Chapter 41: Advice From A Friend

April 6, 2002, Chicago, Illinois

🎤 Jesse

“I wish I could have just stayed last night after we were out with the gang,” CeCe said as we got into bed on Saturday morning.

“Somehow, I don’t think your dad would go for that!”

“Unfortunately. I just hope there’s a time when they’ll be gone for a night when you’re in town over the Summer.”

“Anytime you want, so long as you won’t get in trouble.”

“What time do you have to leave?”

“About 10:00am.”

“That gives us just under two hours. Kiss me!”

🎤 Steve

“Happy to be home?” I asked Brian after our breakfasts were served at Bucktown Bistro.

Brian laughed, “You spoke to Samantha! What do you think?”

“I believe that’s a ‘yes’,” Aaron chuckled.

“What’s next for you?” Terry asked. “Or are you at Great Lakes permanently?”

“Nothing is permanent in the military except for red tape!” Brian replied with a grin. “After being away from Samantha and the kids for months, she and I agreed I’d put in my papers.”

“Call Global Security,” I said. “You aren’t a shooter, but with your planning and operations experience, I’m sure Patrick Shaughnessy will have a role for you if you want it, or point you to a role. Being an Academy graduate is pretty much a ticket to a six-figure position at any number of companies.”

“Six figures,” he chuckled, “is a rounding error for my wife. I don’t think we’ll be hurting for money anytime soon!”

“Or your kids, grandkids, and great-grandkids!” Pete declared.

“When will you get out?” Jackson inquired.

“It can take months for the paperwork to be processed,” Brian replied, “and I’ve personally seen it take up to a year if there’s a shortage of qualified officers, which, during wartime, there usually is.”

“Last I checked, Congress didn’t make an official declaration of war,” I observed.

“That appears to be passé,” Jamie said.

“Like so much else in the Constitution that is inconvenient for the government,” I observed.

“The man speaks the truth!” Julius declared.

“Do NOT encourage him!” Kurt warned.

“What?” Julius asked.

“Pete, it appears Liz didn’t fill her husband in on her boss!” Jamie declared.

“What am I missing?” Julius asked.

I chuckled, “Ask Liz for the latest copy of the ‘Rant’ list. She’ll know what I mean and she’ll explain it.”

“Steve has a tendency to complain about the government,” Jackson said.

“Steve has a tendency to rant about the government,” Pete corrected.

“Steve, any updates on your employee who was arrested?” Mike Knox asked.

“Fortunately, his girlfriend regained consciousness, and her prognosis is good. That’s not good for him, though, because she gave a complete statement to the police yesterday. I can’t say anything on the other part of it now, because that investigation is ongoing.”

When we finished eating, Terry, Jackson, and I walked to my car to head back to the South Side. I had just pulled away when my mobile phone, which I’d put in the console, rang.

“Samantha,” Terry said, picking up the phone, as he knew I wouldn’t handle it while driving.

“Answer and put it on speaker, please.”

He did.

“Samantha, it’s Steve. I suspect you know I just left breakfast, and I have Terry and Jackson in the car with me.”

“I have your answer.”

“Cincinnati?”

“Are you sure you want to discuss this now?”

“If the two of us didn’t trust Terry, he wouldn’t be working for you! And Jackson will take a bullet for me, just as I would for him. It’s OK.”

“Metaphorically only!” Jackson laughed. “Holly would NOT be happy if I got shot!”

“And I wouldn’t live long if it were my fault,” I chuckled.

“Honestly, Steve,” Samantha said, “call me when you get home.”

“Will do.”

Terry disconnected the call.

“Sorry about that,” I said.

“About what?” Jackson inquired. “Some things do have to stay completely private.”

“For sure,” Terry replied. “I work for her, and this isn’t something I should be privy to.”

I nodded and after dropping Jackson at the apartment he and Holly shared, I headed to the Compound. Terry went to his house, and I went into mine. After hugging my daughters, I went to my study and dialed Samantha’s number.

“I’m alone,” I said.

“We traced the money through two overseas shell companies and then to an LLC registered in Cincinnati.”

“Name?” I asked.

“14-8-5-24 Partners.”

“Rose, Morgan, Bench, Pérez — the starting lineup for the Reds when they won the back-to-back World Series in ‘75 and ‘76.”

“You got that right off the top of your head?”

“I did when I first saw it, yes. It’s in Katya’s dossier on Volstead and Braun as an LLC they control.”

“Then you have them!” Samantha declared.

“I agree. Is this something I can share with law enforcement?”

“I’d strongly prefer you didn’t. We called in favors that we’d never be able to call in again if anyone thought we were investigating for anyone other than ourselves. It was couched as trying to confirm the origin of funds being deposited with us, which is something we do when we’re suspicious. It’s a normal part of our anti-money-laundering procedures.”

“So what can I tell the Feds?” I asked.

“That you suspect Arthur Braun, and that the financial analysts at the FBI should look into any LLCs controlled by him or his law partner. Basically, they start at the opposite end from where we did, and find the two transactions in the correct amounts and in the right timeframe. It’s trivial to follow from that end.”

“OK. Let me think about how I can do that. I’ll keep your role out of it.”

“What role?” she asked.

“Exactly. Thanks, Samantha,” I said, then snapped the phone shut to end the call.

I actually had a plausible reason to suspect Braun, and using an LLC was a common way of shielding transactions from cursory public view, something I did myself, though never for any illegal purposes. I didn’t even skate close to the ‘offside’ line on taxes, let alone anything else, when it came to business. My personal life was a bit different, though I was also careful to not push the tax code to the point where it might attract ‘imperial entanglements’.

I picked up the handset from my desk phone and dialed Liz’s number.

“It was Braun,” I said.

“How do you know?”

“A little birdie whispered in my ear that the funds originated from an LLC in Cincinnati that I know is controlled by Arthur Braun.”

“The FBI isn’t going to be happy about you doing that,” Liz replied.

“Doing what? All the Feds are going to know is that I suspect Braun, and that their financial analysis should include a deep dive into his finances. They’ll find the two transactions, in the correct amounts at the correct times, and roll up the entire chain fairly easily. It’s simple if you start at the source; it’s far more difficult if you start at the final destination.”

“There’s no guarantee they’ll do that.”

“No, there isn’t, but I know, and that’s leverage, if I need it. Just the FBI snooping around will put Arthur Braun on notice, AND make it less likely he’ll transfer funds to his son or Knowles and Jackson. Remember the ultimate goal here — to take down a competitor and get the Brauns out of my hair. Whatever else happens is incidental to the main goal of getting the stone out of my shoe.”

“Won’t they think you did this to them?” Liz asked.

“No, because I want YOU to do something.”

“What’s that?”

“Have James Schaefer reach out to Clay’s attorney and the local prosecutor to say that we want to facilitate a deal on the corporate espionage charge so that we can get the guys behind it.”

“I’m not sure that’s going to work,” Liz replied.

“Prosecutors do plea deals all the time.”

“Yes, they do. And if Clay’s attorney is smart, he’ll tie a plea to the other charges to giving up the name. It’s the smart thing to do. And if you were seen to have a hand in that, your female staff would revolt, beginning with Sam. Do YOU want to be on the receiving end of the piano wire?”

“No,” I replied, wincing at the thought. “So, Consigliere, what’s the move?”

“Let things play out. You know the truth, and you can always use it later. Your current strategy of being ready to buy Knowles and Jackson via Stephanie’s bankruptcy maneuver takes them out of the game. Then you can decide what to do with the information you have on Arthur Braun. Well, assuming the Feds don’t trace it to him.”

“Do I tell the Feds anything?”

“When the FBI speaks to you on Monday, they’ll ask if you have any suspicions. Name Knowles and Jackson and Volstead and Braun, and list everything they’ve done. You don’t suspect anyone else, do you?”

“No. I can’t think of anyone who would do it besides them. We’re on very good terms with our other competitors, though with the appropriate distance to keep the antitrust and collusion hounds at bay.”

“I can hear the gears grinding, Steve. Don’t do anything without speaking to me first.”

“Yes, Mom.”

Liz laughed, “Of all the fantasies you might have, that is the LAST one!”

“True,” I replied. “You know that’s one of the ways I respond when I can’t say ‘I hate you’ to someone. And I could never, ever say that to you because I love you.”

“And I love you. Just be smart.”

“Which you define as me doing exactly as you instruct!” I declared.

“Which is different from how Birgit defines it in what way, exactly?” Liz teased.

“Yeah, yeah,” I chuckled.

“See you on Monday?”

“See you on Monday.”

We said ‘goodbye’ and I hung up, then went to get ready for karate.

🎤 Jesse

“What did you want to do today?” I asked Viktoria when I picked her up just before 11:00am on Saturday.

“Drive to that little park so I can greet you properly!”

I did, and after I parked, we exchanged a searing French kiss. I felt Viktoria’s hand on the inside of my thigh, and my jeans quickly became very uncomfortable. She slowly moved her hand up until it rested lightly on my boner, though with my jeans and briefs preventing skin-to-skin contact. She squeezed gently, then broke the kiss.

“I want to see it,” she whispered. “Can we go somewhere private?”

She traced her fingers along my jean-covered shaft to make it clear what she wanted. I wanted that in the worst possible way, but there were two reasons I couldn’t — I didn’t carry rubbers with me and she’d need an STI test. I knew she’d be outraged by the implication, because idiotically, most sex-ed courses didn’t bring up the myriad of ways that you could get the various diseases, though the risks were mostly infinitesimal, now that the blood supply was routinely screened.

An infinitesimal risk was not no risk, and that meant confirmation by a clean STI test. I knew those weren’t perfect either, but for straight people who didn’t use IV drugs and hadn’t had a transfusion before the blood supply began to be screened, it was sufficient. As with anything, there was always a risk, but the test made the risks so small that I needed to be more concerned about being struck by lightning than contracting an STI.

I strongly suspected she meant what she’d implied, but if she didn’t, I didn’t want to upset her. Not to mention I couldn’t think of a place we could go where we could do that, even if by some bizarre chance she was on the Pill and she’d had a recent STI test. The best way to answer was to temporize, as Dad called it.

“That’s a big step,” I said gently. “One we should discuss, not let our hormones decide in the heat of the moment.”

“You don’t want to?” she asked, tracing her fingers along my shaft.

“I think it’s obvious I do,” I said. “But I don’t ... sorry, I’m not prepared, if you know what I mean. And there’s something else that’s important to talk about.”

“The softball player?”

“Well, yes, but birth control is mandatory, and I don’t carry rubbers with me and I certainly don’t expect you to be on the Pill.”

“No, I’m not. Can you imagine what would happen if my parents found out?”

“Nothing good, that’s for sure.”

“Can’t you buy them?”

“I could, but there’s another consideration. I have two rules I’m required to follow.”

“By who?” Viktoria interrupted.

“My dad and my moms. They feel I can make my own decisions, but only on the condition that I always use birth control and that anyone I do it with has to have an STD test first.”

I used the term she’d more likely know, because that’s the one they used in health class.

“But I never!” Viktoria protested. “You were the first boy I ever kissed!”

“Even though they’re called ‘Sexually Transmitted Diseases’ or ‘Sexually Transmitted Infections’, intercourse is not the only infection vector. They didn’t give you all the information you needed in health class, and some of what they said was probably flat-out wrong. I don’t think you have one, but I agreed with my parents that it was a requirement.”

“You had one?”

“A test? Every three months.”

“Every three ... wait! How many different girls have you done it with?”

“I can’t answer that question except to say the same thing I said last time — I’m not a virgin, which means I’ve done it at least once. I can’t say with whom or anything else about it.”

“But if you get one every three months, it means you’re doing it. If not, why get one?”

She had a valid point, but I could neither confirm nor deny that directly.

“You can make that assumption, yes, but I really can’t answer beyond what I’ve said. Would you want me to tell anyone if we were to do that?”

“Uhm, no, obviously not.”

“Let’s just have lunch, spend time together, and go to Vespers.”

She removed her hand from my jeans.

“OK,” she said, sounding disappointed.

“How about the same Chinese place?”

“OK.”

I put the car in gear and headed towards Butterfield Road.

“There’s something else we should talk about,” I said.

“What?” Viktoria asked.

“Well,” I said carefully, “there are a number of reasons why people do it, and problems arise when they don’t agree on why they’re doing it.”

“You think I have an ulterior motive?” she asked.

“I have no idea what your motives are, which is basically my point. Is it OK to just say what I’m thinking?”

“I promise not to be upset,” she said.

“Some people only do it with their spouse; some people do it because they love the other person; some people do it to bond closely; and some people do it just because it feels good. There are other reasons, and you can combine reasons, but you do have to agree on what it means. It can mean anything from ‘for this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and cleave to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh’ to just doing it because you want to and it feels good.”

“Why did you do it? I mean, the one time you admit to doing it?”

“Because I wanted to feel good, and the girl wanted to feel good, nothing more.”

“She wasn’t your girlfriend?”

“No,” I replied, because I was referring to my first time, which had been with April.

“And you didn’t want her for your girlfriend?”

“No. We knew each other for a long time, and she made it obvious what she wanted to do. Kind of like today.”

Viktoria giggled, which I took as a good sign, but she didn’t say anything for a couple of minutes.

“I don’t know,” she finally said. “The first time I kissed you it was, like, my body was on fire, and I felt a strange feeling in my stomach, and just wanted more. Then when you touched me ... well, if you had tried, I would have let you.”

“Which is how babies get made by accident,” I said.

“I’d be SO dead!”

“I don’t think I’d be in any better shape, at least with regard to your dad. But I’m more concerned about what you think will happen afterwards.”

“You mean that you’ll be my boyfriend?”

“That is what you want, isn’t it?”

“Yes.”

“And you think that leads to only one place, right?”

“What do you mean?”

“If we were to become a couple, you would expect betrothal and crowning to follow, at some point, right?”

“I guess so.”

“That is what would normally be expected of the daughter of a deacon or priest, and I’m not ready to make a commitment like that.”

“But you would do it so we could make each other feel really good? You said you did that before.”

“If I was sure it wouldn’t be misunderstood.”

“I think most boys would promise to be my boyfriend to be able to do it.”

“I suspect that’s true,” I replied. “But I was burned pretty badly with my first girlfriend, and I’m not ready to get into a committed relationship.”

“But if I just wanted to do it?” she asked, putting her hand on my leg.

Fortunately, I could defer a decision because she’d need to get tested, which would give her time to think, and me time to decide. I felt there was a big risk that she’d assume we were a couple if we had sex, and that concerned me greatly.

“Well, until you have a test, nothing more than kissing can happen,” I said.

“Where?”

“Look up a Free Clinic or Planned Parenthood,” I said.

“But they do abortions!” she protested.

“So do all hospitals, except the Catholic ones,” I replied. “They also provide STI testing, birth control, gynecological exams, and other services. Your other option is to ask your OB/GYN or GP.”

“They might tell my parents.”

“They shouldn’t, but it is a risk, which is why I suggested a Free Clinic or Planned Parenthood.”

“If anyone saw me, I’d be in HUGE trouble. And I don’t have a car.”

“See if you can locate one in Aurora or Naperville, and I could take you there next Saturday, if you want.”

“All you have to do is kiss me to make me want to!” Viktoria said, sighing deeply.

And that right there was the crux of the problem.

April 7, 2002, Chicago, Illinois

🎤 Steve

“Good morning, Sensei Steve,” Rachel Kealty said as she came into the dojo early on Sunday morning.

“Good morning, Miss Kealty,” I said.

“Formal now, are we?” she asked with a slight smile.

“It just seemed like the thing to say. How are you this morning?”

“Fine, thanks.”

“Anything new and exciting happen this week?”