The Racketeer

“As if I had a choice. Either sit here and talk or go to the drunk tank with a bunch of winos. I’ve been there before, you know, and I ain’t afraid of it. It’s just part of the business, you know? You do the crime, you do the time. You know the rules when you get into the business. You see all your friends and family shipped off, but they come back, you know? You do your time and you get out.”

“Or you escape,” Delocke said.

“That too. Pretty stupid, I guess, but I had to walk.”

“Because you had to settle a score, right, Qui

“That’s right.”

Qui

Pankovits rearranged some papers and said, “Now, Qui

Qui

Delocke read from his legal pad and said, “According to my notes, Qui

“You’re putting words in my mouth. Stop it.”

Pankovits jumped in: “Okay, Qui

“Come on. They don’t know nothing.”

“Of course they do, and they’ll be indicted with you tomorrow.”

“You can’t do that, man. Come on. It’ll kill my mother. Poor woman’s seventy years old and got a bad heart. You can’t be messing with her like that.”

“Then step up, Qui

“Step up and do what?”

“Cut a deal. Give us the details, and we lean on the U.S. Attorney to lay off your family,” Pankovits said.

“And there’s something else,” Delocke added. “If we do the right deal, there will be no death penalty. Just life, no parole. Seems the Fawcett family does not believe in the death penalty, nor do they want a long, painful trial. They want the case closed, and the U.S. Attorney will respect their wishes. According to him, he will consider a plea agreement, one that will save your life.”

“Why should I believe you?”

“You don’t have to, Qui

Qui

“Beg your pardon, Qui

“Ba

“Who’s Ba

“Ba

“Never met the man,” Pankovits said. Delocke was shaking his head no.

Qui

“We can’t make deals, Qui

Delocke said, “That’s one half, the other half is a video statement from you confessing to the crimes.”

Qui

Delocke replied, “You can do that, Qui

Qui

“All right what?”

“All right, I’ll do it!”

“Not so fast, Qui

“Okay, okay. But can I have some breakfast?”

“Sure, Qui

CHAPTER 16

One of the few virtues of prison life is the gradual acquisition of patience. Nothing moves at a reasonable pace, and you learn to ignore clocks. Tomorrow will come around soon enough; surviving today is enough of a challenge. After my quick trip to D.C., I roam around Frostburg for a couple of days reminding myself that I have become a very patient person, that the FBI will move quickly, and, regardless, there is nothing more I can do. Much to my surprise, and relief, events unfold rapidly.

I do not expect the FBI to keep me in the loop, so I have no way of knowing they have arrested Qui

I met Qui