Page 42 of Trusting Laurence
“No, no. I just wanted to follow up regarding the trafficking case.”
“Ah, I see. No problem. May I offer you some coffee, sir?”
“No, thanks. No coffee for me. I need to be on my way. I just wanted to check if there was any significant progress on the case.”
“No, sir. Nothing at the moment.”
“Ah, well, in that case, I need to be on my way. Let me know if there are any new developments. I’d like to see this one put to bed sooner rather than later.”
“Yes, sir. Will do. I’m in complete agreement. The sooner, the better.”
Director Moran got to his feet, put the file down on the desk, and left, leaving the door open behind him.
Larry picked the file up and saw it was the trafficking case file. He returned it to his top drawer, checking to see if anything else had been disturbed. Not seeing anything else out of place, he closed the drawer and took a seat at his desk.
He had a bit of time to kill before his meeting with Preston, and he decided he’d use it to look up property around Tampa. He fancied retiring to the area. And retirement looked mighty appealing lately. He was definitely getting too old for this shit.
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“Okay, okay.” Preston put a placating hand up. “Let’s go talk to your witnesses and then we can see where we’re at.”
“Fair enough,” Larry replied. “We can head out to Colombia Penitentiary and talk to Marcus. When we’re done, we can do the same with Hector. But you’ll find them reluctant to talk without something on the table.”
“We’ll figure it out.”
Larry nodded. “Fine. No time like the present then.” The three men stood. “You travelling in your own vehicle, Preston, or you riding with us?”
“I’ll hitch a ride with you, if it’s all the same, thanks.”
They used the drive to the prison to formulate a strategy for handling the meeting with Marcus. It wasn’t going to be easy to come to a compromise. He wanted protection, and the DA’s office wasn’t willing to make an offer without knowing if what he had qualified him. Especially since he was looking for clemency in exchange for his testimony.
Marcus had been released from the hospital wing and moved into isolation. He took his meals in his cell and exercised in the yard once the other prisoners returned to their cells. If he was going to be of any assistance in the case, they needed him alive and healthy.
Jim, once again, personally escorted Larry and the other two men to an interrogation room where they waited for Marcus to be brought from his cell. Finn took up his customary position at the back of the room, a silent, brooding presence.
They stood around, talking amongst themselves until the door opened.
“Ah, there he is. I’ll leave you gentlemen to it,” Jim said. He shook hands with the three men and left.
Marcus leaned heavily on a cane as he limped into the room. He looked from one man to the other, his shrewd gaze lingering on Preston James for a moment longer than the others.
“I see you’ve brought company, Keon.”
“Yep. So best you make it worth not just my while, but his too. Otherwise, you’ll be here for a long time yet.”
“I told you I want something on the table first.”
“Yeah, and I told you, you’d have to prove you have anything we’re interested in.”
For long minutes, Marcus sat as if trying to decide how much to share without a firm offer. Eventually, he seemed to come to a decision. “I know you’ll want to record this conversation. These are my terms. I give you broad informationbeforeyou turn the recorder on. You make me an offer. If I like what you’re offering me, I’ll tell you everything I know – names, dates, places — on record”
Larry looked over at Preston. The man considered Marcus. “Here are my terms. I am willing to petition the governor for clemency on your sentence.But, in return, the information you give better lead to arrests. And not of small fish either. I want big hitters – the ones running the show.”
“Have a seat, Mr. James. Let’s chat.”
Preston and Larry took a seat at the table, opposite Marcus. “All right, Marcus, your turn. Lay it out for us.”
“Shall we say, you’d be blown away by just who is involved in this ring. I wasn’t privy to who the head man is – my position in the organization didn’t afford me that information, but I do know who his second-in-command is.” He paused to ask the guard for a glass of water. “Did you bring the records you have?”
