A/N - Sorry for the delay in this chapter. It took quite a long time to write. It is a little long; probably one of the the longest chapters in the entire story but there was no way to shorten it. It was actually going to be quite a bit longer and I realized that it was getting ridiculous.
Please enjoy
Yours Sincerely,
Alice I
Chapter Forty-Five
The past four days were difficult for Don. He remembered everything that had happened and asked about Colby regularly only to be frustrated by the fact that he wasn't getting satisfactory answers. The man had saved his life at a terrible cost and he desperately wanted to know how his friend and colleague was fairing.
Both Megan and David had come by as often as time and security would permit. They had informed him that Colby had undergone surgery for the burns on the left side of his back and arm and that his damaged left kidney had been removed but they did not have much information about his overall prognosis. Don was relieved to hear that Colby's father had flown in and was spending all of his time with the young agent.
'At least he can have his family for support.'
Don mentally scolded himself for that thought. He did not want to risk his own family's safety just so he could feel better or less lonely. He had met and spoken with all of the NSA agents assigned in LA except the two who were assigned to rotate surveillance on Saborgia. Three of these agents seemed to know Charlie very well and traded stories with Don about his particular eccentricities. This helped to ease his feelings of isolation but he missed his father and brother more than he ever thought he could.
He found himself marveling at a whole separate life that his younger brother seemed to have. Don was eternally grateful that his brother had these contacts since he had been brought up to speed by Megan and David about the informant within their own ranks.
Don found himself going over every agent in his mind trying to figure out who this traitor could be, and what he would do to him if he ever got his hands on him. Anger seethed below his outward emotions by the betrayal of someone he trusted.
David told him that Charlie was helping to pinpoint who the informant might be even though he knew that he shouldn't. Don was so insistent on knowing what was being done to find the bastard who had turned their lives upside down that David felt he had no real choice in the matter.
Much to David's surprise, Don supported the idea of using his brother's expertise to assist in the investigation. Don knew his brother well and was aware that Charlie needed to do something proactive to help resolve their current circumstances. Charlie was never one to sit back and allow others to solve his problems and Don found himself somewhat envious of his younger sibling. He was also feeling the insatiable desire to get up out of his hospital bed and lead the investigation but the fractured skull and the ensuing dizzy spells and nausea associated with the injury kept him reasonably immobile.
Don was beyond relieved when three days after he regained consciousness the VAC bandage was removed from his chest. The incision had shown excellent progress in healing and since the sternum was never actually sawed open the healing process progressed much faster than a full sternotomy would have.
Dr. Spinner was pleased that the chest wound had healed so well and that all signs of the previous infection were gone. Her main concern now was Don's fractured skull and the concussion associated with it. She had allowed him to begin becoming a little more mobile but left strict instructions that he must have physical assistance when he wanted to get up to move to the recliner in his room or to use the bathroom.
Normally Don would have resisted this help but that changed the first time he tried to get up and nearly passed out when a wave of dizziness and nausea overcame him. He grudgingly admitted that it would be quite a while before he would fully recover from the head wound and once again felt his anger rise at the unknown informant who had divulged his location to Saborgia's hit man.
Four days after regaining consciousness Megan came by to see Don with the news that Charlie had not only found out who the informant within the Bureau was, but had also identified two LAPD officers and a judge who were also on Saborgia's payroll. She and David had personally arrested Bill Peterson based on the evidence that Charlie had collected after his financial investigation into Saborgia's cash flow.
Don sat stunned by the news that it was Peterson who had turned bad. He had worked side by side with this man from the time he transferred to LA from Albuquerque. He knew that Bill had lost a child some years ago before he had come to LA but he couldn't imagine anyone using their dead child's identity to collect payment from the mob. Bill had always seemed to be a dedicated agent. Don had trouble understanding how this man could betray his fellow agents the way that he had.
Don's anger at this betrayal was very real and quite powerful, but he also felt a sense of pity toward Peterson. Could the death of a child actually cause this kind of warped behavior in someone? Don had no children so he couldn't truly understand what it felt like to lose a child and as angry as he felt toward the informant, he also felt remorse.
Megan and David had personally conducted the interrogation of Peterson and were satisfied that he was unaware that Don was still alive. He had also been responsible for the leak some years ago that had resulted in the death of an agent and was going to be formally charged as an accessory to murder in his death. Peterson wanted to broker a deal with the Bureau to get a lesser sentence for information that would lead to the arrest of Saborgia in several deaths of not only the FBI agent but several federal witnesses.
Megan brought this request to Director Donaldson who was considering it. She wanted Don to know about this as well. If they could legitimately arrest Saborgia it might impact the contract out on their lives. Pretoria had already been paid but if they could get Saborgia to give up his location then they might be able to put an end to this situation. Donaldson was not inclined to grant Peterson's request until Megan told him that Don was indeed still alive.
Once Donaldson stopped shouting at her he sat down behind his desk and hung his head. He wanted to know why she felt the need to keep this vital piece of information from him. Megan braced herself for this encounter. She knew that she would be seriously disciplined for withholding this information from the Director but she stood by her decision.
Director Donaldson was not happy that he had been kept out of the loop with the status of Agent's Eppes' welfare and told Megan that he wanted a full report excluding no information and detailing exactly what had happened since the explosion at County General. He told her that the report was to be on his desk by the next morning or she would find herself on indefinite disciplinary suspension. The Director decided to read her report in full before he decided what action would be officially taken against her which was better than she had hoped for.
As these thoughts ran through Megan's mind she seemed to fade out from her conversation with Don.
"Megan! Hey are you ok?"
"Oh sorry, Don. Look it's getting late and I should let you get some rest."
As she rose to leave her cell phone rang shrilly. She grabbed it quickly and answered "Reeves" as she turned away from the cross look that the nurse passing the room at that very moment gave her. Cell phones were not allowed in hospitals, but Megan didn't care. She was still on dutyand she felt that if the doctors could use pagers that use the same radio frequencies as cell phones then she wasn't doing any harm. Besides there were no heart monitored patients on this ward.
"What? That's great. Stay on Pretoria. I'll call in a tact team and meet you there. If he leaves tail him and keep me informed."
Megan slapped her phone shut and smiled widely at Don.
"This will all be over by the end of the evening. We found your hit man."
Before Don could ask her questions that she didn't have time to answer she was out the door with her cell phone plastered to her ear.
"David, its Megan…"
Don lost the sound of her voice as she walked off down the hallway and out of the ward's main doors.
As dusk descended on the city Charlie sat under a palm tree in front of Union Station waiting for Alto DiBenedetto. He had managed to stave off the anxiety attack that threatened to consume him through concentration and the breathing exercises that David had taught him. He was still terrified by the prospect of what he was doing.
Charlie had done some research on Alto DiBenedetto and found that he considered himself to be a man of honor. This struck Charlie as utterly ludicrous as he was thought to be responsible for so many deaths. The violent history of the DiBenedetto family was well known if legally improvable. This family was responsible for setting up illegal gambling, extortion, prostitution rings, drug smuggling and a host of other crimes that the DA had never had sufficient evidence to convict with.
The fact that DiBenedetto prided himself as a family man and a Christian was so contradictory to his business practices that Charlie could only view the man as a blatant hypocrite. DiBenedetto actually agreed to an interview with a local news station two years ago where he described himself as the consummate Christian father attending Sunday mass every week. He had stated in that interview that he would do anything for his family.
Charlie was appalled by this interview but he could use DiBenedetto's own words to his advantage. Charlie was doing what he needed to do to protect his own family and he hoped that recalling that sentiment to DiBenedetto would keep him in one piece.
A black van pulled up along the road in front of the walkway leading up to the front entrance of Union Station. Charlie stared at it for a moment wondering if the Don of the most powerful Mob family in LA would actually arrive in such a vehicle. Two men stepped out of the van. One of them was dressed smartly in an Armani suit that probably cost as much as a full consulting fee for any one of Charlie's projects and the other was dressed in dark pants and a leather jacket. The scruffier of the two turned left and walked off while the one in the Armani suit stepped forward and began to walk up the brick walkway toward the station.
Neither one of these men was Alto DiBenedetto. Charlie had watched a recording on-line of the television interview with him and he was a man only a few years younger than his father. Both of these men looked to be in their thirties. Charlie stood up slowly as the man approached the sundial and moved around so that his body was obscured by the trunk of the palm tree. The man stopped directly in front of the large sundial in the middle of the brick walkway and began to turn his head as if looking for someone.
Charlie was peering at the man in the suit so intently that he didn't hear the other man who had exited the van walk up quietly behind him. The young mathematician froze as the cold steel of a gun muzzle pressed up against the nape of his neck and a deep voice whispered harshly in his ear.
"Don't move or speak."
The man behind Charlie wrapped a strong hand around his upper arm and began to push him out from his hiding place. The Armani suit looked over in their direction as Charlie was forced out in the open. He nodded at the man holding Charlie and turned to walk back toward the black van. The harsh voice was back.
"You wanted to see Mr. DiBenedetto. We are going to take you to him. Now move."
Charlie felt the panic rise up inside of him. He had not anticipated that Alto would not actually come to meet with him and he berated himself for being so stupid. Of course the most powerful mob boss in LA wouldn't show up to a meeting with an unknown even with the claim of showing proof that someone within his ranks was stealing money from him. The man had not come into this kind of power by making stupid decisions.
'This is why you aren't the FBI agent. This is why you should leave this kind of thing to Don and stay in your classroom.'
Charlie walked forward where the man was directing him with his powerful grip. They walked along the grassy area in front of Union Station amongst the palm trees that ran parallel to the main walk until the grass slopped down and met the sidewalk along the road. Within moments Charlie was being unceremoniously shoved into the van.
Neither of the men spoke to Charlie while they drove. There were no windows in the back of the vehicle and a solid partition with a small window between the rear of the vehicle and the driver's compartment so Charlie had no idea where they were going.
He was nearly as terrified as he was when Jon and he had been kidnapped by Shelly Arbury. This thought actually helped to steel his resolve and calm him somewhat. He had just been thinking to himself that he should have stayed in his class room and then he remembered the note that Shelly had stapled to his chest saying the same thing. Charlie raised his hand to his chest and rubbed at the small marks that were the only evidence of the injury he had sustained when she stapled him.
Had it really only been two weeks ago that all of this had happened? The tenderness of the spots where the staples and pierced his skin and bone told him that it was not so long ago that he had endured such intense fear and mental torture. What would he endure now in the clutches of these men devoid of conscience? Alto said that he would do anything for his family. That is the emotional card Charlie would play with this man and pray that he was speaking truthfully about that to the reporter who interviewed him.
After driving for nearly fifteen minutes the van came to a stop and the two men who had abducted him got out. He heard talking outside the vehicle and someone laughed in a rough and callous voice. After a few minutes of wondering what was going to happen next Charlie heard another vehicle pull up.
There was some shuffling of feet and more talking but Charlie couldn't make out any of the words being said. He sat on the floor of the van breathing slowly and counting as he felt the fear begin to rise like bile in his throat.
The side door of the van opened abruptly and the bright headlights from the other vehicle blinded Charlie. He raised his hand to his face to ward off the light as a tall figure approached him. The man stood in front of the open door of the van flanked by two other men and was blocking enough of the headlight's glare that Charlie was able to lower his hand from his eyes. He knew that he was face to face with the most powerful syndicate boss in Los Angeles even though he could scarcely make out any features of the man's face with the brightness of the lights behind him.
Having worked for agencies like the FBI and the NSA Charlie realized that this was an interrogation tactic. He was at a distinct disadvantage here and he knew it. DiBenedetto had made sure that Charlie was in a position where he could not fully see who he was facing. He was sitting in the van and couldn't stand up to find himself on equal ground with the man before him. He would be much shorter if they were standing facing each other but at least he would be on his own two feet. This was not possible at this point because the large frame of Alto DiBenedetto filled the opening of the van and gave Charlie no escape.
'He is who he is for a reason.' Charlie thought ruefully.
He was terrified but also determined. There was no way to back out now so the most logical thing for him to do was to move forward with his plan. All of these factors and variables about his current situation flashed before him at an amazing rate and the resolve that Charlie began to feel showed clearly in his face. DiBenedetto did not miss this at all.
"What is your name?"
This took Charlie a little by surprise. Of all of the questions he had anticipated being asked first this was not one of them although it seemed a fair question. He had after all contacted DiBenedetto with alarming news without giving any information as to who he was. Now Charlie wondered if he should tell this man the truth or lie. There was a contract out on his life at the moment, authored by his nephew. Charlie was certain that Alto was aware of all contracts that were current in the LA area and giving his name could easily be a death sentence, but it was going to come to revealing who he was at some point in there conversation because the removal of the contract was Charlie's goal.
"I am Charles Edward Eppes and the information that I have is not only true but I have the proof to back it up."
Alto DiBenedetto knew about the explosion at County General and that an FBI agent had been killed in the blast. He knew that his nephew Tony had agreed to a hit on two brothers one of them being the FBI agent who was killed. He had discussed this with his nephew briefly and warned him that these private business ventures that he got involved in needed to not interfere with the family or their business interests. It seemed to Alto that this is indeed what had happened.
One of the men who was standing next to DiBenedetto left at the mention of Charlie's name and Charlie had to move his head so that he wasn't blinded again by the headlights of the car facing the side of the van.
"What information do you have, and how did you come by it?"
This was the part of his plan that Charlie had been unsure of right from the start. There was no way to lie about how he had discovered Tony Saborgia's embezzlement. Charlie suspected quite strongly that lying to Alto DiBenedetto was something that you only did once. He took a deep breath and decided that his best option was the complete truth.
"The information that I have concerns your money flow and financial records. Someone that you trust has been embezzling money from your accounts for the past four years. As of this afternoon three million eight hundred thousand six hundred twenty-three dollars and ninety-seven cents has been siphoned from your offshore investment accounts."
The posture of the man standing before him shifted and Charlie got the distinct sense that DiBenedetto was stunned by this number.
"It is not possible that I have had that kind of money stolen from me without my accountants informing me of this. Are you saying that my accountants are the thieves?"
The tone that was used broached no argument. This man wanted answers and he wanted them now.
"No sir, the money was taken from interest and taken in a very clever way. Your accountants would not have seen this pattern. It would have been invisible to them."
"But not to you?"
"I have a unique way with numbers Mr. DiBenedetto. I see patterns where others can't. I have seen this pattern before on other embezzlement cases that I have worked on. It is very hard to spot and even harder to trace."
There was movement from behind DiBenedetto and he turned to walk back toward the other car. The man standing to the left of DiBenedetto smoothly stepped in front of the open van door effectively blocking any escape. Charlie also noticed that the man held a semi automatic weapon and he swallowed hard.
After a few minutes of discussion the first man handed some sheets of paper to his boss and the both walked back to the van where Charlie sat.
"Dr. Charles Edward Eppes; Professor of Applied Mathematics at California Scientific Institute. You also consult for the FBI. You are a genius in your field. You went to Princeton at the age of thirteen and have three doctorates within your field. What I want to know is how you came to know that nearly four million dollars has been stolen from me."
Charlie waited for a moment before answering. He took two slow breaths to try and squash the panic that had begun to threaten to take hold of him. He thought of his brother and his family and looked up into the darkened face staring down at him.
"I researched your family's financial background and hacked into your offshore and stateside banks to map out the money flow."
"Why?"
The tone of DiBenedetto's voice was dangerous and it sent a chill down Charlie's spine. As hard as he tried Charlie couldn't keep the tremor of pure fear out of his voice when he answered.
"Shelly Arbury, the FBI killer, has arranged a contract on the life of my brother and me through your nephew, Anthony Saborgia. I was going to blackmail you to get that contract rescinded. When I discovered that your money was being embezzled within your own organization I realized that trading that information for the contract had a higher probability of success."
Charlie wasn't sure what he expected but the quiet voice filled with anger that Alto used next frightened him more than anything else had so far during this encounter.
"You delved into my personal affairs. You found a path to… how did you put it… map the money flow when no other government agency could? You planned to use this information, which you acquired illegally, to blackmail me, which is also illegal. Where is this 'proof' that you claim to have of this theft of my money?"
Charlie reached a shaking hand into his pocket and withdrew the disc he had burned.
"And tell me professor, what is to stop me from killing you right now and taking that disc?"
"Its password protected."
"I have my own computer wiz, professor. I am sure that he can access that disc without your password."
Charlie was beyond scared now. He didn't believe that the 'computer wiz' that DiBenedetto had would actually be able to break his encryption but it was certainly possible and all DiBenedetto needed to do was believe that this guy could read the disc without Charlie divulging the password and he was as good as dead.
"The encryption on this disc is unbreakable, I programmed it myself and I am an expert with encryption ciphers."
Charlie was bluffing a little now. Yes he was an expert with encryption ciphers and it was highly unlikely that someone below his level of expertise could break his encryption but it was not impossible.
"You have that sheet there on me, so I am sure that you realize that I'm telling the truth."
"You may be a genius but from where I'm standing you're either the dumbest guy on the planet or you have bigger balls than I do; maybe both. You are a danger to me. If you were able to access all of my financial records both locally and offshore once then you could do it again. Your plan to use this information in trade has backfired on you professor. I can not let you live. You work for the FBI. You are a clear and present danger to me."
Charlie shrank back from the man blocking the open doorway to the van. He was sure that he was going to die at this point but he had resolved to finish this so he summoned all of his courage and began speaking in a faint voice that gained strength as he continued.
"I am no more of a threat to you than any other high level mathematician. You can kill all of the mathematicians in the world. I got this information in a way that could not be used legally against you in a court of law, so I couldn't do this again for the FBI or the DA's office. If this disc were to anonymously fall into the hands of the authorities then they could probably use it but I couldn't hand it over to them."
Alto was not looking convinced. During the course of their conversation Charlie's eyes had adjusted to the light and he was able to make out the mob boss' facial features. He had to find a way to get through to this man or he was dead.
"You did an interview a couple of years ago with WTWK. You said that you would do anything to protect your family. That is what I am doing. I know that once a contract has been taken out on someone there is no where to run, so I did the only thing I could do to save my family."
Alto stared hard at Charlie for a moment not saying anything. He seemed to be mulling this over in his mind. Charlie began to feel some hope that he might just survive this encounter after all when the large man reached out and grabbed him by the front of his shirt bodily hauling him out of the van. The move was so sudden that Charlie was taken completely by surprise and couldn't do anything to fend off the powerful man.
Alto threw him toward three men standing behind him and nodded to them. Before Charlie could ask what was happening one of the men seized him from behind pinning his arms and hauled him to his feet. The disc was ripped from his grip and tossed to Alto who stood back and watched as one of his men pulled a shiny object from a pocket and fitted it over his hand. Charlie balanced when he saw the brass knuckles.
'They still make those things?'
"What are you doing? Why? I told you I'm just trying to protect my family!"
The man with the brass knuckles punched Charlie hard in the chest sending a raw wave of pain through him. He suddenly felt as if he were back in the print room of Bell Publications and was having another note stapled to his chest. Charlie's knees buckled as the wind was knocked out of him but he didn't fall because the man behind him held him firmly in place.
After several more blows to his ribs and abdomen the young man felt his strength waning. A powerful blow to the left side of his face nearly knocked him out and Alto held up a hand to stop the beating.
"You should not have considered blackmailing me or even thought about invading my privacy by going through my finances. That invasion of my private matters can not go unpunished."
Alto stood back and handed the disc off to another man who retreated to the inside of the car, a black stretch limousine, that was facing the van Charlie had been brought in. The mathematician realized that Alto was going to have his man try to break the encryption on the disc and wondered how that boded for him and if the beating would continue. To his horror he saw the mob boss nod once again to his men.
Charlie lost all sense of self as the two men facing him pounded his face, chest and abdomen relentlessly. He would have cried out but he had no voice or breath to do so. After what seemed like hours the man holding his arms behind his back let go and he dropped in a boneless heap on the ground.
The next thing that Charlie was aware of was someone grasping a handful of his hair and pulling his head up. His left eye was swollen shut making it difficult to focus. His right eye still seemed to function and he looked up into the angry face of Alto DiBenedetto. The man had squatted down in front of Charlie while one of his tormentors held his head up to face the Mob boss. DiBenedetto pulled a gun from his inside of his coat and brought it right up to Charlie's forehead.
'Oh, God, I'm going to die now. I wonder if it will hurt as much as those knuckles?'
"I could kill you right now, Professor and hope that my accountants can eventually open that disc but I am an impatient man. I will make a deal with you. If the information on that disc proves to be true and I find out who has been stealing money from me I will make sure that the contract on your life is revoked. If it turns out that this is all some sort of bluff, I will kill you personally. Now give me the password or I will shoot you right here and now."
Charlie felt relief wash over him and he began to tremble with that release. He knew that the information was good but what would stop this man from getting what he wanted then killing him anyway.
"How do I know that you won't kill me after you read the disc?"
Charlie hated the way his voice sounded, filled with terror, but he wanted to have some kind of assurance before he gave away the only piece of information keeping him alive.
"I will give you my word, Professor. If you have done your research on me, as I know you have, you will know that when Alto DiBenedetto gives his word he doesn't break it. As you said, you were only doing what you needed to do to protect your family. I can respect that. I admire your moxy; it's not everyday that I'm challenged by someone such as yourself. So what will it be Professor?"
This was the best that Charlie could hope for and he realized that he would have to trust that DiBenedetto would keep his word, especially after that little speech he just made in front of his men.
"Praesto Vereor."
Alto looked at Charlie for a moment surprised by the password. "I grew up with a classical background Professor. You have chosen two Latin words that when put together mean 'To stand before fear'. Why did you choose this as your password?"
"Ever since this whole thing started I have been afraid; for my brother, for me. I had to conquer that fear to find the answer; to save my family."
Charlie was wavering in and out of consciousness at this point. He was vaguely aware of giving the password for the disc and telling someone why he chose that particular password, but it all began to fade into darkness. Who ever was holding him by his hair let go and he felt his head drop to the ground with a muffled grunt. His right eye was open a slit and he saw blurry shapes walking around in the light from the headlamps of a car. There were deep voices talking but he couldn't make out the words.
Every inch of his body hurt and it was very difficult to take anything more than shallow breaths. The milling about came to an abrupt halt when a loud and angry voice began shouting obscenities. The feet quickly moved and the sound of slamming doors filled the air. An engine revved up then another followed by the squealing of tires and then everything was dark and cold.
Charlie tried to move; tried to get up but his body was like a lead weight. He tried to roll over but a sharp pain in his chest and left side prevented him from doing anything of the sort. They had not killed him, but they had left him here, where ever here was, broken and bleeding. Maybe he would die here, maybe he would be found by some unsavory character, maybe…
He couldn't think anymore, all he could do was close his eyes and try to keep breathing. He was faintly aware that the pain was ebbing away as he drifted into blissful darkness.
