watch Striker in the field, kissing another agent to see if I could take it. Didn’t you?” I raised an eyebrow. “One of your ‘throw her into the deep end and see if she can swim’ lessons?”
“I have never thrown you into the deep end of any situation. But yes, this is a conversation you need to have with Striker, and he with you. These types of conversations cannot be in theory only. Theory is formed in a rational mind. Feelings refuse to follow along quietly and rationally. You had to experience the threat to understand your reaction. Does this sound familiar to you?”
“Yes. And you’re right. As always.”
“It is not my wish that I should be right always. I am merely exercising my role as your mentor. What was the outcome of your experience?”
“I didn’t like it.”
“And. . .”
“I can live with it. Other women live with things they don’t like about their spouse’s careers. This particular aspect happens to be like being a fishmonger’s wife – where Striker has to put his hands really stinks.”
Spyder patted my knee. “As long as your eyes are open, you will not walk unwillingly into a corner. Now, let’s spend a moment on what Vine and Striker are doing. They are observing and tracking the shipping containers that come in through the port in Baltimore. Specifically, the containers that Maxx Schwartz processes. The Secret Service believes he is taking payments to facilitate entry.”
“Secret Service, not customs. What do they think is coming in?”
“The software side of Sylanos’s operation now takes place in Indonesia. They are still shipping to the very lucrative South American market. The money in South America gets paid in American dollars, coming in from the drug trade by other cartels. Sylanos moves the money to various sites where workers count, roll, and put the cash into cans with false bottoms. That is to say, the money is placed into a water tight bottom portion of the can, then a food product, such as beans or tomatoes, is placed in the top portion, and the can is sealed and labeled. They ship the cans of product to the United States, where the money launderers disperse the cash into various businesses. This is but one means by which they are hiding and moving the cash.”
“This laundered money is then filtered into the political system and to the Assembly, thereby ensuring that little will be done to stop the flow.”
“Indeed.”
“Maxx Schwartz seems like a minnow in a shark tank.”
“This is true; however, much information is presented to him in the documentation that he receives. If Striker is able to turn him to state’s evidence, it could be a very useful resource for ongoing intelligence. And Schwartz seems greedy enough to want to triple dip with payments from his job, from Sylanos, and from the Secret Service.”
“This conversation started with Brody Covington regaining consciousness,” I reminded him.
“Brody worked alongside Julio in developing and maintaining the software required for expanding and running Sylanos’s work.”
I let a low whistle blow between my teeth. “Wow, they’re good actors.” I spun my chair so we were face to face.
“A good operative verifies. Verifies. Verifies.”
“Yes, Spyder.” I kissed him on the top of his head, and he grinned at me. “However, Julio was dead and Brody was in a coma, so. . .”
He lifted his brows.
“So I should wait before I make assumptions. How’s Brody feeling? Talkative?”
“Finding himself playing the role of punching bag in Miami and then in the Honduran prison convinced Brody that it would be wise to share his information with those who offer him protection.”
I propped my elbow on the table, and my body thrust forward with anticipation.
“As you learned from the bizarre exchanges between Julio and his wife, and then Julio and Brody, there was a coded system in place to protect the information that Julio had been amassing against Sylanos, and by extension the
“I have never thrown you into the deep end of any situation. But yes, this is a conversation you need to have with Striker, and he with you. These types of conversations cannot be in theory only. Theory is formed in a rational mind. Feelings refuse to follow along quietly and rationally. You had to experience the threat to understand your reaction. Does this sound familiar to you?”
“Yes. And you’re right. As always.”
“It is not my wish that I should be right always. I am merely exercising my role as your mentor. What was the outcome of your experience?”
“I didn’t like it.”
“And. . .”
“I can live with it. Other women live with things they don’t like about their spouse’s careers. This particular aspect happens to be like being a fishmonger’s wife – where Striker has to put his hands really stinks.”
Spyder patted my knee. “As long as your eyes are open, you will not walk unwillingly into a corner. Now, let’s spend a moment on what Vine and Striker are doing. They are observing and tracking the shipping containers that come in through the port in Baltimore. Specifically, the containers that Maxx Schwartz processes. The Secret Service believes he is taking payments to facilitate entry.”
“Secret Service, not customs. What do they think is coming in?”
“The software side of Sylanos’s operation now takes place in Indonesia. They are still shipping to the very lucrative South American market. The money in South America gets paid in American dollars, coming in from the drug trade by other cartels. Sylanos moves the money to various sites where workers count, roll, and put the cash into cans with false bottoms. That is to say, the money is placed into a water tight bottom portion of the can, then a food product, such as beans or tomatoes, is placed in the top portion, and the can is sealed and labeled. They ship the cans of product to the United States, where the money launderers disperse the cash into various businesses. This is but one means by which they are hiding and moving the cash.”
“This laundered money is then filtered into the political system and to the Assembly, thereby ensuring that little will be done to stop the flow.”
“Indeed.”
“Maxx Schwartz seems like a minnow in a shark tank.”
“This is true; however, much information is presented to him in the documentation that he receives. If Striker is able to turn him to state’s evidence, it could be a very useful resource for ongoing intelligence. And Schwartz seems greedy enough to want to triple dip with payments from his job, from Sylanos, and from the Secret Service.”
“This conversation started with Brody Covington regaining consciousness,” I reminded him.
“Brody worked alongside Julio in developing and maintaining the software required for expanding and running Sylanos’s work.”
I let a low whistle blow between my teeth. “Wow, they’re good actors.” I spun my chair so we were face to face.
“A good operative verifies. Verifies. Verifies.”
“Yes, Spyder.” I kissed him on the top of his head, and he grinned at me. “However, Julio was dead and Brody was in a coma, so. . .”
He lifted his brows.
“So I should wait before I make assumptions. How’s Brody feeling? Talkative?”
“Finding himself playing the role of punching bag in Miami and then in the Honduran prison convinced Brody that it would be wise to share his information with those who offer him protection.”
I propped my elbow on the table, and my body thrust forward with anticipation.
“As you learned from the bizarre exchanges between Julio and his wife, and then Julio and Brody, there was a coded system in place to protect the information that Julio had been amassing against Sylanos, and by extension the
Similar Books
