Chapter 2

Steve woke up the next morning and looked at his watch. He’d always been an early riser, but today it was close to seven am and he felt a little guilty sleeping so long. He made his way to his bathroom and took a long hot shower. Shaving gear was present along with a new toothbrush. Exiting the shower and drying off he noticed his overnight bag sitting on a hotel type bag stand open for his ease of dressing. It wasn’t opened out of curiosity but hospitality from the orient. He quickly dressed and stuffed his soiled clothes away in a bag his wife always provided him and made his way upstairs to a new day. The first thing he noticed was the weather was still pretty much the same. Rain beat against the windows and Sujin was in the kitchen looking like she never left it from the night before. Rocky had replaced Sandy and was lying next to the wood stove with an eye on Steve. Steve shivered thinking about someone making a false move against Sujin. He shook the thought out of his mind as the door opened and a soaked Brad came in. He stripped down and said, “Good morning and did you rest well?”

“Never felt better as usual when I have the pleasure of sleeping under your roof. Tell me what does it feel like to run on the beach in a storm like we are having now?”

Brad laughed and said, “I can only say it makes me feel alive and damn glad I am.”

“I guess that makes two of us,” Steve replied with a grin that few had the privileged to see on his face. Sujin placed a mug of hot coffee on the old table next to the window. Steve moved towards it like a bee to a flower seeking the aroma and its delicate taste. She knew he liked his coffee in the morning like most Americans. Brad headed downstairs to take a shower as Rocky watched him go with one eye and the other on Steve as he sat at the table lifting his cup of hot freshly ground coffee. Steve didn’t wait for Brad to come while he drank his coffee and said to Sujin, “What do you make of this case Sujin?”

“Well,” she said in an Asian accent, “he or she makes good use of a disguise.”

Steve knew better than to discount what she said because it was obvious this killer was adept in using a disguise. He vowed to give that point more thought as Brad walked into the room looking like a college professor dressed in tan slacks, a pale yellow striped shirt and a dark brown silk tie. He carried his sport coat over his shoulder and hung it on the back of a chair sitting down and saying, “I heard Sujin say ‘disguise’ and in our opinion that is the key to this case.”

Sujin brought him a cup of herb tea and asked Steve if he would like some scrambled eggs and toast for breakfast. Steve told her that would be lovely and she returned to the kitchen. About that time a high pitched sound went on along with the lights flashing on and off. Sandy had punched the button that someone was on the property. Sujin quickly scanned the screen next to the refer and announced it was her sister and left to open the door for her. Her sister was standing on the gravel drive waiting for permission to enter.

Steve had never met Sujin’s sister and upon looking at the two of them they looked like twins. Sujin introduced Earie to Steve and Steve standing up gave her a little bow while Earie gave him a deep bow and in almost perfect English said “Nice to meet you.” Brad said hello in Korean and the girls headed for the kitchen. Brad explained to Steve that Sujin’s sister stays here when they are gone. Like her sister she can take care of herself very well. We always leave one dog with her and she is happy to stay here for as long as we are gone. She is well versed in computers and we tie into her while in the field. Works well.”

Steve never knew he had a sister in law and later he found out they were indeed twins, but not identical. She lived in a town where her American husband, a former military man turned policeman; and was the local chief of police. Steve got the impression Brad didn’t socialize with anyone from town and his brother in law thought it wise not to know what he did for a living. A situation that worked out well for the two of them; him being the chief of police kept the busy bodies in town from talking too much. Steve asked, “What is your thinking about this case?”

Brad understood his boss didn’t want a full blown detail rendition, but a brief overview would suffice. Looking his boss in the eye he said, “The disguise is too good for an amateur so we must look at a professional and most likely we will find our killer either working in the film industry or was working in the make-up department somewhere.”

Sujin brought the men their breakfast and all were quiet while they ate. Steve heard the girls talking in Korean and understood a word or two, but not enough to understand what they were talking about. The guys had just finished when the phone rang and Sujin answered it from a cordless on the counter. Without a word she handed it to Brad who listened and said, “Four o’clock in front of the state capitol in Sacramento. Tell Billy to not be late,” as he hung up the phone.

Steve looked at his watch and said he would call the pilot in the North bend and tell him to be ready for a ten am departure time. Brad nodded his agreement and left to go down to the basement. A few minutes later he returned with a garment bag, a lap top and the files had read the night before. Sujin had followed him down as her sister cleaned up the dishes. Rocky knew they were going somewhere and sat at attention waiting for his call to arms. Sujin returned dressed nicely in what looked like a pair of light wool gray slacks, a white blouse with a sweater over the top. A light coat contrary to the weather outside, but she knew it would be much warmer in Sacramento and down into Southern California. What Steve didn’t know was strapped to just above her ankle a small handgun couldn’t be seen from her loose fitting slacks. Steve did know that Brad was packing his favorite hand gun in the small of his back. Steve had witnessed Brad at the target range and god help the person who drew down on him. A cool guy under pressure would be hard to find, much less match him under any circumstances be it guns or hand to hand combat. Killing the bad guys came easy for him and the only thing he said one time after a covert raid deep in the jungle of South America was he was not sad he killed the leader, but rather he had the utmost respect for his leadership.

Sandy gave them a bark as they loaded into Steve’s car. Rocky sat in the front with Steve and Brad and Sujin in the back. Brad made Rocky wear his seat belt and he sat facing Steve on the drive to the airport. Steve thought about reaching out and petting him, but when took his hand off the wheel, Rocky raised his head up and looked him in the eye saying put your hands back on the wheel with his eyes.

At the airport gale force winds were blowing from the southwest. The pilot was a little nervous as was the co-pilot. Mike Henshaw, a key member of the team, was talking to the pilot telling him this was a normal fall day and not to worry as the wind would make the takeoff shorter. Brad caught the tail end of the conversation walking into the flight center. The pilot gave off a feeble forced laugh and turned back to the guy behind the counter for the latest weather report to Sacramento, as if he didn’t already know. Mike moved towards Brad and with his usual big grin turned towards Steve and shook his hand. Greetings out of the way the pilot said to board and they would take off in a few minutes.

Umbrellas were not much use in the winds so they hurried to the hanger where the Gulf Stream waited. It was the latest model loaned to them by NASA. The president and congress had approved an increase in NASA’s budget for space and this special branch of the government took advantage whenever they could.

Everyone buckled in, including Rocky, waiting for a bumpy ride to California. Brad realized if the pilot hadn’t been a little nervous, he wasn’t a good pilot. Brad was sitting with Mike and they were quietly discussing the case. Mike was a carefree kind of guy, but when it came to business he was totally focused. Mike lived down in Port Orford tucked in a valley east of town. Steve was aware of where he lived but had never been there. He wasn’t married, but had a longtime girlfriend with a couple of kids acting like old hippies back in the sixties living off the land. Today, however, he was dressed much like Brad and clean cut looking. Steve knew he was close to forty five, but looked years younger and moved like a cat. He was one of the lucky ones escaping on the helicopter from the bungled Afghanistan job. Brad used him for digging out information where cops or other guys like the FBI failed to elicit facts. Walking up to a total stranger he had them going in two seconds and after a few minutes they were spilling their guts to him about whatever he wanted to know. Brad called it uncanny and why or how it worked was Mike’s secret personality. Some might say he could sell ice to an Eskimo. Mike said it was his honest eyes and a long nose that made the difference.

Meanwhile Sujin sat with Rocky studying her laptop. She had brought up a long list of cosmetic suppliers. Start at the source and work from there to the buyers of quantity. She would provide Mike the list and he would follow the trail. Next she researched suppliers of disguise and prop companies. She knew many film companies had their own props and clothing, but in today’s world it was easy to order from an outlet except in special make up characters. Also she would have Mike check the film companies for inventory loss or items missing lately. She had no idea if they even kept track of what went out and what came back from a take on a particular days shooting.

She would take on the film companies employment records. As a female and a Korea with passable English she was more likely to enjoy cooperation than a male. It had worked in the past and would work in the future. All of the team members were United States Marshals. In most cases that ID opened the door where even the FBI had trouble without a warrant. Most cases as with the others demanded leg work. Brad always supplied her with a driver so she didn’t have to worry about finding an address. Most of the time the drivers dug for information, but after a few attempts, they gave up when they thought she was either stuck up or didn’t understand English. She liked it that way so her mind was always clear and focused no matter even if it was a mundane chore.

At the two hours flight time she had what she needed and would print it out when they landed. Now it was time to meditate and be ready for the meeting with the governor of California.

The buckle up lights came on and Brad and Mike put away their papers and prepared for landing. The sun was shining Brad noticed and looked forward to the warmth of the sun after the cooling of the coast. It had been about four months since their last case.

It was fairly straight forward as he remembered. There were tons of new methamphetamine was coming into the southeastern states. Georgia in particular along with Louisiana and it was his job to find the source in Mexico and put a damper on the influx of cooked methamphetamine so cheap anyone could afford it. The old war on drugs had mostly shut down the manufacture of the chemical drug in the States and now Mexico seized the opportunity to make some big dollars. Brad and his team found what they were looking for and eliminated the leader and his rival drug lord. Everyone knew it was only a band aid on a wound that needed a much larger covering to staunch the flow of drugs across the border, but that was another story for the politicians to work out.

The landing was smooth as silk on the new runway of the Executive Airport in Sacramento. The airport was designed for corporate type jets and the sleek Gulf Stream fit the bill to a T. An hour later they were entering the capital. They had a two o’clock appointment and while they waited, they had lunch in the cafeteria. Brad as usual was quiet and barely ate his cob salad. Sujin fed Rocky the chicken from her salad and Brad's left over chicken. The guard took one look at Rocky when they walked into the capital building, but when Brad showed the guard Rockies ID saying he was a US Marshal, he was flustered to say the least as they made their way to the cafeteria.

At two pm they were sitting in the outer office of the governor. Precisely at two he came out with the smile we all know from his movies. He shook hands with all and a small bow to Sujin. He knew better than to touch the dog so he invited them into a side room used as a conference room. In the room they were introduced to the agent in charge of Sacramento’s FBI office; and two other men with whom they never knew the names. Both were old men and very well dressed. Later Brad found out they were representatives of AARP. A very powerful force in America with lots of political clout sent by the president to calm the senior citizens with an inside look at what the government was doing about this madman killing innocent seniors for no apparent reason.

The FBI man was going to gray with dark circles under his eyes adding years to a middle aged man. Brad felt sorry for him knowing what kind of pressure was in him. He also noted his eyes were glaring and full of contempt for outsiders to interfere with his business. Brad looked him in the eyes with the same look gave and the governor noted the animosity and coming conflict about to surface once the meeting started.

The governor took command by saying, “Before we begin, let me make something very clear from the beginning. We are here to apprehend a killer and to not battle over whose turf we are stepping on. You will work together or if you don’t want to work together on this case, now is the time to pack your bags and head for the airport. These are a team problem and only a team effort will put this joker behind bars. Now, having said that, I would like Jake from the FBI to begin his report followed by Brad who will give us his insights in this case; and in case you haven’t noticed, I understand Rocky will keep any tempers from coming to a boil.”

Jake Gladhand cleared his thought and began his report. “We have just been informed a few minutes ago of another killing. This one is right here in Sacramento. Our men are on site as we speak. It appears the same MO and this is the first one this far north of Los Angeles. I don’t have a lot to add to the files Mr. Lewis has, but this time he was seen leaving the premises and stopped to talk to the mailman. The mailman has a good memory and he is with a sketch artist now. I know what you're going to say and that the disguises are good enough to fool anyone. However, upon asking who he was visiting in the apartment, he gave a good enough answer, but failed to know that his brother lived with him. The old man seemed to get a little nervous after hearing that and made excuses about having to go somewhere. The postman watched him walk away and noticed he sure walked spry for a guy looking close to seventy five. The postman walked into the apartment and hid behind the entryway as he watched the old man drive away in a car getting only two numbers and he didn’t have a clue to the make or model.”

Brad noticed he looked all in and decided to take the heat off him with a question or two. Brad said, “Jake, leaving the present killing for a moment, may I ask what have you and your team did in the way of research knowing this person must have worked or had access to cosmetics in addition to acquiring many different types of disguises?”

“We have a team of agents checking with suppliers and going to all the film companies big and little to see about a person leaving recently from any make up department. So far no leads have surfaced and we continue to come up empty,” he hung his head and it was visible to all he was at an impasse. Brad looked away and his eyes locked onto the governors intense blue gray eyes. He was waiting for Brad to bring forth his game plan while Brad took a drink from a bottled Evian. Reaching into his bag he brought out a map of California and the overlay he had shown earlier to Steve.

The governor stood up and when Brad put the overlay over the map he saw the letter ‘N’ clearly like a neon sign. Jake saw it also and sucked in his breath. Brad said, “We think he is sending us a message with the location of each death. I know this doesn’t get us any closer to finding the man, but maybe some computer work will assist us in giving a location of his next intended murder. Have we any idea yet what the murder weapon is?” He looked at Jake for an answer to this question.

Jake said in a low voice fiddling with some papers, “We only know it is a long sharp round steel tool or something to that effect. Our expert from the home office has been trying to replicate the weapon and here is what it looks like,” passing a drawing across the table to Brad he sat back down and rubbed his eyes. Brad and Mike with Steve and Sujin peering over his shoulder looked at the drawing. Something in the back of Brad’s memory told him he had seen something like this before, but couldn’t place it. It would come back to him sooner rather than later. The governor looked at the drawing after Brad passed it to him and said, “Maybe we should send this out to all the film companies and see if they can ID it”

Jake perked up and said, “We are doing that now and by evening I hope to have an ID on the murder weapon.

Brad asked the FBI man if they had an office his team could work out of, but it doesn't be much as only himself would be using it. He informed Jake that Sujin and Mike would be going to the Los Angeles area and would he please supply an agent to Sujin. Mike will run on his own so no need to worry about him. Brad said, “Any questions you might have direct them to me. I think we have done all we can for the moment and I for one would like to find a desk and a phone. The man you haven’t met with our team is a computer guy and needless to say, looks and talks the role. Bear with him as he is very capable in what he does. His name is Billy and he is probably waiting outside on the steps smoking in an area designated nonsmoking.”

The governor showed his gap tooth smile and said, “I must meet this guy so I will follow you out.” At that all stood up walking out Jake told Brad he could ride with him and another car or cars were standing by for the rest of his team’s disposal. Brad told him one car would suffice to take his wife and Mike to the airport for their trip to LA.

Billy was sitting on the steps with a cloud of blue smoke rising like a signal to an Indian tribe. He was tuned into his MP3 and totally oblivious to his surroundings. Brad gave him a friendly poke in the back with his foot and Billy jumped up and turned his music off. He saw the governor and blurted out that he was sorry he never voted for him, but if he voted at all he would have voted for him. Brad started laughing and so did all the others present including the governor. Billy was tall and rail thin. Long brown hair hung like a mop drying next to the wall. His eyes, however, showed an intelligence that belied his appearance: Ragged jeans and sweatshirt. Rocky was all over him standing with his front paws on his chest making whining sounds. Steve was shocked to see the ever stoic Rocky showing friendship to another besides Brad and Sujin. Brad told Rocky to behave and Rocky returned to his master’s side.

Mike with Sujin made their way to a waiting car with garment bags and her laptop. She’d asked the governor's secretary to make copies of what she had downloaded and with the documents in hand told Brad she would call him from the motel tonight on his cell phone. Billy, Rocky and Brad rode with Jake to the FBI office not so far from the capital off I-80 on Orange Grove. All was quiet on the short ride and after parking in the underground area and taking the elevator up to the seventh floor where Jake led them to his office. He picked up his messages from his secretary and she told him an agent from Hollywood was anxious to talk to him. He nodded and with his head down looking at the messages led the way to a back office. The office was fairly typical of a government office only this one had a large conference table opposite the large metal desk. The usual computer and family pictures sat waiting for someone to notice they were looking at them. The walls painted blue with an off blue green carpet made the metal desk and conference table look totally out of place. A picture of the current FBI director sat on one wall and the other wall was a bookshelf from one end to the other. Brad noticed many law books and knew Jake was a lawyer by degree. A large window sat in his back making anyone sitting in front of Jake would see only an outline of him. Two chairs sat in front of the desk and Brad and Billy both moved them to either side of the desk so they could see Jake as plain as he could see them. The movement of the chairs didn’t go unnoticed by Jake as he punched in some numbers on his phone. It must have been answered quickly as he spoke into the phone saying rather curtly to update him on what was so urgent. He listened and made some notes on a legal pad and said he would get back to him later tonight.

Brad and Billy waited patiently while he thumbed through his messages and then cast them aside. They waited for him to speak. Jake raised his head and said, “That was one of our agents reporting that he has a lead on a disgruntled employee that used to work for one of the major filmmakers. He’s tracking him down now and is sitting at the guy’s house waiting for him to come home. He says there is a wife and at least two kids in the house so he figures he will be home soon.”

Brad changed the subject by saying, “Jake we need to get a blow up map of California and overlay it with the kill sites. Billy needs access to your computer center and given a free hand to do his thing. Meanwhile I would like a place to land and go over again the ME report along with the latest on a profile of this person. I presume you have a profiler working on this person and if so, where is the report?”

Jake was taken a little aback by what he heard and quickly recovered by calling his secretary in. She popped through the door like a cork from a champagne bottle with notebook in hand. Billy rolled his eyes at the plain Jane, but as soon as she focused her eyes on Billy through thick glasses, Brad knew Billy had fallen in love again. He smiled inwardly and thought that this secretary was in for a pleasant time having Billy hanging around her desk asking off the wall questions and in general making a fool of him.

Jake gave her orders and Brad and Billy left Jake to muddle the late afternoon out by making a plan his agents could follow.

Meanwhile Brad and Jake followed Vicky down the hall to an office that was more like a broom closet than an office. She turned the light on and the only thing in the room was a small metal desk with a phone sitting looking lonely waiting for some action. One chair sat next to the desk and a desk chair creaked when Brad sat down. The desk was covered in dust and Vicky was totally embarrassed and said, “The cleaning crew will be here at ten and I will make sure they do a very good cleaning job tonight.”

Brad replied, “That would be fine and by the way have someone get me a computer and printer set up and operating by six am tomorrow morning. In addition, make sure I have a list of numbers and staff by the same time. Now I will follow Billy and you to the computer center.”

Vicky was making notes that probably didn’t need to be made, but she saw the look in Brad’s eyes and felt her knees start to buckle. God she thought, what a powerful man he must be. The way he made Jake tremble must mean this man is someone to respect. What is the dog for she also wondered. Never mind as she turned to lead them down two floors to the computer center.

Jake, after they left made a call to the assistant director of the FBI. He asked only one question and listened for two minutes and hung up. He’d foolishly asked who Brad Pratt was and got an ear full. What he did hear was this guy was well connected and if he asks for something, take care of it yourself if you don't want to retire from the FBI. Jake then made a quick call to the computer center and asked for the director. He rapid fired orders to carte blanche anything that a disheveled guy named Billy asked for and in addition to whatever a clean cut man named Brad Pratt wanted. He made it clear if he didn’t give these guys everything they wanted he would be shredding documents by the next day.

Later having dinner at a fine hotel Billy and Brad discussed the case. Brad brought him up to speed and told him what he thought was needed from the computer. Billy thought about it a little while drinking coffee and nervously reaching for a cigarette then realizing he couldn’t smoke in any restaurant. Billy suggested they hurry and finish dinner so they could go outside and smoke. Brad gave him a dirty look and said he would meet him for breakfast in the morning at six. Brad left with Rocky and went to his room where he called Sujin. He found her in her room at a hotel near the airport and said she had spent only a few hours on the phone, but two places sounded promising about a recent big sale of cosmetics. Brad told her to call him at the FBI office when she learned something and said he had some new documents from the FBI to read before bed.

Also just going to bed was the hunter going through his role for tomorrow’s play in a seedy motel located in the mountains east of Sacramento.