A Dark Order

"I have my own shit to do later," Eve said. "I still need to find the guy who had my brother killed."

"Don't you think we should try to find Patch first?" Jack said.

"You will need my help for that one for sure, because Patch will be more likely to find you before you find him, but right now I need to focus on my stuff first," Eve said. "I know I've been helping you, but I have my own shit to settle. If I find something, I will call you."

"Okay, Eve," Jack said. "Call me on that cellphone if you find anything."

"I will, see you later, handsome," Eve said.

It was true. As much as much as Eve had been helping out Jack lately, he remembered that Eve wanted to avenge her brother's death. Now that Jack thought about it, why was Eve willing to help him out? Eve had told him that Sanderville had hired her to kill him, but she didn't. Why was she willing to help him out? If Eve had mentioned her real name to him a few nights prior, something must have been up if he had earned her trust like this. Nonetheless, he still needed her help as they had been working together.

RING! RING! RING! The payphone rang the moment Jack got off the phone with Eve. What the…? Jack thought. Jack was out in the outskirts of Grant City. The closest to civilization was the docks, and that was some miles away. It didn't look like the call was for anybody else around. Any person who was around was too into their own thing. Jack would have had someone close by if the call was expected for any bystander. The phone continued to ring. All Jack could do was pick it up.

"Hello?"

"Jack Slate? This is Senator James Copeland. We need to talk really soon."

"How soon is 'really soon'?" Jack said. "I got a lot on my plate."

"Something I should tell you, how soon do you want to get to the bottom of finding your father's killer?" Copeland said.

Jack quickly looked up. Something told him that the senator may know something. All this time, he had ensured Hildy would be safe. Come to think of it, he felt the need to call her soon. Other things he needed to do was find Ruby, and Chris was going to help him on this one. But if this senator knew anything, Jack may finally be on the right path to solving the one thing he wanted to do since busting out of prison.

By the time night fell over Grant City, Jack made his way to an old large building somewhere in the middle of the city. The building was old, as well as large, with tall pillars at the front. James Copeland stood there with bodyguards as he awaited Jack's arrival.

I was confused. Jack thought. This was a man who knew exactly where I was at certain moments. I don't know how or why, but what's clear here is that if it wasn't for him I wouldn't be here. If this guy was more than willing to help me, he must know something.

James Copeland was an older man, particularly somewhere in his 60s, 70s tops, with a pair of glasses and wore a suit and stood next a pillar like he was prepared for this meeting.

"Jack Slate?" Copeland said.

"The one and only," Jack said with a minor touch of sarcasm in his voice.

"Let's go inside, we need to talk," Copeland said.

The men went inside. Shadow came along. It didn't appear that the senator and his bodyguards were opposed to Jack bringing along his dog. Shadow was well-trained and likely knew better than to not ruin the building's fine furniture.

"Despite the general misconception, this building actually predates the city hall by two years, thus being the oldest municipal building still in use here at the foot of the Grant City Bridge," Copeland said.

"No kidding," Jack said as he looked around.

The old man played tour guide as he led me through a dark, domed hall. Jack thought. The answers I was after loomed large ahead.

Copeland led Jack around and there appeared to be a meeting inside a room with a screen and a projector. Jack peered a little bit.

"Not now, Mr. Slate, we need to talk in my office," Copeland said. Jack jumped and glanced at him speechlessly. Who is this guy? Jack thought.

They stepped inside Copeland's office. This man had mounted animals and portraits of himself with various people on the walls. Jack saw a picture of Copeland with some younger people, like they were in their 30s as well as a little girl and other kids, likely his children and grandchildren. This picture couldn't have been recent as Copeland appeared to be at least a decade younger in that photo.

Copeland went behind his desk and sat down. "Sit, please." The authority in his voice caused Jack to sit down at a moment's notice.

"Okay, Mr. Slate, I know what you're thinking," Copeland said, as if he cut right to the chase. "You're probably wondering how and why I helped you that night, how I knew where you were when I called you earlier today. Most of all, what it is that I want from you."

This guy is good. Jack thought. It's like he knew what I was going to say.

"Tell me something, Mr. Slate," Copeland said. "Do you have any idea what is going on here?"

"I have no clue," Jack said. "All I know is that I have too much going on that is getting in the way of my main goal."

"Your goal, I know what it is," Copeland said. "You want to know who had your father murdered, as well as want to know who had put out a contract on Gloria Exner. There's something that I want you solve for me and then I can give you something that you want."

"Do you know who had my father killed?" Jack said.

"I didn't say that, but if you help me with what I want, I can give you a pardon."

"What's the catch?"

Copeland took a drink of water and cleared his throat. "I, along with any of my men, can fill some of your gaps. As you already, this city is corrupt as it is. Someone put a contract out on Exner, tried to have her killed, likely to ensure a unanimous decision in William Pinnacle's re-election. There is not a single criminal operation that Pinnacle doesn't have a hand in."

"Are you saying that Mayor Pinnacle had something to do with my father's death?" Jack said. "If you have so much power, why didn't you or the governor have the city shut down, or crack down on all of these criminal organizations?"

"It's possible," Copeland said. "Listen to me when I say this. I had some of my men follow you, which was how I knew where you were at that very moment, when you went to deal with Sanderville at his building, and also at his home. Pinnacle had made some dealings with Sanderville, but because his operation was dwindling, Pinnacle shifted his focus to working with Fahook Ubduhl. This is where it gets more interesting.

Copeland reached for a key to open a safe that he had behind a painting. The old man pulled out a folder and handed it to Jack, who then opened it up. Inside there were photos of a teenage girl in a schoolgirl uniform. They looked like they were taken from a distance, with different framed shots implying that the girl was being watched. There was also a note inside that read:

Senator Copeland,

Play ball with us, or we get your granddaughter to work with us. We're not fucking around here.

Love, wouldn't you like to know?

Inside there were more photos, likely still images of a sex tape that had Copeland with someone who was very much familiar to Jack.

Shit, Ruby, what the fuck were you doing? As much as the imagery was unpleasant for Jack to look at, he knew that someone crossed the line with extortion. After Hildy had told Jack about Fahook Ubduhl's operation, he also wondered if Hector Cruz was involved in some way, with his pornography operation. However, the teenage girl looked to be underage and the facial features resembled that little girl in one of the photos Jack saw after he entered the office, only older than how old she was in that picture. But what really caught Jack off-guard some more was that Ruby had been used as a pawn in this scheme. What she had been up to all this time, especially while Jack was in prison, and what she was up to in that moment, Jack knew he needed to find her as soon as possible.

"So you see, the reason I hadn't done anything was because someone had found my granddaughter," Copeland said. "My organization would have handled this a long time ago, but someone backed me into a corner."

"Who do you think did this?" Jack said. "Pinnacle? Fahook?"

"I don't know, which is why I want you to find out who is behind this," Copeland said.

"How do you expect me to do this? I'm a fucking escaped con," Jack said. "Dick Hennessey likely has all of the Grant City fucking Police Department gunning for my ass. I don't think he gives a shit about putting me in jail. He'll want me dead. And did I hear you say 'your organization'?"

"Yes, my organization, the Dark Order," Copeland said. "We have our ways of knowing what goes on in Grant City. Politics, crime, you name it. These are some things you should know. One, I know your father getting kicked off the force was because of some manipulation by Augie Blatz and his connections, and that he didn't shoot that person himself. The other thing is that I know that it was not you who killed Blatz that night. Someone pulled the strings to make it look like it was you."

"Do you know who it was?" Jack said.

"No, I don't, but with all this corruption in the city, I think maybe Pinnacle may have had something to do with it," Copeland said.

"But how is that possible? Mayors don't have that kind of power to pull strings, nor do they have the kind of power for fast-track executions, like mine for example," Jack said.

"I suggest you find a way to talk to Pinnacle, maybe he will know who has to do with your father's murder," Copeland said. "But when you find out who it was, take out the true mastermind behind everything. We can protect you. We will pardon your conviction and you'll officially be a free man."

"One more thing, Mr. Copeland, you can free me, but I also want you to free a friend of mine," Jack said. "His name is Prentiss Jones, who was wrongly convicted on drug distribution charges. I will do this, if you not only free me of my conviction, but also Prentiss Jones."

"We will arrange for that," Copeland said. "Do we have a deal?"

"Yes, we do," Jack said and put out his hand to shake the old man's hand. "But one more thing, do you have any knowledge about gold in the city? The night that my father was killed, Shadow here and I found some gold, as well as some gold at Sanderville Heights."

"Ah, yes, it appears that Pinnacle, being that he's a member of one of Grant City's richest and most influential families, he found some gold to use as part of the funding for that subway project, as well as used some of that to help fund the operations of all of Grant City's powerful crime families. Like I said before, there is not a single criminal operation that he doesn't have a hand in. Pinnacle was also using his own company and taking money out of the city's budget for the subway, as well as using some of that gold, and some money from illicit means to fund it."

"So it makes sense," Jack said. "Gloria had told me that there were budgetary problems until they were fixed. An old girlfriend of mine, who worked for my dad at the time of his death, she told me about the fund for the Grant City Anti-Crime unit. Looks like I'm going to have a talk with Pinnacle soon. Thanks for the information and I will find out who did this."

Jack got up and signaled to Shadow and they headed towards the door.

"One more thing, Mr. Slate," Copeland said. "If you find anything else about this, as well as take anybody out in the process, do not mention that we helped you or we'll deny it. But I promise you, you will get a pardon, as will Prentiss Jones."

Jack nodded in response. Once they got out, Jack's cellphone rang.

"This is Jack Slate," he said once he picked up.

"Jack, this is Chris."

"Talk to me. Did you find Ruby or where she might be?"

At a payphone somewhere, Chris said, "I tried to find where she lives, but no luck. The most recent place she stayed at, her roommate had said that she hadn't seen Ruby in a couple of weeks. I don't know where she is, but I had heard that she has been everywhere, like the Blue Fly Club and Black Orchid. I did the best I could."

"Not your fault, Chris, but good news," Jack said. "I think there might be a way that your dad will get out of jail soon."

Chris looked up and lit up a bit. "What did you just say?"

"I can't say much more, but I think I might be getting closer to solving my father's murder," Jack said. "I'll tell you more later. But right now, I am torn with having to find Ruby, among other things."

"I get you, man, but as your boy, I'll still try to find her for you," Chris said. "Talk to you soon."

When Chris got off the phone, from a distance, a police car was seen parked. Inside was Chris's partner, Michelle Powell. She looked up with a glare that made her wonder what was going on. Earlier that day she suspected that Chris talked to Jack. She also wondered if Hildy had Jack in her apartment that day.

Meanwhile, Jack and Shadow headed to the car as he debated what to do next. It was obvious to him that going to city hall to talk with Pinnacle was going to be no easy feat. He knew he couldn't just walk inside and ask to talk with him. However, after seeing those blackmail images of Ruby with Copeland, it dawned on him that his ex was a pawn in this operation. It was only a matter of time until she was no longer necessary for it.

RING! RING! RING!

"Jack Slate," he said.

"Hey, Jack, it's Eve. There's something you should know. I think I know where you might find blondie."

"Whoa, whoa, what are you talking about?" Jack said.

"Meet me in Chinatown soon, tonight," Eve said.

"I'll be there," Jack said.

Author's note: I will get to the next one soon. I already have ideas for it. I don't think there is a lot left to do, but I don't want to rush it, either.

I'm also debating about doing a spin-off of some sort, but more like a sub-story as there are some things with a particular character that I want to tie up but I don't want to put it in this particular story as it feels like it would belong in a separate story. It won't be too long, either. This character will appear in the following chapter, by the way. Stay tuned.