Chapter 7

A Piece Of The Puzzle

CJ stood hunched over at the top of the hill, panting. That street was steeper than he expected. CJ regained his composure and flung open the door of the betting parlor.

"Hey, Woozie! Where you at?" CJ called into the darkness. "And why are these lights off?"

The lights clicked on and there stood Wu Zi Mu, or as CJ liked to call him, Woozie.

"CJ, you know I don't need the lights on. Won't do me any good."

"Oh, right." CJ muttered sheepishly. Woozie was blind, but he had flawless driving skills. It seemed as if his unfortunate impediment didn't bother him at all. Woozie was unusually optimistic (not to mention lucky) for a man in his position.

"So, what's up, my friend?" Woozie asked, pulling out a chair for CJ to sit on.

"Remember my friend Jay? The guy who helped us bring down the Black Dragon? Did he come by here earlier today?"

"As a matter of fact, he did. He was asking about some arms dealer...what was his name...damn, I forgot the guy's name. Sorry, Carl. I didn't even know who Jay was talking about; I'd never heard of him."

"Well apparently, this bitch sold the bomb that blew up Caligula's Casino."

"Really? Well, you'd think that I would have heard of him, but I actually haven't. I wish I could be of more help."

"Well, do you know where Jay went?"

"To tell you the truth, I wasn't even here when he came by. My men just told me what happened. Go ask Lion. He might know."

"Alright then," replied CJ. "I'll do that."

"Go ahead. He's in the back room."

CJ stood up from his chair and walked up the stairs. He grabbed the doorknob and tried to turn it, but it wouldn't budge.

"Yo, Woozie! The damn thing's locked!"

"What? It shouldn't be locked. See if anyone's inside."

CJ knocked on the door and yelled, "Hey! Anyone in there?" No answer.

"Alright, Woozie, get back." ordered CJ. Woozie did as he was told, and CJ took a few steps backwards. He lowered his shoulder and ran at the door, hitting it full-force. The door flew open and CJ gaped at the sight inside. There stood Little Lion, pinned against the wall by an masked assailant. The would-be murderer had a knife against Lion's throat but turned away when he heard the door crash open.

"James, get the fuck down!" CJ called. Little Lion, aka Inspector James Tom dropped to the ground. CJ shot the masked man in the chest three times and watched as he crumpled to the floor.

"What the hell just happened?" cried Woozie.

"I don't know," panted Lion, out of breath. "Some guy climbed in through the window and put the knife to my neck.

"Did you recognize his voice?" asked Woozie.

"He never said anything. I couldn't see his face either."

CJ went over to the corpse and removed the mask, revealing a lifeless face covered in dirt and scars. He also had greasy, untrimmed hair.

"Hey," CJ called to Lion. "You recognize him?

"Uh, no, I don't think so."

"What does he look like?" asked Woozie.

"Um...muddy, short, white guy, greasy black hair." observed Lion.

Woozie thought for a minute, trying to think where he had heard about someone with those characteristics. Then he said:

"Hey, doesn't that fit the description of one of the murderers from the Dillimore diner? The ones who killed James Charrin?"

"Damn, you're right!" CJ exclaimed in realization. "Tell you what. You guys see what you can find out about this bastard here. I'm gonna go off to find Jay."

"What should we do?" asked Woozie.

"Anything. I don't care. Just see what you can learn about him."

"Will do, CJ. We'll be seeing you."

"Yeah, alright. See you dudes later."

CJ left the betting parlor and stood on the street, pondering his next move. Across the way, a woman was preparing fish. The pungent smell of Chinese spices entered CJ's nostrils, and he gladly welcomed the overpowering scent. Then, the smell of fish guts passed overhead and CJ coughed and clapped his hand over his nose and mouth. CJ shook his head. Gotta think about the matter at hand, he told himself. Don't get high on Chinese spices.

As CJ walked up the street, his phone rang.

"Hello?"

"CJ, it's Joe."

"Fat Joe? What's up, man?"

"These two Ballas came into your house a while ago. They wanted to kill you, but they didn't know you weren't home."

"What? How the fuck did they get in, anyways?"

"They told Tommy they were electricians. He let them in."

"And?"

"We killed them. Spike was shot in the leg though, so he's at the hospital right now."

"Well, at least you took them out. I appreciate that." CJ answered sincerely.

"Where are you, anyways?" Fat Joe questioned.

"Yeah, about that...could you come get me? I'm in San Fierro."

"San Fierro? How the hell did you get there without a car?"

"Long story. So you comin' to get me?"

"Sorry, CJ. I think the best thing for me to do would be to stay out of sight right now. Away from Ballas."

"Alright, fine. Stay low then."

"Ok, homie. I'll be seeing you."

Fat Joe hung up.

"Son of a bitch!" CJ cursed. Then a biker drove up and parked his motorcycle on the curb. He walked into the bar nearby. CJ wasted no time in jumping onto the bike and driving away. CJ laughed as the angry biker shouted strings of curses and insults behind him. CJ paid no attention to the insults, but stopped in his tracks when he heard 'your mom,' 'sex,' and 'cow' in the same sentence. The biker had gone too far. CJ put the bike in reverse and did a 180° spin. He withdrew his gun and trained it on the biker. With a yelp of fear, the biker turned and ran back into the bar.

"You better run!" called CJ. He turned the bike around once more and drove back up the hill. His phone rang again.

"Dammit! Now what?"

CJ pulled out his phone and spoke.

"Hello?"

"It's Jay.

"Jay! Finally, man! I thought you would never call!"

"What?"

"I thought you would never call."

"WHAT?"

"I thought you would ne--...Never mind. My phone's dying. I'm gonna get to a payphone, hold on."

CJ hung up and put his phone back. He turned to the payphone behind him and pulled the grimy phone from the hook. Then he dialed Jay's number.

"Ok, I'm back." CJ said as soon as Jay answered.

"Why didn't you call me earlier?" Jay asked.

"I tried. Your phone wasn't even on, dumbass."

"Right, sorry. I forgot."

"Well, whatever. Where are you?"

"I'm outside the Vank Hoff Hotel."

"Vank Hoff. What a stupid name."

"Yeah, sure, ok. Anyways, come meet me here. I may have a location on our boy."

"The arms dealer?"

"Yeah. I asked around."

"Ok, great. I'll be over there as soon as I can."

CJ didn't even bother to hang up the phone. He climbed back onto the motorcycle and took off.

Meanwhile, in a nearby alley...

"Ok. I have a location on them. Meet me at the Vank Hoff Hotel. We've got some bugs to exterminate.

CJ drove through the crowded streets of Kings. It was nighttime again and CJ was sleepy. This time, though, he promised himself he would stay awake, no matter how tired he was. He tuned the radio to K-DST and listened contently to Lynyrd Skynyrd's "Free Bird." CJ eagerly awaited the guitar riff which would begin halfway through the song and continue until the end. It was CJ's favorite part, and plus, the loud music would keep him awake and alert. CJ was so busy singing and humming to the song that he didn't notice the black Sentinel trailing him, not too far behind. The car would follow CJ all the way to the Vank Hoff Hotel.

CJ exited his car and met up with Jay, who was sitting on a bench outside the hotel.

"Hey, CJ. Want some of this candy? It's good."

"Huh?"

"I bought some chocolate earlier. You want some?" Jay repeated.

"No. Anyways, tell me what you found out." CJ said curiously.

"Well, it wasn't easy, but after a bit of sleuthing I think I may have found out the arms dealer's location.

Sleuthing, CJ thought to himself. What a dork.

"So? Where is he?"

"An old shack up in Las Brujas."

"Las Brujas? The fuckin' desert?" CJ blurted. "Then why did you tell me to meet you here?"

"I don't know. It's right near the candy shop, and I was tired from eating so much candy. I didn't feel like driving."

"Lazy bastard." muttered CJ. "Lemme try some of that candy, then. See how good it is."

CJ opened the box and took a square-shaped chocolate. He took a bite out of it and smiled happily. The cool flavor of the chocolate and...whatever else was in it...was wonderful.

"Damn, man! This is good! Where'd you get it, anyways?" CJ asked.

"Right down the street. It was pretty cheap, too."

"Well, I'm gonna go get some. You gonna stay here or do you wanna come?"

"I'll go with you."

"A'ight then. Let's get my fat ass some candy."

CJ and Jay walked down to the candy store, eating more and more chocolate as they walked.

They pushed open the door and walked inside. A tiny bell rang overhead as the door was opened.

"Hello, boys." The old man at the counter greeted CJ and Jay as they passed by. "Can I help you find anything?"

"No, that's ok." Jay answered politely as CJ took the box from the shelf and placed it on the counter.

Meanwhile, as CJ and Jay were making their purchase, the black Sentinel that had been trailing CJ earlier pulled up outside. Two men got out and entered the candy shop. The first man pointed to CJ and Jay.

"You two: come with us." he ordered.

"What? Who are you?" questioned Jay suspiciously.

The second man pulled a Desert Eagle and pointed it at CJ.

"Come with us now!" he yelled.

CJ dropped to the floor as Jay shot the mysterious man in the head. The bullet entered through the forehead and came out the back, covered with blood and brain matter. It smashed into the wall as the man's mouth dropped open and he fell to the ground, his eyes staring lifelessly into the distance.

"Holy God!" the cashier cried, dropping behind his register. He pressed the red security button under the counter and covered his head.

"Don't worry sir, I'm a policeman." Jay called to the cowering man.

"That's nice!" cried the man. "There's a gun battle going on in my shop; how am I supposed to keep calm?"

"Easy, easy," said CJ. "Don't give yourself a heart attack."

The gunman opened fire and CJ dove into a nearby aisle.

"Jay! Little help here?" CJ called frantically.

"Where are you? There's like a million aisles in this place."

"I'm in the one with the candy!" cried CJ.

"No shit, Sherlock! Which aisle with the candy?"

"I can't call out the number. He'll find me!" said CJ.

"Damn, you're right." realized Jay.

CJ darted from aisle to aisle, trying to hide. He called out the number of each aisle he went to, trying to confuse the gunman and at the same time, give Jay a location. It was harder to tell who was getting more confused: Jay or the gunman.

"Screw this cat-and-mouse bullshit!" exclaimed the gunman. "You're dead, little man!"

From his pocket, he produced a grenade. He lobbed towards the direction of CJ's voice and watched it arc through the air. The grenade exploded and there was an audible scream. A few of the shelves and displays caught fire as well.

"CJ?" Jay called, fearing the worst. "CJ! CJ!"

CJ quietly snuck up behind Jay.

"Ssshhh." whispered CJ. "I'm right here." He took Jay's gun and crept silently towards the gunman. Unfortunately, the reflective candy display nearby gave away CJ's location, and the wary gunman dove into an aisle.

"Motherfucker!" CJ yelled angrily.

"Watch this." said Jay. He took a few steps backward, then ran up and slammed into the first shelf on the aisle. The shelf toppled forward, knocking into the next shelf. That shelf knocked down the third shelf, and soon every shelf was falling over. The gunman ran into the open to avoid being hit by the crashing shelves, and was promptly gunned down by CJ. The cashier emerged from his hiding place with a fire extinguisher and raced towards the burning shelves. He sprayed the foam over the blaze, taking it out before it could cause any real damage.

The shopkeeper surveyed the damage and sighed. He couldn't afford to fix his store.

"We're really sorry about this, sir." apologized Jay. "Is there any way we can help?"

"I've got an idea." said CJ. He walked over to the man and opened his checkbook. He signed the check, ripped it out, and handed it to the man.

"Two hundred thousand dollars!" exclaimed the shopkeeper. "How the heck can you afford that?"

"Aw, it's all good." replied CJ. "Maybe it'll get you started."

"Pssh. Yeah, maybe." scoffed the shopkeeper. "How can I ever thank you?"

"Forget it. Just keep making the best chocolate in San Fierro, that's all."

"Hey, CJ! Check this out!" called Jay, who had been busy investigating the gunman's body.

CJ went over to Jay, who was holding up the dead man's hand.

"Look at this ring! It looks strange, doesn't it? The first guy was wearing a ring just like this one."

"That's weird. The guy guarding the drug shipment had one too. The guy on the train."

"They're all from the same gang." said Jay

"So that means these guys are Forellis then. What the fuck do they want with us?" wondered CJ

"Maybe they're pissed at you for blowing up the train." suggested Jay.

"No, I don't think so. Remember, the first guy asked for both of us. He knew that you and I were working together. The guy from the train only saw me, remember?"

"So that means they must have followed us to the shop." said Jay

"Or they heard us talking outside the hotel.

"Or they've been listening in on our damn phone calls."

"Maybe they're working for that arms dealer dude."

"Good point."

"So then, let's get this shit straight. The Forellis are major arms dealers who sold the bomb that blew up Caligula's?" CJ asked, more confused than ever.

"Not necessarily. Maybe the arms dealer hired these two guys. It was just a side job for them."

"Ok. So the guys we fought are all Forellis. Except these two fools are moonlighting as assassins for a powerful arms dealer, right? So the guy on the train had nothing to do with this." CJ said.

"So where do Catalina and Kelly come in?" asked Jay.

"They were just hired by their boss to buy the bomb from the arms dealer. Catalina and Kelly planted the bomb in the casino. The dealer didn't know what the bomb was for. But these two Mafia guys here must have bugged our phone call. They knew that we were coming for their boss." answered CJ.

"But, that doesn't make sense. You'd think that these guys were hired a while ago, right? Like, a long time ago?"

"Yeah, that makes sense."

"But we talked about hunting the arms dealer down today. We talked about it today. They only heard us talking about it a few hours ago. So that means—"

"That means that they weren't hired just to assassinate us then. They couldn't have been hired and briefed in just two hours." finished CJ.

"Holy shit." muttered Jay. "This made so much sense before we came into this store."

Still confused by what was going on, CJ and Jay left the store, everything a blur.