Julio – The Growing Years
by: Miguel Sanchez
© 2006-2008 by the author
The author retains all rights. No reproductions are allowed without the
author's consent. Comments are appreciated at...
I knew he was right so I removed my sweatpants then got into bed. I felt David
tug on my shorts then the cold wetness of the alcohol pad as he cleaned my hip.
I then felt David pinch some flesh then the jab as he popped then needle in. I
knew what was coming so I tried to stay relaxed as much as possible. The burn
from the medication was something that was unavoidable. As soon as he was
through, he pulled the needle out then massaged my hip. “Damn, I’d forgotten
just how much that stuff kicked.”
David put the cap back on the needle then walked towards the door. “I had it a
couple times too after an operation. Get some sleep now Miguel.”
I reached out and turned off the light then got comfortable. I felt the
medication begin to do its thing so I closed my eyes and allowed sleep to over
take me.
Chapter 77
David put the cap back on the needle then walked towards the door. “I had it a couple times too after an operation. Get some sleep now Miguel.”
I reached out and turned off the light then got comfortable. I felt the medication begin to do its thing so I closed my eyes and allowed sleep to over take me.
The next morning, my bladder woke me so I gently got out of bed and answered nature’s call. As I stood my left arm moved suddenly and I quickly found the sling. After peeing, I returned and got dressed then headed down to get some coffee. I went into the dining room and my kids were already up. Ronnie saw me and motioned for me to join them at the table. I went over and sat down then Jay brought me some wake up juice. “Here Dad, how did you sleep last night?”
My hip was still a little sore from the injection. “I slept well after David gave me an injection.”
I was finishing my second cup of coffee when Guillermo came down and told me I had a phone call from Danny. I went down and took the call. “Hi Danny, what’s up?”
“Hi Miguel, look Larry Moreno called me first thing and said he wants to talk to me along with the others.”
Now I knew Larry Moreno was not one to be up at that crack of dawn for no reason. Something was going on and Danny’s call had my interest piqued. “Did he give you any indication on what this is about?”
“Nope just that he wanted me to call Insp. Franco and Special Agent Douglas and make sure they’re here.”
Man I wanted to be there. “Did you tell Larry and Asst. US Attorney is coming in to town today?”
“Yeah, I told him that and about the fact they want to take Curtis back to the US.”
I thought for a moment. “What time is the meeting and did you call Judge Romero yet?”
I heard him laugh. “It’s just 7:30 in the morning.”
Now I felt foolish. “I didn’t even look at the time Danny. I can be there about 9 unless someone wants breakfast for a ride.”
“Hey now you know I can’t resist Hanna’s cooking. I’ll be there in about 20 minutes.”
I hung up the phone and went back down to the dining room. On the way, I stopped and got my stronger pain pills because I knew I was going to need them. As I got close to the dining room, I heard the unmistakable sounds of the children. I tried to make an inconspicuous entrance but Chad was sitting so he could see all who entered. As soon as he saw me he stuck his hand up in the air and started waving it; “Papa Miguel, over here.”
I waved back holding up a finger telling him to give me a minute. I got my coffee cup and refilled it then made my way over to see Chad. The first thing I noticed was the huge stack of pancakes on his plate. “Hi son, did you get enough to eat?”
He nodded his head then stuffed a forkful into his mouth. He was about to talk until I put my finger on his lips. He got the message then chewed and swallowed. “Un huh, these are good too. Where’d Danny go?”
I sat down beside him. “Well, after you fell asleep we put you in with Mikey and Shane. Danny had to be into work early this morning and he didn’t want to wake you up.”
I sat there for another couple of minutes then Hanna came over. “Come on Miguel, you need to eat to keep your strength up so your shoulder can heal.”
I stood up just as Chad raised his hand again. “Danny, over here.”
“Hanna, is there enough for Danny?”
She wagged her finger in front of me. “You know there is plenty but not if you don’t get your breakfast.”
That got me in gear as I saw Danny come over and hug Chad. I went and got my breakfast then joined the adults. Danny came over and sat down. “Miguel, there is something strange going on here.”
I’d never seen Danny like this before. “Look, let’s eat then go see what’s going on. You said everyone will be there so maybe between everyone, we can figure this all out.”
I started trying to fix my pancakes but when they almost went into my lap, Angel leaned over and fixed them for me. “Daddy, you know you have to take it easy.”
“I know love and I will but there are some things I need to find out.”
After Angel buttered my pancakes, I poured a load of syrup on them then dug in. Ronnie brought me some more coffee and soon everyone had devoured their breakfasts. By the time I was done, my shoulder was starting to hurt so I reached into my pocket for a pill and washed it down.
The children had all put their trays up and had left to go outside to play. Danny looked at me then nodded his head. “Let’s get over to the office and see what Larry wants.”
Jay, Ronnie and Marco walked with Danny and me to the front door. Marco put his hand on my arm and looked at me. “Pop, take it easy will you? I know how you can be when you get into things.”
I smiled and patted his back. “I know son but I’ll behave. We’ll all be just talking so I’ll be sitting down.”
Marco opened the car door for me and I slid inside. Danny got in on the driver’s side and we were off. The traffic was still light so it didn’t take that long to get to his office. We went in the back door and right away, we heard a strongly heated conversation. Danny hurried through the back room and came into the main office. I couldn’t move that fast but I heard Danny’s voice right away. “What the hell is going on in here?”
A moment later I came in then heard a familiar voice. “When were you going to tell me?”
Danny stopped and looked at him. “When was I going to tell you what, Larry?”
He held the newspaper up. “Imagine my surprise when I look at today’s paper and read about the death of Victoria Ruiz.”
“As soon as I had finished my reports,” Danny shot back.
“Larry what the hell has gotten into you?”
He looked around Danny and saw me standing there. “Miguel, what happened to you?”
I found a chair and sat down as I saw Larry come around and sat on the desk. “I got shot by Ruben Peña.”
His mouth dropped. “Are you sure?”
Danny slammed his fist on the counter. “He should be; Rolando killed him.”
Larry shook his head. “Man, what is going on here? And what is this about you having someone in jail that the USA wants?”
Just then, I saw Inspector Franco and two others I didn’t recognize but assumed was an Assistant US Attorney.”
Danny spotted Insp. Franco and extended his hand. “I’m glad you’re all here. I had some files delivered to me yesterday while I was at the hospital. Dr. Sanchez, how’s the shoulder today?”
I stood up and went over to him. “It’s sore as hell to be honest. I’d like you to meet the City Attorney, Larry Moreno.”
Larry stood up and shook his hand then looked at the others. “And who might you gentlemen be?”
One of the men reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out a case. “I’m Special Agent Brian Douglas with the F.B.I. and this is Asst. US Attorney Leon James.”
Danny went around and held open the gate that led to behind the counter and into the main office. “Follow me everyone, we’ll go to a conference room where we can all sit and talk.”
After we all got seated, Franco went to speak but Larry fired off first. “Can someone tell me about Victoria Ruiz?”
Danny looked to me. “Well, here’s what we know. She was brought into the ER early on the 26th but had no ID on her. Sometime after that a man who claimed to be a Federal Inspector, who we now know is Rafael Curtis, wanted to talk to Joey Peña but my staff and then with help from Danny and Rolando kept that from happening. Steven called me at the hospital and filled me in about what happened at the home. I sent down stairs and met the man. He told me about the Jane Doe female and decided to see who this unknown patient was. It took a few minutes to find her chart and get to her room and it was then I discovered it was Victoria Ruiz. She’s been severely beaten and raped and was unconscious. A few minutes later she coded and that’s when I left the room.”
Larry interrupted me then. “But she was alive when you left?”
I nodded my head. “Yes she was. Now, while the doctors were working on her, Danny and I went out to the lobby so we could talk. That’s when we saw Peña holding a boy. Well, to make a long story short, the boy got free, Curtis tossed Peña his weapon. Rolando killed Peña, I got shot and Danny got Curtis. I then learned that a blood sample taken from Ruben and semen recovered from Victoria’s body are the same blood type so it appears that he was her attacker. That’s where we are today.”
Larry shook his head. “Man, this makes no sense. Why would he want to hurt her?”
I shook my head. “I’m afraid that’s something we’ll never know the answer to.”
Inspector Franco reached into his briefcase and plopped 2 files onto the table. We all looked at Franco but Danny spoke first. “What are those?”
He closed his briefcase then set it on the floor. “These were on my desk when I got back to my office late yesterday afternoon. One is a file from the Sao Paulo office and the other is from Rio. Both contain reports about crimes in that area going back several years. The Sao Paulo crimes are the oldest but they are remarkably similar to what I’ve heard here so far.”
As soon as Larry heard Rio, his eyes got huge. “Can I see the Rio File?”
Franco slid it over and Larry started reading. I saw him leaf through a number of pages then he stopped and started reading. He flipped the page then continued reading then I saw him just stare at it. I thought maybe he was trying to digest something then he closed the file. He reached over and grabbed the one from Sao Paulo and quickly flipped through the pages again. After several minutes he slammed the file down. “I can’t believe what I just read. Now I see the connection here.”
I looked at him. “Well, come on Larry, out with it.”
He took a deep breath then slowly let it out. “Well, it seems that the same lawyer prosecuted both cases in Sao Paulo and Rio. That lawyer then came down here.”
Danny’s eyes got huge. “Victoria Ruiz?”
He nodded his head. “That’s right and the first case she handled here in Recife was Joey Peña on behalf of his uncle.”
Danny shook his head. “I remember that. Ruben posed as a Deputy Sheriff along with a couple others and tried to get into the home. 2 of my plain clothes deputies were following them and thank god we were able to arrest them before anything happened.”
I giggled at that moment. “Well, that was until Joey came out and Ruben started spouting off and Joey slapped the taste right out of his mouth.”
Danny nodded. “Yeah, I remember that.”
Larry stepped in then. “I remember that too. She even tried to get Joey put into a juvenile detention center but Judge Romero saw through it. Now that we’ve made a connection here, I’m going to request a search warrant of her place and that of Ruben Peña’s.”
Danny raised a finger. “While you’re at it, do one on our friend in the back, Rafael Curtis.”
Just then Mr. James spoke up. “I have papers here requesting Curtis be extradited back to the US to stand trial.”
Larry thought for several minutes before speaking. “I know why you all want him and I can’t say as I blame you. However, before I agree to let him go I want to know all I can about what he’s done here.”
James shook his head. “I can understand that sir but I still have the right to be heard in court.”
Larry smiled. “Of course and once I fill out the search warrants, you can follow Sheriff Vasquez over to the courthouse. I’m sure Judge Romero will sign the warrants and you can talk with him about a hearing time.”
I looked up at the clock and it was only 9:30 so Judge Romero might be free, depending on his case load. Larry reached down and got his briefcase and pulled out some forms. He started filling them in then signed off on them. “Here you go Sheriff.”
Danny took the forms then folded them and put them into his shirt pocket. He went over and talked to the Deputy on the Desk. “Get Rolando and a few others to head over to the Curtis place. Get Billings and his partner over to Peña’s and I’ll call another deputy in to help me at Victoria Ruiz’s. Make sure to tell them not to enter the houses until I have these warrants signed.”
The Desk Deputy nodded his head then he and the American’s left the office. It took Danny just a few minutes to make it to the courthouse. He found Judge Romero’s court room and quietly opened the door. There were a few people sitting there but the morning session hadn’t started yet so they all went in. He spotted the Bailiff and went over to him. “Is Judge Romero free? I have 3 search warrants I’d like him to sign plus these men are from the United States.”
The Bailiff went inside then quickly returned holding the door. “The Judge will see you.”
Judge Romero was sitting at his desk finishing a cup of coffee. “Come in Sheriff and who are these 2 gentlemen?”
Danny made the introductions as he handed him the warrants. “This is Special Agent Brian Douglas with the F.B.I. and that is Asst. US Attorney Leon James.”
Judge Romero looked down and started reading the warrants. He slowly read all three then quickly signed off on them. He handed them back to Danny then looked at Leon James. “And what brings a US Attorney down here?”
The man reached into his suit jacket and pulled out the papers and handed them to the judge. “The United States is seeking to extradite Rafael Curtis. We have a long list of charges against him and we’d like to bring him to justice.”
He looked over to Danny. “Why is he in your jail Sheriff?”
“Well, for now he’s being held on the charge of aiding and abetting attempted murder. He aided Ruben Peña by tossing him his weapon then Peña shot Miguel.”
Javier’s eyes got huge when he heard that. “How is he Sheriff?”
“Miguel is fine Your Honor, he took one to the left shoulder. Right now, he’s over at the office talking with Larry Moreno.”
Danny could see the judge relax. “Does Curtis have a lawyer?”
Danny shook his head. “Not that I’m aware of.”
Judge Romero thought for a moment. “Hummm, I wonder…”
Danny interrupted. “Oh no Your Honor, Paulo will not represent him. He’s the attorney for The Foundation.”
Javier waved his hand. “Fair enough Sheriff, I have a list of lawyers for just this sort of thing. Mr. James, I have a full docket this morning and 1 case this afternoon. I’ll hear you at 2:30.”
The men left the judge’s chambers then Danny stopped at the Bailiff’s desk. He pointed to the phone and the bailiff nodded his head. Danny then called his office and told the Desk Deputy to radio the men to start the searches. Danny walked quickly towards the back of the courtroom. “If you’ll excuse me, I have work to do.”
Danny then made a quick stop at the office. “Hey Danny, think I could tag along?”
He motioned his head then I saw Franco following me. I stopped then Larry got up and followed us. The 3 of us got into Danny’s car and sped off towards Victoria’s residence. We weren’t on the road but a few minutes when Danny got a radio call from Rolando. “Danny here, go ahead son.”
Rolando came back. “Dad, I’m with Billings here at Ruben Peña’s place and we’re too late. The front and back doors have been kicked in and the place totally destroyed. We entered when we saw the break in. There isn’t a thing here.”
Danny got back to Rolando. “OK son, tell Billings and his partner to get over to Curtis’ house and sit on it. If there is anyone that even looks like they want to get near it, detain them.”
“Will do Dad,” Rolando came back. “Where do you need me?”
“Meet me at Victoria’s house.”
“I’m on my way,” Rolando replied.
About 10 minutes later, we pulled up to Victoria’s place. A couple of minutes later, Rolando arrived. We were about to get out when Danny got another radio call, “Billings to Sheriff Vasquez.”
“Sheriff Vasquez here; go ahead Billings.”
“We’re at the Curtis’ place. Everything is secure and there is no sign anyone has tried to break in.”
We all relaxed when we heard that. “Very good Billings; stay there and have your partner watch the back of the house. We’ll be there as soon as we can.”
The three of us got out of the car and Danny went over to talk to Rolando as we all headed for the house. Larry looked at me but I could tell he was lost in thought. “Miguel, when I was looking at those files, I can’t for the life of me figure out how Victoria got mixed up in all this.”
I thought for a moment. “I can’t either Larry and I guess that’s something we might never learn the answer too.”
Rolando reached into his pocket and took out a key handing it to Danny. “I got this from her effects at the hospital. Other than some lipstick and makeup, there was nothing else of any importance.”
Danny took the key. “Good thinking son. Now let’s see what’s in here that might give us some answers.”
Danny unlocked the door to the small house then pushed it open taking a quick look around before entering. Nothing seemed to be out of order. “Dad, I’ll check the back and see if it’s still secure.”
Rolando was gone for a minute then returned. “The back is still secure so it seems no one has been in here.”
Rolando started in the small living room which was very sparsely furnished. I found a chair and sat down so I could give my arm a rest. After a few minutes, Larry helped in the search. Danny and Insp. Franco went to the lone bedroom and began looking in there. “Danny, do you have any idea what we’re looking for?”
He was about to open a dresser drawer then stopped. “I don’t have a clue.”
Danny started going through the dresser while Franco went to the small closet. He looked around then felt through the clothes that were hanging. He looked up on the small shelf and pulled down the two boxes that were up there then brought them over to the bed. He took the lid off one then dumped the contents out. There were some old photos of Victoria and who he guessed to be her parents. There was a small Bible and two obituaries. One was her father’s and the other was her mothers. Franco put those back in the Bible and put the things back into the box. He opened the other one and in it were a pair of high heels. He took them out to make sure there was nothing else in the box and when he went to put them back a key fell out. He looked at it for a moment. “Danny, have you found anything this key could fit?”
Danny shook his head. “I haven’t found anything other then women’s clothes yet.”
Rolando and Larry were striking out in the living room. I watched as they went through her small desk and a little coat closet checking everything they found.
Franco kept the key but put the other 2 boxes back on the shelf in the closet. Danny had gone through 3 large drawers of women’s things then saw the night stand. He went to pull on what looked like a drawer but nothing happened. “Hey, come over here and give me a hand. This drawer is stuck.”
Franco went over and gave the handle a little pull. He looked at it then started tapping on it. “This has a weird sound for a night stand.”
Danny tapped on the side and listened. “You’re right. Hey Rolando, come back to the bedroom son.”
I heard Danny call for Rolando so I followed as Larry came with him too. “Yes Dad, what’s up?”
Danny motioned him over. “Tap on this and tell me what you think.”
Rolando went over and tapped on the top then tried to pull on the handle. He next knocked on the side. “Man, this thing sounds hollow.”
He was right. All of a sudden it was like a light coming on in Larry’s head. “Move the lamp and other stuff then the both of you pick that thing up.”
Danny moved the lamp on to the bed while Rolando moved the clock and other things. They each took hold of top and lifted. They got it about a foot off the ground and I could see something inside the stand. “Keep going guys, there is something in there.”
They lifted it another foot and it cleared the object. Larry went over to it. “Damn Danny, it’s a safe. I guess she did have some things she wanted to hide.”
Franco reached into his pocket. “Let’s see if this key fits it. He said sliding the key into the slot.
Rolando smiled. “Can you open it?”
Franco shook his head; “Not here I can’t. We’ll need to get this to your office Danny, and then I can crack it.”
I looked at Larry who was staring at me and we both were shocked at what we heard. “Crack it?” Rolando asked just as surprised as we were.
Franco smiled then nodded his head. “It’s something I picked up but only use it in emergencies and when there is a search warrant in hand.”
That safe didn’t look all that big but I knew they were heavy as all get out. “I don’t think that’ll fit on the trunk of your car Danny.”
He went over and pulled on it and shook his
head. “Nope, we’re going to need a truck for that. Miguel, could we impose on
you to allow us to borrow one of your maintenance trucks?”
I smiled at him. “It’s no imposition at all Danny.”
I walked out into the living room and looked for a phone. I didn’t see one in there so I checked in the kitchen. I saw one hanging on the wall so I picked up the receiver and listened to see if it was still working. It was so I called the home and spoke to Guillermo. He told me he’d have the two maintenance men leave right away. I was about to return to the bedroom when I saw Danny and Rolando coming out carrying the safe. Larry then put his hand on Franco’s shoulder. “I don’t know how long it’s going to take to get a truck out here so do you think you can open it here?”
Franco looked at us sheepishly then nodded. “Someone get some paper so as I call out numbers, you can write them down?”
Rolando pulled out his notebook and grabbed his pen. “Got it, go ahead.”
Franco went over and knelt down in front of the safe and started turning the dial. We all watched as he slowly turned the dial then stop, “84.”
Rolando wrote down the number then Franco started turning the dial in the other direction. He turned the dial very slowly again then stopped, looking up at Rolando. “24.”
I watched as Rolando wrote then Franco turned the dial back as he did the first time. He was going much slower this time and then he quickly stopped. He looked up at Rolando and he had a smile on his face. “73,” he said as he reached into his pocket pulling out a key and inserting it into the handle.
He turned the key then grabbed hold of the handle and pulled. The handle lifted up and then he opened the door to the safe. We were all amazed at what we saw as Franco stepped back as Danny patted him on the back. “That would have taken a locksmith to open buddy. Now let’s see what’s inside.”
Danny knelt down and opened the door all the way. Inside there were a number of shoeboxes that 2 could fit end to end width wise across the back of the safe. In the front there were what looked like legal files. Danny pulled those out and handed them to Larry. He started looking through them as Danny started removing the shoe boxes. Danny handed one to Rolando and the guy couldn’t resist lifting the cover off. When he did, his eyes got huge. “Holy shit Dad, look at this.”
Rolando lowered the box and inside it was loaded with money. Danny took the box and took out a neatly rubber banded stack of currency and quickly counted the bills. “There are 50 100 Real notes here. I’m holding 5,000 Reals just in my hand.”
Danny dumped the contents onto the floor and we started counting. Every bill was 100 Reals. There were a total of 30 stacks each containing 5,000 Reals. Rolando did some quick math. “There is 1,500,000 Reals in that box Dad.”
Danny didn’t have time to do any more so he put everything back into the safe and relocked it. “This has to be taken to the office so we can count it and secure it until the court can make a determination who the money belongs to.”
Danny and Rolando put the things back into the safe then locked the door. Danny took the key and put it into his pocket. About that time, there was a knock on the door. I stepped into the living room and saw the maintenance men from the home. “In here guys, I hope you brought something to load this thing on.”
The two men followed me to the bedroom then looked at the safe. “Miguel, you guys will need to move out of our way.”
We moved out of their way then they picked the safe up and carried it outside. Danny followed them so he could tell them where it had to go. “Take this to my office. I’ll radio ahead and let someone know it’s on the way and where to put it for the time being.”
Danny went over to his car and radioed the office then came back inside. “Is everything alright?”
He nodded his head. “Yep, they’re expecting the safe now. It’s after 11 so we better hurry on over to Curits’ place. I know it’s huge so it’s going to take some time to do a thorough search. The hearing on his extradition is set for 2:30.”
Danny secured Victoria’s house then it was on to our next stop. When Danny pulled up, we saw a Sheriff’s car in front of the place. Danny got out and talked with the Deputy then he headed for the front door. After unlocking it, he and Rolando did a quick look to make sure the place was empty then we entered. I looked around at a home that was bigger then my Dad’s was. “You can’t hide money.”
Danny, Rolando and Franco split up and began searching the big house. Danny headed upstairs with Larry and me hot on his heels. Rolando started in the living room and Franco went into what looked like an office.
Rolando wasn’t finding anything in the living room and the same was true for us in the master bedroom. Larry and I knocked on the bed stands then removed the paintings from the walls. Everything was as it should be. We were about to head to another bedroom when we heard Insp. Franco call out, “In here guys.”
Danny, Larry and I hurried down the stairs and into the office. Franco and found a safe disguised as an end table, another safe built into the wall and yet another inside a walk in closet. Danny looked at the one in the closet. “Can you open this one?”
Franco nodded his head as he went into the closet. Rolando stood behind him with his pad, ready to write down the numbers again as he called them out. Franco placed his ear close to the dial and began turning it slowly. He listened carefully then stopped, “29”
We watched as he continued listening and listening for the tumblers to drop into place. Soon, he’d called out 2 more numbers then tried to lift the handle but this time it didn’t budge. We all had a look of disappointment on our faces. “What happened?” I asked.
Franco thought for a moment then went back and turned the dial one more time. He stepped back trying the handle again and this time it raised up unlocking the door. He pulled it open and inside was a big box with USA written on it. Rolando and Franco reached in and wiggled the carton out of the safe. Danny went over and opened the box and gasped, “Holy shit.”
Larry stepped inside. “What is it Danny?”
Danny looked over his shoulder. “There must be at least 50 tapes in here and there is a big ledger.”
To be continued...
Posted: 12/05/08