WPCTS5

Harvey gave Ronnie a nod as he grasped his gun in both hands. Ronnie took out the front door of the house with one swing of the battering ram. “SFPD!” Harvey called out as he entered the doorway, his eyes in constant motion as everyone moved in. He could hear Antwon’s group coming in from the rear. The men were in every room of the small suburban house within seconds.

He sighed heavily when everyone returned with an all clear and holstered his gun. “All right. Let’s see what we can find out about this guy. Maybe we’ll get lucky.” As he sorted through a stack of mail, the faint sound of chimes caught his attention and he glance around for the source. He stepped into a smoky bedroom that doubled as an office and saw the computer screen glowing. The sound of the chimes grew louder and Harvey saw an instant message pop up onto the computer screen.

Glancing around quickly, he pulled his gun back out of the holster, then gestured to Antwon. “He’s still here,” he said in an exaggerated whisper.

Everyone instantly went back on alert as they began searching for false walls or hidden storage areas. Harvey pulled open the only other door in the room and saw a cramped closet, stuffed with clothes, shoes, blankets and suitcases. Harvey carefully pulled a few of the items out onto the floor, but nothing conspicuous came out. Then he looked up toward the ceiling inside the closet and saw a small square cut into the plasterboard.

When he heard a creak come from above, Harvey waved to Ronnie who was near the door. Both of them trained their weapons on the ceiling and an instant later, a large section gave way.

The wail that the suspect let out resembled a siren, but it was short lived. When he hit the floor, the air came out of him in a gush, then he remained perfectly still as he waited for his body to take in another breath.

“Byte man, I presume,” Harvey said, then gestured to Ronnie to cuff him. “Your on line buddy wants to know where you disappeared to all of a sudden,” he said with a little chuckle. “A little tip. Next time try signing off line if you want to convince someone that you’re not home.”

* * *

“So what do we have on this guy?” Nash asked Rachel when Harvey and Antwon brought in the computer hacker that rerouted the kidney from San Francisco General.

“His real name, for starters,” she returned as she handed Nash the file. “Robert Sims. Byte man is only one of a dozen other aliases. Parents divorced. Mother in Carmel. Father’s whereabouts unknown, but he has custody and resides at the address Robert was picked up at. Average student. No priors.”

“Wait, wait,” Harvey interrupted. “His father has custody?”

Rachel nodded. “He’s fifteen.”

Nash sighed heavily as he looked over at Harvey and Antwon. “Kind of makes you wonder what our country is going to be like in ten or fifteen years,” Nash commented.

“Or if we will even have one with people like him hacking into it,” Antwon added.

“I’m still trying to locate the father, but I did get in touch with Robert’s mother and she’s on her way,” Rachel informed them.

“He’s not talking?” Nash asked Harvey.

“He’s not saying a word,” Harvey returned.

“Let’s see if we can convince him that the chair isn’t a video game.”

Nash looked at Robert sitting at the pockmarked conference table and could understand why Harvey was so surprised to learn that he was just a teenager. Even though he was barely fifteen, he had an unusual amount of facial hair for his age and his hair line was already receding. He almost felt sorry for the kid, he was scared to death, but Nash was beginning to lose patience with Robert’s standard answer of I don’t know. “If you hope that the fact you’re a juvenal will help you, don’t count on it. There are more than a dozen different charges against you from truancy to conspiracy to commit murder.”

“I didn’t kill no one!” Robert continued to argue as his fingers nervously flicked against the chain on the handcuffs.

“Not yet, but Jeremiah Bails life is still in your hands.” Nash gave him a few seconds to let that sink in. “Tell me who your employer is.”

“I don’t know the name,” Robert returned.

“What did he look like?” Nash persisted.

“I don’t know!”

“Now is not a time to lie to me, Robert,” Nash warned him.

“I’m not lying,” he said defensively. “It was cash up front and all I had to do was shift around a few files. I never even saw what the guy looked like. We met once at an underground club called the Congo and that’s when he gave me the information that I needed to reroute the product.”

“It’s not a product, Robert,” Joe interrupted. He couldn’t believe how easily he could push that aside. “It’s a human organ. You stole the one thing that will keep Jeremiah Bails alive.”

“And you’ve done a hell of a lot more than just moved a few files around,” Harvey added softly as he sat across from the boy. “You’ve put people’s lives in danger. There’s no telling how many people will be affected by what you’ve done. Before you even get out of jail, you’ll probably be facing more criminal charges.”

Nash watched Robert as he grew more pensive, his eyes darting around. He knew that the full ramifications of his actions wouldn’t hit him until later, but he was starting to understand. “You still have time to make some of it right,” Nash told him. “Where did you send the kidney?”

Robert sighed heavily. The money didn’t look as good anymore and it certainly wasn’t enough for him to go to jail for murder. “Bayside Surgical Clinic,” he answered. “But I don’t know who’s suppose to receive it. I just had to get it there.”

“I’m on the phone,” Rachel volunteered as everyone sprung into action.

Nash kept stride with her as they made their way through the SIU. “Have administration meet us when we get there and have security detain the surgeon if possible.”

“What if they’ve already done the surgery?” Antwon asked the obvious question.

Nash looked back over his shoulder at him. “Let’s hope that we don’t have to cross that bridge,” he returned. “Rachel, I want you to call SF General as well and have them send their medivac out to the clinic. Jeremiah Bails is on a clock and every second counts.”

“What about the buyer?” Joe asked.

“I’ve got a feeling we’ll find our buyer at the clinic,” Nash returned. “This guy went to an awful lot of trouble and expense, not to mention the risk, to get this donor organ. You don’t do that for an associate. My bet, it’s a much loved family member and they are going to be there to make sure they got their money’s worth.”

* * *

“They were already in surgery when Rachel called, Nash,” Harvey informed him when he met Nash and Joe at the elevators.

“Damn it!” Nash swore. “How far along?”

“It looks like we caught it in time. Nothing has been removed yet,” he explained as they started down the hallway. “The surgeon was told there was a family emergency and was pulled out.”

“The surgical team is still waiting in the operating ward and Dr. Barry is being detained in his office by security,” the hospital official informed him as he moved with the group of officers.

“Nash, this is Administrative Director Mathew Higgins,” Harvey introduced them.

“Let me assure you, Captain Bridges, that this clinic followed proper protocol when it came to the procurement of the donor organ. All of the paperwork is above board.”

“Let me assure you, Mr. Higgins,” Nash returned. “It had better be because you’re going to have a whole list of people to answer to and you’ll be lucky if this place doesn’t get shut down before it’s all over.” Nash turned back to Harvey. “Who do we have waiting?”

“We have three to choose from,” Harvey said. “The father, the grandfather and the mother. My money is on the father, Victor Nessmith. Well-to-do business man. And Nash? The patient is his twelve year old daughter.”

Nash closed his eyes briefly when he heard how young the girl was. “And the organ?”

“Antwon is accompanying the team from SF General to the medivac as we speak. Last word was the organ looked okay and Bails is getting prepped for surgery.”

“What’s going on here?” Victor Nessmith demanded as he broke free of the security guard’s grasp to confront the administrative director in the hallway.

“Calm down, Mr. Nessmith,” Higgins said in a soothing voice.

“I will not calm down! Why has security detained me and my family? Where is my daughter? What is going on around here?”

“We were told that the surgeon was called away?” Victor’s wife, Caroline, joined in the conversation, her brow furrowed in concern as she ignored everyone else except for the administrator. “What has happened Mr. Higgins?”

He started to respond, but he wasn’t sure where or how to begin. Victor Nessmith had been a very generous benefactor to that clinic and he knew that he would have to answer to the board if he were to do anything to jeopardize that. “Mr. and Mrs. Nessmith, Captain Bridges of the SIU,” Higgins made the introduction to give Nash the floor. He was all for passing the buck at that point.

“Mr. and Mrs. Nessmith. I’m not sure if you are aware of the situation that we have been asked to rectify, but there has been an abduction of a vital organ and we tracked it here,” he said bluntly. “The kidney that was sent to this clinic was rerouted by a computer hacker,” Nash said as he gauged their reactions. “It was intended for a patient at San Francisco General and we’re here to make sure that it gets there.”

“What?” the Nessmith’s said in unison. Caroline covered her perfectly lined lips with diamond studded fingers while her husband fixed a cold expression on his face.

“And just what do you plan on doing?” Victor asked, certain of his victory over an inferior opponent. “Take it back out of our daughter? I’ll have my attorney slap you with an injunction so fast that it will make your head spin.” As if to prove his words, he flipped open his cell phone.

“The operation was stopped before the transplant,” Nash said softly. Even though he knew that they were doing the right thing by getting the organ to Jeremiah Bails, he still felt a pang for the little girl in spite of her father. “The kidney is already in route to SF General.”

“You can’t do that!” Victor bellowed, his expression one of shock and panic as his wife began to weep uncontrollably, her legs trembling unsteadily beneath her.

“I understand that this isn’t exactly the best time considering your daughter’s condition, but we need both of you to come down to the SIU for questioning,” Nash said.

“This is outrageous!” Victor spewed as he wrapped his arms around his wife in a small attempt to comfort her. “Don’t you have a heart, Captain? How can you do this to a little girl?” His eyes turned on the silent administrator. “Speak up Higgins!” he demanded. “Are you simply going to stand there and let this lunatic kill our daughter?”

When Higgins looked to him in desperation, Nash gestured to the uniformed officers at the back of their small group. “These officers will escort you to recovery to see your daughter, then down to the SIU for questioning.” He had to keep his emotions in check. It was killing Nash to know that he was taking the vital organ away from a child, but Jeremiah Bails needed it just as much if not more and he had legal right to it.

Victor Nessmith continued to cuss Nash as he was escorted away by Higgins and the officers. Nash tried to push down the guilt as Joe and Harvey kept step with him. “Sometimes this job really sucks,” Nash mumbled.

* * *

“Tell me you found something,” Nash requested of Rachel as he walked into the SIU with Joe.

“Not much yet,” she returned as she looked up from her desk at his approach. “He’s big bucks with his fingers in half the pies around down. His wife is a member of most of the social clubs around town including the San Francisco Preservation Society.”

“The same one that the mayor’s wife presides over,” he said rather than asked.

“Yep. You’ve already had a call.”

“Great.”

“No, this one might surprise you,” Rachel added. “The mayor said to handle this any way you see fit. He’s not getting involved.”

Nash’s eyes grew wide. “There’s a nice change.”

“I’ll bet Victor won’t be very happy about that,” Joe interjected.

“Good,” Nash returned. “I’ve got a feeling we’re going to have to keep this guy on his toes. Was there anything even remotely incriminating on this guy?” he asked Rachel.

“Nothing yet,” she returned. “His dossier is spotless. In fact, it’s so spotless I’m willing to bet that it’s been polished.”

Nash pointed a finger at her. “Stay on it and get Harv to help when he gets back with Antwon. They’re interviewing the surgeon. We’re not going to let this one get away.”

* * *

“It was just so strange to see it laying there in the carton,” Antwon commented about witnessing the inspection of the donor kidney before the medics took it in the helicopter to return to San Francisco General. “I’ll never be able to eat liver again.”

Harvey shot him a glance. “It’s a kidney, not a liver,” he returned.

“I know that, but it was all brown and slimy like liver.”

Harvey shook his head as he and Antwon walked out of the hospital on their way back to the SIU. “It’s the miracle of life, partner. Sometimes that’s not pretty.” Harvey stopped short when he noticed three SUVs sitting side-by-side in the parking lot. All were black with tinted windows. Exactly like the one that he had been noticing around town lately.

“Seems like everyone has an SUV these days,” Antwon commented, noticing the direction of his partner’s gaze as he walked passed.

“Yeah,” Harvey returned hesitantly. “That’s got to be it,” he mumbled as he followed.

* * *

Rachel’s eyes narrowed when she saw Harvey walking in with Antwon. Something wasn’t right with him, but she couldn’t quite put her finger on what it was. “So what did the surgeon have to say?” she asked as he walked up to her desk.

“Exactly what we were expecting him to say,” Harvey returned as he tugged at his ear. “I got the feeling that he was suspicious of the circumstances, but he didn’t question it at the time.”

“I’ll bet he’s regretting that now,” she returned. It had been awhile since she had seen him tugging his ear. He generally did that when he was tired or confused about something.

“If he isn’t already, he will be soon. No doubt the medical board is going to have a lot of questions for him.” He glanced over at her computer screen. “Does the boss have you working on Victor Nessmith?”

“Yeah, but I haven’t been able to pull up anything incriminating yet. Nash wants you on it as well, but I can handle it myself if you need to get some rest.”

He looked at her in surprise. “Why would I need rest?” he returned.

She shrugged. “Well, you have been taking on an awful lot lately. Not only working here, but taking care of me and Jerry.”

“Jerry!” Harvey said his name with alarm. “I completely forgot that I’m suppose to have him tonight!” He checked his watch, then closed his eyes. “Anna’s going to have my head mounted on a pole if I’m not there in time.”

“Relax, Harv. If Nash needs you here, I can watch him for you. Nash already said that he wants me out of here early tonight. He’s afraid that I’m going to over do it.”

He sighed in relief. “Thanks babe. That definitely takes a load off my mind.”

She searched his face. Perhaps she was mistaken, but she was fairly sure that wasn’t the only thing on his mind. “Is everything okay Harv? You look like something’s bothering you.”

He inhaled as if he was going to respond, then he shook his head as he tugged his ear. “It’s nothing. Just a little paranoia. Where’s Nash?”

She had been so stunned by the paranoia comment that she barely registered his question. “Nash and Joe are already upstairs with Nessmith.” It wasn’t like Harvey to be paranoid about anything. Her curiosity was running rampant, but he walked away so she wasn’t able to question him about it.

* * *

Nash watched Mrs. Nessmith closely as their attorney ran through a litany of reasons why they should not be detained. She was obviously nervous and she kept looking to her husband for the answers whenever Nash questioned them. Nash held up a hand to stop the endless flow of conversation. “Are you all right Mrs. Nessmith?”

Her eyes shot over to his in panic. She couldn’t believe that he would address her personally when her husband or their attorney had been doing all of the talking.

“Of course she’s not all right!” Victor snapped. “Our daughter is in the hospital in need of a kidney transplant which you robbed her of!” He looked over at their attorney. “Marshall, I want to file a complaint against Captain Bridges and this....” He looked around at the unusual structure they were sitting in. “...ridiculous unit he runs.”

“I will take care of that personally, Victor,” the attorney assured him in a passive voice. It wouldn’t be the first time that he handled such a complain for Victor Nessmith and, undoubtedly, it wouldn’t be the last.

“Would you like something to drink?” Nash persisted with Caroline Nessmith, ignoring her husband and their attorney.

“She will be fine as soon as we get off of this floating rat trap,” Victor responded for her.

Nash gave him a quelling look. “I was speaking to your wife.”

“And I’m answering for her,” he shot back, unperturbed by the cold look.

Nash sighed as his eyes looked at each of them in turn. He wasn’t getting anywhere with Victor or his attorney jumping on his every word. He wished that Rachel had discovered something, anything, that was even remotely incriminating against Victor Nessmith. Unfortunately, all that he had at he moment were his own suspicions, which wasn’t enough. “I know that kidney was high jacked and I believe you know it too,” Nash stated calmly. “We will be able to prove that was the kidney intended for Jeremiah Bails when the lab tests come in and then I’m going to have more questions for you.”

“Regardless of whether that kidney is actually the one intended for Jeremiah Bails or not,” Marshall interrupted. “That’s still a long way from proving that my clients had any foreknowledge of the events that transpired in procuring the organ. The legal documentation that the clinic received was in order. Even if it wasn’t, that in no way implicates my clients. Now, if there is nothing further,” he said, leaving the phrase dangling as he stood.

Nash leaned back in his chair as he tapped his fingers against the table top. “By all means, but I suggest that you instruct your clients not to leave the city.”

Marshall sighed as he looked down at Nash, the Nessmiths immediately standing and walking away from the table. “Their daughter is in the hospital. They won’t be leaving anytime soon.”

“Then you won’t mind if I hold you to that, will you,” Nash returned. He watched the trio leave, then he stood and walked around the corner where Ronnie stood with Robert Sims. “So what’s the verdict?” he asked the teen.

“That’s him for sure,” Robert said without hesitation. “I didn’t recognize his face, but I definitely recognized the voice. The attorney is the one that contacted me and gave me the money.”

“Thank you Robert. Ronnie? Will you escort Mr. Sims back to his suite.”

Joe stepped over to Nash as Ronnie took the prisoner back to holding. “So what good does that do?” he asked his partner. “If you try to put a confessed criminal on the stand in court, Victor’s attorney will have him for lunch.”

“But at least we know we’re on the right track,” Nash returned. “Rachel and Harvey will work the paper trail. You and Antwon can start with the friends and employees. Rival associates might be a good source of information as well. Maybe one of them can steer us in the right direction.”

“And what about you?” Joe asked.

“I’ve got something I need to look into,” he returned as he started to walk away. “Give me a call if you find anything or hear anything about Jeremiah Bails.”

* * *

Nash stood at the entrance for a long moment as he looked around at the flashing lights and flashy people. He could remember the first time he walked through those doors as if it was yesterday.

It wasn’t difficult to pick Victoria out of the crowd. She was in a dark blue sheath with long silver fringe covering it that shimmered when she walked. She was the center piece to the atmosphere she had created with the club. Flash would be just another night club without her there. Every woman wanted to be her and every man wanted to be with her. Nash included.

Nash was only a few feet away when Victoria looked up. For just a moment, she felt like she was in a movie, that her hero had come back for her to end it happily ever after. Then, as he stepped up to her, she realized that she didn’t even know what to call him. Was she facing the SIU Captain or the reckless Teddy Malone?

“We need to talk,” Nash said with conviction as he took her arm. She didn’t struggle or cause of scene, she merely walked with him through the crowd to her office. He took a moment to pull the blinds so that the patrons couldn’t see in and she walked directly to the small bar that was in the corner of the room.

“What is it this time, Nash?” she asked while she poured herself a brandy. She didn’t particularly like the taste, but she was sure she would need the strength even if it was an illusion. She was good at creating those. “Or should I call you Teddy?”, she asked as she turned to face him. She took a long swallow and felt it burning the back of her throat. Damn he looks good.

“Has Agent Truitt come to see you?” he asked cryptically as he walked over to stand in front of her. The glint of anger in her eyes was all that he needed in answer.

“You mean the guy who shot my brother?” she asked in return. “If he walked in here, he would be carried out in a bag.”

Nash tipped his head to the side. That wasn’t something that he would have expected to hear from Victoria. “That seems to be the trend these days, but I’ll bet your brother will beat you to it.”

Victoria felt the jolt in the center of her chest, then it shot out through her entire body. S he was glad that she had already taken a shot of the brandy because the rush from the liquor was the only thing holding her up. She knew that Nash wouldn’t make such a cruel joke. “I’m not sure if I want you to be joking or not,” she said as she began to tremble.

That sounded more like Victoria. Cryptic. “I don’t have all the details yet, but it looks like Truitt set it up with your brother. Russell is still alive.”

So many things were flying through her head, so many emotions were coursing through her body that she wasn’t sure why she was still standing. “How is it possible?” she whispered as tears sprung to her eyes.

“Anything is possible with a little tinsel town magic.” He instinctively stepped closer to her when she swayed ever so slightly. She was definitely one hell of an actress if this is a con, he thought

“I can’t believe Russell let me think that he was dead,” she said softly. “That he would let me go through that horrid funeral.”

Nash hesitated for a moment. He had every intention of telling her everything when he came there, but now he wasn’t sure. Her comment about carrying Truitt out in a body bag had him a bit concerned. He knew that she would never do it herself, but she had ample connections that wouldn’t hesitate at her request if she was looking for retribution. “I’m not sure that Russell knows that you were left behind,” he said carefully.

Suddenly, the random thoughts and emotions assaulting her became a bit clearer. She had become a commodity. The drug lords wanted her for her natural instincts, the DEA wanted her for her connections and Nash? “When did you find out?”

“I just had it confirmed today. Joe suspected from the start. He’s actually the one that found out we were all duped.”

She was relieved to know that her brother hadn’t abandoned her, but she wasn’t sure that she would have it any other way. She hadn’t liked the idea of a witness protection program from the beginning. She didn’t want to give up the club. “Russell will kill him when he finds out.”

“Which is why I’m here,” Nash told her. “I’m hoping that your brother will come to you before he goes after Truitt and, if he does, I want you to contact me.”

“Why so you can set us up again?” she shot back, finding her strength again.

“Hey, wait a minute sister. I’m the one that was on the level with you, remember? I’ve already got a couple of people watching Truitt and we’re more likely to see Russell before you do, but I’m hoping that your brother will play it smart. He’ll check things out before he actually makes a move. It’s in that moment that we can stop him.”

“And why would you want to do that?” she asked. “He may have absolution for everything he has done in the past, but if he should cross that line again, then you could catch him red handed.”

He sighed heavily as he searched her eyes. Did she really think that badly of him? “We had a deal,” he said softly. “I’m not the one that backed out on it.”

She looked at him blankly for a moment. Her reason for hating Nash was suddenly gone. She couldn’t even blame him for the cover up because he had been fooled as well. “You’re absolutely right,” she breathed, intoxicated with the scent of his cologne. She had missed him so much.

Nash hadn’t missed the sudden change in her eyes. It confused him for an instant, then he reached out and touched her cheek. He hadn’t realized how much he had missed her. “I plan on keeping my word,” he told her in a whisper. “I’m getting you out too.”

“Shut up, shut up,” she said in a rush as she wrapped her arms around his neck and took possession of his mouth. For the first time in days, she felt alive again.

* * *