Chapter 50
Super-Sleuth Susie Heading to Vancouver!
On the Metro Liner train ride to Philadelphia, things started happening fast – all sorts of things. First, Steve got a date for the night (with Phyllis). Second, Skip set up another conference call for early evening with Ken (Max’s ex-brother-in-law still in California) and Lisa (Max’s ex-wife, back in Minnesota). Third, waitress Susie (turned super-sleuth back in Montana) called to say her boy Joey was making progress out in Vancouver with Shadya (Abdul’s partner in sex-trafficking) . . . “but,” Susie said, “Shadya wants a lawyer before he talks more. Any of your friends know a Vancouver lawyer?”
“Hey Steve, ol’ pal,” Skip said, gratefully touching Steve’s shoulder, “sorry but another request for your excellent services – know any lawyers in Vancouver?”
That night things started happening even faster.
Phyllis met us at Philadelphia’s 30th Street Station, drove us to her place, gave Skip the keys, and said she and Steve were heading downtown to see the Christmas window displays at the old Wanamaker’s. “Just don’t mess up my bed,” she said, winking at Steve.
Skip and Max called Lisa. Lisa was already talking with Ken. She got Ken on the line. “Ken,” Lisa said, “tell these guys everything you just told me.”
“Okay,’ Ken said. “All the while Gordy was working hard to get Jane to cross-over to the good side – without me knowing anything about that, or any jihadis – I had already been telling him about me getting involved with this movie venture, in Vancouver. Gordy starts using some of my lingo in his talks with Jane – you know, ‘not really religious at all . . . ‘ Gordy even says maybe Jane can help me with the disengagement and de-radicalization work I’m doing. ‘But for God’s sake,’ Gordy says to her, ‘You’re no sex trafficker!’
“That’s when, according to Gordy, Jane started crying, telling him about the sex trafficking being so upsetting to her – that was a new thing they were doing. Gordy pounced – ‘You see the jihadis for what they are. Friggin’ hypocrites. They’re not about religion or human values; they’re about annihilating anybody who’s not part of their belief system; they have no qualms with trafficking in young girls. All this violence does nothing to create a better world. Come on, to hell with Rafferty. Turn the prick in’.”
Skip broke in, “Ken, enough with the talk, talk, talk. We’ve got things that have to happen immediately – there’s literally just hours left to raise the curtain on this plot to blow up New York City. Give us the names of your Somali connections in Vancouver. Somebody who might be able to implicate Warsame as part of the sex-trafficking. We’ve got boots on the ground up there. Tell us who all was in on the plan to bomb the baseball stadium. Tell us Gordy’s plan to stop the New Year’s Eve terrorist attack – maybe start there.”
“I don’t have any details yet, but I think Gordy does because he believes he’s totally flipped Jane to the good side. He knows that you guys are out there, and that you’re ready to go to the authorities any second, but I don’t know what his plan is.”
“Okay, listen, this is important. We have people in Vancouver, as we speak, who have Rafferty tied to the sex trafficking, but we need to find a live body who was in on the action and willing to talk. We need the names of all your Vancouver contacts.”
Within an hour, Ken called back with all the names he knew, and how to get hold of them, and we called Susie: “Tell Joey we’re lining up a lawyer for Shadya. And we have a bunch of names, mostly Somalis, in Vancouver who might know something that can help us. Have Joey go over those names with Shadya, maybe some names Shadya will recognize. We’re looking for anything at all that ties the Vancouver crowd to Boulder, to Furbush or Dougherty, or the posse in the mountains or sex trafficking. We’re working a separate angle on busting the terrorist recruiting cell, but Joey and Shadya are all we got, so far, to hang Furbush and Dougherty with the sex trafficking.”
“By the way Susie,” Max said, “we hear the terrorist cell might be on the move soon. You should probably tell your kid Joey he needs to work fast.”
“Well guess what?” Susie surprises us with: “School is out for Christmas recess and Eloise and I have a ride – it’s not like a date – with Billy and Heck, the guys you met at the Chat & Chew – leaving tonight for Vancouver! They want to help. They’d like to see a new Sheriff around here too. Joey doesn’t know we’re coming, yet, but I’ll call him and tell him reinforcements are on the way!”