Chapter 2: Cho, Rigsby, and Van Pelt
Rigsby and Cho
Cho and Rigsby decided to tackle McAllister first. Although Napa County was a drive, they were far more likely to get information about McAllister than anything on Stiles or Haffner from Visualize. Useful information finally surfaced after speaking with several Napa County PD officers. It was a small bit but, as Jane so often brilliantly demonstrated, the small pieces eventually add up to a definitive conclusion, a complete picture.
"Officer Dunmar? CBI. I'm Agent Cho, this is Agent Rigsby. If you can spare a few minutes, we're investigating the death of Sheriff Thomas McAllister."
"Sure, glad to help. Anything I can do to help catch Tom's killer. Killed in an explosion in Malibu of all places. Helluva way to go."
"We think his death may be connected to a larger matter. Right now, we need background information about Sheriff McAllister to try to connect his whereabouts with the murderer in another case."
Fifteen minutes into the interview, Cho pressed, trying to determine whether McAllister had alibis for some of the recent Red John murders. "So Sheriff McAllister was injured from a hunting accident on that date?"
"Yeah."
"There wasn't any mention of that in his medical records," Rigsby noted.
"Uh, Tom kept it out of his file. See, getting shot was a hunting accident. His hunting buddy was using an unregistered rifle and it would have looked bad because he was law enforcement. Big stink and a black mark on his record."
"Sheriff McAllister was on sick leave during that week, but is there any chance he could have been in Nevada the following Saturday?"
"Nah, he could barely hobble around his house with that leg wound. Sorry to kill your lead, but it doesn't fit."
"Thank you for your time."
"Hope you catch the bastard!" Dunmar called to their backs as they left the station.
"We do, too," answered Cho, not bothering to clarify the particular "bastard" of interest.
~.~.~.~
They left Napa County on the long drive back to Sacramento.
"Without a face-to-face, Jane wouldn't know McAllister was wounded when Red John murdered the TV news woman who interviewed Kristina Frye," hazarded Cho.
"It never made the news and never appeared in McAllister's records," agreed Rigsby. "Jane ruled out men who couldn't be at all of Red John's kills. That rules out McAllister as Red John."
"McAllistger had the tattoo. He was Blake Association. Looks like Jane is right about Blake being separate from Red John."
"Boss said Jane recalled over two-thousand people he's met since his family's murder. Can you believe that?!"
"Only because it's Jane," replied Cho shortly.
"What do you think of Jane's approach?"
"I'll know what to think when we get Red John."
"Come on, Cho."
Cho sighed. "I guess it makes sense to start with everyone who is at all a possibility, then eliminate people only when there's a specific reason. I don't think it's foolproof. Just that we don't have a better approach."
"What if Red John wasn't there at every killing?"
"Then it falls apart. We're screwed."
"If you had to bet?"
"I'd bet Jane correctly reads Red John's personality. It feels right that Red John wouldn't let underlings use his mark, muck up his 'artistic' kill. Sick, but probably right."
~.~.~.~
Cho and Rigsby spent Wednesday and Thursday trying to track down any sign of Stiles and Haffner. They got no useful information. Jason Cooper, Stiles's number two in Visualize, turned them away without revealing anything. Stiles had no tangible property, residence, or business office except Visualize. And, since the explosion, there was no hint of Haffner's presence at any of his normal locations and no contacts with his friends or colleagues. Haffner had no known family.
Van Pelt
Van Pelt spent her week communing with her computer. Actually, with several of them. She first confirmed Jane's suspicion that their official CBI cell phones had been programmed to serve as open mics. She couldn't determine who did it or even when. She then turned to background research. After Rigsby called with their conclusion about McAllister, she focused on Stiles and Haffner. Eyes gritty from too many hours staring at computer screens, it was Thursday before Van Pelt found information that could help ID Red John.
In his 70 years, Stiles had led an interesting life. The team already knew something about Stiles from past cases, but she was able to fill in more of the time-line back to the early '70's. By age 31, Stiles was connected to Visualize shortly after its founding by Timothy Farragut in 1973. After Farragut died in a car crash in 1976, Stiles seized the leadership of Visualize and kept it for all 37 years to the present. The inevitable suspicions faded when proof of foul play in Farragut's death failed to materialize. New suspicions weren't even aroused when the investigating sheriff died several years later. Of course, by then Stiles was firmly in charge of the growing, increasingly powerful Visualize cult.
Under the deft, charismatic, ruthless leadership of Bret Stiles, Visualize grew from a gauzy, hippie spiritual movement in Southern California to an international cult with the gilding of an officially recognized religion. Millions of followers conferred financial and political power. And then there were the shadowy charges – never substantiated – of tax fraud, smuggling, drug dealing, gun running, and other organized criminal pursuits. By then, Visualize was well able to take care of itself. Attorneys, accountants, tax attorneys, and a growing cadre of politicians all had a stake in protecting its assets, reputation, and influence.
Unfortunately, the trail into the historical Mr. Stiles dead‑ended in the early '70's. Van Pelt managed to find a grainy newspaper photograph of Stiles from 1973. This would help if they used facial recognition software to probe further back. Software that approximated a person's appearance as he aged - or when he was younger - naturally tended to be more accurate the shorter the time that needed to be extrapolated. Stiles had emigrated from the UK. Why, or what he did before Visualize remained a mystery. A cursory search for information linked to "Bret Stiles" yielded nothing. Van Pelt concluded that either Stiles had led a very private, low-key life before 1970. Or, more likely, Stiles had lived under another name.
Van Pelt had better success with Haffner. Working backward, Raymond Haffner – now 46 – founded his own detective agency in 2012 and served Visualize and other important, well-heeled clients. This followed his four-year stint as a CBI serious crimes unit leader from 2008 to 2012. His CBI reputation and career never recovered after Jane humiliated him and Bertram on the Kuzmenko murder case. Before that, he was an agent with the FBI from 1998 to 2008, specializing in creative electronic surveillance directed at organized crime. He had started in law enforcement in 1990 as a clerk in the Sacramento PD. He finished his college degree part-time and became an officer in 1994 as part of that year's crop of police academy graduates. His Visualize connections were hinted at even then, because he was a special liaison to Visualize for SacPD. Van Pelt hit pay dirt when she found Haffner had gotten a GED through the Carson Springs Child Protective Services program. What she found when she checked further caused her to pack up her laptop and make an in-person visit to Lisbon. She was all too aware that calls from cell phones – even burner cell phones – were easily intercepted using the right equipment. She and Lisbon had a lovely and illuminating lunch outdoors at a secluded table near a noisy fountain.
~.~.~.~
"So what warrants seeing me in person?" Lisbon opened.
"I confirmed Jane's hunch that our CBI cell phones have been turned into open mics. I can't tell who did it or when."
"What else?" Lisbon asked, knowing that wasn't what brought Grace there.
Van Pelt's eyes gleamed with excitement. "Boss, Haffner is connected to the Carson Springs Child Protective Services. At first I couldn't find any record of Haffner there, but I kept digging. I couldn't see any reason why he'd get a GED through the Carson Springs CPS otherwise. It turns out he changed his name when he was 16 from Hafenmaier to Haffner."
"Why?"
"Raymond Hafenmaier was 13 when his mother was brutally murdered. She had multiple stab wounds and her throat was cut."
Lisbon closed her eyes, simultaneously excited and repulsed. Rapt, she whispered the obvious question, "Was the killer ever found?"
"No. No one was ever charged. The father was out of the picture from when Haffner – or Hafenmaier – was an infant. Lots of CPS interventions for child neglect and physical abuse. He ended up in foster care after the murder. His request for a name change was granted on grounds of protecting the privacy of a minor after such a traumatic, highly publicized crime. He aged out of CPS foster care at 18. Oh, and by the way, Miriam Gottleib was there when Haffner was there. There was only a 3-year age difference."
Lisbon sat silent while thinking. "So much of it fits. We need to check out the CPS in person."
"Uh, Boss–"
"Yes?"
"I – I also found some records on Jane at the CPS. He spent some time in foster care when he was ten, and then a couple of times a year or two later."
"I know. Jane told me when we worked the Eileen Turner case. Please keep that to yourself."
Van Pelt merely nodded.
"Grace, terrific work! This may be the break we need to stop Red John. Cho and Rigsby have run down everything they can on McAllister, Stiles and Haffner. They'll be back tomorrow. I want you three to visit Carson Springs Child Protective Services on Friday. See if any long-time employees remember anything from 30 years ago. What was Haffner like back then? Anything stand out about Gottleib? And especially, did Haffner and Gottleib seem to have any kind of a relationship? I'll let them know when they call in."
"Will do."
"Meanwhile, I have something else for you to do."
"What, Boss?"
"Can you put GPS traces on our burner phones with zero possibility of Red John using it against us?"
"Our phones?"
"Grace, we're getting closer. Red John could come after one of us." She didn't need to say, "again." "Being able to track each other could make all the difference. And how about tracking our cars?"
"Uh, if there is any connection to us, it can be traced back. The only way would be to get totally new equipment and accounts with no connection to us. It'd have to be paid in a way not linked to any of our identities."
"Can you do it?"
Van Pelt stared wide-eyed at Lisbon, worry and alarm painting her face. She said, barely above a whisper, "Boss, what about Jane? Last time–"
"I'll tell him as soon as I see him. This is different. We're bugging ourselves for our own protection. I'll cancel it if he thinks it's a bad idea."
Lisbon
Lisbon spent most of her week orchestrating her team's work and keeping close watch on Abbott's activities. So far as she could tell, Abbott looked straight arrow and capable - if an SOB. He quickly rounded up a bunch of Blake Association members, including a couple of dozen from all areas within the CBI. Lisbon made sure her team including Jane (especially Jane!) was among the first to go through FBI screening for the red dot tattoo. Anyone who had the tattoo or refused to be screened was automatically detained for probable cause, for probably being a BA member. She didn't like Abbott, but she wouldn't let personal feelings interfere with protecting her team and preserving the running room they needed to do their jobs, the most important of which was hunting Red John.
Bertram remained at large, the FBI hot on his trail. The FBI was instantly a big, intrusive, irritating presence in law enforcement across the state. Abbott interfaced with the state Justice Department at the level above the CBI director position. The office of the California Attorney General was poorly equipped to manage the investigative agency, but it couldn't be helped until Bertram was replaced. The governor and attorney general were horrified and paralyzed by fear of the political consequences of getting it wrong. So the CBI would run on inertia for the time being – several weeks, at least. Bertram had gradually eliminated the manager level between the unit leaders and himself, probably the better to monitor CBI affairs and protect the corrupt activities of the BA members. With Bertram on the run, that left no one between the unit leaders and the AG's office. Lisbon's contact in the AG office merely handled the adminis-trivia – no real management or leadership at all. In fact, that person found Lisbon's advice extremely helpful in making decisions about day-to-day CBI matters which just couldn't be put off.
Her friendship with Minelli was invaluable. He was well liked, well respected and – being retired – no threat to anyone in CBI or the AG's office who was honorable. Minelli's famed information back-channels were well tended and fully functional. Despite her reluctance, Minelli all but forced Lisbon to make the rounds, to remind all powers that be of the facts. Her team had discovered and exposed the Blake Association. Her team had the best close and conviction record in the state, despite getting the toughest cases. Lisbon personally had a stellar reputation throughout California law enforcement. Minelli told her that the governor and AG intended to hire a replacement for Bertram ASAP, but that person had to be cleared by Abbott. No one knew what "ASAP" would mean since the extent of the corruption was still unknown.
Playing poker with California notables – judges, state senators, state agency directors, local FBI leaders – was paying big dividends. The informal respect and good will greased the official conclusions about Lisbon and her team. Everyone didn't love her. She and her team (mainly Jane) stepped on too many toes in earning that close record. But they respected her and her honesty was above question. Of course, Abbott questioned it anyhow. There was nothing to find. Despite Abbott's natural skepticism about teams which reported to Bertram, he quickly determined there were no skeletons in Lisbon's closet. Her team didn't always do things by the book (Jane was a big factor), but the transgressions were never for personal gain, vanity, or political favor. She bent the rules to get the perps. Abbott might not make the same choices, but he could understand and respect them.
By Thursday, Lisbon had finished the needed political ground work. Lisbon was once again in good standing with everyone. If she needed quick forensics work, immediate back-up on Red John, or quick legal action on a case, she would get it. Abbott would leave her team alone to do its job. She gritted her teeth and even went out of her way to help Abbott. Abbott desperately needed an insider's knowledge of the players in California law enforcement. Lisbon's intimate knowledge of her team's work on the BA was helpful as well. She decided Abbott would be around for awhile and her life would be easier if he wasn't an enemy. Once he decided Lisbon wasn't corrupt, Abbott relaxed from being an SOB to merely hard-nosed and inflexible. After dealing with Jane for a decade, Lisbon had gotten far more adaptable and could deal comfortably with Abbott nonetheless.