Part 4 – New Mission
Cassie awoke the next morning to smell Bruce's cooking, and after that meal she had in Burma, there was no way she was missing this.
She walked into the kitchen to see Bruce talking on the phone, and cooking, "You sure that it's him," Bruce asked, "Come on. When have I ever let you down," he then turned to Cassie, "Good morning."
Someone on the other line asked, "Who's that," he asked, "Your date?"
"My new business partner," Bruce said, "How do you like your eggs?"
"Eggs?" The man over the other line asked.
"Sunny-side up," Cassie said.
"My team will be there in one week," Bruce said, "You better have found those contacts or it won't be pretty."
"Alright Bruce," the man said, "I get it, but I expect payment."
"You'll get it," Bruce said, "But if you cross me, you don't want to know what my partners will do."
"Ok Bruce," the man said, "See you in a week."
"Who was that?" Cassie asked.
"My contact," Bruce said, "When I left Special Forces, I spent one whole year building a network of spies, criminals, government officials, military officers, arms dealers, and business owners. I've kept very close tabs on every last person the Advocator had contact with. When he makes his next mistake, I want to be ready."
"What did the Advocator do anyway," Takeda asked as he came down the stairs with Jacqui and Kung.
"What didn't the Advocator do is the real question," Bruce said, "The Advocator is an archterrorist and a puppet master, from behind the scenes he controlled the actions of Earthrealm's biggest terrorist organizations. That attack on the First National Bank of London four years ago," he then turned to Jacqui, "How do you like your eggs?"
"Fried please," Jacqui said, "He planned that?"
"Planned it," Bruce asked as he dropped two eggs into the pan, "He organized the attack, chose the men, and supplied the bomb."
"That's just the tip of the iceberg," Johnny said as him, Sonya, and Jax stepped off the elevator into Bruce's apartment.
"Hey guys," Cassie said as Johnny walked up to hug his daughter.
"Hey sweetie," Sonya said as she hugged her daughter, "You got Bruce to cook for you?"
"They're my guests," Bruce said as he slid Jacqui's eggs onto her plate, "Why not cook?"
"You must be worming your way into his heart guys," Jax said, "This bastard only cooks for those he cares about."
"Maybe he's just trying to make a good impression," Cassie said as she started eating, "Still good."
"Thank you," Bruce said.
"Have you got a lead?" Sonya asked.
"I spoke to one of my contacts," Bruce said as he put his phone down on the table, and touched a small button that created a post board with several profile pictures, "These are all the high-profile people that were involved in the Advocator's network three, four years ago, I've been keeping close tabs on every last one of them for the past three years."
"And?" Jax asked.
"Everyone on this half of the board is dead," Bruce said as he pointed to the right half of the holographic board, "When the Advocator went under three years ago he knew that they could expose major aspects of his organization."
"So he killed them?" Kung asked.
"Oh no," Bruce said as he pointed to the top two pictures, "Those two died three months after the Advocator went into hiding from 'natural causes'," he then pointed to the bottom three, "The final three perished in 'accidents'."
"What else?" Johnny asked.
"Everyone on that side of the board is rotting in a federal prison," Bruce said as he pointed to the left side of the board.
"You turned them in?" Cassie asked.
"I wasn't going to let them walk free," Bruce said, "All twelve are out of the Advocator's reach. There is one however who is free, and is acting differently," the picture that came up was that of a Chinese man with a shortly-cut black hairstyle, "Ladies and Gentlemen, meet David Wong. Before the collapse of the Advocator's organization, he was one of the biggest arms dealers in Tropical Asia. When the Advocator's organization fell, his arms business fell to his competitors, and it's been the same for the past few years."
"However?" Sonya asked.
"However, within the last three months his competitors seem to have simply vanished or been killed in 'random shootings'," Bruce said, "And all of a sudden, he's back on top."
"Where would we find Mr. Wong?" Cassie asked as she finished her breakfast.
"Manila," Bruce said, "Back when he was the Viktor Bout of Tropical Asia, he lived in Singapore, had several Ferraris, a private jet, and a large estate. Now he's lying low and keeping his wealth hidden before his next big deal."
"When's his next big deal," Johnny asked, crossing his arms.
"Soon," Bruce said, "In five days he's going to meet with a buyer named Henry David Ishikawa looking for arms for the Matsuoka Crime Family to buy cases of small arms."
"How do you know that?" Sonya asked.
"Because I set it up," Bruce said.
"You set up a deal between a dangerous Crime Family and a notorious Arms Dealer?" Jax asked.
"Yes," Bruce said, "And the buyer's right here," he held his hand out to Takeda.
"Me?" Takeda asked.
"You were taught by the Shirai Ryu," Bruce said, "It wasn't hard to establish your credentials."
"What's he buying?" Jacqui asked.
"AKMs, three cases," Bruce said, "MAC-10s, one case, MP5s, two cases, M416s, two cases, Beretta pistols, one case, full, and fifteen cases of Stinger missiles."
"You've arranged for him to buy over one hundred small arms and half a million rounds of ammunition for all of them," Sonya asked, "How much is that going to cost?"
"Ten million dollars U.S.," Bruce said.
"Ten million," Takeda asked, "I don't have ten million."
"You don't," Bruce said as he leaned toward Takeda, "But I do, this one's on me."
"You are putting up ten million to buy arms from an illegal arms dealer?" Sonya asked.
"To bring down the Advocator," Bruce asked, "I'd pay ten billion, you as well as I know what's at stake, and on top of that, you get to confiscate whatever arms we take from Wong, he goes to prison, arms trafficking in the area gets disrupted, and we get one step closer to the Advocator."
"I'll do it," Takeda said, "What do I need to do?"
"First thing's first," Bruce said as he pointed to Takeda's getup, "We have to get you some new clothes. Make you look like you belong."
"What kind of clothes are we talking about?" Takeda asked.
Bruce, Takeda, Jackie, and Cassie went downtown to Paul Stuart.
As they entered, the head tailor, Mr. White saw Bruce and spoke up, "Ah Mr. Silverstone! So good to see you!"
"Hello Mr. White," Bruce said as he shook Mr. White's hand.
"What'll it be this time?" Mr. White asked.
"Not for me this time Mr. White," Bruce said as he put his hand on Takeda's shoulder, "This is my friend, Mr. Ishikawa, he's looking for a new suit."
"Then let's get started." Mr. White said.
After getting Takeda's measurements, Mr. White sat down with Bruce, Takeda, and Jacqui.
"How'd the measuring go?" Jacqui asked.
"Very well," Mr. White said, "Now we need to discuss details," he laid out three fabrics, "Mr. Silverstone here says you're an up and coming professional."
"Yes," Takeda said, "I work in investments. Mostly charity work for those that were affected by the Out-World Invasion."
"Very noble," Mr. White said, "What kind of material would you like?"
"And remember," Bruce said, "Be as greedy as you want."
Takeda slid his hand across each of the fabrics before coming to back to the middle fabric, "This one," he said as he tapped on the fabric, "I like this one best."
"Ah the silk," Mr. White said, "Bruce you have brought me a man of exquisite tastes here. Both the pants and the suit?"
"Yes," Takeda said, "And the lining."
"Indeed," Mr. White said, "We'll get right to that. Allow me to bring you a few color examples."
"Take your time," Takeda said as Mr. White picked up the materials walked into the back, Takeda then turned around to look at Bruce, "Bruce, I can't afford this."
"Relax," Bruce said as he put his hand on Takeda's shoulder, "I got you covered. Now sit back, relax, and act like a gangster."
Mr. White then brought back a small selection of color examples with a small selection of linings for the interior of the suit.
It was pretty obvious to Jacqui what he was going to choose as he spotted a black color silk with a yellow silk lining.
"Very nice choice sir," Mr. White said, "Might I suggest several patterns?"
"You may," Takeda said.
Mr. White put a piece of paper in front of Takeda, and pointed at a series of patterns he could have put in the suit, "With that yellow lining, the diamond pattern is very popular," he said, "Also, the octagon pattern is a personal choice."
"Indeed," Takeda said, "I like the octagons."
"Now all we have to do is take the measurements," Mr. White said.
"Good," Takeda said, "Let's get to it."
As Takeda and Mr. White walked into the back, Cassie pulled Bruce aside, "So what's the plan when we get to Manila," she asked, "Have Takeda dress up like a big shot, walk in, say 'I'm the buyer', then arrest this arms dealer once he gives us the weapons?"
"Yes on the first part," Bruce said, "No on the second, third, and fourth."
"How are we going to do this then," Cassie asked.
"One step at a time," Bruce said.
"You're making me nervous," Cassie said.
"Relax," Bruce said, "I know how this guy works. We may be outnumbered if we walk in, but they're outmatched in both brains and skill."
"We're back," Mr. White said, "A mockup should be ready by tomorrow."
"Good," Bruce said as he handed Mr. White an address, "We'll stop by then."
"Where to now," Takeda asked.
"This way," Bruce said as he ushered everyone out the door, "Now we have a few more things to take care of."
"Such as," Takeda asked.
"We have to improve what you already have," Bruce said, "We need something that would be universally yours, something that a young and upcoming Yakuza would want if they had money to throw around."
"How about a custom gun," Takeda asked.
"Not a bad idea," Bruce said.
A small fishing warehouse on the lower-west side of Manhattan, a shady area, but certainly one that has use.
Wearing jeans, hoodies, and thick-rimmed sunglasses, Bruce and Takeda walked through the sea of workers up to one that closed his clipboard when he saw him.
"I've only seen that face once or twice before," the man said, "What are you doing here?"
"You know what I'm doing," Bruce said, "You still have it?"
"The crate," the man asked, "You know I do. What'll it be this time?"
"Something for him," Bruce said as he pointed at Takeda, "High-end, custom."
"Follow me," the man said as he walked Bruce and Takeda into a room in the back of the warehouse: behind a small locker was a room no bigger than the average walk-in closet.
The man walked over to a small crate in the back-right corner of the room, "Why doesn't it surprise me that you know of an illegal gun-runner in New York," Takeda asked.
As the man brought the crate back to the center of the room, Bruce said, "One thing you should learn about me my young Shirai Ryu compatriot is that I have more contacts than you will ever know of.
As the man placed the crate down in front of them, he looked up at Bruce, "You know the price tag that's on each of these weapons," he said.
"You know I'm good for it," Bruce said.
"Ok then," the man said as he opened the crate.
Inside the crate were FN Five-Sevens, Desert Eagles, Les-Baer 1911s, and really high-end firearms.
"Get a feel for them," Bruce said as he pointed at the crate.
After browsing for a little bit, Takeda picked up a Browning High-Power Mk-III, after checking the sights, and the slide, he placed it down on the edge of the crate, "How much," he asked.
"Depends," the man said.
"On what," Takeda asked.
"On how you want it to look," the man said.
"Gold-plate the slide," Takeda said, "Add a suppressor, and do something special with the grip."
"Then it'll be $2,500," the man said.
Bruce produced a roll of money, and placed it on the crate before saying, "Send it to the usual address."
Wonder what's coming next…