Part II-Chapter 4: FOLLOW THE MONEY

Chapter 4

Follow the Money
(Ó 2009)

“Okay boys and girls,” David quipped to the entire group that was now in his and Noel’s office, “pay close attention now because class is about to begin.” He then began thinking about the night before, when his daughter was saying the same thing to her dolls on the sofa of his den. He, Noel and Captain Xiang had arranged the office to accommodate all that were there. The arranging of all the seats in the office also reminded him of the dolls on the sofa.

The group was facing a wall where David and Noel had two maps placed. One was of the city of Chicago; the other was of the combination of northern Illinois, with Cook County and northern Lake County being the governing feature. Each map had three push pins on certain areas; each pin was of a different color. The pins indicated the locations of the attacks done by the ‘Spinal Tapper’ vigilante. There was also a Post-It note with each push pin showing the dates of each particular attack.

To the right of the maps were photographs of each of the vigilante’s targets. Below each photograph were more pictures showing the crime scene of the areas where each man was attacked and paralyzed. The alleyway where Freeman and Ortega were found, the back yard of the Bartholomew mansion, and the den of Gregior Divic.

Noel had brought out a small folding table and set it up in front of the wall with the maps and photos. He place three large file boxes on top of the table, looked to the group and said, “These are the files we have on each confrontation. There is another one for the initial attack on Freeman and Ortega, but that’s mostly files on all of their victims.” He then undid the elastic tie that was on them and removed the lids on all three of them, “As you can see, each box is filled completely. So, Sergeant Adams, contrary to your thinking, we both have been putting a lot of time and effort looking for this guy.”

Then David added, “Yes, we can tell you everything about the ‘Tapper’s’ targets, from when they were born, who they knew in kindergarten, to what they had for dinner the night they were assaulted.” Then David held up a blank piece of paper, “But, this … this is how much we know about him.”

“There’s nothing there.” said Adams.

“That’s correct,” David answered, “because, that’s what we have … nothing on who he is … nothing on his whereabouts … not one inkling … nothing. That’s because he has left absolutely nothing behind of himself … nothing … until today. That depression in the grass and soil by the house of Gem P, and the shoe and dirt smudge on the fence.” David grew quiet for a second and then said, “I have to confess, I was really starting to believe that this guy wasn’t human, I was starting to think that he was a ghost of some sort maybe, until I saw those two things at that house.”

Noel then said, “Three things when you count the bent part of the top of the chain links themselves.”

“That’s true,” David said, “but then we looked to the roof of that garage and found no boot or shoe print of any kind.” David looked to the floor, and then to the group again, “No, he’s not a ghost or anything like that, he’s human. It’s just that … he’s just this skillful at what he does.”

“And …” Noel emphasized, “he just does not want to be found … and he’s very good at that.”

David stepped in front of the table with a somber expression on his face; he then spoke calmly, yes with a stern seriousness, “You all have no idea just how maddening this vigilante has been to my partner and me. Even more than the Ortega and Freeman situation when we were looking for them. With them at least there was some evidence of their existence with descriptions from the victims, hair, blood, DNA samples, bits of clothing left behind. But with this? As I said before, seeing that small depression on the ground and that smudge on the fencepost is the most welcome sights I’ve had in years.”

Noel then stepped over to the left side of the maps where a composite drawing was tacked to the wall. It was of a silhouetted figure of a large, broad shouldered man in a hooded sweatshirt. The hood was up over the man’s head, and there was no face inside the hood, just a dark empty space. “This is the only composite sketch that we have of him. It was provided to us with the help of the only person to ever see the vigilante, Miss Stephanie Morris. She was fifteen years old at the time and this is what she saw after she was raped by Ortega and Freeman.”

There was a silent pause among them all; it was broken by the voice of Officer Sutton as he said; “Now that … is fuckin’ spooky lookin’.”

David gave a small laugh, “Yes, it is. All we really know for sure about him is what Stephanie told us and his victims as well. The things that we have learned from all of them, meaning what they all have in common is that he has tremendous strength, and a very eerie voice. His targets though heard him speak to them up close and personal, but they never saw him.”

“And I’ll bet,” Noel said, “that the three dirt bags in the hospital never saw him either, but he did have a little chat with them.” He looked to Captain Xiang and asked, “Any word on that Boss?”

“I can answer that.” Celia then said, “I called the hospital on the way here.”

“So what’s the update?” Noel asked.

“Bigguns and ‘D’ are still unconscious, and you were right by the way, there was a large swollen bruise at the base of Bigguns skull, he was struck from behind.” She then gave a sigh and continued, “Gem P for that matter had to have another surgery this morning, seems there was a little more internal damage than first thought.”

“Any word about paralysis?” David asked.

“Yes, so far it looks like he may be a quadriplegic, but they are unsure at this moment, but they are fitting him up for all that hardware.”

“You mean the Halo Brace and such.”

“Yes,” she answered, “that’s the term the doc used, along with something about fusing his spine.”

David began to pace the floor slowly, his arms were crossed and he looked to the floor as he did so. “Tell me Celia, how long has Gem P be running the 4-S?” he asked.

“Oh I’d say a little over ten years,” she then looked to her two colleagues, “wouldn’t you say so?”

“Yeah, I would say that‘s about right.” Paul answered.

Carl said, “In fact, it’s thirteen years.”

David then stopped his pacing and asked them, “I would bet that with that job, he has more enemies than friends?”

Carl laughed, “That bet you would easily win Lieutenant.”

David smiled and then asked, “I bet he has as many enemies inside the 4-s itself, right?”

Paul then said, “That’s the way it is with any of these gangs. When you’re at the top, you not only have to watch your back from your rivals, but those who wants your power as well.”

David went quiet in his thoughts for a moment, then he asked them, “So, wouldn’t you all agree that right now, at this very moment, while Gem P is lying in the ICU, there’s a power struggle going on with all the upper ranking members of the 4-S?”

Celia answered for all, “Yes, that we would all agree.”

David then stepped over to Adams and Sutton. He then asked them, “You say you and your crew were infiltrating Gem-P and the 4-S for over eight months?”

“Longer than that,” Adams answered, “We’ve had a couple of guys on the inside with them for quite a while now.”

“This big deal,” David continued, “It was supposed to go down last Saturday night?”

“Yes it was, until your man showed up.” Adams said, then his tone became a little angry, “and when I think about it … sir, your man there could have just as well attacked one of my men. To tell ya the truth … sir, that kinda pisses me off.”

Noel then said, “Don’t worry about that Ernie, we both believe that he would have never of attacked any of your men.”

“And just what makes you so sure about that?”

Noel then grinned at Adams and answered, “Because Dave and I believe that our man … knows who your men are.”

Adams’s face suddenly was covered with an expression of confusion. He then looked at David. David nodded to him and said, “Yes, we both believe that. We also believe that he knows who you are, as well as your entire crew. Noel and I believe that he knows who we are and our routines.” David then stepped up to Adams and said, “We even believe that he knew about that drug deal last Saturday night, that he knew how it was going down, who was going to be there … everything. He chose that night and the right moment to execute those attacks.”

“How can you be so sure about that?” Adams demanded.

David then stepped back to the three boxes of files, “You see all this Ernie? This all isn’t just from interviewing witnesses and gathering evidence. In fact the only thing we really have from all this is four paralyzed scumbags.”

“Now it looks like five.” Noel added.

“For about two years this thing has consumed our lives.” David said. He then went over to the map and photos on the wall. “You see these houses? This alley? We’ve must have been to all of them a hundred times each, trying to find that one little thing that’s been eluding us.” David pointed to the pictures of the Bartholomew mansion, “We’ve been to the Bartholomew mansion a thousand times, which has become easier since Mitch and the family have moved out, nobody lives there, and it looks as though nobody wants to. Mitch needs to sell it because he’s now getting sued left and right, plus the estranged Mrs. Bartholomew, as you know through the news stories, is also raking old Mitch over the coals with her divorce proceedings. I’ve been through that property looking for a missing piece. I feel that I know my way around as much as the old house staff there once did.”

Noel then spoke, “And the house of Gregior Divic there, we’ve both have driven up to Lake County dozens of times to look that place over and over again. We’ve come up with nothing, this guy, he is like a ghost. He appears and vanishes without a trace.”

“Then,” David added, “It all just stopped. We waited for his next attack. It never came. We thought, to ourselves anyway, that he’s probably just quit. Besides, the whole thing was beginning to consume us; you can just ask our wives, we were going a bit crazy from the whole ordeal.” He then sat down behind the table with the file boxes, “I have to confess, this last year or so of quiet, I welcomed it. I was hoping he would not return and this would all go away and it would just go into the cold case file.”

“However,” Noel said, “we both also had to remember our own theories, and they seem to be becoming somewhat factual.”

“So now it looks as though he’s back.” David said, “And the theories and profiles that we have been putting together look as though their coming to light.” David leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms. “First of all, we believe that the Spinal Tapper is an elite professional. Paramilitary, Special Forces of some sort, we can give you hundreds of reasons why, but for now to convince you, all I have to say is that you all have seen now that he has the skills and know how to come and go out of a dangerous neighborhood and avoid detection completely.” 

“You think he’s been spying on Gem P?” Celia asked.

“Yes, Noel and I believe he has, in fact we would stake our pensions on it. He has been watching and spying on not only Gem P, but the 4-S as well and … he’s been doing it for quite a period of time, maybe he started right after the attack on Divic. That‘s quite a long time to watch somebody and plan something against them.” David then stood and went to the table and opened the file box that was closest to him. He removed a folder and handed it to Celia. “In there are photographs from around the home of Gregior Divic, there you’ll see how his home was easy to watch, being in the middle of a forest preserve. I have angles showing views not only from the inside of the home outwards, but also vice versa, to show how the Tapper watched the home. There are millions of separate angles to do so from. Plus he had the advantage of the darkness and the cover of all the trees and foliage.” David then opened the middle box and produced another file, “Here are the same types of photos of the Bartholomew estate.” He then handed those to Sergeant Adams.

Everyone then began to study the photographs and then Noel said, “Now we see that he has the skills to come and going into an urban neighborhood, with the homes side by side, using any little shadow and crevice to conceal himself. This proves what a professional he really is.”

“Here’s a little secret you all don’t know,” David said, “The attacks on Jared Bartholomew and Gregior Divic are connected.”

“Connected?” Adams asked surprised.

“Yes, connected. Right now you all know of the scandals that Mitchell and his son are going through since it was revealed about Jared’s pedophilia. How he and his father were covering his behavior, using MB Media money. That’s just part of it. When Gregior Divic was attacked, Marsha Post and the other children found at his home was not the only thing uncovered there.”

David looked to the group and saw that he had their undivided attention.

“There was a like, dossier found there also, a file. This file was in a hidden wall safe of the house. This file contains the names of some very predominant and connected people around here. Divic was supplying them with very young boys and girls, Divic was involved in the human trafficking trade as well as narcotics it turned out.”

“Where is this file now?” asked Celia.

“The file that was from that safe,” David said deliberately, “is now in the possession of the FBI agent who has Divic in custody at a federal medical facility in Missouri, and when he decides when to proceed with it, we will then have an even bigger scandal, or should I say scandals, going on in this city that will dwarf the one that the Bartholomew boys are experiencing at this moment.”

Noel then added, “We’ve seen those names, it’s going to be huge. I can tell you all right now that two of the names in that file were Jared and Mitchell Bartholomew. Ol’ Greg was getting the boys for Jared, and it turned out that Mitchell began to develop an appetite for girls from twelve to fourteen.”

David then said, “Now here’s the bizarre thing about this, and this is what helped create another theory about the Tapper, he led us to these children, and to this file.”

Adams asked with a surprised tone, “Led you? What do you mean by led you?”

David answered, “When Lake County Sheriffs arrived, and they found two things that were abnormal. The first was that the door to the basement was unlocked from the outside by the Tapper. The kids who were in the basement heard some of the commotion from upstairs. When it became quiet, they all heard the door unlock and then be opened halfway. But they were afraid to come upstairs because of Bodo.”

“What the fuck is Bodo?” asked Adams.

“Bodo was a one hundred and twenty pound rottweiller watchdog that belonged to Divic.” David said, he then stood and went to the Divic file box, pulled out a red colored file folder and handed it to Adams, “This is what the Tapper did to Bodo … take a look.”

Adams opened the file and the first thing he saw was a picture of Bodo that belonged to Divic. It showed the sitting in front of the fireplace with the equivalent on a dogs smile with its tongue hang from the side of its mouth. Adams then flipped to the next photograph, “Holy shit!” he exclaimed. There was a photo of Bodo where he was lying in the back yard. He then turned to the next photo; it was of Bodo in the back of the animal control vehicle. Afterwards were photos of the dogs’ autopsy. “Shit! Your guy took out that fuckin’ mutt?”

“Yes he did,” David answered, “That was no ordinary puppy either, that was one mean bastard of a watchdog, and the Tapper took him out. He fought with the dog, and beat its ass. This shows that the Tapper is a professional killer with absolutely no fear of anything.” David turned for a second, paused, and then turned to Adams, “I have to correct myself on that somewhat. The Tapper IS NOT a professional killer.”

“Why do you say that?” asked Adams.

“Because if you have noticed … he hasn’t killed anybody. He doesn’t kill. The only reason the dog is dead is because Animal Control had to euthanize it then do the autopsy. The Tapper? Part of his M.O., the big part I must add, is that he doesn’t kill.”

Sutton then asked, “Why do you suppose that is?”

David then returned to his seat. He rubbed his eyes and gave out a sigh, and then spoke, “Noel and I have an acquaintance at the FBI. He was one of the agents that were involved with the Gregior Divic ordeal. He’s with Behavioral Sciences now, has been for a while, and he’s been helping us create a profile on the Tapper.” David then stood up and began to pace the room as he spoke. “The Tapper is a vigilante, someone who takes the law into their own hands. Why? Because somewhere along the line the law has failed them. Usually this doesn’t not involve them directly; however it failed them as far as a loved one is concerned.”

Noel then intervened, “Dave, myself and our friend at the FBI all believe that something tragic happened to someone that the Tapper cared for very much. A wife, girlfriend, sister, mother who knows maybe even a boyfriend, we don’t know who. But whatever it was, it has set the Tapper off, and he’s was the wrong guy to piss off.”

“Why do you say that?” asked Adams.

“Because we all also believe, as we have said before,” Noel answered, “that the Tapper may have been paramilitary, Special Operations of some sort. You know, Green Berets or Navy SEAL‘s.”

“Oh, so you say you’re both looking for fuckin’ Rambo then.” Adams said sarcastically.

“Yes,” David answered, “that’s exactly it; we’re both looking for a John Rambo type. That character is not too far fetched, men like him are trained to perform like this.”

“And not just anybody becomes a Green Beret or a SEAL,” Noel added, “we’ve done the research, that old song about the Green Berets is true, ’one hundred men will test today, but only three, win the Green Beret.”

“And the SEALS are just as demanding,” David said, “Ninety guys will start in a class, three to six will graduate. So, only the very best of the best, of the best get into these special forces.”

Paul then asked, “Have you checked for any special forces guys living in the area?”

Noel answered, “We have checked an area in an almost two hundred mile circumference from the center of Chicago, and we have come up with zero. We checked for men currently enlisted, and retired, we’ve got nothing.”

“But we do have theories.” David said as if it were humorous, “hell yeah, we have lots of theories, however, like I said, it seems as though some theories are becoming fact.”

“Well, tell us then.” Said Celia.

David then paced to the front of the group and turned to face them all, “Well, the Tapper is officially a serial vigilante, now with his fourth attack. A serial vigilante is very different from a serial killer in one way.”

“And that is?” questioned Celia.

“A serial killer will sometimes communicate with the public and the police through the media somehow, taunting them, instilling fear, getting a feeling of great power.” David began to explain, “Take for instance the Zodiac Killer in San Francisco, or the Son of Sam in New York. A vigilante on the other hand will rarely communicate with the police, if they do it’s mostly anger at how the law has failed them, or they will even have sympathy for the police because the vigilante knows that in many cases, the police have their hands tied.”

“Has this Tapper tried to communicate with you?” Carl asked.

“No, no he has not.” David answered, “At least we thought he wasn’t.”

“Carl then asked puzzled, “What do you mean by that?”

David began to pace around the room again, “Both Noel and I, along with our helper at the FBI, believe that the Tapper is communicating with us, indirectly, in his own unique way.”

“How do you explain that?” Adams asked.

“Well,” David began, “take for instance what we just spoke about, the fact the he does not kill his targets. He didn’t even kill that damn dog. He used that dog as a way to communicate not only with Gregior Divic the night of his attack, but to Noel and myself as well.” David then stepped over to Adams and picked up the pictures of the autopsy of Bodo and held them so that Adams could see. “You see that? Look what he did to the fucking mutt. He placed that dog above Divic’s head while he was unconscious on the floor. He brought Divic back to the real world by using an ammonia capsule. He wanted Divic to see that dog. Answer me this, why?”

Adams looked at the picture and then up to David, “He wanted to get his point across to this Divic scumbag that he’s no guy to be fucking with. To tell ya the truth, if it were me, he’d have my undivided attention right there.”

“Exactly,” David said, “however, there’s a message here for Noel and myself also, because he knows who we are. He’s telling the both of us that he’s not a killer, that he won’t even kill an animal. He left it up to us to put that mutt out of its misery.”

“This also tells us of his motives.” Noel said. “That he’s not doing this to kill his targets; rather, he’s punishing them. The reason he took out the dog was that he did not see it as a pet, rather for what the dog really was. It was a weapon, it was a tool for Divic to guard his home, and to keep his merchandise, meaning the women and children he was selling in the sex trade, in control.”

“We believe that something terrible happened to a loved one of the Tapper.” David said, “He paralyzes his targets to punish them. We believe that they represent the evil, let’s say, that harmed his loved one. I will go out on a limb and add that this person was very special to him, and not only does he do this to punish them, he does it for another reason.”

“What’s that? Celia asked.

“To make them suffer as he is.” David stepped to the center of the room, “Whatever happened to this person in his life, it has caused him much sorrow, much suffering. I think he’s in a lot of pain, and he wants those that he attacks to suffer as he does. Imagine what those men are going through right now because of him. Lying there hour after hour, day after day. With his threat always playing in their heads.”

“Threats?” Adams asked, “What threats?”

“The Tapper spoke with each of his targets, before and after he paralyzed them.” David said, “Noel and I are going to confront Gem P with this threat as soon as he is stable enough to talk with us. The Tapper has threatened each one of his targets that he will always be watching them. That if they don’t constantly admit to what they have done, that he would return to them and make their condition even worse.”

Noel then added, “Imagine lying there hour after hour with that replaying in your head.”

“Tell me something Lieutenant,” Celia said, “do you have any suspicion that he is watching these men still?”

“Yes.” David said bluntly. “With the possible exception of Gregior Divic. He’s still under the constant supervision of a Special Agent Jay Boldini at that facility in Missouri. But the others, yes, I think he still has a way to check in on them.”

“And you think he watches us?” Adams said.

“Yes.” Again David said the word bluntly. “I believe that he has at one time or another watched you and your men, and knows who each one is, probably even where you all live. He may, just may mind you, even now know about Celia and her crew here. But I can’t guarantee that because she and they just came on the scene.”

Adams for the first time looked uncomfortable, Noel noticed this and said, “Don’t worry Ernie, he’s not gonna hurt ya. Believe it or not, he’s on your side. That is if you’re not dirty.”

“I’m no dirty cop.” Adams said sternly.

“We know that Sergeant,” David said to him, “We had a quick briefing on you and your crew on the way here.”

“Adams looked at David with a stern expression, “Well, this is all fine and dandy about your vigilante here that he goes after only scumbags and such. But it still doesn’t excuse the fact that he fucked up which could have been one of the biggest drug bust in the history of this city.”

David then said, “Well, you seemed to not to have been listening that well to what we are saying Sergeant.”

“Meaning?”

“Meaning that we have been speaking on how the Tapper is communicating with us. He has left a message to us that is very obvious.” David said.

“And just what is that?”

“Noel?” David said looking to his partner, “Tell him what we discussed this morning.”

Noel stepped to the front of the table and began to speak, “Almost a year and a half ago, when Dave and I were coming back from Lake Forest Hospital after interviewing Gregior Divic, Dave came up with the notion that maybe the Tapper is communicating with us covertly. He came up with this idea because when the Tapper has attacked, other, more significant situations came to the surface. Especially with both attacks on Jared Bartholomew and Gregior Divic, considering they are linked. With Jared and his father, we found that they both were using their company’s money to supplement their pedophilia lifestyle. Like we said before, look what the attack on Jared brought to light, all those boys he molested and raped through the years, and then Jared helped turn his dad on to little girls. Look at the scandals and the lawsuits brought on them.

“The attack on Jared then became almost obsolete, it brought down the so called Bartholomew dynasty that Mitchell was trying to create. Then, there was the attack on Gregior Divic. Now here there was what we believe to be an open communication. The document that we spoke of before? Well, it was in a safe that was hidden behind a secret panel of a liquor shelf in Divic’s bar. The key to this safe was always worn by Divic on a chain around his neck. When the Sheriff’s department arrived to the Divic home they found that secret wall open and the key to that safe neatly hung on the handle”

Adams then said in an astonished tone, “He wanted them to open that safe and find the document.”

“Yes,” Noel said, “that’s exactly what we believe because after our guy broke Divic’s spine, he calmly walked to the basement door where the kids were being held and unlocked the door for them. He then left the house through the back door. We would have never of known of Divic or his type of business if the Tapper never unlocked that door so that the kids could call for help.”

David then added, “The kids were too frightened to come up the stairs, it took them a couple of hours before they felt safe enough to do so. By that time our guy was long gone. That shows how much he watched Divic’ he knew everything that was going on in that house.” David then stepped over to the file and removed some more photos, “These are pictures of the forest preserve behind the Divic home. I’ve been there myself several times; walked through there also. I could not find a trace of where he was, but I thought of several places he could have come out of. Places where he could have left his vehicle to drive away. However, there was a huge blizzard that night, and any traces of footprints or tire tracks were easily washed away.” David fell silent for a second and then added, “We also believe that he waited for that particular night to attack Divic, as you may recall, there was a big blizzard that night. It covered and erased any trail of him perfectly.”

“When the names on that document come to light,” Noel said, “there will be a huge shit storm.”

“Really,” Adams said sarcastically, “where’s this document now? You say it’s with the feds? What’s the hold up then?”

Then for the first time since everyone gathered, Captain Xiang spoke, “That document is in the possession of the federal government. How they want to proceed with the investigation of all the people who are named in it is still unknown to us at this time.”

“That’s a nice way of calling them assholes and that they are taking their sweet ass time about the whole thing.” Adams said. “You say that the people in that file were paying to have sex with kids?”

“Yes.” David answered.

“Then I guess your guy isn’t communicating very well with them now is he?”

“Well,” David said, “there may have been a new message sent, and it came to me last night. I discussed it with Noel and the Captain here and they are in agreement with me.”

“You all agree to what?” Adams asked.

“That the Tapper may be using something for all of us to look into.”

“And that is?” Adams asked.

“Simple,” David answered, “the same two words Officer Sutton gave at ‘Gem P’ home … the money.”

There came a short silence in the room, the Sutton asked, “You mean the missing cash?”

“Precisely,” David answered, “we believe that the Tapper did indeed take the money. But not for the reasons that you may initially think.”

“What do you mean?”

"I mean, yes, the Tapper took the money from Gem P and the 4-S, but he didn’t do it to rob them.”

“Aw c’mon Lieutenant,” Sutton exclaimed, “were talking three million bucks here … CASH! Are you honestly standing there and telling us all that your vigilante watched Gem P, kicked the shit out of him and his home boys, and that he just did not think of helping himself to a little self earned reward money?”

“Yes,” David said calmly, “that’s exactly what I’m saying.”

Adams then asked, “Then what do you think he’s doing with the money right now? Me? I’d be lying on the beach in the Bahamas right now.”

“Well Sergeant, it really doesn’t matter what he’s doing with the money. Yes, he could be having the time of his life right now; however, he could dump the whole bundle into the lake right now. The focus should not be on his having the money … it should be on the money itself.”

Now everyone was curious to hear what David had to say. He stepped back to his chair and sat down.

“Celia,” David said addressing her, “in all your years in Gang Crimes, can you recall any street gang having that much cash in their possession at one time? I mean three million in cash?”

“No,” she answered, “when I think about it, I have to answer no.”

“That’s our point,” David said, “just where did Gem P and his crew come up with three million bucks in cash to make this deal? Yeah I know that it’s a cash business, but you know the personality of these guys, they’re no geniuses. Someone helps them to keep that much cash legit, or better yet, someone holds onto that cash for them. They’re just too damn dumb to hide it in the house no matter how much the muscle and guns. Besides as soon as they make it, they then flash it and then spend it”

“And another thing,” Noel said, “when it comes to these gangs, everyone knows just what the real base of their power is. It’s the money. Without the money, there is no power. There are no guns, there are no weapons, there is no muscle to extort and intimidate. Without the cash, they all are just a bunch of nobody’s dressed as clowns.”

Carl then spoke up, “I think I know what you may be getting at. You say that your ‘Tapper’ is communicating with y’all in a covert way.”

“Yes.” David answered. “If you look at the history of the last attacks as we have said before, something more has come about from them.”

“So,” Carl continued, “if what you guys are thinking is correct, and your ‘Tapper’ is communicating with you as you say, he’s trying to tell you all that there is something else going on, and this fucking up of Gem P and his homeboys is …”

“Just to get our attention and to get us involved.” David said.

“Involved?” Carl asked, “Involved in what?”

“Involved with whatever else may be going on.” David said.

Adams then asked sternly, “You both think there’s something more going on here?”

“All three of us do, Sergeant.” Captain Xiang said. “The last two attacks were connected; there may be a chance that this latest incident involving the 4-S may be also connected in some way. If not with the other attacks, then with something else.”

“And just how do you all plan to find out just what that is?” Asked Adams.

“The answer is simple again,” David said, “it’s the money. The money is the link to whatever else may be going on. We believe that money had to come from somewhere, and in that somewhere there is a someone. And that someone not only has lost a lot of money, but they have had the chance to make a shit load more taken away. And that somebody is pissed.”

Captain Xiang then said, “I’ve discussed this with both David and Noel and I would have to agree. This cash came from another source.” He turned to Celia and said, “Celia, you and your crew know what’s going on in the 4-S turf tonight. Do you think that the powers that be, knowing what just happened to Gem P, are doing right now?”

“Yes,” she answered, “There’s probably a huge power struggle going on right at this moment.”

“Exactly,” David said, “there is a huge version of a gang banger political shit storm brewing right now. And what moves politics? Why money of course. So what’s the number one rule when there is political corruption? I mean from the Chicago City Council all the way up to Washington DC, what’s the main rule to follow when you look for those types of rats?” David looked around the room, and when there was no answer, he gave it himself, “Easy … follow the money.”

“Follow the money?” Adams asked, “The money’s gone, how you gonna follow the money?”

“Again I say easy, I’m not going to look for the money, I’m going to watch for who else is looking for it.” David then stepped over to Celia and her group, “And I don’t mean the usual suspects. I don’t mean any members of the 4-S, they’re looking for it because, shit, they want the cash. I don’t mean any of their rival gangs either, they want the money because it’s 4-S money, to them it’s just the spoils of war.”

“I think I see what you’re saying.” Celia said.

“Yes,” David continued, “don’t look at the attack on Gem P or the other two goons, don’t look at the pissed off Columbians that are in town. Focus on the money. Who’s going to show an interest in it, or even in this particular case? Who’s on the outside pulling the strings on those on the inside. Who else is out there that was going to benefit from this deal?”

Noel then said, “And the money doesn’t even have to be around, there’s a shit load of people going to be looking for it. Like Dave said, it doesn’t matter what the Tapper does with the cash, he could take a long trip or burn the whole damn thing. The focus is on who else is looking for it, their connection, and where they fit in with the 4-S.”

“I think that there’s someone else who helped to cough up all that cash,” David said, “someone with deep pockets, who wants to turn a quick and healthy profit, and does not want to be known. Whoever this or these benefactors are, they are not to happy right now. They want that cash back … bad. They may even be accountable for it somehow to someone else, and they’re a bit nervous right now I predict.”

Noel added, “Gem P is the only one right now that can tell us who this benefactor may be. But yeah right, like that’s going to happen.”

“And history shows us that we may not be able to even speak with him for some time.” David said, “However, this time of confusion among all the parties may be to our advantage because it just may make this benefactor anxious. The missing cash could make them so impatient that they will become reckless … hopefully.”

“So, we need to watch the street politics,” injected Captain Xiang to Sergeant Adams, “we need to get your men on the inside to watch and see if they can find these so called benefactors. We need for you and them to be able to carry that out.”

Adams seemed a bit perplexed, “So, you all feel that this ‘Tapper’ of yours is trying to really tell you that there are others involved in this? You’re all really sure of this?”

“Considering the scandals of the past,” Xiang answered, “I would have to agree with David and Noel, there may be more to this.”

“If that’s so,” Adams said, “then what scandal broke out when he attacked those two rapist motherfuckers?”

The room went silent for a second, and then David said, “That I can’t answer, the only thing that came about from all that was the fact that Freeman and Ortega were wanted in other states. Maybe that was all an act of fate, maybe he just happened to be there when they were in the act of raping that girl, I don’t know. However I believe that the Tapper would not sit and watch any of the other women being raped just to set up his attack.”

“You make it sound as if you know him.” Adams said.

“Over time, with looking for him and going over every little detail over and over the way Noel and I have, yes, I think I’ve come to know him somewhat.” David answered, “Maybe Freeman and Ortega was just a way to introduce himself, sort of speak. Maybe they were his calling card, I don’t know.”

“So now you’re all telling us to be on the lookout for any potential partners that Gem P may have had in this blown deal huh?” Adams said with a bit of anger. “Just forget what this asshole did to my operation; just forget about him and what he’s done and what he’s been doing. Sounds like you guys don’t want to find you boy at all.”

“Nothing could be further from the truth.” Captain Xiang said sternly in defense of his men.

“No, we’re not going to forget about him,” David said, “that’s impossible for my partner and me. We’ll keep looking for him, but it’s going to be difficult.”

“Just what the hell does that mean?” Adams asked.

“It’s going to be impossible because another M.O. of the Tapper is that, for now anyway, he’s going to just disappear again. Just like all the other times. This is the longest that he’s been gone, God knows when the next time he’s going to launch an attack and just who he‘s going to go after. Who knows, he may vanish all together, either that, or he’s out there, right now, maybe watching and planning for whoever is his next target. He’ll be on the sidelines, also watching us, to see if we pursue with what he’s left behind for us.”

Carl then spoke, “You have him more pegged than you think Lieutenant. You really think he’s just gonna sit on the sidelines and watch.”

“Yes, because this is what he does. We believe, that he believes, that he’s not only helping us, but that he’s helping society by not only eradicating the low level dirt bags, but high level ones as well.”

“Lieutenant,” Celia spoke, holding her finger up, “You stated that you all believe that he’s punishing these men, not killing them because he wants them to suffer as he does. That someone that was dear to him was hurt, maybe even killed by guys like Gem P and these others. Do you think that who ever it was in his life that was hurt may also have been hurt by these high level type of dirt bags?”

David paused for a second, “You know Celia, thanks, because you now have given us another thing to ponder that we now have to add to all the others.” 

With that remark, Celia smiled and gave out a little laugh. Then Adams spoke out, still with a bit of anger, “So, Lieutenant … now what?”

David looked to him and said, “I suggest this. Take everything that you have just heard here about the Tapper and digest it. Believe it or not, he just may be handing you the opportunity for an even larger bust of bigger importance. Right now all we have is gang street politics and some pissed off Columbians, who are trying to sell their product fast, probably to the 4-S competitors for a huge discount. Because the competitors have some ready cash, but not at the proportions that Gem P and the 4-S had. The money is the key to finding whoever else is behind that buy. Watch for any interest from outsiders trying to locate that cash, and that is probably going to lead us all too some serious people with serious cash, and maybe even with some serious power. Put them out of business, and you hurt more all around and all the way down.”

All was quiet for a second, David had struck a chord with Adams, whose expression became somewhat calm and he said, “Okay Lieutenant, we’ll do that. We’ll see if your boy is trying to set us on a path to something bigger. But if this doesn’t pan out, I swear …”

“Swear what Ernie?” Noel interrupted, “you’re going to beat the hell out of the Tapper or something? That means you gotta find him yourself. Because I know you couldn’t possibly mean Dave or me, you could get hurt.”

There was a tense few seconds of silence, then Carl said, “Well, all I know is this, that if your boy there is trying to send messages as you say, and trying to show us something bigger, then from what I’ve seen here and at Gem P’s hospital room, I’m just glad this Tapper is on our side. Shit, I’d hate for him to be pissed at me.”

“Speaking of which,” David said looking to his wristwatch, “that’s exactly where Noel and I are headed to next, the hospital to see when we will be able to interview Gem P and his buds. You’re all welcome to join us in the fun if you wish.”

“Thanks,” Celia said, “but no thanks.”

“Besides,” Noel said, “There won’t be much going on there anyway. We probably won’t be able to speak with any of those guys for at least 10 days or so. That … you all probably will want to attend.”

David then said, “We will have the usual routine that we have to in order to confirm that it was the Tapper who attacked them, plus who knows maybe by that time we’ll know something else about what we all discussed here. Who knows, maybe the Tapper has Gem P as scared as all the others were … and still are. He may spew fourth everything that we’re looking for also.”

“You think that might happen?” Adams asked.

“Yes, there’s a chance that it will, maybe not a good chance, but a chance all the same.” Noel answered, “That’s one thing I have to praise our boy about. He has put the fear of God into these assholes. I guar-an-damn-tee you, when they regain consciousness, they’re going to be scared shitless.”

Another silent pause came, and then Captain Xiang spoke up, “So, we are all in agreement here?”

Everyone in the room then nodded in agreement.

“So then, I expect some solid cooperation among all of us.” Xiang continued, “I believe that I needn’t emphasize on the importance that this matter remain just among us all in this room. If our theories are correct, we may be putting a big hurt on some prominent people and prominent people are connected people. Besides, I just hate hearing things that I wish to be confidential reported by anyone in the news.”

“We’ll keep it in this room Captain,” Celia assured him; she looked to her other colleagues, “right boys?”

Paul and Carl both answered, “Yes.” simultaneously.

“Nothing will be discussed by me or any of my crew.” Adams answered, also assuredly.

“Well then,” Xiang said. “I guess we can all adjourn then. We shall all remain in contact.” He then turned to his men, “David, Noel. You both should be on your way then.” He looked to all else in the room and said, “It has been a delight to meet you all, I believe I speak for both Lieutenants Todd and Jaworski that we all look forward to working with all of you, now if you all will excuse me, I have a meeting I must attend. Thank you all for coming.” The Captain then exited the office leaving Noel and David alone with the others.

David looked around to the others, “Well, that’s about it boys and girls. Any other questions before we all go are separate ways?”

Adams raised his hand slightly, “Yeah, I got one. If and or when you do finally capture this vigilante of yours, what do you think you would want to know from him?”

David paused for a second to think, and then answered, “I guess I would ask just one thing; and that would be ‘who was it’?”

“Who was who?”

David looked at Adams with a slight smile and answered, “Who was it in your life that was hurt or taken from you to make you do what you’ve done? Just how much did they mean to you? Is the pain you’re suffering so great that it pushed you to do this? The more I study and pursue this man, the more I believe that he doesn’t do this because of hate, rather it’s done because of love. I have to agree with our source at the FBI, it’s love that’s driving the Tapper to do this. This has all come about simply because of someone he loved.”

“Yeah,” Noel agreed, “because if this were done simply because he hated the criminal element of our society, then he would be out there every night just hunting and mowing them down. He’d even probably be killing them. We theorize that because it was someone that he loved, that he will not kill his targets. Maybe because he believes that killing whomever attacks would somehow tarnish the loved one.” He looked around to the others and saw some confusion. “Yeah I know, it sounds confusing.”

Celia then spoke up, “On the contrary, I completely understand.”

“You do?” Carl asked puzzled.

“Of course I do … a woman would know this. In a morbid strange way, it sounds kind of romantic.” 

“You sound like my wife,” David said, “She says the same thing. I guess a woman would see it that way.”

“Listen sugar,” Celia said, “just because I wear a gun and a badge and deal with assholes everyday, doesn’t mean I have forgotten about flowers and candlelight.”

David gave out a laugh, “No, I guess women don’t no matter what the situation.” He then again looked to his wristwatch and then said, “We really have to break this up if we’re going to get to that hospital. You all have our numbers here and out in the field if any of you need to reach us. And believe us; we will be in constant touch with all of you. I guess that’s it. We see you later then.” David then went to the office door and opened it.

Everyone then stood and shook hands; even Sergeant Adams was cordial as he shook hands with David and Noel. They all then filed out from the office, leaving David and Noel standing there in the sudden quiet of the room. David then shut the door behind him slowly, hearing the latch secure itself with a click. David then stood holding the door handle, looking to the floor. He had a solemn look on his face.

“What’s the matter Dave?” asked Noel.

“Just thinking of a little question that Adams asked before.”

“And what’s that?”

“Well, I say in about a week and a half we go to interview Gem P and his home boys, do the same routine, file the same reports, and then end up with the same results.”

“Yeah?”

  Simple,” David said, “after all that, ‘now what’?”