The City Of Angels, Spring 2008
(Note: Part 5 ran seven pages, which was longer than I like. Part 6 is longer, so I have subdivided it.)
For this section:
Chapters 42, 43 and 45 include violence. Bad things happen to bad folks.
Chapter 46 includes sex.
This is a work of fiction. However, the record supports the historical references below (Mongols, Mandela).
*****
Chapter 41. Questions
Friday Shortly After Midnight
During the drive Sara called the soldiers about setting things up, she wanted to do the entrance interviews right away, before anybody slept. She figured a half hour each; prisoners would set up in one room while she was talking in another.
I wanted Sara in a mask (as all the other were), but she said that was a barrier and would not work. She consented to a short blond wig and glasses for the interviews, but that was as far as she would go.
Sara got a lot quickly.
The first interview was the Mustang driver. He did not get the necklace lecture, he was just told he was being held by criminals, and then asked his name. It was like a dam bursting. He talked, so much the Sara had to tell him his time was up, there were others waiting. He thanked her. The third interview, with his girl, went the same way.
In each case except the Mustang driver and his female spotter Sara started with a short history lesson.
"Winnie Mandela was the great man's wife. During the '80s, she spoke of using 'our boxes of matches and our necklaces' against her enemies. Do you know what a necklace is? One forces a tire filled with gasoline around the torso and arms. Then sufficient lit matches are added. Winnie was convicted in the necklace death of a 14-year old. Now, you tried to kill our Jefe. Somebody got you to do that, but he planned poorly, so here you are. We have a necklace for you. If you talk, you might avoid the necklace. If you are innocent you might even walk free again. I will decide the order and timing of the necklaces. I have no questions for you today."
The Ninos were also told about the "hellmouth" which would suck in their soul and end their reboots.
The second interview was the big Shark, Chiggs Martin. After the lecture Sara told the big guy his name and birth date, plus that he was a bodyguard for the Sharks. This shook him up, in his mind it meant the other Shark had already betrayed him. Then she said, "You know, a big good-looking guy like you could be a real problem. We don't have any solitary confinement or really any punishments. So I will tell you what; the first time you get out of line physically we will knock you out with drugs and cut those big biceps off completely. You will eat well after that, lots of hamburger helper." Her grin sold it, the threat shook him to the core. She stood up and carefully looked at all of him, admiring his naked body. "Maybe, if this works out, we can meet again under better conditions."
Then she said she had a question for him, "to confirm, what is the name of the other Shark?"
Chiggs gave it up; he said the guy was named Pat Koch, although he usually pronounced it as "fat cock."
Sara laughed. "I assure you, you are the biggest. His lie is pretty obvious and pathetic."
Then she asked if Koch had a woman, Chiggs laughed and said the only women Koch knew were those he raped, none of the prostitutes would have him because of his behavior and complete lack of hygiene. Chiggs added that he had never heard Koch say a civil phrase to any woman, "not even Doria!" who he called "the boss's bed bitch" in private.
Doria was the smart and very attractive teenage daughter of the Sharks leader.
Sara ended the talk. Chiggs knew Koch was a weasel who thought he was smart and Chiggs was dumb. But maybe, if the lady liked him - she had called him good-looking and admired his muscles, all of which she saw - he could avoid the nasty necklace.
From that point on, Mr. Chiggs Martin was a model prisoner.
The fourth interview was with Koch. He was moved from a regular room to the torture room, and placed in the Star Wars chair. He smiled when Sara walked in the room, so she hit "2" (out of 5) on his genital shocker, "just for what you are thinking." The guy screamed far more than was called for. She looked at him for a few minutes, gave the lecture. They she used his named and read his tats. He was still only one step above a teen-age newbie in the gang ranks. She mentioned Chigg's name and said it was unlikely that both would leave here alive. She pointed to one of the fittings in the chair and said, "This one is for when I want to piss down your throat," she said as she sipped a coke. Then she said, "I don't want to talk to you any more," and left the room. The guy spent another hour in the torture chair looking at the implements before they came and got him. As he was being wheeled back to his cell she "happened to walk by" with a cattle prod. He kept his head down but when he turned to look at her from behind she applied the cattle prod, then walked away without a word.
The two ninos from the car screamed abuse, but since they would die first it really did not matter.
The two ninos from the house did not say a word. Sara just gave the necklace lecture, then left.
The Captain and I watched all the interviews and thought Sara did a great job, especially with Chiggs. Then the three of us talked about what we had learned.
The two free lancers were terrified and helpful. Emily and Ron were both in their mid 20's. They were not lovers in the traditional sense, but more like close step-brother/sister with benefits. They met when his stepmother and her biological mother lived together in Canada. The women lived together for 8 years but never married, then they broke up to go their own ways. Both kids were over 18 at the breakup and felt abandoned so they decided to strike out for Seattle. They had kicked around the western US and Canada ever since. Last year they tried LA hoping for some sun. They usually shared a bed (saving money), but they only had manual, oral and anal sex when they were horny; that was the extent of their 'benefits' because they considered themselves relatives. They both dated and screwed others, and were know to share, but they could not hold a lover or a job.
Darnel (they picked his picture out of a six-pack) snared them by giving them some cocaine when he met them in a Venice park last weekend. He said he had a driving job, it paid $500 a day, which was $100 cash at the end of each day and the rest when the job was done. He threw in a bump of coke each day plus a bedroom and meals in the house. They did not like the ninos or the Sharks who stayed there so mostly they went to the park south of the forest. After they started they never saw Darnel again; everything went through post-its from "the short cock guy" at the house.
They started driving Sunday night in sort of a split shift. At night they were out for 4 hours looking for my car - orbiting the area. Then at 10 in the morning they did a half hour route checking for dead drops from the spies. They made a list, after four morning runs they had it memorized. It was something for Knife333 to use.
The big reveal for the day was the description Darnel gave them for my car. He said it was a late model Crown Vic or Marquis (he had pictures) that was black, dark blue, dark grey or dark green. The plate was fuzzier, he said it started with a "P" or "R" and ended with "Q" or maybe an "O." After the first letter was one, two or three letters, likely a combination of "M" "N" or "W." Then came two other letters or numbers, "4" "5" or "S" but he was not sure of the order. Both Ron and Emily quoted the same formula of letters and numbers from Darnel.
Vicky is dark blue Crown Vic and the plate is PNM45Q, with an address in San Jose. They had a good enough match to spot me, but now I knew that Darnel did not have the exact license plate. His police mechanic must have tried different combinations; their computers allow wildcards so that was not a stretch, but wildcards meant many more hits that were not me. About 396 by my count. So he had to eliminate a lot of numbers by other means like address, or combinations not issued. Plus, if he eliminated based on address, he would eliminate San Jose, and therefore Vicky's actual plate.
In any event, I placed a call to have Vicky painted white (my least favorite color). It was already scheduled to be in the shop next Tuesday for repair after the rear-end hit and to have the gun removed, painting added a day.
There was one other item: both Emily and Ron were anxious to "be helpful" in any way they could. Ron wondered if we could use a trustee or cook or a cleanup guy. Emily made her offer overtly sexual, she said she was willing to "be friendly with one or even two guards at a time," if it would help. This may have come from the fact that we kept them naked except for the shock devices and chains. She had not seen any faces except Sara.
Sara's first reaction was to let them go. I agreed, but it was a problem because we were miles away from everywhere. I also wanted to keep them for attitude adjustment and anything they might confirm from the others. We saw how they needed each other so we agreed they could spend a half hour a day alone together "in the yard" (the central courtyard, with no exit) but they had to wear leg chains. They would also be miked. When Sara told them they were overjoyed, and both suggested a willingness to service her sexually as a "thank you." I was guessing they paid for a lot of things with sex.
We agreed that Sara had found the perfect buttons to push on Chiggs. He would give us all he could in time, but he probably did not have that much. I did not see an urgent need to burn him.
Koch the other Shark might have more, otherwise his presence did not make sense. Sara found him odious, she wanted him second on the necklace list, but that was an emotional reaction. We penciled him in at fifth place for now.
Sara thought there might be a chance to get something from "Don" and "Phil" which is what she named the ninos from the house, after the Everly Brothers "because they might sing." She said that toasting a Shark (like Koch) ahead of them might give her the break she needed to reach them. I agreed to keep an open mind on the subject.
