2 Black Crows Undercover

By Catherine Henderson

Matts an underground detective on special ops for the LARD Drug Squad, but he ends up in witness protection, when his careless partner Nick, accidentally blows their cover.

Matt is then forced into virtual exile, leaving everything behind, including the love of his life. Nick eventually joins him in witness protection, but Matt cant bear to live without Candy, he has to go back for her and its not over yet.
Matt goes back to L.A for Candy and brings her back to Russia, where all 3 detectives end up running for their lives, but its still not over..

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris UK
• Release date: Nov 14, 2011
• ISBN: 9781465372604

Catherine Henderson

This is Catherine Henderson’s first novel, she was born in the West Midlands in the United Kingdom. She says she always wanted to be a writer but didn’t take the plunge until she was 41, inspired by real life actors in “The Movies”. Apart from writing, she loves going to the cinema, she loves music and photography, she loves travelling and has lived abroad. She supports several charities and she has adopted a lioness at a local zoo and an endangered jaguar in the Amazon jungle.

Book preview

Copyright © 2011 by Catherine Henderson.

Library of Congress Control Number:       2011918901

ISBN:         Hardcover                               978-1-4653-7262-8

                   Softcover                                 978-1-4653-7261-1

                   Ebook                                      978-1-4653-7260-4

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

This book was printed in the United States of America.

To order additional copies of this book, contact:

Xlibris Corporation

0-800-644-6988

www.xlibrispublishing.co.uk

[e-mail]

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

My heartfelt gratitude to the team at Xlibris Publishing, especially to Kathy Cooper and Zarah Smith. Thank you so much, for all your hard work, enthusiasm and support. I am very grateful. Thanks also to Detective Garay at the LAPD in California.

To the people who inspired me to write this novel; Gerry, Russell, James, Jamie, Eric and Thandie. To my family and my dog, who sadly, is no longer with us.

Thanks a million xx.

CONTENTS

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

About The Author

CHAPTER 1

Two undercover police officers who work underground in disguise, covering dangerous drug busts, never seen except by their chief, suddenly find that their secret operation is to be shut down. They have to resurface. Detective Candace Wallace lives with Detective Matthew Brennan, but only their chief knows about it. Matt returns home only in the middle of the night to their three-bedroom apartment, and he sleeps in another room to avoid waking his girlfriend. They never discuss what he does, and she’s always getting chatted up by a work colleague, Detective Casey Johnson, who thinks that she lives alone. Matt’s undercover partner Detective Nick Chambers is single and a commitment phobic, who likes the company of high-class escorts and prostitutes. He has always secretly fancied Candy but never commits to anyone and enjoys lots of casual sex. Work and sex are his whole life, and he loves his job. But Matt wants to get out now; he’s had enough, and he wants to lead a normal life again. Matt’s in the shower when he hears his apartment door open. It’s weird as it buzzes in the bathroom. The guys they deal with always pick the locks—they never just knock! He knows it’s not Candy. He gets out naked. He prises the bathroom door open just enough to see who it is—it’s one of Big T’s guys. He rushes to the bathroom cabinet, opens it up to reveal a secret miniature laptop, and presses in the code for Big T’s gang (TONY), and up pops his disguise from a secret drawer beneath. He dries his face, takes out a goatee and puts it on, and puts in the blue contact lenses. He then half-dries quickly, wraps a towel around his waist, and shouts out, ‘Who is it?’ before coming out to see Tony’s sidekick Harry.

‘Hey, Harry, what’s up?’ Matt asks whilst drying himself.

Looking around, Harry says, ‘Big T wants to see you tonight.’

‘Sure,’ Matt says, drying himself half-naked and talking, making Harry turn around. ‘What time?’

‘Make it around nine, after his father’s birthday. He’s got another deal for you,’ Harry replies, poking around Matt’s apartment. That meant he had another drug run (as an undercover cop getting very well paid to do drug runs on a regular basis makes him feel like more of a criminal than the guys he’s spying on). He smiles, looking confident.

‘I’ll be there,’ Matt replies.

Harry makes his exit. Matt calls Nick on their secure line, using special mobile phones, only used on this operation by special forces that can’t be traced. ‘It’s me. Big T’s got another run. Meet me at nine at our usual place after the party,’ Matt says.

‘What are we carrying? Silencers?’ Nick asks.

‘Yeah, maybe knives too. I think Big M will be there,’ Matt says (Big M is Mario, who is another gang leader).

‘Spoke to Jim last night,’ Nick says (Jim is their boss).

‘It’s not good. We’ll talk later, OK,’ Matt says. ‘OK, I gotta go dry. Harry got me out of the shower. Talk later, OK.’ He’s getting ready later that night and checks his weapons and his disguise. He looks cool in a black T-shirt, trousers, and a leather jacket. His computer link downloads to his phone the messages from Jim concerning their operation. He checks them and leaves the apartment. He arrives at Big T’s mansion just as the party is toasting the father, stepfather actually, who in his day was even more ruthless than his stepson. Big T sees him and nods to one of his guys to bring him out into the garden to talk. Tony (Big T), as he’s nicknamed, comes out and says, ‘Matt, how you doing?’

‘I’m great. How are you?’ Matt says.

‘Rolling in money and beautiful women. What else is there?’ Big T replies.

‘What else?’ Matt says.

Big T puts his arm around Matt’s shoulders and says, ‘I wanna talk to you about another drop, Matt, worth ten million dollars on the street, so I don’t want any fuck-ups, you understand?’

‘No problem, Tony,’ Matt says, nervously thinking to himself that this would be the biggest he has ever carried for him. ‘Where’s the pickup point?’ Big T says, ‘It’s on its way as we speak. It arrives in Texas in two days, but I need you to collect it in Mexico, where my guy will pick it up. It’s in two suitcases. You got that?’

Matt’s heard of it but never been there before, and he says, ‘Yeah, I got it, Tony.’ He’s thinking to himself, I’ve got to get Jim to clear him at both LA and Mexico airports to make it look as though he can get the drugs through without being searched.

‘Any problems, Matt, don’t bother coming back, if you know what I mean!’ Big T says. All the other guys snigger.

‘This is me you are talking about, and there won’t be any problems. I know what I’m doing!’ Matt says, knowing he’s suddenly surrounded.

‘You better do, OK,’ Big T says. ‘Harry will send word of the details. Right now it’s a party, so get yourself a drink.’

‘Sure,’ Matt says, and then pretending to be single, he says, ‘Where are all the great birds?’

‘In the house, man. We are never short of women. We’re Italians,’ Big T replies, lighting a cigar.

‘Oh, are they with you cos you’re Italians?’ Matt smirks and says, looking around at all the wealth and the mansion.

‘Well, no woman wants a loser. This is the life, Matt,’ Big T says, puffing on his cigar. ‘You’ll get paid when I know Harry has got the cases, OK?’

‘Fine by me,’ Matt says and heads up the garden to the house.

‘If he fucks up, I’ll enjoy getting rid of him,’ Harry says to Tony.

‘Harry, so cynical. I trust him. I think he knows not to fuck with me. Come on, let’s get a drink,’ Tony says and they head up to the house.

Matt doesn’t get home till 4 a.m. He falls into bed, forgetting to take his disguise off. Whilst he sleeps, Candy slips into his room to see her partner with a goatee! She leans over to make sure he’s not bleeding and his eyes fly open—and her boyfriend has blue eyes! He quickly grabs her and says, ‘Candy, I told you not to come in. I’ll come to you!’

‘I like the look, though,’ Candy says.

‘What? The blue contacts or the goatee?’ he says, lying down with her on top of him.

‘Both. It’s sexy,’ she says.

‘Is it now?’ he says, smirking. He grabs her and gives her a snog and then smacks her backside and says, ‘Go on, it’s not safe.’

‘OK, all right, I’m gone, just checking,’ she says.

‘I know. I’m fine. Don’t worry about me. I love you,’ he says.

‘Love you too. Night,’ she says.

‘Night,’ he replies. Then he sits up and removes the goatee and the blue contacts and places them back in the bathroom cabinet drawer, with the rest of his kit. He rubs his eyes and holds his head in his hands. His stomach churns. He’s stressed. He feels old and worn out. Five years they’ve been doing this. He knows that this is the biggest drug run he’s done so far. He can’t afford to make a mistake. So he emails Jim, before he forgets, about the airports and getting clearance. The message is sent, and he falls asleep in his clothes; he’s too tired to get undressed. There aren’t any calls in the morning, so he has a lie-in.

Candy goes to work at around 7.30 a.m. The clock says 8.15 a.m. He calls Nick. Nick answers the phone, drunk. Matt says, ‘I thought you were meant to meet me at Big T’s?’

‘Sorry, mate. I met a little beauty called Amanda and lost track of time,’ Nick says.

‘Jesus! Nick, you’re gonna kill yourself with all those fucking escorts! I don’t know where you get your energy from,’ Matt says.

‘What can I say? I like sex, and they are the best!’ Nick replies.

‘Well, when you’ve recovered, call me, OK? I’m getting the details now about the drop from Harry, all right,’ Matt says.

‘OK, talk later,’ Nick says.

‘Right, later,’ Matt says, wondering how they managed five years and not getting caught once because of Nick’s carelessness. Candy is owed some time off and decides to take it all at once, but Matt’s out all day and doesn’t come in till around 3 a.m. He showers. She buzzes his phone and he answers her. Then he goes to her bed, and they make love and fall asleep in each other’s arms. In the morning, she says, ‘Hey, I’m off today. Wanna go somewhere?’ They never ever leave the apartment together. They have separate doors. The apartment was made that way, but fortunately for Matt’s job, it is useful. It’s like they’re still dating.

‘Yeah, meet you around 1.25 p.m. usual place?’ he says.

‘Yeah,’ Candy says, and they kiss.

He heads off to his side of the apartment to get ready. Later, he leaves the apartment an hour after her—since he went undercover, it’s just a routine they’ve had to stick to, visiting specific places, without people suspecting they live with each other. They go to their favourite restaurant, have lunch, then go to the cinema to see a movie, and arrive home half an hour apart. When they get back later, he goes to her side of the apartment, and they snuggle up and watch TV, something they rarely do. They have coffee and talk like a normal couple. His phone doesn’t ring, so he takes the night off. They need time together; they make love again and have another lie-in the next morning. His phone rings at around 11 a.m.—Big T wants another meeting. He has a shower, dresses, and puts on his disguise, and the ‘two black crows’ undercover operation is on again. He’s gone for the whole day and doesn’t come in until nearly midnight. He takes a shower and gets dressed and goes to Candy’s side of the apartment. Chief Jim Corrigan, his boss, is there with her and so is their surprised colleague, Detective Casey Johnson. They all greet each other but look worried.

‘Now what’s going on?’ Matt says.

‘We’re closing you down, Matt. Time to walk away, and we’ll reassign you to another op,’ Jim says.

‘OK,’ Matt says, feeling rather relieved, ‘but have you told Nick?’

‘No, and don’t worry about it. Just let me know asap. I’m sure he’ll love it. You both did a great job. The guys at the top want to thank you and Nick. Over the last five years we got fifty-eight busts cos of you two. Good work, OK,’ Jim says. ‘You need to lie low now while we close everything down, OK?’

‘I’ll need to take your computer, Matt,’ Casey says.

‘Sure. I’ll show you where I keep my stuff,’ Matt says, and they go through to Matt’s side of the apartment.

‘I’m scared, Jim. Is he going to be safe?’ Candy asks to Jim.

‘Candy, relax. We close down ops all the time. We’ve never had a problem before,’ Jim says.

Candy’s still worried. ‘Then why am I getting a really, really bad feeling?’

‘They’ll be fine. Gotta go,’ Jim says. They hug each other, even though he is their boss. They have always been close friends, very rare in the force. He goes to get Detective Johnson on Matt’s side of the apartment. Casey is removing the computer system that LAPD installed, and he’s shutting down all the files. He says, ‘Good job, Matt. I’ll get to see more of you two now. Everyone’s really proud of you and Nick. I couldn’t have done it. You must have lost a lot of sleep, not to mention sex.’

‘Candy’s always known what I had to do. She’s beautiful. She never complains about any of it. I love her for that. Not many women could’ve coped with it,’ Matt says, smirking.

‘Got a confession to make, err,’ Casey says. ‘I don’t know how to say it… I thought she was… ’

‘Available,’ Matt says, smirking.

‘Yeah, sorry, man,’ Casey says.

‘It’s OK. At least you were convinced. Then we know it worked,’ Matt says.

‘Yeah, it worked. You know how long I’ve been asking her for a date—nearly three years! Jim told me when we pulled up. I knew there was a reason!’ Casey says.

‘Sorry, man. She’s mine,’ Matt says, laughing.

‘OK, I got it all. I’ll get out of your hair. Let me know where they’re sending you, OK? We’ll go for a drink,’ Casey says, laughing.

‘OK, see you later, Casey,’ Matt says.

Casey nods and collects everything as Jim is just coming in. They all nod and leave. Matt heads over to Candy. She looks worried. ‘What’s wrong?’ he says when he sees her face.

‘I’m just so scared. This isn’t gonna be as cut and dried as Jim is making out. I’m getting a really uneasy feeling.’

‘OK, don’t get worked up about it. I don’t want you losing focus at work worrying about me. I’m glad actually. It’s Nick who’ll be pissed about it. I’ll be OK. I’m a big boy, all right,’ Matt says. They kiss for a long time. She takes off her police uniform after a really long day.

‘Now I get to see a lot more of you,’ he says, moving behind her. She giggles as he turns her around, and scoops her up, puts her legs around his waist, and takes his lady to bed. They make mad, passionate love again.

Next morning, Matt phones Nick to let him know that the operation’s about to be shut down. ‘What about the drug run for Big T?’ Nick replies.

‘Well, it’s the last one for me. As soon as it’s over, Jim said to cut off all contacts until further notice,’ Matt says.

‘What do we say? Big T won’t accept We’re busy!‘ Nick says.

‘Jim has instructed me to drop the cases to Harry, but not bother to pick up the money from Tony. I’ll say that I’ve gone on vacation with a bird and pick it up when I get back. He’ll know I trust him then. So Jim said that he’ll give Candy two weeks’ vacation. She needs one, and then we’ll be out of the way when they bust Tony and Mario,’ Matt says.

‘Where’s Jim sending you?’ Nick asks, knowing the LAPD want them to remain in the United States, just not in the vicinity.

‘Jim wants us to go to New York, so you’ll go to the airport with Candy. I’ll already be there. No waving, conversations, or goodbyes, just in case, OK? As soon as I get back from Mexico, we’ll get packed. I can’t wait till it’s over. Five years! I can’t believe we’ve been doing this shit for this long. I feel fuckin’ old, and I’ve been thinking about asking Candy to marry me. You know, I love her,’ Matt says.

‘Jesus! Matt, I knew you hated the job, but I never knew you felt that bad!’ Nick says.

‘Well, you love it more than me, and I’m scared I’m putting Candy in more danger. She’s totally stressed out about closing the op down, you know. She’s thinking about us, worrying something’s gonna go wrong. She needs to focus on her job too. I’d kill myself if anything happened cos she lost her edge. She’s doing surveillance this month. She needs to concentrate, and she’s worried about that too. I just want us to have a normal life,’ Matt says.

‘We’re undercover, Matt. We’re cops. We don’t have lives, let alone normal ones,’ Nick says.

‘Yeah, I know, but you know what I mean. Normal as in going to bed at a normal hour, not waiting for secret messages or tip-offs, no computers, no disguises, and no waking up in a sweat. I’ve had enough. I’ve done my bit. We both have. I want another life now. Corrigan owes us. Half the drug barons operating in this city would be still on the fuckin’ streets!’ Matt says.

‘When’s the drop for Mr T?’ Nick asks.

‘The goods will be in Texas by now or maybe even Mexico. They’ll move it, so it can’t be tracked back to Big T. I’ve got three days. Jim cleared both airports. I’ll have security watching me as I go through, but no one will search me, just in case he’s got one of his guys watching me. I have to look as innocent as possible! Just in case different people are on duty and have not been informed of who I am, Jim wanted me to dress like a tramp—not to shave, look scruffy. He wanted me to really go overboard. I said, Fuck off, Jim! I’ve got standards, you know. He said, The drug dealers are so easy to spot cos they’re so well-dressed. He wanted me to look like a fuckin’ wino—wet trousers as well! I said, Are you fuckin’ jokin’ me! He said he was. He is such a dick! Anyway, he said we need to be seen quite a lot before we disappear. So Mario is having a game of poker on Friday night. Both of us need to be there, OK? Don’t be late—7 p.m. at the Plaza Hotel. That place is posh, so dress smart. No jeans, and bring plenty of money. We have to look like we’ve fuckin’ got some!’ Matt says.

‘How much shall I ask the department for?’ Nick says.

‘About $10,000 each. That’s believable, right?’ Matt says.

‘Yeah, sounds good to me, OK. Is Casey coming to my place for the goods?’ Nick asks.

‘Yeah, he’s got my stuff. Just left the box of tricks in case of last-minute hiccups,’ Matt says.

‘OK, I’ll see you Friday night, mate. Until then, take care,’ Nick says.

‘Yeah, you too. Any problem, don’t ring me!’ Matt says.

‘I’d be on a fuckin’ plane faster than you! I travel light, remember?’ Nick says, laughing.

Matt laughs. ‘Yeah right.’

‘Matt.’

‘What?’

‘Just in case anything goes does go wrong, the backup plan is in Russia,’ Nick says.

‘I know. I’m praying that we never have to go that far,’ Matt says.

‘I know, but we’re undercover. Plan B is when the shit hits the shit and then hits the fan! It’s a long way from the States. We’ve got to be prepared, right?’ Nick says.

‘Yeah,’ Matt says. ‘You know, you’re my best friend, Nick, closer than anyone in my family. I trust you with my life.’

‘You too, man. You’re the best. We stick like glue,’ Nick says.

‘Yeah, something like that,’ Matt says.

‘OK, mate. I’ll get sorted for Casey. Meet you at the Plaza Friday night,’ Nick says.

‘Take care,’ Matt says.

‘Later,’ Nick says.

Friday night arrives. Matt and Nick put their disguises on and get ready. Matt wears his black-tie dinner suit; the disguise for Mario’s benefit is the black moustache, black hair, and brown contact lenses. The jewellery is usually a Rolex watch, only the best, and a ring on the fifth finger on the left hand and a small crucifix around the neck—all silver platinum. Nick arrives at the hotel in a grey-blue suit, wearing a goatee and green contact lenses. The jewellery he usually wears is a gold Rolex watch and gold bracelet, all twenty-four carat. They both look like serious players with money and contacts. They enter the Plaza together. The doors are opened by the doormen. They are shown to the glass lift and they go up until they reach the penthouse floor, which has a casino and an open rooftop restaurant or bar. Mario’s guys meet them at the lift doors and guide them to a glass room for private players only, adjacent to the casino. They meet all the usual faces. Mario arrives. They play three games of poker with him. Matt wins two, and Nick loses all his money! They have a few more drinks at the bar, play in the casino at the roulette tables, and leave separately—Nick with an escort, while Matt rushes back to Candy. He doesn’t get home until 3 a.m., and she’s already in bed. He goes to her, kisses her goodnight, and goes back to his bed, but later on, he gets up, goes around, and gets in with her. It’s Saturday, his last day before Big T’s drug run. He has a lie-in. The phone wakes him around 9 a.m.; it’s a voicemail message from Jim, just letting him know the ‘undercover taxi’ driven by an undercover cop will take him to the airport and collect him for the drop. Everything is in place. Also, in the taxi, there will be two guns under the seat if anything goes wrong. Jim wishes him good luck. He kisses Candy until she’s awake. They cuddle. He gets back in. They snuggle up, and he says, ‘I love you more than my life.’

‘Love you too,’ she says. They kiss and go back to sleep. Two hours later, the phone beeps with a message—the Mexican address of the hotel Matt will be staying at. Big T is checking his donkey ready! At the bottom of Matt’s wardrobe lies a weekender holdall for emergencies; all