast boat than a major player. Makes just enough to keep himself in fancy clothes and flashy toys, but not enough to draw attention.”

Lou nodded. “Make the call, Tubbs. I’d rather get this done sooner than later. Just in case our friend here” - he gestured to the paper - “gets some ideas or talks to the wrong person.”

“Solid.” Rico reached for the phone. “Sooner we clear our desks of these chumps the better I’ll feel. And we’re givin’ the chief a dirty cop in the bargain. Should score us a couple of points.”

“Yes, but I don’t feel good about it.” Lou looked down to hide the pain Sonny knew was in his eyes. “Any time a cop goes bad…”

“Yeah. But let’s get this tied up and be damned glad he’s not our problem.” Sonny watched as Rico started dialing. “We just do what we can.”

 

Enrique Mendoza gave the boats a final look before turning to the broker. He couldn’t stand the man’s sweaty face, or the stench of Old Spice rolling off his body. Guy must use a whole damned bottle every morning. But he smiled just the same. For now the smelly bastard was a necessary evil.

“You won’t regret these two beauties. Stingers are the fastest boat around, and comfortable enough you can take the little woman out on the water without her feeling like she’s jammed into a fiberglass race boat.” The broken grinned again. “And you can bet…”

“You can drop the sales pitch. I already bought the boats, remember?” Enrique’s smile changed to something less accommodating as he opened his briefcase and pulled out banded stacks of bills. “The price as agreed. With the cash discount.”

“You bet. Always happy to deal in cash.” The man looked around. “You gonna need any more of these? I can always…”

“You’ll know when I do. My uncle prefers to grow his charter service slowly. It’s how he’s stayed in business all these years.”

Nodding, the broker stuffed the bundles into the side pockets of his check suit coat. “Yeah. Sometimes that’s the best way. You want these delivered?”

“No. We’ll take them now.” Rickey looked over at Pasqual and nodded. “Have Louis take the car back. We’ll try these babies on for size now.”

The wind whipped through Ricky’s hair as he opened the throttles wide on the Stinger, hearing the twin V-8s boom as the boat jumped through the water. He’d have to cut the power once they left the small bay and the chop increased, but for now he wanted to see what the boat could do. He knew Pasqual was doing the same.

When he felt the hull starting to shudder he cut back to half power and let the boat plow through the waves. He knew the Stingers had legs, but that wasn’t what he wanted them for. They weren’t running product from island to island…just from a small freighter out in international waters into one of the many inlets and waterways dotting the coast near Miami. The same little places his family had been using for three generations. He didn’t need range…he needed short burst speed.

So far it had worked. The one boat they’d lost had been to mechanical failure and not Coast Guard interception. Or an attack from a rival organization. He smiled as he adjusted the boat’s course. Let the Columbians shoot the shit out of each other. We will find our own way. As we always have. At first he’d been impatient with Miguel’s plan, but now he saw the sense in it. Sometimes it was better to avoid than to charge.

Take the Rojas cousins. They were charging, maybe too fast. Making enemies faster than allies. They weren’t the biggest gang, or even the strongest. But they were the loudest, and bound to attract the wrong kind of attention. He figured it was only a matter of time…

The marine band radio chirped. “You planning on running to Cuba, boss?”

Ricky chucked and keyed the microphone. “No, Pasqual. Let’s take these in. I think they’ll do just fine.”

 

Sonny shook his head. “I’m not crazy about going back to Aces, Rico. Any chance you can move ‘em out in the open somewhere?”

“Nope. Hector was firm on that. It’s gotta be Aces or not at all.” Rico stared at the phone. “And I ain’t too damned thrilled about it, either. Place clashes with my vibe in a serious way. But if we want ‘em, we gotta take ‘em there.”

Lou’s voice put an end to squad room chatter. “I want you wired, Tubbs. That’s not a question, by the way. If we’re only getting one shot at this, we need all the evidence we can get. Switek, get him fitted. Maybe Crockett, too.”

“We got wires for both of ‘em, lieutenant.” Zito waved two bundles of electronic mystery parts. “Just say the word.”

Sonny sighed. “Just don’t tear the shirt, ok? We should be fine so long as you two set up within a couple of minutes. Rico and I can hold ‘em off that long if things go south. And given the neighborhood I’d bet a couple of uniforms will be on patrol close by, too.”

“I don’t expect them to raise a fuss for this small a deal.” Rico unbuttoned his suit coat and let Stan start attaching wires. “They want the pot of gold at the end of the New York rainbow, not Miami chump change.”

“Never underestimate the greed of a stupid dealer, Rico. An’ the Rojas boys have pretty dim bulbs.” He shifted a bit when Zito finished. “Good job, Zito. Can’t even tell it’s there.” Then he turned to Lou. “You want to take ‘em down this time or string it out for a bigger deal?”

“We stick with the plan, Crockett. Bring ‘em down now. I’ll be keeping a couple of marked units close enough to respond, and when you give the signal Switek and Zito will make the initial arrest.” He smiled. “Including you two, of course.”

“Sure. Gotta keep the cover intact and the arrest numbers up.” Sonny turned to Rico. “You ready to roll?”

Rico looked at Stan, who nodded. “Good as gold. Let’s go get these chumps.”

They took the Caddy and rolled though streets painted a red gold by the setting sun. Sonny looked around, allowing himself a small smile. “Times like this you almost forget what we do.”

“Yeah. Nice coat of paint makes just about anything look good.”

It was that time between day and night when everything looked possible and the golden light glossed over the graffiti and broken buildings they rolled past on their way to Aces. The time of day when even despair could look pretty until you got really close. Still, there was no mistaking the gloom of Aces as Rico wheeled into a spot ten yards away from the front door.

“Testing one two. Can you hear me in radio land?” Headlights blinked once on the other side of the street, and Rico grinned. “Solid. We’re going in.” Reaching back, he pulled a slim alligator leather briefcase off the floor. “And I got the green.”

“Let’s hope they remembered the party favors.” Sonny reached inside his blazer, his fingers just touching the grips of the Bren 10. He already knew there was a round in the chamber. “Let’s do it.”

If anything Aces was worse when it was busy. The music had changed from Santana to Cool & the Gang, and three couples were grinding on each other on the dance floor with moves Larry might have recognized from his porn award shows but had nothing to do with disco. Sonny looked at Rico and shook his head, deciding to keep his sunglasses on. “He said he’d be in the back again,” Rico said, raising his voice a hair to be heard above the music.

“Lead on.” Moving slow, Sonny unbuttoned his blazer so he could get to the Bren 10 fast if things went south. The bartender didn’t give them a second look, and the dancers were too focused on each other to notice a damned thing. Can’t say as I blame the one guy…that girl is three kinds of hot. One or two of the people along the bar gave them a quick look, their eyes sliding away almost at once. Aces was the kind of place where holding eye contact equalled a challenge, and no one wanted to make that mistake.

Hector and Ernesto were waiting in the same back booth, but instead of the girls there were just two bigger guys with them. Sonny made quick eye contact with Rico and raised an eyebrow. You wanna bail? Rico responded with a quick shake of his head. No, but play it cool.

Rico took one of the chairs across from Hector. Sonny sat beside him, glad his partner hadn’t slipped into the booth. No room to move in there, and I think we might need to move soon. “Where’s the ladies, Hector?” Rico flashed his salesman grin. “Man can’t do business without some window dressing.”

Hector looked at Ernesto. “They’re for later. Once we’re done.” His smile didn’t touch his eyes, and Sonny felt little spiders dancing on the back of his neck. Any time I got that feeling in Nam, bad things were about to happen. “You bring the green?”

“You bring the white? Look, Hector, I ain’t got all day to dance with you. My associates want results…proof you can deliver what you claim.” He waved his hand. “And this shit ain’t delivering, my friend. This is stalling.”

Hector nodded, and Ernesto pulled a gym bag from under the table. “As agreed. Now let me see the green.”

Rico put the case on the table and popped the locks. “You can take the green, but not the case. That’s extra.”

Sonny was watching the big guys while Hector and Rico did their dance, flipping bills and working a test kit respectively. In a way it didn’t surprise him the Rojas were comfortable doing all this in the open. Well, as open as Aces is, I guess. But the spiders were dancing again.

He could see the big guys tensing up as Rico gave the test kit a final shake. “This some kind of joke, Hector? Or did you screw up and bring your mom’s baking soda? This is showing 60% pure at best.”

“Oh, yeah. About that.” Hector’s eyes narrowed, and Ernesto started to duck. “Change of plans. We’re takin’ the cash. Call it a finder’s fee. You come back with real coin an’ we’ll do the deal.” He gave a slight nod.

Sonny started to move, reaching under his jacket for the Bren 10 as he dove away from the table. “Rico! It’s a rip!” His shout was more for Stan and Larry’s benefit than anything else, since he could see his partner diving away and scrabbling for his own .38. But there wasn’t time to watch. One of the big guys hauled out what looked like a Beretta and started tracking him. Sonny had the big stainless steel .45 up as his shoulder hit the floor and the first muzzle flash bloomed yellow and orange from the guard’s 9mm.