Race (38 page)

***

In
Thorncliffe
Park searching for a parking place, I wished I had my parking enforcement cruiser.
 
I could have parked anywhere.

A purplish van exited a spot and I immediately took it.
 
I went up the elevators to the fifteenth floor.
 
I found Barnes’ apartment and knocked.

A pretty girl, in her early twenties, answered the door.
 

“Hi,” I said.
 
“My name is Jon
Rupret
…”

“Yes, Michael mentioned you were coming,” she said.
 
“Come in.”

I went in and the smell of something cooking penetrated my nostrils.

“Michael is in the bedroom.”
 
She led me down the hall and into the room.

I found Michael Barnes propped up in bed watching TV.
 
He looked up and a smile crossed his face.

“Hey, man,” he said.
 
“How are you doing?”

“Better than you,” I said.

“Have a seat.”

I sat on the single chair opposite the bed.

The girl behind me said, “Michael, can I get you anything?”

“No, honey, I’m fine,” he said and she went away.

He leaned over to me and whispered, “So what do you think of her? She nice?”

She seemed polite and was very pretty. “Sure,” I said.

His smile widened.
 
“My mom told me she was at the hospital every day.
 
She was at my bedside hoping and praying for my recovery.
 
I didn’t realize it but I love her so much.” He faced the television and waited for the commercials to come.
 
“I’m going to ask her to marry me.”

“That’s great,” I said.
 
I paused and then said, “I’m sorry about what happened that night.”

“That’s okay,” he said.
 
“You know what’s strange? I don’t remember much.”

“Yeah,
Beadsworth
told me.”

“But you know what?” he said glancing back to the TV.
 
“I do remember going there with you but I don’t remember anything after that except for…” he trailed off.

“Except for what?” I asked trying to get his attention.

“Uh…yeah.
 
Except once in a while I see a bald head.”

“Bald head?”

“A big shiny bald head. I don’t know why.”

“Is there a face attached to it?”

“I hope so.
 
But I don’t see it.
 
It’s blurred.”
 
He shut his eyes and then opened them.
 
“At the hospital I was on some heavy-duty drugs and I got these funky dreams where I’m at the House of Jam—but, it’s not really the House of Jam but a weird, psychedelic kind of club.
 
I’m either with you or my partner, Carlos, or sometimes even with Detective Garnett.”

“That’s not a dream.
 
That’s a nightmare.”

“But every time it’s like this bald head is coming after me.
 
Chasing me.”

“Does it catch you?” I said, fishing for some clue.

“I don’t know—I guess so.”

His mind was going back to the TV.

I had decided it was time to go, when he said, “What happened to RACE?
 
Did you guys catch them? Carlos never talks about them.”

I didn’t know where to begin.
 
Operation Anti-RACE was no longer operational and our main witness was dead.
  
For all we knew,
Nex
was already out on the streets.
 
But I couldn’t tell him all this.
 
Not in his condition.

“We’re making progress,” I said.
 
I got up and gave him a pat on the shoulder.
 
“You make good progress too, okay?”

He smiled and thanked me for coming and then went back to watching TV.

***

I got back downtown, called Cal Murray, and after a few rings he answered.
 
I told him I wanted a talk with him.
 
After a little begging he agreed.

I waited behind the House of Jam until he showed up.
 
“I don’t have much time, but come,” he said.

We went up the flight of stairs, through the narrow hall and into his office.

“This hot rapper from Scarborough will be coming down to promote his new CD and we’ve got a lot of promotional stuff to do.”

“What’s his name?” I asked.

“Altar Boy
.
 
You might not have heard of him yet, but he’ll be the next big thing.”
 

He went around his desk and sat down.
 
“Have a seat,” he offered.

I saw the oh-so-familiar sofa and my mind flashed back to the time I had nearly lost my
hear
to it.

“I’ll stand,” I said.

Cal said, “It was nice of you guys not to launch an investigation after the attack. It would have given this place a bad rep.
 
How’s he doing, anyways?”

“Constable Barnes is recovering,” I said.
 
I was about to ask him a question when he interrupted me.

“Who was it that did it?”

“I’m sorry?” I said.

“You guys did catch whoever attacked the officer?”

“Not yet—that’s not why I’m here—”

“—That’s not possible,” he said, taken aback. “You have the videotapes from that night.”

“Not all,” I corrected him.
 
“We’re missing the one that recorded the attack.”

“That’s not possible,” he puffed.
  
“I handed all the tapes to the police.”

“All of them?”

“Yes, all.
 
Even before I had a chance to view them, someone came and took them.”

“Who? Can you remember?”

His eyes darted from one end of the desk to the other.
 
He was thinking hard.
 
“Yes, of course,” he said.
 
“It was your partner.”

“Sorry?” I said startled.
 
“Who?”

“Your partner.
 
With the beard and the slight accent.
 
I gave both of you the tour of the club.
 
Remember?”

I found myself losing breath and getting dizzy.
 
“Do you mind if I sit down?” Before he answered, I fell on the sofa.
 
My mind was reeling.
 
This was too much.
 
I suspected
Beadsworth
was up to something illegal but this was tampering with evidence.

I spoke with
laboured
breath, “Are you sure it was Phillip
Beadsworth
?”

“Yes,” he said, recognizing the name.
 
“He came up to my office and demanded I give him all the camera tapes, and assured me there would be no investigation if I did.”

I grabbed my head.
 
Everything was making more sense. I strained.
 
Yes, it was getting clearer.
 
Joey had mentioned there was a mole in the police department.
 
Beadsworth
. I remembered
Beadsworth’s
words, “
Things were happening before you arrived and they will continue to happen after you leave
.” He meant his involvement with RACE.
 
He was part of RACE.
 
He was the one who had insisted Joey stay with me.
 
Why me? Joey should have been in the witness protection program.
 
Beadsworth
knew if Joey was under me he’d have access to him.
 

My mouth dropped.

“Is something wrong?” I heard Cal say, but I ignored him.

Beadsworth
must have joined Operation Anti-RACE to keep an eye on the investigation.
  
He was leaking information to RACE.
 
In return he was paid well; that explained the envelopes he gave his wife.
 
That also explained the huge house and everything inside it.
 

I had to talk to Aldrich.
 
I didn’t like him, but I had to do something.

“Hey man, you okay?” Cal said again.

“Yeah…I’m fine.”
 
Suddenly my phone rang.
 
It was Marcus from Regent Park.
 
He sounded nervous.
 
RACE had contacted him and they were on their way to meet him.
 

I got up, “Thanks, man.” I went to the door.
 
“Oh, by the way, there’s a tiny little tear on the sofa.
 
If you want to get rid of it and get yourself a fancy one—especially for this new rapper, you give me a call.”

***

The Lincoln turned into Regent Park.
  
Hause
was driving with Ms. Zee and Kong in the back.
 
Martin didn’t accompany them.
 
He was too busy with the logistics of the operation.

They found Marcus in the laundry room.
  
Ms. Zee sensed he looked uneasy, almost nervous.
 
It could be that she now had the drug and he had no choice but agree to all her demands.
 

The smell of detergent and fabric softener was very strong.

“Do you have it?” he said.
 
“Or is this another sample?”

She eyed his bodyguard in the back, a skinny guy with a menacing face.
 
He had his eyes fixed on Kong.
 
Kong in return had his eyes fixed on him.

“Do you have it or is this a waste of my time?” Marcus said.
 
His right hand shook slightly.
 

She pulled out a plastic prescription bottle and placed it on top of one of the washing machines. “It’s all there.”

Marcus motioned and his bodyguard walked over, picked it up, and handed it to him.
 

Marcus scanned the bottle and then looked at the cap.

“It’s child proof,” Ms. Zee said. “You have to push—”

“I know,” he said, annoyed.
 
“I know how to open it.” He twisted the cap off and dropped a tablet in his right palm.
 
The tweezers were inside Ms. Zee’s pocket but she wasn’t going to offer it to him.
 
“It’s square.
 
Clever,” he said. He flipped the tablet over, examining it from all sides and angles. He then half-closed his palm and did a motion as if he was weighing it.
 
He felt a jolt in his hand and then it went numb.
 
“Shit.” He looked down and the tablet had almost completely disappeared.
 
Three blinks later he regained feeling in his fingers.
 
“What happened?” he said, looking at her.

“You were sweating,” she said.

***

I parked at a spot from where I could see the brown building.
   
I couldn’t see much from this distance but I didn’t want to blow my cover by getting any closer.
 
During the ride I had hatched a plan.
 

Once RACE was done with their business they would come out.
 
When they did, I’d follow them to their hide-out.
 
I’d then notify Aldrich and with a task force we’d swoop down and apprehend them.
 
When we had all the members of RACE, we’d go and get their main accomplice: Detective Phillip
Beadsworth
.