Scamander
Part IV
11 days earlier
"Well, Agent Watkins is a hard man to get a hold of," Megan said crossly as she pulled a chair up next to Don's desk. "It took three messages for him to finally call me back. Anyway, he offered to meet with us and should get here in about an hour. He'll bring the notes he made. He seems like a tough guy on the phone – kind of short."
Don set his coffee cup back down after taking a quick sip. "We need to see his notes; we're at a standstill right now. Colby hasn't found any connection to any outside threats or any anti-war groups, and David is still analyzing the video tapes," Don said shifting back through the files again hoping that something would jump out at him.
"He'll be here pretty soon," Megan stood up and headed back towards her desk.
It was more than an hour before the elevator doors opened to reveal a small, wiry man in a black suit and dark sunglasses. Don gave a passing thought to the men-in-black before dismissing it and greeting the fellow federal agent.
"I'm Agent Don Eppes, and this is Agent Megan Reeves, thanks for coming down," Don said holding out his hand.
"Agent James Watkins. I hope that in putting our resources together we can solve this case," Watkins had a low almost gravely voice as he griped Don's hand and shook it.
Don gestured towards an open interview room and led the other agent and Megan in. The three agents sat down, and Watkins began pulling out a note pad and photographs. Once he had sorted things out the way he wished, he turned to the two FBI agents. "I've hit a dead-end in this investigation. The first break-in happened about two weeks ago, the video shows the two suspects pulling out files and tossing them onto the ground. Both suspects were very careful never to show their faces on camera. They focused on Colonel Hawk's office before heading out into the rest of the office. After about thirty minutes the bigger of the two suspects attempted to access the computer in Hawk's office but didn't seem to be computer savvy enough to break any passwords."
Don looked at the pictures that Watkins had, while listening to the agent. As he flipped through the pictures he observed the two men constantly keeping their faces off of the camera. "Did Hawk give you any idea of what these people were looking for?"
"Hawk did have a theory about a plane that has been developed by the navy, but without being able to identify the men in the images it is hard to pinpoint their motivation. Once we determine if they were able to access any of the computers and what they were looking at, we may have a different theory," Watkins scooted forward to pull out a particular picture that showed the two men first entering the office, their heads down. One man definitely attracted attention, a large man who looked like he could play professional football; he seemed to be directing the other man towards a filing cabinet. Don could easily tell who the leader was in the pair as picture after picture showed the built man motioning to the other. "What about the China Lake Naval facility?" Don asked looking up.
Agent Watkins gave a small sigh before answering Don. "Hawk mentioned that particular incident; unfortunately there is little evidence of that actually happening. There was an investigation done by the NCIS and nothing was found. The particular plane that they're referring to, if approved, would give the military a tactical advantage, but more importantly a huge advantage in information gathering."
"You mean spying," Don said looking up at the other man.
Watkins gave him a hard stare. "I mean reconnaissance. Look, I know this got turned over to the FBI, but I want to stay a part of this. I can help you on the military side of this investigation. This began with me, and I'd like to continue to help."
Don and Megan exchanged glances. "We'll keep you in the loop," Don said not wanting to promise the other agent anything.
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"Don! We've got a lead," David called happily as he bounded up to Don's desk and dropped a set of photos on his desk.
"Show me what you've got," Don said, picking up the pictures and flipping through them. He stopped at a very clear picture of three men. The large man in the front kept his head down and faced away from the camera, but the other two men stared ahead, their faces clearly visible in the picture.
"The video surveillance from the first break-in didn't have anything useful, but the video of the last attempt had some very helpful shots," David said with a smile. "This big guy here manages to keep his face hidden the whole time, but we've been able to identify the other who was also in the first video as Mike Laffey, a local heavyweight who is known to hire himself out as a bodyguard. But the interesting thing is the third guy was not at the first break-in. His name is Nelson Booker, a computer hacker out of San Francisco who is wanted for crashing the computer system at some of the largest banks in California. These guys had to have been looking for something in particular – not just browsing."
"Do we have an address?" Don asked trying not to hold his breath.
"I've got an address for Laffey," David said with a slight smile.
An hour later, Don and David were walking up the stairs to the third floor apartment of Mike Laffey. The apartment building was not in the nicest part of Los Angeles; the smell of rotting food and chemicals burned Don's nose. The broken elevator had forced them into the stairwell which had become a haven for stray cats and continued to assault their senses. As they approached the door they could hear raised voices, muffled by the walls but clearly angry words.
Don and David locked eyes, and both pulled their guns, holding them loosely at their sides. Don stepped closer to the door and, without actually touching it, held his ear close.
"Damn it, Booker! You said you had the information downloaded. We aren't gonna have an easy time getting in again!" The angry voice yelled.
"I'm sorry. It said it was done," a second voice whined.
"Quit sniveling. I should kill you right now! You're completely useless! I can't imagine how you came highly recommended," the first voice shouted back.
"Hey, Tom, calm down. I can't afford to have a murder in my apartment. I need my security deposit back," a third voice jumped in.
"Shut the hell up!"
Don glanced back at David and nodded. Stepping back from the door, he paused just before he knocked on the door. The room suddenly became silent and Don knocked a second time.
"Who is it?" the voice Don guessed to be Laffey as the door began to creak open slowly.
"This is the FBI, we need to speak with Mike Laffey," Don stated firmly, shoving his foot in the door to prevent it from closing again.
The stream of swearwords from the room was accompanied by the scrambling of feet and a window breaking. The door sprung open as Laffey let go and headed towards the fire escape.
David took off back down the hall towards the stairs, and Don entered the small apartment. Two of the men were already out on the fire escape while the third man was still scrambling out the window. Don grabbed him by the seat of his pants and pulled him back in and towards the refrigerator. As he cuffed him to the appliance he recognized Booker who looked more terrified than anything.
"Don't move!" Don commanded before following the other two men out the window. He could feel the ladder shake as he climbed down. He heard David shout as he rounded the corner and barreled towards the two men as they dropped from the ladder and took off running. Don allowed himself to slide down the last set rungs before landing hard on the ground with a grunt. He could see the direction where David had disappeared and followed behind.
Rounding the corner, Don found himself alone. He stopped and listened, trying to determine the direction that David and the suspects had gone. Damn, how did this get so out of control? What idiot criminal would hang out in their own apartment when they have to know people are looking for them? A snapping sound brought him up short and he walked cautiously towards a dumpster his gun ready.
The man that stepped in front of him was one of the biggest men he had ever seen. He was probably around the same age as Don and had blond short cropped hair. He towered over Don and his shoulders were almost twice as wide as Don's.
Don started to raise his gun. "Freeze, FBI!" Don tried to say it with confidence as the man reached out and grabbed at the gun before Don got it in position. With a shove Don found himself sliding across the alley but managed to hold on to his gun. The huge man jumped on him knocking the wind out of his lungs. Don managed to get his left elbow free and slammed it into the other man's chin. With a grunt the man rolled off him and Don struggled to sit up. The suspect grabbed Don around the waist and lifted him before hurling him into a large pile of garbage.
Don heard the sound of David shouting and running feet. He watched as the man turned to look back down the alley before turning back to Don and giving him a glare. "Stay out of this, FBI, it doesn't concern you!" He growled and sprinted back the other direction.
Don sat up quickly even as more garbage fell down on top of him and watched as a couple of uniformed LAPD officers flew past him after the suspect. David stopped in front of him and offered him a hand which Don took gratefully.
"Not a word!" Don scowled at David as the other man attempted to hide a smile.
"I wasn't going to say anything," David answered biting his lip. "What kind of aftershave are you using now?"
"Clever." Don stated sarcastically, while putting his gun back in its holster. "Did you get the other guy?"
"No, couldn't find him, and, unless those officers catch that one, they all got away," David said shaking his head.
"Not all of them," Don smiled. "I got Booker! Let's go back to Laffey's apartment and pick him up."
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The Present
"I'm coming!" Alan Eppes called as he trotted swiftly towards the front door. The boys wouldn't knock and Millie won't be here for another two hours, Alan thought as his hand touched the door handle.
When the door swung open Alan had a moment of confusion. Instead of a salesman or missionary, he stood looking at an unknown man dressed in a dark suit and looking definitely like someone from Don's office. He felt his heart stop as it occurred to him that both of his sons had headed up state.
"Mr. Eppes? I'm Agent Jake Kinseth," the dark-haired man at his door said in a low voice. "David Sinclair asked me to stop by. May I come in?"
Alan did not move out of the way. Although a small voice inside pointed out that he was being rude, the rest of him was ready to scream. "Which one of them is hurt and how bad is he?" He asked in a flat voice, his eyes locked on the agent standing in front of him.
"Mr. Eppes," Kinseth began, realizing he was not going to be invited in. "First off, Charlie is fine! He is with Agent Reeves, and they are headed towards Bakersfield…"
"What happened to Don?" Alan interrupted, his face visibly paling.
Kinseth paused, fishing for the right thing to say. "He's being airlifted to Bakersfield Mercy Hospital. He had a…near drowning experience…but he is alive. I really don't have any other details. Agent Sinclair didn't have time to talk. He asked me to pick you up and drive you to Bakersfield. Charlie and Reeves will meet us there."
It only took Alan a second to process this information. He turned and grabbed his keys – and as an afterthought his cell phone – and locked the door behind him. As he followed the agent to his car, Alan had a sinking feeling in his stomach. He wasn't sure he would survive the long drive to Bakersfield without going crazy.
TBC
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