Bk 5-Roger Morgan, Chapter 6

UTAH STATE AUDITOR

Monday morning, one week later, newlyweds Jake and Nicole went to work. An auditor who Jake recognized instantly from his dream, was sitting in the entry way. They said hello as they walked past him, but the auditor didn’t respond.

“That’s the auditor,” whispered Jake to Nicole as they walked out of sight into the office.”

“I figured as much.”

Silvia said, “The guy out there wants to see Royce, and he isn’t here yet. The same guy was here last week while you two were on your honeymoon and seemed upset when he left after a short meeting with Royce.”

“I might as well get this started, his name’s Edward Thornton.”

Slyvia’s jaw dropped, “How do you know that?”

“Ask Nicole.”

“Mr. Thornton, I believe you want to speak to me, I’m Jake Montross.”

Thornton stared at him in disbelief. “How do you know my name and how do you know I want to talk to you?”

“That’s not important, let’s go into the conference room.”

“Did Mr. James tell you I was coming?”

“No, why would he do that, you specifically asked him not to tell me.”

The auditor was confused and at a loss about this guy. Montross seemed to know all about him and yet there was no way he could know. If he remembered correctly he hadn’t even told Royce James his name, he had emailed him and said he was an auditor from the State of Utah department of Law Enforcement. The email had come under the name of his boss, the Attorney General of Utah. How did this guy know his name?”

Jake was enjoying Thornton’s discomfort. He knew what Thornton was thinking, so he decided to play with him some more. “I know your name because I can read your thoughts.”

Thornton turned pale. “That’s impossible; you just have the ability to guess about what a man will say in any situation?”

“Whatever you say.”

Thornton sat and decided that he was going to get right down to the purpose of his visit.

Before he could say anything more, Jake said “Why don’t you get right down to the purpose of your visit?”

“You have an amazing gift,” said Thornton, he thought ‘I’ll flatter him then I’ll hang him!’

Jake wanted to laugh, but he stared directly into Thornton’s eyes and said quietly in an ominous voice, “The only person around here that will hang is you.”

Thornton sat there looking at this man who seemed to be reading his thoughts. ‘How can I interview him and trick him into saying something that may incriminate him if he’s reading my thoughts?’

Jake quietly said, “You can’t”.

Without speaking aloud, ‘This is impossible; he can’t answer my questions if I don’t speak them. Let’s see, how was your honeymoon?’

“It was great; you might want to try it someday.”

Thornton was just about to have a nervous breakdown. He stared at Jake and aid out loud, “did you kill those people down by Manti?”

“If I did, you’ll never prove it!”

Thornton thought, ‘now we’re getting somewhere, he almost admitted he killed them.’

“No I didn’t, what I said was, if I did kill those people, you’ll never prove it. The good people down there have a mystery. Some poachers were killed who were bragging to anyone who would listen that they were going to kill the game warden, that’s me. Since they were killed, it must have been the game warden. That’s not evidence and you know it.”

Thornton went over what Jake had just said, ‘I wish I had a recorder to go over this conversation at my office.’

“Thornton, it doesn’t matter how many times you go over what I said, you will never be able to come up with my admitting to anything. You don’t need a recorder.”

Thornton was getting desperate, ‘how can I turn off my thoughts from him?’

“You can’t Thornton, you’re a pathetic little man who makes his living tricking people into saying things they didn’t do or sometimes admitting to doing something illegal. I don’t know how you sleep at night. No, you can’t turn off your thoughts from me. Are you ready to go home now?”

Thornton thought, ‘I sleep just fine thank you, and if I do have a problem sleeping, I can always get some pills or go slumming or go see Victoria…wait, he can hear me.’ “Out loud he shouted at Jake, stop it, you’re learning all kinds of things about me.”

“Yes, I suppose I am, who’s Victoria?”

That was the final straw for Edward Thornton, he gathered his notebooks up and stuffed them into his briefcase, then he ran out of the office muttering something about the devil. As he went out of the front door, he ran into Royce who asked, “can I help you?”

“No, you can’t!” Thornton climbed into his Utah State official vehicle and tore out of the parking lot.

“What’s that all about,” asked Royce as he entered the office.

“That was the state auditor, I don’t think he’ll be coming back or bothering us again,” said Jake.

“What did he want?”

“We just had a quiet conversation about any part I may had with those poachers who were killed near Manti. He seemed to accept what I had to say and rushed out. Maybe he had an appointment somewhere else.”

“He seemed upset when I told him last Monday that you were on your honeymoon. I had to remind him that his email specifically wanted it to be a surprise visit, so there’s no way he should be upset that you weren’t here.”

However, the auditor wasn’t the quitting kind of person. ‘I’ll find a way to get that game warden. I think he killed all of those people in cold blood and thinks he can get away from it’. He talked to his boss, the Attorney General, and stretched the truth about his interview with Jake. He asked for a subpoena to bring the game warden in for a deposition. The legal paperwork went out in the evening mail.

“Honey, we just got a subpoena for you. You have to go to Salt Lake City tomorrow for a deposition at the state office building.” Jake got the message when he came into cell coverage along Skyline Highway.

“Just what I need, another session with that jerk.” Jake called Nicole and told her he would be home tonight. “If I have to go to Salt Lake tomorrow, I better come home to see you first!”

The deposition had also been in Jakes dream, he arrived on time at the appointed place and reported to the receptionist. “Sit down, they’re almost ready for you.”
The same auditor, Edward Thornton, was in the room along with a woman who was going to type every word he said, there was also a recorder set up.

The woman said, “Mr. Montross, glad you could make it.”

“Thanks Irene, Mr. Thornton, good to see you again. How’s Victoria?”

The woman hesitated and started to ask Jake how he knew her name but shrugged and started typing,. Thornton said with a panicked look on his face, “NO NO don’t type that, we haven’t started yet!”

“Mr. Thornton, I’m sworn to record every word spoken in this room starting when I’m set up. Now don’t tell me what to record and what not to record!” She gave Thornton a dirty look and smiling turned to Jake, “this deposition has the same weight as a court of law. Do you swear to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth?”

“Yes.” Jake wasn’t quite sure how he was going to rationalize lying to a court reporter but in his dream it went just fine and worked out ok.

Mr. Thornton, you may proceed.

Jake had an inspiration, “Excuse me, but can I ask a question first?”

“Go ahead.”

“I just swore to tell the truth, what about him; doesn’t he have to tell the truth too?”

“No, he’s an attorney; he doesn’t have to tell the truth.”

“Are you kidding me?”

“Well maybe a little bit, an attorney, as an officer of the court, is assumed to always be telling the truth.”

“Just about every time I have dealt with an attorney, there’s been some question of honesty, in other words, every attorney I ever met has lied to me. Now you expect me to sit here and tell the truth when we both know this guy will lie every chance he gets.”

Thornton broke in, “Can I say something?”

“Yes, you can, what do you want to say,” said Irene as her fingers were flying back and forth on her machine.

“I’m not going to say anything; I just want to ask some questions.”

“Is that good enough for you Mr. Montross?”

“I guess so, let’s get started.”

They went through the standard introduction questions, name, rank, serial number, address, etc.

“Mr. Montross, I asked you if you killed those poachers who were killed near Manti, Utah. Is that correct?”

“Yes, you asked me if I killed them.”

“What did you say when I asked you if you killed those poachers who were killed near Manti, Utah.”

“I said that if I did, you couldn’t prove it.”

“Will you please explain what you meant by that statement?”

“I asked the county Sheriff who investigated the murders if he was able to find any clues as to who the murderers were. He told me they couldn’t find any meaningful clues. The only information they found didn’t point to anybody.”

“In the matter of the man from Arizona, Jim Turley, the sheriff told me that you shot him, is that correct?”

“Yes.”

“Will you explain why you shot this man?”

“Mr. Turley had a pistol pointed at the sheriff and was threatening to kill both of us. I was standing there holding a set of elk antlers at the time. The sheriffs’ deputies came driving up the road with their sirens on and lights flashing, this distracted Mr. Turley enough for me to retrieve my pistol. I then told him to drop his weapon or I would shoot him. He refused and I believed he was going to shoot the sheriff at any second, so I shot him.”

Suddenly Thornton’s thoughts were again opened to Jake. ‘Crap, that’s exactly what the sheriff told me.’ ‘I’ll ask him again if he killed those poachers, maybe he’ll change his answer.’ “Did you kill those four poachers east of Manti”.

“If I did, you can’t prove it.”

Thornton’s anger almost consumed him. He paused to bring his anger under control. ‘I can’t force him to confess, but maybe I can make him believe that he has no choice.’
“Mr. Montross, you are required to answer my questions in a truthful manner?”

“Mr. Thornton, you are attempting to force me to confess to these murders. I believe you are out of line. You know you can’t force me to confess to anything. They call that self incrimination.”

Thornton thought, ‘he said self incrimination, that’s the same as a confession.’

Before he could phrase another question, Jake added, “No, that’s not a confession to anything, you’re trying to trick me into saying something so you can hang me. I said self incrimination to point out to you that there are laws about self incrimination. You are trying to skirt the laws to somehow achieve your desired results. Why do you want to hang me with this crime?”

Thornton thought, ‘this son of a bitch is trying to confuse me again. I’ll show him that I’m not someone to play with using mind games.’ “I’m trying to find the killer of those poachers. I want to send a strong message to everyone that if somebody breaks the law, we will find them and prosecute them.” His thoughts continued, ‘If I can convict this game warden I will be on track to elected office, the sky’s the limit, maybe I can even become the governor!’

“Mr. Thornton your desire to use a trumped up charge as a springboard to elected office, maybe even governor, is pathetic. Why would I confess to you of anything? You aren’t interested in enforcing the law unless it somehow helps you.”

This statement knocked the floor out from under Mr. Thornton. ‘He’s doing it again; he knows what I’m thinking. If he asks me about Victoria again, I’ll scream!’

“Mr. Thornton. Why do you want me to stop asking about Victoria?”

Thornton sat there looking at Jake with a cold unblinking gaze. He was shaking and sweat was running down his face and dripping off his chin. The time passed slowly by, he said nothing. 5 minutes passed, still nothing came from Thorntons’ mouth.

The recorder asked, “Mr. Thornton, are you through?”

Jake knew Thornton was gone, his mind had turned off. His eyes were open, but nobody was home.

“Mr. Thornton, you have exactly 60 seconds to speak or this session is ended and Mr. Montross is excused.”

There was no brain activity that Jake could discern from Thornton.

“Ok, so be it, this session is ended, thank you for coming Mr. Montross. I’m sure this will be the end of the questioning about the situation near Manti, Utah.”

In his official state pickup truck, Jake called Nicole on his cell phone, “Honey, you’re not going to believe what happened at the deposition, I’ll be there in about a hour.”

SAM TURNER

Sam Turner returned from the “meeting” with his former roommate Roger Morgan. He couldn’t believe how alive he felt. He had not felt this good for years. He thought back and remembered how sluggish and tired he had felt as he drove home to the apartment when he got off shift. He had even remarked to his remaining roommate that he must be getting old. “The old body needs some excitement, I guess. There’s no way I can go to sleep now. I wonder if Ray’s still awake?”

“Ray, are you awake?”

“Of course I’m awake, do you think I could answer my phone if I was asleep? What’s up?”

“I know that was a stupid question, but I couldn’t think of anything clever to break the tension of making a call after midnight.”

“No, that’s alright, I was in bed but I wasn’t asleep. I guess I was waiting for your call. Ok, so why did you try to break into the sound sleep of an old friend after midnight?”

“Roger and I went to see some guys who were forcing 3 girls to have sex with their paying customers.”

“You didn’t shoot them did you?”

Sam paused, “Nooooooooo, Roger did.”

“And why are you telling me this?”

“Remember when we watched him shoot that doctor? I asked you if you realized we were accessories to murder and you said it made you feel good to be a Robin Hood copy cat, or helper or something like that.”

“Yeah, I’ve been thinking about that morning ever since. Every time I see a guilty bastard who I know is going to beat the rap because of his money or influence, I think if I had the guts to come back later and take him out it would make the world a better place.”

Sam thoughtfully said, “Tonight, Roger called me and told me about these 3 dirty bastards who were forcing these girls into prostitution and my blood boiled. I told him to come over and bring that gun I gave him. I know what kind of risk I’m taking, but it seemed like the only thing I could do. I had to make sure those 3 parasites died tonight.”

“If you had called me, I would have come along without a seconds thought. If we are going to do any more of this kind of thing we had better make sure we cover our tracks or we’ll end up in jail with some of those slime balls we put there. That wouldn’t make for a long life.”

“OK, let’s get it out in the open between us. Let’s meet tomorrow afternoon for lunch. I’ll call you when I know when I can take a break.”

Cheerfully, Ray replied, “See you tomorrow Robin.” He thought to himself, ‘there’s no way I’m going to get any sleep tonight’.

The next day, Sam and Ray sat in the parking lot of a hamburger stand. Both had the super sized combo with burger, large fries and a large soft drink; the windows were up and Sam’s police cruiser was idling. Nobody could hear what was being said inside. Even a person who could read lips would have trouble understanding what was being said because the windows were tinted just enough to make it hard to see the faces of the police officers inside.

“Ray, just because I’ve decided to become a Robin Hood copy cat, doesn’t mean you need to come along.”

“Look Sam, you and I got along from the first time we met because we think the same. We agree on every thing I can think of except women. You can’t get past the color of their hair. If her hair’s blonde, she’s pretty.”

“Yeah, you’re right, you on the other hand think they’re all pretty and can’t make up your mind on any one of them. You chase them all, and can’t seem to catch one.”

“Ok, now that we have spelled out our women problems, why are we here? I’m here because I want to take out some of those rotten people I run across that will never be stopped by our present legal system. I’m sick of arresting someone who I know is guilty and then seeing them on the street the next day. I’m not here because you talked me into it, so don’t be go thinking you drug me into a life of crime. Now that’s settled, what do you have in mind?”

Sam spoke in a voice that he barely recognized, “I think we should go about our jobs in the regular way. When ever we see a person who we think needs to be eliminated, we tell the other one about the person and walk away. That way the one who pulls the trigger hasn’t every dealt directly with the target.”

“Sounds like a good plan. What if there is more than one or two? Do we put in a little more planning and take them out together?”

“Yeah something like that. Obviously, we need to take it slow and easy. One mistake and one or both of us are in deep trouble.”

Ray added, “What’s happening with your voice? You don’t sound the same.”

“I don’t know what’s going on, except that since I helped Roger, I feel stronger. I’ve dropped a few pounds, my voice is deeper. My God, I’m turning into the Incredible Hulk!”

They both laughed, but both also realized something was happening to them that couldn’t be explained.

They agreed to get together on the weekend and see what developed. The location was an abandoned subdivision. A handwritten list complete with names, addresses, and why they were on the list would be the way to communicate. Both felt a deep excitement about Saturday. “I’m going to finally be able to do something about those lowlifes who laugh at us and the laws of this country.”

Police officers develop a short memory and a thick skin toward those who keep coming back into the legal system. The officers can’t worry about it or it would drive them crazy. Saturday morning dawned bright and sunny. Sam and Ray met at the predetermined spot. Both were driving there personal vehicles. No connection should be established that would put them together. Both had lists of people to give to the other. The lists contained sexual predators, wife abusers, and drug dealers.

“Now we have a starting list, how do we find the time to scout these people and find a time and place to take them out,” asked Ray?

“I’ve noticed my energy level is now much higher than it was before. I’m getting less sleep but I feel more awake and twice as strong. Should we go over the lists and answer any questions before splitting?”

Ray asked, “The first name on your list is a homeless guy that makes his home in and around the Murray Town Mall. It surprises me that he’s on the loose. How can a guy like this do this much damage and still be able to walk around?”

“I’ve arrested him twice. I’ve seen him in jail and in court numerous times, but I’ve never seen or heard of him being convicted of anything. Someone with a big pocketbook always steps in and hires the top defense legal firm in the valley. The last couple of arrests, the prosecutor’s office didn’t even try to put him away. Money buys justice. I would like to take this scum out myself, but my feelings about him are well known. I need to be somewhere else where I have an iron clad alibi. If you’re going after him first, I’ll give you a couple of days when I’ll be out of town.”

“OK, I’ll go after him today. Wish me luck.”

“Good hunting, shall we get together next Saturday, 10:00 am in this same spot?”

“Yeah, I’ll see you in a week. With a little luck I can clean out our list by then.” Ray drove to the mall and parked where he could see the place where Faren Whitehorse called home. He was a full blooded Ute Indian from central Utah. His criminal record included dozens of sexual harassment charges, rape and attempted rape charges and one attempted murder charge. There were other charges that would have been logged except the officer knew it was a waste of his time. Faren’s official home was on the Ute reservation near Roosevelt, Utah. There was no picture in the material Ray received from Sam.

Ray sat in his truck and watched some panhandlers as they circulated back and forth between the doorways into the Mall. One appeared to have the physical characteristics of the Ute Tribe. The Ute Indians have a bigger than normal head in most cases. Other than that they look like any other American Indian. As the hours passed, the crowds disappeared and the 2 panhandlers sat together on a bench in front of a fountain in the center of the main mall entrance. The two kept looking around like they were expecting someone.

Ray realized that he was alone in the parking lot and would look unusual if he stayed there much longer. He started his truck and pulled over to the restaurant parking lot where he could see the two panhandlers. The panhandlers had noticed his truck and watched him now from across the mall parking lot. ‘This was not good. I guess I had better go inside and get a bite to eat.’ He found a table where he could see the two sitting on a concrete barrier. It was getting dark and harder to see by the minute. After a quick drink and sandwich he exited and walked back to his truck. The two panhandlers were gone. Ray had his pistol, with silencer, in a shoulder holster. ‘I guess its time for a walk.’ The lights in the mall parking lot were on, but there were dark, shadowy hiding places all along the buildings.

Ray walked to the main building; the dumpsters for the mall trash were hidden behind a fashionable wooden fence that blocked a chain link fence and the big trash dumpsters. ‘The dumpsters are always a favorite place for the homeless, so I guess I’ll start there.’ As he approached the gate he heard voices. It sounded like one male and one female talking about dinner. It became a heated conversation as the female indicated she was hungry and wanted to eat before bedtime. The male told her to relax, Sid would be there pretty soon and they would have a supper to remember.

“When’s the last time that Sid showed up when he said he would with dinner,” asked the female?

“He’s always late, but he always brings something tasty.”

“Yeah, but I’m hungry now. Maybe we should just go on over to that house on 54th street where we saw those kids fixing dinner with no adults around.”

“I’m hungry too, the last time we invited ourselves into a situation like that, I thought I would end up in prison.”

“If you had just taken the food and left that little girl alone, it wouldn’t have been a problem, but no, you had to lock all the kids in the basement and take the girl into the bedroom to rape her. I told you to stop before their parents came home. Sure enough the parents came home and I spent the night in jail. You spent a few months in jail until your family could get you out.”

“I’m sick of hearing about that, how about your pimp that you stabbed right in front of a cop?”

“I didn’t see that cop coming.” Ok, you’re right, I’ll be quiet about your screw ups if you shut up about mine.”

“Deal, now shall we go see if those kids are alone again tonight?”

“Sid said he would be here by now. Let’s give him until 8.”

Ray heard a sound behind him. Another homeless man was pushing a grocery cart toward him. The cart was full and he didn’t notice Ray yet. Ray figured he had about 30 seconds before he would be exposed to the newcomer as he came around the concrete barrier. ‘Sounds to me like these three are all involved with bad stuff. I think I’ll just start with this guy.’ The homeless man slowly pushed the cart around the barrier and bumped into Ray. Ray was standing there with his pistol aiming at the man’s head.

“Who…what…why,” Were the last sounds to leave the man’s lips. Ray put a bullet into the man’s head. He spun around and fell to the ground. A sound came from the basket, but he would investigate later. Now he needed to take care of business behind him. He walked back to the fence.

“Did you hear that,” asked the female voice?

“Hear what?”

“I think I heard a gun with a silencer go off.”

“You’re crazy, what would anyone be shooting at here?”

“I don’t know, maybe us.”

“Let’s go see,” said the male voice. There was a rattle, thump as he climbed the fences and dropped in front of Ray. The silencer did its thing and the “clap” was heard again.

“See, I heard it again!” The female climbed the fence like her male friend and dropped in front of Ray. He was ready and put a bullet in her brain. She spun around and hit the basket as she fell to the ground.

Ray started to walk by the basket when he was reminded of the sound he had heard earlier, by another sound. It was a muffled cry of “Help.”
Ray put his pistol in his holster and walked to the basket. It was piled high with what looked like garbage. He started removing the sacks of garbage, newspapers, and plastic sacks. In the darkness he couldn’t see exactly what was asking for help, but it looked like a small person with rags in its mouth and tape over the rags. He couldn’t tell if it was a boy or a girl but Ray figured it was probably about 8 years old. It was crying and he could make out “please help me”.

‘Crap, what do I do with this?’ “Hang on there partner, I’ll take you over to the restaurant.” The voice stopped begging and quieted down. Ray loaded up the garbage that he had thrown to the ground and pushed the heavy cart toward the restaurant and his truck. How can I help this little person and get away without anyone seeing who I am.

To the little person in the cart he said, “You’re going to have to wait a little longer, but I can’t let you or anyone else see me. I’ll put you where customers from the restaurant will see you and then I’ll leave. Good luck to you, good bye.” With that he pushed the cart up against the rear of a car parked next to the front door. He made sure the cart and the little person inside were facing the wall of the restaurant and not the parking lot. He turned and walked quickly around the corner of the restaurant to his truck and left the parking lot by the driveway opposite the cart. He hoped it was dark enough that the person didn’t get a good look at him.

Dr. Robert Owens and his wife finished their dinner and went to their car parked next to the front door. Someone had pushed a grocery cart full of trash against their car. Dr. Owens grabbed the cart to move it when he heard “Help.”

“Kathy, will you call the police. There’s a person in here.” He pulled the garbage bags up and threw them aside one after another until he found a small person with a gag in its mouth. Dr. Owens quickly picked up the small person and removed the tape that held the gag in place. The person grabbed him and thanked him crying. It was a little girl.

The police arrived within minutes and took her from Dr. Owens. The police talked to the little girl and established the fact that she had been kidnapped that morning. Since that time she had been in the grocery cart; tied hand and foot with a gag in her mouth. She didn’t know who had kidnapped her, but she thought another man had shot the man who kidnapped her and brought her over to the restaurant, he had told her “good luck” as he pushed her against the car. Police searched the area and discovered the 3 bodies near the Mall. It looked like a Robin Hood rescue to the investigating officers. The three dead people were all homeless and each of them were well known to local police. The officer, who discovered them, smiled when he first realized who they were. He personally had been dealing with them for as long as he had been on the police force. Almost every day he would respond to complaints about these three as they circulated around the Murray Town Mall working the patrons for a handout and occasionally breaking into an area home. ‘I won’t have to deal with these three again.’ The little girl had been reported missing that morning. She had been taken from inside her home. Someone had come in an unlocked door and taken her while the little girls’ mother was a few feet away in the kitchen. Her parents were frantic and were overjoyed about her discovery. They were expecting a ransom demand and in fact the three homeless people probably would have made a ransom demand if they had not run into Robin Hood.

The news media were in a feeding frenzy. All of them repeated over and over all day and night for a week about the little girl who was rescued by Robin Hood and left at a nearby restaurant. In each story it was also repeated over and over again about the danger of vigilante justice. “How can we feel safe when there are people being killed all around us? We must find and incarcerate Robin Hood and all his copy cats. All of these killings are unnecessary. We have a system of justice that has been established to handle lawbreakers.” They failed to mention that these 3 homeless people had been a thorn to the side of law abiding people in the area for many years and the justice system couldn’t or wouldn’t take the steps to stop their lawlessness.

Patty read the story and asked Roger if he was responsible for the rescue of the little girl. “Patty, if you remember, the night all this happened I was with you all night. We went to an early movie and then to dinner. We both had to be to work early the next morning so we were in bed before midnight. If I remember the story the police figured the murders occurred shortly after sundown and the girl was found about 9 pm.”

“Yeah, I remember, but it would be so neat if you were the one who everyone is talking about. Maria kept looking at me all day and smiling shyly as if we were sharing a secret about Robin Hood.”

The night after the little girl was found and the 3 homeless people were found murdered, Sam stopped by Ray’s house. Ray’s truck was sitting in his driveway. Ray invited him in. They sat down and Sam asked, “Hey man, what’s going on? Was that you?”

“What do you think? One of those three was on your list of who you would like to erase and we agreed I would go check him out while you were establishing a solid alibi. Of course it was me. I went over to see if I could find the guy on the top of your list. I saw those two hanging around the Mall entrance and I figured one of them was the target.. The other guy showed up pushing a basket, I just figured “Birds of a Feather flock together” and took them all out. The little girl was a bonus but also a potential problem. I was afraid she would see me and recognize me, but I had old clothes on and an old baseball cap pretty much covering my face. I also worried about someone in the restaurant seeing me walking up to the front door, but I guess it worked out ok.”

“It worked out fantastic. The only problem is that the Mayor is putting all the pressure he can on us to find whoever was responsible. In our staff meeting this morning, the captain reamed us up one side and down the other, and then the Mayor took his turn. I was sure glad that I wasn’t on duty when it happened. Murray Police Department is cooperating with Salt Lake City Police Department and forming a task force to stop Robin Hood vigilante activity and arrest as many of them as possible. I think we should probably take it easy for awhile.”

“You’re probably right. Who is the Salt Lake PD contact? I know some of the guys there.”

“Detective David Rizzo is the contact. I really like him. He spoke for a few minutes and I was impressed. There is something about him that makes me trust him.”

“About Robin Hood,” gasped Sam?

“Ah maybe, he’s one of those men with a natural leadership ability I guess. It just seemed to me like he should be in charge. And I didn’t get the feeling he was a danger to my extracurricular activities. In fact after the formal chewing out session and the introduction of Rizzo, he circulated around the room. He shook my hand and it was as if he could read my mind. He looked me in the eye and said “It’s my honor and pleasure to meet you Officer Olsen. I heard him speak to a number of the guys and he never said that to them!”

“OK, let me get this straight, this guy, Detective Rizzo, is the main contact in the Salt Lake City Police Department looking for Robin Hood. You think he knows you were involved with that murder and you think he’s in fact going to help us in our Robin Hood activities?”

“That’s not exactly what I said, but yeah, that’s’ the feeling I got.” Ray continued, “Did you tell Roger about our involvement with the latest Robin Hood activity?”
“No, I haven’t talked to him recently, but I expect him to call me one of these days.”

DETECTIVE DAVID RIZZO

Ray Olsen was a very perceptive person. He was right; Detective Rizzo was someone he could talk to about anything! In addition to being the Salt Lake City Police Departments lead man on the Robin Hood Task Force; he was also the Utah point man for Justice For All, a secret organization formed to promote patriotism and a stronger America in any way possible. He was on a first name basis and talked to the original Utah Robin Hood on at least a weekly basis and actively worked in their behalf. He was a very busy man and if some of his superiors at the Salt Lake City PD knew of his other activities they would be surprised and enraged. And to top it off, Rizzo’s sixth sense wasn’t as finely tuned as some people, but he knew without a shadow of a doubt that Ray was the man who shot those 3 homeless lawbreakers that everyone in town was talking about. He would be watching Ray as close as he could and would contact him for a secret personal interview when the time was right.

‘About time someone on the Murray Police Department had the guts to do something about all those freeloading parasites around that mall’, thought Rizzo to himself as he drove back to his office. ‘I wonder if he was involved with those 3 guys that were whacked in the van in Rose Park or if he has a partner.’

BIG BILL

Sam looked at the list prepared by Ray. There were a total of 7 names with a paragraph on each, #1 was a drug dealer, #2-6 were sexual predators, and #7 was a pedophile. ‘I have heard of this “Big Bill” guy. He has the ability of our former president slick Willy. He’s been arrested for and suspected of all kinds of drug dealing, but nothing sticks. We haven’t been able to prove anything although we know he’s a king pin in the drug business.’

Since the 2 big West Valley gangs were wiped out by Robin Hood, William, “Big Bill”, Thomas took over the mob’s import business of the illegal drugs coming into Utah. He didn’t get into the actual distribution, he simply supplied the local drug lord with product. His profit was plenty for him and the risks of taking it further were more than he was willing to take. “Big Bill” owned a small fleet of long haul trucks that were rolling around the clock.

Sometimes one of them would deliver a load of cocaine or marijuana with the other cargo. His trucks had been searched again and again and no drugs were ever found. Many times the police dogs found the scent, but there were no drugs. What the police didn’t know was that the load of drugs was taken off the trucks before they reached the Salt Lake valley. The road from Las Vegas to Salt Lake City is 420 miles of mostly emptiness. Trucking companies allowed their drivers to pull off the interstate in any number of places to take a much needed rest.

The law enforcement officers couldn’t check every truck sitting beside the highway, there weren’t enough officers to handle that many trucks. “Big Bill” was every careful with the unloading procedures. He had a number of dump locations along the road for the drugs. The actual unloading and pickup happened at night. There were armed sharpshooters with high powered rifles sitting in vantage points who would take out any unauthorized person who tried to pick up the drugs. The locations were all in the wide open spaces where the look outs could spot a vehicle long before that vehicle arrived at the pickup spot. It was all controlled by radio and code words. Even if someone overheard the radio conversation, the place and time of the pickup wouldn’t be discovered.

The pickup vehicle usually was a farm truck full of a family unit. The truck would be loaded with hay, grain, or cattle. The destination would be an auction or some legitimate business who had bought the cargo. In fact most of the delivery drivers didn’t know about the illegal cargo or where it came from, but they were paid a reasonable amount and were thankful for the opportunity to make a little extra spending money. They were hired by a friend of a friend who needed a driver for a load to Salt Lake City. Once in Salt Lake, the driver and his family would be expertly unloaded and driven back home. “Big Bill” knew that one of these days, one of his delivery trucks would be discovered with a load of drugs so he took every possible precaution to distance himself and his organization from the process. It would take an inside informant to prove “Big Bill” was involved, and there was only a slim possibility of that happening. His people were treated well, paid a lot and nobody was added to his organization without a personal introduction from an existing member. If a new member proved untrustworthy, both the new guy and the person who invited him were eliminated. Therefore there were very few opportunities to insert someone into the organization. The law enforcement people were impatient but couldn’t find a way to nail “Big Bill”.

Sam read all he could find on “Big Bill”. He lived in an exclusive community on the east side of the Salt Lake Valley above the city. It was a gated community with guards at the entrance. Without a pass, or a call from a member of the community, you weren’t allowed to enter. His office was in a high security building in down town Salt Lake City. He traveled all over the valley to oversee his trucking facilities but didn’t seem to have a specific time to be anywhere. He traveled in a Suburban with his bodyguards at all times. Sometime he drove, other times he rode in various positions in the vehicle. Sam followed him around for a few days when he could break away from his patrol duties. He didn’t want to blow up the Suburban and kill any of his employees, but was about to resort to that method, when he noticed “Big Bill” went home at about the same time every day. He would come from different directions, but he was always alone when he drove up to the security gate to his home subdivision. He would roll down his window and show his pass to the guard. The guard would compare his face with the card and then open the gate. The guard probably knew “Big Bill” by sight, but he went through the motions every time.

Sam went to the public rifle range and practiced his medium range shooting every day to bring his skills back up to where he could hit a 1 inch circle in the center of the target 99 out of 100 times at 100 yards. Sam’s rifle was a popular big game rifle, a 7 MM magnum. He didn’t have a silencer for it, and wanted to take this guy out as soon as possible. There was a “greenbelt” along the fence around the development that Sam decided to utilize. It was thick with trees and bushes. It would be easy to find a place to set up but he had to get out of there unseen to make it work.

He went online and looked at the strip from satellite. He noticed a path that he had not noticed from the roads. It ran along the fence and was hidden by the trees and bushes. Another path joined it at about the right place and led out of the “greenbelt” to a street. This would be perfect. He had a golf bag on wheels that would cover his rifle. He put on some jogging clothes and went for a walk. He went through the area at about the right time and found a place to set up where he would be hidden from anyone who might be walking or jogging along the path. He could see the cars as they stopped at the guard station.

“Big Bill” pulled up and Sam placed the cross hairs between his eyes. This was supposed to be a practice run, but it was perfect. He clicked the safety off and squeezed the trigger. Just as his trigger finger passed the point of no return, the guard raised his arm to hand the Identification card back to “Big Bill”. Wow, that was close. If the guard has raised his arm one inch higher he would have lost the arm. The bullet would have gone through the guards arm on its way to “Big Bill” with no problem, but Sam was glad the guard didn’t lose his arm.

The 7 MM magnum slammed him back as it delivered its message to “Big Bill”. The high energy 175 grain cartridge entered “Big Bill” just a little higher than Sam had aimed,
This cartridge was designed to penetrate the thick hide of an elk or deer, and mushroom for more energy transfer when it hits a bone. It will knock down and kill an elk if the animal is hit in a vital spot. An bull elk weighs 2 to 4 times more than “Big Bill”. The skull and hide of an elk is a lot tougher that any human and this bullet is “overkill” for a fragile human skull. The head of “Big Bill” was pulverized and spread all over the inside of the Suburban and out the other side of the broken window.

The cartridge didn’t meet enough resistance to mushroom until it encountered and shattered the window on the other side of the car, and successfully hid itself in the grass on the manicured grass covered hill on the other side. The guard didn’t hear anything. He was looking at “Big Bill” when his head came apart. His training was to ask for identification and raise the gate. If there are any problems; call the police. He didn’t know what to do. He just stood there until the next car behind “Big Bill” honked. At that point he went to plan B and called the police.

Sam quickly put his rifle back into the golf bag cart and jogged down the path to his car several blocks away. He didn’t eject the shell casing. Even If the cartridge was recovered, it would not be traceable to him. He bought this rifle from a friend when he was a teenager 15 years ago. He figured a single shot from his rifle may be noticed, but with only one shot, the direction the sound came from would not be clear and anyone who heard it would not be able to pinpoint the location. The investigators would quickly identify the general direction the bullet would have come from anyway.

He needed to get out of the area as quickly as possible. He loaded his car and drove down to the freeway. Just as he reached the freeway on ramp, he saw some police cars with lights flashing and sirens screaming go speeding up the road toward “Big Bill’s” subdivision.

Officer Ted McBride arrived at the bloody scene at the entrance to Utah’s most prestigious neighborhood. He was the first police officer to arrive, but the neighborhood security car, 3 fire trucks and 2 ambulances were sitting off to the side of the street. Dozens of residents were all milling around and looking off in the distance as if to identify the person responsible for the carnage in the polished black Suburban. They seemed to be taking turns walking by the Suburban and looking in the shattered window. The caller, the guard at the location, had said there was a man shot as he sat in his vehicle at the guard house at the entrance waiting for the gate to open. Ted was a rookie policeman and had never seen anything like this. He took control just like his training had said to, putting tape all around the car and the guard house. It would be a mess until CSI could get there and examined the crime scene, but he had no choice. His backup would be there any minute and assume control.

He asked the guard what had happened.

“I was handing his identification back to him when his head kind of exploded. I think I heard a gun shot, but I’m not sure. Ted looked in the car and winced, the bullet had obviously traveled beside the guard and through the open window. It was responsible for the mess all over the inside of the vehicle and exited out the opposite window and shattered it in the process. He looked in the direction that it had to have come from and saw trees and bushes along the subdivision fence that was probably 50 yards wide. That would provide the shooter all kinds of cover for as far as he could see. The “greenbelt” filled with trees and bushes wound around the hill away from him. ‘I’ll bet there are a hundred places in that 50 yards wide greenbelt where a shooter could take his time and prepare for his shot. I’m glad I don’t have to go through that mess of grass, bushes, weeds, and trees looking for clues.’

For miles around, people outside their homes had heard the gunshot as the sound echoed back and forth along the foothills.. Any of them who were hunters recognized the sound as a high powered hunting rifle. They also realized that the sound was not usually heard here inside the city limits and the area adjacent was closed to any kind of big game rifle hunting. Experienced hunters stopped what they were doing and subconsciously waited for the second shot to more accurately identify where the sound had come from. The second shot never came and they went back to their business.

The news outlets reported “Prominent local businessman gunned down as he waited for the gate to his neighborhood to open! Police report they have no clues as to the why he was killed or who the shooter was. Anyone who has any information to help the police is urged to report the information to the Salt Lake Police Department.”

The head of the Utah drug operation, Ramon Escobar, saw the report about the assassination of his biggest product supplier. “SHIT, first we lose a couple of our dealers to Robin Hood, then he takes out those 2 gangs who handled the bulk of our sales, then he eliminates our entire leadership of Utah drug operations, he kills my boss, and now I’m in charge, and now my main supplier gets whacked! How am I going to keep my dealers in line if I can’t supply them? More importantly, how am I going to survive?”

“I dunt know, boss, what do you want me to do,” relied Tony?

“I’m not asking you for advice, I’m just talking to myself! Go get me some coffee.”
Ramon had been promoted to be the personal assistant to Louis Samboli, drug lord of the western US headquartered in Las Vegas, after Robin Hood started dismantling the Utah organization. Ricky Sanchez, had been Samboli’s number 1 and was sent to Utah to clean up the mess. He had died at the hands of Robin Hood. Now Ramon was in charge of Utah and Samboli was dead of a heart attack, or at least that was what he was told at the funeral. Ramon was officially promoted to head up the Utah territory at the funeral, but there were a lot of unanswered questions about the organization and what was going to happen if Robin Hood wasn’t stopped. Samboli had been the picture of health until Robin Hood showed up, he became obsessed with killing Robin Hood and had said on many occasions that he would kill him if it was the last thing he ever did.
Ramon sat and reflected about what had happened to bring him to this place and what he had to do to keep his position. ‘I have to find and kill Robin Hood, but if I become obsessed with that phantom, he will kill me like Sanchez. I’ve got to be smart and figure out a way to strengthen my organization here, or if Robin Hood doesn’t kill me, the new boss in Las Vegas will. First I’ve got to step in and take over “Big Bill’s organization to keep the drugs coming.’

“Hey Tony, who did you talk to when you couldn’t find “Big Bill”?”

“Vic Burnham.”

“Find him and bring him to me for a meeting. It needs to happen as soon as possible!”

“Big Bill’s funeral is today.”

“Then that would be a good place to find Vic. I want to meet with him today!”

“You got it boss.”

At the funeral, detective Charlie Slater watched the people milling around. His partner, John Clarke sat beside him with binoculars focused on the widow and “Big Bill’s general manager of operations, Vic Burnham. “Who’s that guy that just walked up and spoke to Vic?”

“I think that’s some guy that works for Ramon Escobar the local drug boss.”

“Interesting, we figured “Bib Bill” was making deliveries of drugs for Ramon, but we never could prove it. It looks like Ramon wants to make sure his drugs keep coming.”

“That would be my guess.”

“Who do you think took out “Big Bill”?”

“I figured that he could have pissed off the drug people, but if that was the case, why would he want to talk to “Big Bill’s” number 1 man. He would have already made arrangement. I think we have a random element, probably Robin Hood that wanted “Big Bill” gone. If that’s the case, Vic Burnham will probably follow him to hell.”

Charlie added, “If I was Vic Burnham, I would run as fast and as far as I could. He’s in a no win situation. If he takes over “Big Bill’s” operation, Robin Hood will take him out, if he doesn’t, Escobar will take him out. He’s as good as dead right now.”

“Maybe this would be a good time to go see Mr. Burnham and make him an offer that may keep him alive.”

“I was thinking the same thing. Let’s give him time to meet with Escobar then pay him a little visit tomorrow sometime?”

“We’re from the Salt Lake City Police Department, is Vic Burnham in,” demanded Charlie as he displayed his badge for the receptionist to see.

“Yes, ahhhh I’ll tell him you’re here”.

Vic cautiously asked, “What’s this about officers?”

Charlie began, “Let’s begin by jumping over all the bullshit about this being a reputable company. We know that this company has been responsible for transporting the bulk of drugs that have come into Utah for the last few years.”
Vic tried to interrupt but couldn’t.

“Hear me out, and then you can throw some bullshit. We also know that your boss was killed by an unknown assailant, better known as Robin Hood. We should add that this unknown assailant will take out the successor to “Big Bill” as soon as it’s clear you’re following in his footsteps.”

Vic turned pale, “How can you know who killed him and that he’s going to kill me?”

“Look, let’s try some common sense. Why do you think “Big Bill” was killed?” Before he could answer, “You have already met with the customer for all those drugs shipped into by Utah by your company. Now I don’t know what Ramon Escobar told you in your meeting today, but he probably didn’t tell you that if you don’t go along, he will kill you and every succeeding person to run this company until he finds someone who will work with him.”

Vic turned even paler and a light color of green was slowly showing. “What can I do to survive?”

“What an intelligent question,” responded Clarke. “You can work with us to stop Escobar and his organization from supplying drugs to Utah. After we get rolling and take Escobar and his cronies out of Utah we’ll give you a new identification and new place to live.”

“I didn’t realize what Bill was doing when I first came to work for him.”

“So why didn’t you turn him in when you found out,” asked Charlie?

“He kept increasing my salary and told me that someone would bring in the drugs. If it wasn’t us, it would be someone else. He said he was so careful, no one would ever find out.”

“You were his general manager, were you involved in every step of bringing it in?”

“Not at first, I just got sucked in and I kept rationalizing that I wasn’t really hurting anyone, they were going to get the drugs from somewhere. I would use my money for good things so some good would come out of it. Ramon is going to kill me when he finds out, isn’t he?”

“Maybe, if we aren’t careful, or if you give us some bogus information, there’s a greater chance he will have a chance to get to you before we lock him away,” replied Jason.

“We’ll work with the department and they have experts in all aspects of what is going to happen, but we don’t know who Robin Hood is. He may decide to speed up the process and there’s a chance he already knows that you’re heading up the drug importing business so the quicker we get started the better.”

“You’re saying don’t be surprised if Robin Hood steps in and takes me out before you can protect me?”

“Yeah, that’s what we are saying. The good thing is that this way you have a chance to do more good. If you get whacked, we don’t get anything on Escobar. When’s the next shipment.”

“It’s going to be picked up tonight at the Hurricane exit. I’ll get you the information of how it’s done from start to finish. We have shipments coming every other day to keep the size down and make them easier to handle. Ramon told me that he would keep his side of the operation working the same as it has been. The only change is the money will now come to a secret bank account with my number on it instead of Bills.”

“We’re going to hand you off to some other department people who will work with you. We’re detectives not drug enforcement specialists. If you have any problem, just give us a call, here are our cards with numbers to reach us at any time. Good luck, you’ve made the right decision.”

John and Charlie got back in their unmarked car, Charlie brought his hand up, spread his fingers in the Vulcan salute and said “Live long and prosper, I’ve always wanted to do that to someone in the that setting rather than say good luck but thought maybe Vic might not see any humor in it. He’s now thinking he will live short and die a violent death.”

“Yeah, if you had done that stunt, Vic probably would have called the whole thing off.”