CHAPTER 4
"Mattlock?" There was a knock on the door of the home office and Matt quickly saved his work and closed the laptop before answering.
"C'mon in, Uncle Roy." He saw the smile on his uncle's face as he walked in. "So you talked to Hoyt?"
"I did." Roy had a seat on the nearby sofa. "Think you can do a little research for me?"
"Sure."
"We think the leader of the group might be Declan Gallgher." The elder Houston pulled out a notebook and looked at the information that he had jotted down. "He's got a couple of known aliases, too."
"Alright." Matt opened the laptop up and began a search. "What exactly are you looking for?"
"I'd like to get his home address. The last time he was released from jail was over six years ago. I doubt if he's stayed in the same place."
Houston began working the keyboard and had a frown on his face. "Give me one of his other names."
"Sean Keelan." He watched as his nephew began once more.
"Uh huh, got one at an apartment on Manitou – B6 to be exact." There were more keystrokes. "No bank account...he does have a driver's license. It was renewed last year. Want to see the picture?"
"Sure." Roy leaned forward as Matt turned the laptop for him to see. "He certainly looks Irish. Not that much different than his last mugshot. Can you find anything else?"
Turning the computer back around the PI continued his search. "Nope...but give me another name. If this guy has been running scams for a long time he probably keeps different names for different reasons."
"Arnold Caughlin."
Once again there was a flurry of keystrokes. "Mmmm hmmm...that's his bank account name. And he has a balance of...$5,693.88 at Western National. The address on that account is the same one on Manitou."
"Good." The former CIA agent got up and walked over to the window. "I need to find a way to bump into him."
"Well...let's see here." Matt worked the keyboard some more. "There's a senior center about a block away on Workman."
"You know, boy..." Roy turned back toward him. "One of these days you just might..." He stopped as Matt gave him a serious look. "Oh, alright! You're already good. There – does that make you feel better?"
"Slightly." Leaning back in the chair he propped his feet up on the desk. "Got a plan?"
"Not as of yet."
"What about the other robberies? I saw the one from yesterday, but was it the same crew working the others as well?"
"Yes and no..." Roy returned to the couch. "It looks like he's got the man and woman team and another man that help him. They swap up on the jobs. So far they haven't run the same scam twice. We're relatively certain that Gallagher is the brains behind the jobs but Michael wants to get all of them."
"So there are at least four of them in on it." The younger man nodded. Although he knew his uncle was cool under pressure, he also knew how easily a job could turn dangerous. "Can I make a suggestion?"
"Sure." Roy watched as Matt got up and went to a filing cabinet on the far side of the room and removed something from a box – one of his "critters" as he liked to call the tracking devices.
"Keep this on you at all times." He handed the bug to his uncle.
"Think old folks are dangerous, Mattlock?"
"I know at least one of them that I wouldn't want to be on the wrong side of." He gave Roy a crooked grin. "Now, what's your story?"
"I was hoping you might help me with that."
"Uh huh...well, let's see. I guess you're retired." Sitting back down behind the desk he began typing on the laptop once again. "So what's your name?"
"Jacob Wesley Harlan." The older man leaned back on the couch. "And I'm thinking that being married might give me an advantage."
Houston stopped and looked at him. "Do you have a certain Italian lady in mind?"
"Yep. But do you think she would agree to help? Or do you think Vince would shoot me for asking?"
"Both good questions." He swiveled in the chair as he thought. "Knowing Mama she would say yes. Vince...I'm not so sure about. Maybe you should talk to her first and then both of you talk to him."
"Be back in a minute." Roy left and in a couple of minutes was back with Rosa who looked surprised. "Have a seat, my dear." The older man sat down next to her on the couch as Matt kept typing on the laptop, working on a cover story for his uncle. "How would you like to help me on a case?"
"Me?" Rosa looked shocked.
"You. As a matter of fact I'd like for you to be my wife." He went on to explain the circumstances.
"I guess I could – but I don't know anything about being a detective." She looked over at Matt who gave her a big smile.
"All you have to do is just play a part – like an actress." Roy stopped as there was another knock on the door. "Come in." Vince stepped inside.
"What's up?" He had a seat in one of the chairs and listened as Roy explained what he had in mind. "Uh huh."
"So would you have a problem with it?"
After considering what he had been told about the robberies and knowing what he did about Roy he shrugged his shoulders. "There haven't been any weapons involved have there?"
"No." Roy waited.
"It's her decision." He looked at his mother. "I do approve of the married part, though." Giving the pair a grin he leaned back in the chair.
"Ya know..." Matt picked up the laptop and settled it on his legs as he propped them on the desk once again. "If you were actually married it might be more believable." The crooked grin appeared.
"Hush." Mama blushed. "I'll do it."
"The acting part or the married part?" Houston just couldn't resist teasing her and laughed as she shook her finger at him, speaking in Italian. "Okay, let's get your cover taken care of..." In under an hour, the couple was already beginning to slip into character and Rosa was proving to be quite convincing. "I wonder..." The PI began working the keyboard. "Ah hah! It seems that there's a vacant apartment in the building where Gallagher lives."
"That would sure help us to make contact."
"Give me a few more minutes and I'll have you all set." Matt went back to the keyboard and in short order he had fake documents printing out that would help with the pair's cover story. "Alright, you two – get a room." He grinned as Mama swatted at him and then kissed his cheek before they left to go see about the apartment.
Giving a sigh, Matt opened the laptop back up and began work on the simulator. He was so near to being done and wanted nothing more than to just stop for the day but his instincts told him to keep working while he could. Vince was still kicked back in the chair and looked at his friend. Although he wasn't sure what the project was that Houston was working on, he knew that it had something to do with the government, and given his history, the former cop had a feeling that it was something to do with the military. Stopping momentarily, the PI leaned back in the chair and thought for a minute, his focus completely on the project and his mind racing as he thought through a particular scenario. Then it was back to the keyboard furiously typing again. Waiting until the PI seemed to have finished with the idea he had been working on, Vince spoke. "It's pretty important – what you're working on there."
Houston leaned back in the chair again and nodded. "It is...and hopefully..." He stood and walked to the window that looked out over the pasture. "...It will keep a lot of our folks from getting hurt or killed."
"So did you make Derwin see the light last night?"
Rubbing the back of his neck, the PI turned and looked at his friend. "I hope so..." Pacing around the room he walked over to look at the picture of CJ and her parents that hung on the wall opposite of the desk. "I'm not sure what his problem is lately. We've never argued like this before."
"Look..." Vince got up and went to the window. "It's none of my business, but you've got a lot on you right now; CJ, Catey, the twins, your classes...not to mention all of the people that you help out – like Michael. Maybe..." He turned to face his friend. "Maybe you need to back off of something...work-wise. You're burning the candle at both ends, man."
Matt sat down on the couch. "I've been thinking a lot lately. When I started the agency it was to help folks that didn't have any other recourse...the cops couldn't help them, you know? But now...I don't know. I haven't taken a private case since...I'm not even sure when the last time was."
"Is that necessarily a bad thing?"
"No...but...I don't know."
"Is it written in stone that that's what you're supposed to do for the rest of your life? Think about it: things change." Vince sat down next to him. "Hell, Michael and I were taking bets not long ago on whether or not you were going to hang up the whole business." The look he received made him crack up. "We know you've thought about it. Hell – that's why you started up the ranch in Houston again. And I can even tell you when you started thinking about it: the day you proposed to CJ."
"You're right." The PI rubbed his eyes. "I don't understand it, Vince." Standing he began pacing the room again. "One minute I want to just quit – say to hell with helping out anyone. And then the next minute somebody calls – Michael, or Rich, or any of the others – and off I go. Hell, when Michael called and asked me about Roy helping I was kind of..." He shook his head.
"You were jealous."
"No...yeah...I don't know."
"I know what it is." The former cop began laughing.
"I'm glad it's amusing you."
"You're an action junkie."
"I'm a..." He began spluttering, a response that sent his friend into peals of laughter. Turning, he stalked toward the window. "Cute, Vince – real cute."
"Deny it all you want, pal: it's the truth." Novelli walked over to him and put a hand on his shoulder. "Look, just think about it. Take your time and work through it."
"Otherwise I might have withdrawal symptoms, is that what you're saying?" Grinning, he turned to his buddy.
"Something like that. Seriously though – nobody would blame you."