The New Recruits:Out of Time
chapter 3
Maddison pulled the Hummer up to the gated driveway of the Baracan consulate and stopped for a moment. She glanced over to Raymond ,who was lost in his own thoughts, and wondered if bringing him was such a good idea. The loss of his mother had taken over and Maddison knew very well what that could mean. She took this time to make sure that they were on the same page.
"Raymond?" Maddison said getting his attention.
" Hmm?"
" We are here to talk, right?"
" Yeah, sure," Raymond said dismissively.
" Ray,..."
" Look ,Maddie, I said yes. What do you want from me?"
" Your promise that you won't do anything stupid while we are in there. We can get into some serious trouble if Maura finds out about this," Maddison said as she inched the Hummer into the drive. She came to a call box and rolled her window down. Before a voice blared from the speaker, Maddison shot a look to Ray.
" I promise, Maddison. Now get us in there," Raymond returned as he gestured to the speaker.
" How can I help you?" came a voice from the speaker.
" Lieutenant Caine and Detective Caine to see the General," Maddison intoned professionally.
" The General isn't here at the moment. Perhaps you can stop by sometime tomorrow," the voice returned sternly.
" Thank you," Maddison said as she turned to Raymond. She noticed as he was staring at a car that was parked across the street. Maddison rolled the window up and put the Hummer in reverse. As she passed the car , she saw the government plates.
" Never fails," Raymond sighed.
" I wonder what the Feds are doing outside the Baracan consulate?" Maddison said as she drove slowly. Something was telling her that she was going to find out.
TNR
Horatio lifted his head and opened his eyes. For the first time he was able to see where he was. He looked down and noticed that he was still tied to the chair that he was sitting in , but he could also see the room , which was bare. The walls smelled of mildew and he could see the dust as it collected on the window sill that was positioned far above his head. He could see the darkness of the Miami sky and figured that it was early evening and he could almost smell the sea . He wondered what Raymond was going through at that moment. He wanted to be there for his nephew at a time like this. Yelina had been a wonderful mother to Raymond and Horatio knew that it was taking all the strength Maddison had to keep him focused.
As his thoughts shifted from Yelina, he heard the door open and saw a sliver of bright light. When the door closed, he felt the hatred that entered into the room. Through the dim light he could see two bodies as they moved to him.
"Senor Caine. So nice to see you again," A familiar voice said to him. He instantly recognized the smoothness of the General's voice.
" General, I see that your bastard son managed to get out of prison. Tell me, how did you manage that?" Horatio stated sarcastically.
" Senor, is that any way to talk to your host? Americans and there sense of hospitality. If you must know, Clavo has finished his sentence imposed upon him by your judicial system. He is legally a free man."
" He's a murderer , just like Ramon. And just like his half brother, he'll find himself back in a 6x9 cell. Kidnaping is a federal offense," Horatio replied keeping his wits about him.
" Lieutenant Caine, you don't realize, my man, that you are gonna die anyway? There won't be a body for the feds to find. So chill with the threats. Ramon will be a free man tomorrow, and you and your CSI's will be in a world of trouble. Starting with that fine niece of yours. She would make a nice addition to the family, don't you think?" Clavo taunted.
Horatio fought to remain composed as he seethed underneath. He glanced down at the floor and then back up to Clavo, " If you lay a hand on her, I'll kill you myself, Clavo."
" Good one Lieutenant!" Clavo laughed. He then swung at Horatio and connected with his cheek, sending the red head back. Horatio gathered himself and spat the blood out of his mouth. He wasn't going to let Clavo get to him.
" You're just racking up the charges, Clavo. Assault on a police officer adds another five years onto your sentence."
" You crack me up, old man. Really, he's a riot," Clavo said as he turned to the General.
" Clavo! Exercise some control. We need to make the phone call," the General called to his son.
"Oh yeah right," Clavo said as he pulled out his cell phone. " We need to make sure that they are on the right track. Clavo dialed a number and then held the phone away from his ear.
" Caine," came the female voice from the other end. Clavo pushed the phone to Horatio's ear and gestured for him to talk. " Hello? Is anyone there?"
" Maddie,..."
" Horatio?" Maddison askedfearfully.
TNR
Maddison almost dropped the bottle of water she had in her hand when she heard his voice. She noticed that his voice sounded tired and full of pain. She got up quickly and walked out of the break room , heading for the A/V lab. If she could keep Horatio on the phone long enough, she could trace him.
Maddison broke into a trot as she rounded the corner and felt the need to let her tears flow. At least he was still alive.
" Horatio, are you okay?"
" I'm fine, Maddison. Have you gotten anywhere with the situation?"
Stall, Maddison thought to herself. " No, I've gone through all of the proper channels, and there is nothing that we can do. They won't allow it. Do you know where you are at?"
" 14, 18 , 23..."
" What?" Maddison said as she opened the door to the A/V lab. Tyler swung in his chair quickly and glared at her. When he saw her frantic gestures, he instantly knew that he was needed.
" 14, 18, 23, 67..."
Maddison thought for a moment and knew that it was a code for something, but she couldn't remember. Then it came to her, these were pier numbers. He was trying to tell her something.
" I got it Horatio, hold on," Maddison returned as she glanced at Tyler, " hold on."
" Maddison, I..." Horatio said as the phone went dead. Maddison shot Tyler a look as she dropped the phone to her side, noticing that he didn't have a good look about him.
" I just needed three more seconds, Maddison."
Maddison sighed heavily and flipped her phone down. She had nothing. Then she remembered the numbers that he had called out and turned to walk out.
" Thanks, Tyler," she called as the door swung open and shut.
" You're, welcome?" Tyler said to himself.
In the corridor, she met up with Speed who was walking into the lab.
" Speed, are you doing anything tonight?" Maddison said as she stopped him.
Tim stopped and gave her a cockeyed grin, " I'm a married man, Maddie."
Maddison returned the grin and spoke crisply, " Detective Speedle, I need you to come with me to check something out. That is , if you're not too busy. Better?"
" Yeah, sure. Just let me grab my kit," Tim said sarcastically as he moved to open the trace lab door.
" Where are you two going?" a familiar voice said from behind them.
Tim looked up and saw Calleigh as she walked up to them.
" To check a lead in the case. You want to come with?" Maddison asked as she noticed Tim's demeanor change.
" Sure, I'm up for it. I've been in the firearms lab just about all evening. It will do for me to get out some," Calleigh replied as she inadvertently glanced at Tim. " Where are we going?"
" In search of a pier." Maddison returned as she saw Tim run into the trace lab and retrieve his kit. In moments the trio were in the Hummer, heading out of the garage. In search of a needle in a haystack.
TNR
RJ felt his head beating along with the loud thumping of the baseline. He tried to take in what was going on around him as Jen , Jacinda and himself wound through the sea of people . The party was in full swing and the only thing that could be heard above the pulsating music was the DJ that was situated on the stage.
" Do you actually think that we are going to find him in here?" Jacinda yelled as they came to a stop.
" He's the main guy around here, he should be here," RJ said as he looked down at Jacinda. For a split second he forgot what he was here for.
Jen tapped RJ on the arm and pointed in the direction of the bar, " Hey, isn't that him over there?"
RJ and Jacinda looked to where Jen was pointing to see a man with extremely short hair in an impeccable black suit, chatting with a woman. Before RJ could say anything, Jacinda had left his side and walked over to the bar. The woman left , and Jacinda glanced at him. His eyes were a steely blue and cloudy. He had seen many years and stresses and tonight was no different.
" Hey!" Jacinda said eagerly.
The man glanced up from his drink lackadaisically and smiled weakly. " Um, hi."
" This party's awesome! Any idea who's throwing this little shindig?"
" I am," the man answered as he perked up slightly. This woman was beautiful, but he could've sworn that he had seen her before. " I hold these every so often, just to keep my name out there. And you are?"
" I am Jacinda Willison. I just love this place! How are you able to get it?"
" I'm well known around here. The name's Scott, Scott Mandeville. I own a modeling agency."
" Ah, yeah, I remember reading about you somewhere. How did you find finical backing to start your business?"
Mandeville stopped bobbing his head slightly and stared at the woman. He was always hesitant to talk about finances.
" I have a lot of backers, but it took me years and hard work to make it what it is today," Mandeville said weakly.
" Could one of your ' backers' be Clavo Cruz?" Jacinda asked as she dropped the smile. She moved quickly when it was noticed that he was trying to get up. Instantly, RJ appeared behind him and stopped him in his tracks.
" RJ Speedle, CSI. Mind if we talk to you for a moment, Mr.Mandeville?" RJ said as he gestured to his badge.
Mandeville glanced down and then sighed. There was nothing he could do, but cooperate. He was still on probation for his rape charge.
" In my office," Mandeville said as he pushed past RJ.
When they got to his office, Mandeville closed the door and instantly, the music was cut off. The room was sound proof.
" So what can I do for you?" Mandeville asked as he gazed out of the picturesque window into the starry Miami night.
" Can you tell us where Clavo is?" RJ asked .
" I haven't seen him," Mandeville sneered.
" Scottie, this is where you are supposed to ask , 'isn't he in jail?'," Jacinda said as she walked up to him. She could feel his contempt for her as she stood there. " Where is he?"
" I don't have to talk to you," Mandeville said as he turned away from her.
" Sounds like he knows," Jen piped in.
" Yeah, Scott, it does sound like you know something. Maybe you want to come downtown to have a little chat?" RJ quipped.
" I have no intentions on doing so. Now leave."
" Well, Scottie, you see we can't do that," Jacinda said as she smiled a little.
" I'm through with this," Mandeville said as he reached to his phone.
" Umm, I would wait to call security, Scott. We have your finger prints on a card that was found on a dead body this afternoon. That's enough for a warrant for arrest, but we just want to talk, ok?" RJ stated sarcastically .
Mandeville stopped in his tracks and looked between the three CSI. They all looked familiar to him. RJ opened the door and let Jacinda through as she led Mandeville through. The clock was still ticking , and they were running out of time.
TBC...