Dead Reckoning: Justice By Any Means Necessary!

By Daniel Sheppard

Dead Reckoning: Justice by Any Means Necessary! Synopsis! His murder surprised and shocked everyone who knew him. On September 9, 1989 at approximately three in the morning, Jeffrey (Big Jeff) Fisher a twenty-six-year-old crack dealer who stood 6 ft 3 inches and weighed well over three hundred pounds was shot inside a top floor Harlem brownstone

• Language: English
• Publisher: Daniel Sheppard
• Release date: Jun 22, 2021
• ISBN: 9781955243254

Daniel Sheppard

In 1974 Daniel Sheppard was paroled from NY State prison, having survived the Attica prison massacre of 1971; he returned to the mean streets of Harlem that was his life for more than three decades. Daniel successfully managed to evade the traps that the prison industrial complex set up for black men on parole that so many of his peer group fell victim to, he never returned to prison. Daniel is the son of Daniel Sheppard Sr. deceased. A decorated World War Two Naval Veteran who fought against the Japanese in the Pacific, New Guinea Theatre. Love You Dad!

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

First and foremost, I must thank The Divine Intelligence-for guiding and protecting me in my journey through this life.

To my wife Danella (Dee Dee) She has been my rock and stuck with me through all the tribulations, ups and downs that occur in a marriage that has lasted as long as ours has.

To my sons Tarik and Allan, I love you guys more than words can ever say, both of you have been a blessing to me.

To my sister, Jeanette you are a very strong and positive woman throughout it all you have managed to persevere.

To Bernice who was the inspiration for my having written

Dead Reckoning I love you.

BIOGRAPHY

In 1974 Daniel Sheppard was paroled from NY State-prison, having survived the Attica prison massacre of 1971; he returned to the mean streets of Harlem that was his life for more than three decades.

Daniel successfully managed to evade the traps that the prison industrial complex set up for black men on parole that so many of his peer group fell victim to, he never returned to prison.

Daniel is the son of Daniel Sheppard Sr. deceased. A decorated World War Two Naval Veteran who fought against the Japanese in the Pacific, New Guinea Theatre.

Love You Dad!

AUTHOR’S NOTE

This book is a work of fiction/nonfiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are for the most part factual however due to a lack of input by the FBI or NYPD the author was forced to use some fictitious composite characters and some invented dialogue and some other techniques of fictionalization of literary license taken by the author. While much of the dialogue in the book is taken directly from court transcripts, in many cases it was based on interviews with actual participants. It should be recognized that testimony and interviews sometimes produce conflicting versions of events. Where such conflict exists in testimony or recollection, the author has sought to provide a version of the facts which in his opinion is the most plausible, in addition, certain scenes have been dramatically re-created and in some cases a series of meetings or events to provide narrative clarity.

I would keep the drugs in the coloreds, the dark People’s neighborhoods, they are animals anyway let them lose their souls.

40 years ago the drug crime kingpins and their minions were expected to take their medicine when law enforcement came calling; these so called stand up guys kept their mouths shut when they got busted and usually received short sentences of between three to five years in some state correctional facility and within two years they were released back to the streets to engage in the drug game.

Today however sentences for dealing drugs are quite lengthy for example life without the possibility of parole is the top count in the Rico Racketeering Indictment; so that when these drug kingpins are caught they're gonna talk ( snitch) Their underlings facing 30 0r 40 years behind bars are gonna snitch-everyone involved in the drug game Snitches, there are no more so called stand up guys, facing decades behind bars the strongest drug dealers will turn snitch that is how the drug game is played today. Sentencing guidelines for drug-related offenses have left small time players in the game with few options-except to snitch. Aided by section 5K1.1 of the sentencing guidelines crafted in the late 1980s to assist prosecutors in building cases against drug defendants who will say almost anything to get out of jail, by cooperating and get the 5K1.1 snitch ticket. It is as simple as that; these rides or die homeboys once they get caught by law enforcement turn into sniveling sorry cowards and throw themselves on the mercy of the court to get out of jail.

So listen up young players if you think this is so much Bullshit I hope you never find out first hand that what I am saying is the Gospel Truth!

A scene from Mario Puzo’s the Godfather. The films racial polemics espoused about Puzo’s fictional version of the 1950s gangster confab is the case of art realistically imitating a pernicious segment of American life. The Godfather’s Don Corleone was a character that Mr. Puzo based upon the real-life exploits of one Carlo Gambino. Who both the FBI and the NYPD claim was the Capi di Tutti or Boss of Bosses in the Mafia. The Movie sketches the bare bones beginning of the evil of modern day slavery, and the Mafia’s involvement in the dirty business of drugs. But however it was not until the unholy alliance forged in the late 50s and early 60s between the real-life godfathers of organized crime and the Central intelligence agency that murdered Chicago crime boss Sam Giancana once alluded to, that the bosses of crime in America hit their stride.

The bloody alliance between the gangsters and certain high-level government officials hiding behind a mask of normalcy that dared to even murder a U.S. president and get away with it while those very same officials either denied the very existence of the conspiracy or as Giancana boasted simply looked the other way it was Chuck Giancana in his tell all book Double Cross who unmasked the unholy alliance between the Mafia (LCN) and the CIA that operates all over the world. Multinational corporations acting as legitimate fronts launder billions of dollars from the organizations insidious operations in Africa, Europe, Southeast Asia the Middle East, Central and South America.

The modern-day illicit drug trade that began some 45 years ago (give or take a decade or so) and brings us full circle is

symbolic of the scar of the underbelly of the drug culture in America and especially in New York City where reportedly two thirds of the nation’s addicts reside. Then and now the largest and wealthiest crime organization in New York City known as the Gambino family are the overlords of the underworld that for decades sold drugs and reaped wholesale deaths across America.

New York was experiencing an uncommonly mild December, as the pale late autumn sun bathed its chill warmth on the city. It was mid December 1985, and the Gambino mob had lost one of its proven long time chiefs, the underboss of the family, Aniello (Neil) Dellacroce to cancer, another of its chiefs the boss of the family, Paul (Big Paul) Castellano and 10 low-level associates were on trial in federal court in Manhattan charged in a 78 count racketeering indictment (RICO) if the government could successfully convict the 70-year-old Castellano who at the moment was free on two million dollar bond on the indictments charges: That he headed the car theft ring that shipped thousands of luxury automobiles stolen on the streets of New York City to the Middle-East. Castellano would undoubtedly spend the remainder of his life in a federal prison. These were the reasons why big Paul and the leaders of the Gambino Borgata (family) were meeting together in the back room which they had had swept for bugs, the electronic kind in the Vets and friends private social club on 86th St. in Bay Ridge Brooklyn. Presiding at the sit down was the boss of the criminal empire of the late Carlo Gambino his cousin and brother-in-law Paul (Big Paul) Castellano, the man Carlo Gambino had personally picked to succeed him as the Capo de Tutti Capo (boss of bosses) Wearing wire rimmed glasses, with grey thinning hair and a quiet grandfatherly manner, he was arguably the most powerful criminal in the United States of American.

To Castellano’s right set 70-year-old Carmine Lombardozzi known as the financial wizard of the family. Next to him sat their family’s aging consigliere or elder statesman 75 year old Joseph Gallo (Joe Ng) going back to the early days with Don

Carlo, he must approve every major decision of the family. Next to him sat another aging underboss Anthony Gaggi, Nino to his associates, next to him sat the family’s new underboss Thomas Bilotti; the long time chauffeur, body guard, appointments secretary and confidant of Castellano. Billotti had just been made the new under boss by the family administration of Castellano Gallo, Gaggi and Lombardozzi.

Around the table were the aging holdover capos: Joseph (Joe Piney) Armone, and James (Jimmy Brown) Failla, both men early architects of the New York branch of La Cosa Nostra. Thomas (Tommy) Gambino. Don Carlo’s son. Frankie Decicco, Salvatore (Big Sal) Rosellini and John Gotti also two newly appointed capos Jack (Jackie Nose) D’Amico and Jack (Handsome Jack) Giordano; those two D’Amico and Giordano had been with the Gambinos for decades and had just received important promotions.

At the end of the table sat Danny Marino an up-and-coming boss and the administrative arm of the family since Castellano took over, he also served as his sometime bodyguard, driver and appointments secretary. Outside the room at the door stood Phillip (Philly Dogs) Mazzara and Salvatore (Sammy the Bull) Gravano, two up and coming soldiers of the mob. Outside on the street and in the parking lot of Tommaso’s restaurant next door serving as lookouts and keeping the cars of the conferees under their scrutiny were Kevin MCelroy and James (Jimmy the Blonde) Coonan. Two members of the Westies the Irish gang from Manhattan’s Hell’s kitchen, the Gambinos used them as hit men, loyal hit men they were, but not of Italian descent and therefore not eligible to be made into a family of la cosa nostra. Castellano’s first order of business at this sitdown he’d called was to formally welcome Bilotti as the new underboss and to formally make him the underboss. Then D’Amico and Giordano were made capos the ceremony consisted of a short speech by the godfather acknowledging the contributions and accomplishments of each man in broad general terms then welcoming them as official leaders of the family. Simple as

that!

Following the ceremony Castellano instructed Marino to go outside and escort, Joseph (Joe the German) Watts into the meeting, Joe was German-American so like the Westies he could not be made into a family member, as head of the Gambino loan-sharking and bookmaking operations it was his job to ensure that there is always available a corps of public officials, law-enforcement officers, political leaders and judges who will provide favorable treatment to the Gambino family obviously in this important capacity Joe is a major player in the affairs of the Gambino mob more important even than the underboss or the capos. With Joe seated at the table Castellano began to explain to the assembled new leadership of the Gambino mob’s his thoughts about what the agenda should be at this time as they assume their commands my friends let us get down to basics Castellano commanded in a Sicilian accent that belied his Brooklyn roots we are at the most critical time in the existence of our family. This caused a stir among the attendees the Consigliere Joe Ng and the newly appointed under boss Bilotti knew what Castellano intended but the capos had been kept in the dark until now.

My friends the government has us boxed in, I don’t say this just because of my own legal problem or the indictments to the G (Government) against the top guys in the other families that the G is calling the commission case; I say this because of some of youse involvement in Babania (La Cosa Nostra term for heroin) Castellano Paused to let this sink in. This thing of Ours wlll be destroyed if our people continue to move babania. I have known this for a very long time and most of you know it too. New York is a great city for those of us in our tradition when old Don Carlo held this seat there were a great many opportunities for us here, under his wise leadership we took advantage of them, in the old days when we had politicians and coppers in our pockets with Sam Giancana from the old Capone outfit out front we worked deals with Hoover and the CIA to get rid of Castro and those Commies in Cuba and recoup our casinos of course we was’nt too successful on that

score fellows. Castellano paused while the men laughed then continued later when the G wanted help with that shine Martin Luther King and the rest of them black militants we made out a lot better on that one he said in his polished monotones to show their appreciation for our cooperation for years the G looked the other way at certain of our business deals, or gave one of our guys a slap on the wrist when they got caught dealin narcotics the Consigliere Joe Ng and the older gangsters Armone, Failla and Gaggi and Lombardozzi smiled knowingly, they had all been there at the heyday before the FBI got involved in rackets busting, but Appalachian Joe Valachi the Kefauver and Mccellan senate rackets hearing and the Kennedys changed all of that forever.

In today’s world tougher and tougher laws have been passed. Castellano continued. When one of our guys is caught dealin babania right away he’s thinking about cutting a deal with the coppers so that he don’t have to spend the rest of his life in jail, agreein to wear wires to sit downs and testifyin against our friends and associates in court. I can see from your faces that most of you realize what I’m gettiin at. This babania is an infamia, it has to stop if we’re to survive. Castellano picked up his glass of wine and enjoyed a leisurely sip as he let his words sink in.

So far Castellano was not telling his subordinates anything new. They were all aware of the FBI and Justice Department’s rackets bureau and the fight those government agencies were waging against LCN. Laws aimed at specifically they were all aware of the FBI and the Justice Department’s rackets Bureau and the fight those government agencies were waging against the LCN laws aimed specifically at organized crime had decimated their ranks and the ranks of the other New York families all present were deeply involved in running the family rackets making numbers hijacking loansharking labor prostitution and involvement of drugs (despite the long ban that in reality was a rule against getting caught selling or using drugs)

Over the years the huge profits from the narcotics deals

had proven to be one of the mob’s sacred cash cows and all members had been free to make their fortune so long as they didn’t get caught. Thus,

the source of the greatest income for many LCN families and their associates was narcotics.

Of those present at the table John Gotti the Ozone Park in Queens capo and several members of his crew including his younger brother Gene were facing federal charges in Brooklyn on narcotics charges: conspiracy and racketeering. Several top members of the Bonnano, Colombo and Genovese families were facing similar charges; Gotti was presently out of jail on a million-dollar Bail bond; Joe Ng’s son Joe Junior had just been released from federal prison on lifetime parole after serving a 14 year stretch for selling a half kilo of heroin to an undercover agent.

In fact, it was the New York families under the direction of Carlo Gambino and Chicago’s Sam Giancana, and the agreement they had worked out with certain CIA operatives that paved the way for the importation and distribution of tons of pure Southeast Asian China white heroin to the black and brown ghettoes across America. This tradition continued for decades though taking a devastating toll on the Borgata (family members) and their Associates as the Justice Department’s enforcement arms the FBI/’DEA mounted all-out effort to put their people away. Over the decades the bosses looked the other way while taking their cut had halfheartedly attempted to outlaw the Borgata members against trafficking in drugs the lure of the big profits was too strong for them to quit the business entirely.

The Bonanno family patriarch Joe Bonanno had lost his seat on the ruling commission because so many of his soldiers were getting caught dealing drugs. Castellano set his glass down and wiped his mouth with his cloth napkin as he looked pointedly at the faces of each of his underlings. This is our position the commission has decreed that from this day forward the drug business is an infamia, any of our friends or friends of friends (Associates) in your decinas (crews) you

suspect of movin drugs will be whacked and whacked fast before they can cut any deals with the G.

Castellanos long equine face looked pointedly down from his seat at the head of the table. We are men of respect and must honor the sacred oath we pledged to La Cosa Nostra (Our thing) to put its interests above anything else! All heads nodded, they understood his meaning. Now we got this guy Nicodemo (Little Nicky) Scarfo of Philadelphia. He was a good man under Neil (Dellacroce) but lately I’ve been getting some bad vibes about what we got goin on in Atlantic City the guys strictly muscle a lot of people there are scared of him and that ain’t bad for us but now he’s whacking people for no good causes and doing a lot of other shit we don’t like happenin there-burglaries, stickups and letting some of his people fink he’s been a good man for many years for us so we give him a chance to straighten out but if he don’t come aground and stop all this cowboy stuff that does nothing but bring down the heat then we got to think about replacing him. Again, the heads nodded in ascent, meaning it would be done. Okay now we got another problem Joe’s gonna tell youse about it with that German Joe stood up I think we can no longer ignore this guy John Connors the business agent for carpenters local 608 we got him all those contracts from the city thanks to our political connections and we found out he’s been shortin us, now he’s going around trashing our restaurants and bars because we used nonunion guys for their construction; that aint right German Joe Paused. He looked around the room to gauge the attentiveness of his audience he liked what he saw. Joe Watts though ineligible for actual membership in LCN, was deeply respected by his peers he had come up the hard way, first as a hit-man for the mob and then as the chief Lieut. for Myer Lansky and Frank Costello when those two wise heads controlled the mob’s gambling interests German Joe had been both brains and mocksy a mobster couldn’t have better underpinning. Joe continued with his presentation I spoke to him about it don’t look like he is going to come around the guys an asshole so we got to straighten him out. Now I ain’t

saying we whack him, but throw some goddamn fear into him to slow him down, let him know the Gambinos don’t take no shit!

German Joe sat down as the heads bobbed in agreement. Castellano spoke again okay that’s about all we got unless there’s something somebody don’t understand that’s it, nobody was about to say they didn’t understand Castellano’s pronouncements. Joe N Gallo took it upon himself as the consigliere to speak out Big Paul he said we understand what you say I know I speak for all of us here when I say you are our man of respect nobody has earned respect like you. After Carlo’s death and the seat passed to you through your wizened leadership you guided our family through some tough times and we prospered, god forbid it should happen but if the G does put you away we’ll respect your wishes for the leadership of the family into the future I know with this trial and you spending long days in court you don’t have a lot of time for business but we have listened to what you have to say and we will take it up. God bless you Big Paul and have a Merry Christmas that’s from all of us. With that the tall though slightly stooped graying old gangster stood so did the new under boss Tommy Billotti; I got an appointment to see my lawyer over in Manhattan. Castellano said. After that if you need to reach me I’ll be at my place on Staten Island. One of the Capos John Gotti smiling came forward holding the boss’s custom tailored cashmere overcoat out to him Castellano thanked him as he shrugged his dark blue silk suited shoulders into it then Castellano and the new underboss Tommy Billotti departed the room together. Okay that’s it Nino Gaggi announced I want to wish each of youse guys a Merry Christmas!

The group drifted off in ones and twos so as not to attract undue attention.

Parked diagonally on the other side of 86th Street two men watched Paul Castellano emerge from the nondescript vets and friends storefront. Both were well dressed and in their late 30s although both men were American one was Chinese both wore tiny hearing aids. The man who was Chinese was toying

with an old-fashioned fountain pen, and as Castellano stood at the curbside waiting for the limo to be brought around a strikingly chic young woman wearing a mink coat approached and engaged him in a very deep conversation. The man with the fountain pen became curious pointed it at him and steadied it. At once both men could hear the voices in the earphone honey, five-hundred is a lot more than I’m used to paying for your services Castellano was saying-it depends on what services I perform for you my dear, she replied, her voice pleasing and they saw her smile gently. The fee includes the very best silk underwear you wish to rip from my body Darling, and don’t forget that special thing I do with the ice that you like to get you to your moment of Truth. Expertise its expertise and special services require special handling and if your schedule only permits between six and eight-I’ll be at Sparks restaurant in Manhattan at six you be there and will discuss your services and fee, honey. The voices vanished as the man turned the Cap and put the pen on the dashboard with a wry smile. He was handsome with tan coppery skin and hooded eyes, his occupation listed him as an importer-exporter of precious jade jewelry and figurines like generations of his forebears educated at Columbia University his name was David Choi main occupation senior case officer, Central Intelligence Agency. I never would have figured the Godfather as kinky he said dryly the other man seated behind the wheel drawled. They’re all kinky, I wouldn’t have figured the woman for a hooker though, classy piece of ass.

David Choi’s long fingers toyed with the pen reluctant to let it go. Great gadget, Glen saves so much time. Wish I’d had one of these years ago.

KGB got a new model out this year, good for 300 yards range. Glen Weston turned the key in ignition. He was a Texan long time oil trader based in Houston real profession career CIA. It’s not as small as this but effective transmits through mortar as well as glass. Can you get us some? Easier for you to do it just ask Langley, they saw Castellano disappear inside the front seat of the black Lincoln Continental limousine that

glided up to the curb as Jimmy: Coonan the boss of the Westies gang sprang from his post to open the door closing it after the Don as the car sped away.

What’d you think? Choi asked.

Weston smirked. Same as you we threw Castellano to the wolves along with the rest of the commission. Hell that’d make the FBI bust a gut along with those idiots over at Justice too, which isn’t a bad idea. Weston laughed softly. Both the Bureau and the Dept of Justice needs a shafting from time to time.

Christ! What a mess, Choi said disgustedly. He cannot honestly believe we’d let him just walk away from his commitments. I wasn’t sure what the old Fox was up to that’s why I wanted you to listen, Weston said, as he expertly wielded the black Ford LTD through the afternoon traffic along the Gowanus Canal heading for the Brooklyn battery Tunnel. You think this latest move is to get back at us for Sayada’s betrayal? Certainly, it was all too pat anyway; the old boy is smart enough to know it had to be us who gave up Roy Demeo and the Kuwait Op to the FBI. Weston smiled sardonically, hell Castellano ordering Demeo killed didn’t stop the RICO indictment, don’t forget turning Gaggi’s nephew Dominique Montiglio my old Green Beret buddy from Nam into a informant, agreeing to testify against the old bastard for all the good it did us. Choi said suddenly irritated. Goddamn Montiglio pulled a double cross on us, bastard absolutely refused to incriminate Castellano from the witness stand.

Somehow, they got to him, scared the chicken-shit bastard, have to hand it to those old goombas though they’re past masters at intimidation Weston said and started to smile, stopped as he saw choi’s expression what?

Sayada’s dead. Weston blanched. Jesus! You sure? You confirmed it? Yes, it came cross this morning happened in Bagdad, found her in an alley, she’d been knifed, that’s what sent her onward.

Goddamn, Weston said in his deceptively soft Texas drawl that hid the anger in his weather-beaten lined face.

His face was lean and as muscular as his body. Did you find

out who fingered her as one of ours? Uh-huh a Fedayeen anti-Israeli anti-West zealot, Zataki-who? An early Sha fighter and supporter of the Ayatollah; an intellectual, Sunni Muslim’s member of the revolutionary Khomitah who organized and controlled political kidnapping, oil field strikes in Iran and the hand grenade attacks against U.S. servicemen and personnel in Europe and not long for this earth. Drink? Sure, thanks. Weston one handed the proffered brandy flask Sayada Bertolini, he thought and drank a silent toast to the ravishing dark eyed beauty he’d met at an embassy party in Tehran in 78, personally recruited and trained her as an operative for the Company; she’d been buried in deep cover as a PLO courier, operated a long time in a very dangerous part of the world until one of these damned desks bound jocks got creative and blew her cover. Weston an active field operative automatically disliked anyone who lacked that experience, he knew that Choi had no inkling of what field work was like; he often thought that if Choi and the rest of the bureaucrats were ever called upon to do wet work they would up chuck all over their expensive loafers. What about her brother, Janan?

Janan Bertolin is dead they got him with a car bomb in Damascus Sunday night.

Poor bastard, someone must’ve fingered him too. Weston’s eyes narrowed. God cursed Arabs they breed spies and traitors like lice.

Choi shrugged, eyes scanning the streets as they rolled by. Why so sorry you knew he was a KGB mole, didn’t you? –

Weston paused before answering then sighed. Yes I knew and he did work for MI-6 too and the Mossad from time to time, still, I liked him I liked his clarity, liked negotiating with him. Thank God Hashemi still alive-What! I’ll be goddamned! Weston exclaimed, I thought he was on the Khomiteh’s hit list. He was but not anymore, came over this morning his name’s off the list, his position is confirmed as an inner intelligence officer approved.

If he’s reinstated after all the shit he did for us, he’s got to have a very high protector, I wonder who?

Again, Choi shrugged keeping his eyes straight ahead; it’s probably someone working in the Ayatollah’s inner circle, maybe the old boy himself. One thing is certain for Hashemi to get back into favor he’s got to know where some very important bodies are buried such info would be very-very valuable… Any how it all adds up in our favor, the car ops still a viable go, we’ll move the exit point to your neck of the woods and use the Texas mafia, their group maintains control of the Gulf container ports. Weston nodded in agreement as he drove along in silence. It is about time those Arab bastards smartened up, he thought. Stop being so one track minded about Israel, Egypt, the PLO and the whole middle east and give us more room to maneuver. The Gulf, he remembers all explosive forces ripped it apart, the hills of secret intelligence reports agents had gathered at the cause of so much blood and cast aside unread, the agency’s years of pleading with politicians and generals and intelligence warnings of the gathering conflagration. All gone to no avail for years and years.

The will of God, he thought God does not want it to be easy for us. Easy? In all of America’s history it’s never once been easy for us. Never, never, never. He saw Choi watching him, what?

Back to the problem at hand; I wanted to take a wait and see with Castellano, figuring he’s an old man, with the trial going on I thought we had him out of the way but meanwhile he’s hit us where it damn well will hurt. Weston offered, you heard him now all the families and associates are out of the narcotics business. David Choi’s eyes narrowed in his high cheek boned face narrowed even more and his lips compressed into a thin line don’t bet on it Glenn, he said sourly there is more than 2000 metric tons of China white packaged and ready for delivery as well as another couple of thousand of Columbia rock en route from Panama ready for transshipment to Europe, where the Sicilian branch of the Gambino clan will handle distribution. Our 20% cut will pay for

the covert arms shipments we are funneling to the Afghans. Contras, Shining Path and African rebel groups; this damn prohibition against drugs could conceivably compromise those ops. Weston whistled softly between his teeth. Then it’s a go on tagging them? Yes, Choi said confidently I think the head of the five families effectiveness to CHAOS has been permanently compromised all of them? Weston asked, pale blue gray eyes: brittle. Choi blanched, no we don’t want a bloodbath, just Castellano for now; we’ll let Justice deal with the rest of the old bastards; Is your group ready?

Sure, spur of the moment is SOP for us. Just say when. After he leaves the lawyer" office on Madison Avenue; the new underboss, Bilotti made a reservation for 6 PM at Spork’s steakhouse on East 46, street, see to it that they don’t make it to dinner. Now after we exit the tunnel let me out on Canal Street, I’ll cab it to LaGuardia, and catch a shuttle flight to Washington; I’m having lunch with the old man and I’ll bring up to speed on these latest developments.

Glenn Weston used the signal light to ease into a space on the right after they exited the Battery Tunnel, he pulled the car to the curb on Canal Street in Manhattan.

David Choi opened the door the before exiting the car said good hunting and flashed a toothy grin with a thumbs up.

Washington DC like all of the great capitals of the world ran on power. The people who worked there were drawn to the city as if it were the epicenter of an incipient earthquake. The mere mortals the Miramar tools although moral, the working stiffs who labor from nine the five and went home to eat their meat and potatoes while sitting in front of their TVs and spending quality time with their kids before lumbering off to bed to lie atop their wives in comic imitation of intimacy could decern nothing of the invisible emanations that attracted the power elite to Washington.

Power by definition means different things in different places in New York America’s financial capital it means arriving at a Broadway opening in a new Mercedes or BMW stretch limo; in Hollywood America’s entertainment capital it

means playing tennis with Sylvester Stallone or lunching with Spielberg in Washington with those who know where the real power lies it is defined in increments perks, for the director of chaos super secret subsection of the CIA; the perks were many and dazzling. For Anthony Coffman, by far and the best was this sprawling early 19th century mansion in Great Falls Virginia set into the low lands above small but spacious valley between emerald hills it was just under an hour from the Chaos headquarters in North West Washington, had once been an OSS then a CIA safe house. It was said that Eisenhower and Dulles as well as wild Bill Donovan had used its cool sanctuary during World War II, but of course that was purely a rumor. That Coffman chose to believe it implicitly was perhaps a measure of his love for it. Newly painted, precisely the same shade of off white as it had been first painted the house was filled with our arching gables rounded turrets and along one side of an enormous, screened in porch with a floor of pine planking painted battleship gray. It was filled with oversized white wicker furniture with cushions and pillows of a deep maroon background on which were printed green and off-white leaves in a kind of jungle pattern. Inside the gigantic rooms were filled with antiques that Kaufman had painstakingly collected from around the world. A professional decorator might have winced at the confluence of pristine Federal Chairs and desk with a massively ornate Louis XIV ormolu clock on the spotted marble mantle and a magnificent Chippendale breakfront beside it, but Coffman couldn’t have cared less. Here within this house he could feel time in all its grandeur moving slowly from room to room, he could trace the monumental procession of the ages of Western man from Renaissance forward. Here, far from the necessarily ultramodern blankness of Chaos he could stretch his mind on the wings of man’s greatest artistic accomplishments and think through knotty problems he could never seem to unravel at the office. Coffman unashamedly reveled in this particular perk.

Though Chaos funds had brought the house, though they maintained it, though they allowed him to nurture it and its

magnificent grounds filled with carefully pruned roses and tulip gardens and meticulously shorn formal Topiaries, he nevertheless thought of this house as his own. It was he who had provided it with its current name, Greystoke, since in his spare time Coffman was an avid reader of the many short novels of Edgar Rice Burroughs. It was because of Coffman that the president and of course the vice president came here, the Secretary of Defense, a majority of members of the joint Chiefs. Power flowed through these old rooms like hot blood, Anthony Coffman’s power. He was entitled to call Greystoke his own.

This sundrenched afternoon he and David Choi were lunching on light fare of cold poached salmon with a lemony dill mayonnaise a bright salad of endive and radicchio that was Coffman’s favorite and not coincidently a specialty of Greystoke’s chef. Because of the unusually warm December he had decided to dine on the spacious enclosed porch, the birds sang in the topiary and the nearby woods were alive with deer and other small furry animals.

Coffman himself poured more Perrier for them both there was no alcohol, not even wine during working hours. I’m glad you could find time to come David, Coffman said after a time. He had pushed his plate away from him, Clearing his palette with the Perrier. Choi had finished before him. A Negro houseboy came and took the dishes away. Nothing more was said until he reappeared with small metal dishes of pear sorbet rimmed with ice.

After the fiasco in Kuwait-that’s all in the past, David, Coffman said. It’s forgotten. Good, good. Coffman had lighted into his dessert, so it was unclear whether he was responding to Choi or commenting on the sorbet. He ate mechanically, but his face was filled with pleasure. He had an abnormally large head with a wide high forehead above which thick, curling hair sprouted, brushed carefully back. He had enormous eyes, the color of cobalt, that could at times appeared just as hard; his heavily bridged hawk like nose would have otherwise dominated that face. The deeply

scored lines in his cheeks and brow, like notches in a revolver’s grip were all worn with pride rather than the fear of passing time. In time he sighed, scraping the metal dish with his empty spoon. He poured himself coffee from an insulated picnic carafe. Choi had not touched his dessert as he listened to the man he detested, yet nevertheless admired. Coffman was a superb political operator, arrogant, condescending, sure of himself. An extraordinary intelligent man, he had no patience for those with lesser gifts. The 65-year-old former New England College professor, who had been a successful business entrepreneur and Rand Corporation executive, seemed to have a sixth sense about what argument would carry the most weight with his listeners. What Coffman lacked, Choi firmly believe was any sense of right or wrong; the expedient of the moment always struck Coffman as proper. The real flaw in Coffman’s psyche, Choi mused, was the way he regarded people as members of groups, groups to be manipulated for his and Chaos purposes.

Over at the Justice Department they still refer to Coffman as the late Robert Kennedy did when he held the position of Atty. Gen., he named Coffman the barometer. But then FBI director, J. Edgar Hoover, had however used other and more derogatory epithets to describe the deputy director of the CIA, whose operations and operatives were very top-secret.

I suppose loyalty has its place in the natural order of things, of course., Coffman Said staring past Choi his eyes fixed on the Brown body of a doe at work nibbling on the sparse tree leaves, it often slips my mind so I know it must slip yours from time to time that we do not live amongst the natural order of things. You and I David are in the business of imposing our own brand of order on the chaos of the world. That’s a heavy responsibility. It takes all of our brainpower to keep it going to make it the shiny web of our chosen work, despite-he shrugged-oh, inclement weather, inhospitable terrain, the efforts of pests inimical to its creation. I think you understand my meaning, David.

Yes sir, I do. Choi responded curtly-we are different from

most people in the world, Coffman went on, and that’s by our own choosing. We’re misfits, maybe. Surely, we’d never be content with the humdrum. For myself, I know that saddled with that kind of life, I’d blow my brains out. No, no what we like to do-what we crave-is dancing in the dark, it’s that edge of not knowing what’s around the bend that gets us we’re extrapolators, David, seers, we look into and divine the strategic trends of the future-by putting our hands into goat entrails. Choi said. Like the old Romans.

Coffman laughed, and his eyes came back to his immediate surrounding. Very good, indeed, David. Yes I suppose there’s a parallel there somewhere. He shifted in his chair. But Chaos was created by me out of divination, pure and simple. Trends, trends were what formed us, like a shell created out of a constant current, we were created out of a constant current. We were created from disorder. The Bible foretold that in our day people would be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, self-assuming, haughty, having no natural affection disobedient of parents, unthankful, disloyal not open to any agreement; slanderers without self-control, fierce without love of goodness (2 Timonthy:3:2,3)

Such types of people commit crimes. Since people commit crimes to the extent that they change for the better, crime is reduced. But it has never been easy for people to change for the better. Today it is even harder than ever, fore since 1914, a date established by Bible chronology we have been living in the last days of this system of things. As the Bible foretold this peer is categorized by critical times hard to deal with these critical times are caused by Satan the devil, the greatest criminal of all, who has great anger knowing he has a short period of time. Revelation 12; 12 therefore the inevitable crimes people are willed to commit has to be managed. Domestic crime has far outstripped the control of most individual nations and transnational crime has accelerated far beyond the current reach of the international community… The Crimes committed by organized criminal groups has expanded to alarming proportions with particularly serious

consequences in terms of physical violence intimidation and corruption of public officials. Terrorism has claimed tens of thousands of lives of innocent victims trafficking in narcotics is a worldwide tragic phenomenon. That is our bread-and-butter David, that is how I perceived it twenty-five-years ago. Kennedy agreed with me, that’s why his name is on our charter, and I’m damn proud of that. The revisionism that is gone on lately about him and his presidency is, in my opinion disgusting. He was a president with guts, which is why he saw a need for us apart, distinct, totally separate from the CIA. Oh, we’ve used the agency as our whipping boy on more than one occasion, I can tell you. We like to let the world see what idiots they are from time to time. That kind of thing relaxes people makes them feel superior. Coffman chuckled that’s just how we like them.

Like the Ed Wilson scandal David Choi’s lips creased into a thin line. Yes, quite right; I imagine even you don’t know that I engineered that. Some members of the press were getting too close to finding out about us. The president and I figured a smokescreen were our best defense, so I fed them Ed Wilson’s apparatus-was Wilson one of ours?

Coffman’s ex-colleague and friend from Naval intelligence Special Branch task force 157. Edward Wilson., He was with them for twenty or so odd years, one of those from the old boys club officially a minor case agent who quit the CIA to become a member of the Navy super-secret task force 157; but really a top of the line operative special intelligence, running covert paramilitary operations around the globe the official line was he turned greedy, went into business for himself became Khadafy’s chief military procurement specialist, but the US attorney’s office nailed the bastard, with I might add a little help from us.

It was you who lured him out of Tripoli? Sure, he was cornered on three sides, but refused to surrender thought he was safe and secure in his haven in the desert; I had a story planted inside Libyan intelligence that Wilson was a double agent Bent on assassinating Khadafy. Poor bastard they

interrogated him, to his credit he survived it and convinced them that the story was a lie, a plant to turn them against him; the Libyans released him but he knew his days in the desert were numbered. After that it was easy to lure him out. He smiled, anyway the resultant, housecleaning at the CIA did them some good. Got rid of their most flagrant deadwood he cleared his throat now speaking of deadwood, David he brought out a thick red bound file opened it took out two Grainy 8 x 10 black and white NYPD crime scene photos was showed the blood streaked face of a dead Paul Castellano head slumped on the front seat of the limo feet sprawled on the pavement; the other photo showed the dark suited underboss boss Tommy Bilotti, lying face up on his back in the middle of the street, arms flung wide in a dark bloody pool-Choi took a deep breath. Each man was shot six times, three shots each to the body and head by several unknown gunmen, he said softly. Already the newspapers are speculating: The killings are the opening salvo all in an internal Gambino Power grab, that pits the younger faction led by John Gotti heir apparent against the older leadership of the family.

Good very good. My compliments to Weston and the wet section a quick and efficient job. To unite resolution with resilience is the business of warfare! Coffman exclaimed. He was a student of the Chinese Military Strategist Sun Tzu, and often quoted him. He loved the business of strategy, moving men around the world like it was a chess board. Covert agents supposedly fighting communism, who in fact were in league with the drug dealers from Burma to Pakistan, to Lebanon to Latin America, and there was no evidence that the Agency was involved. He smiled wryly. Until recently that is; Imelda Marcos was accused of theft and fraud and her defense claimed that every transaction the Marcos’s made was with the full knowledge and encouragement of the CIA…Then it came out that Noriega was on the Agency’s payroll and not to mention more allegations that the agency is financing certain drug wars in Asia and Central America to destabilize

governments like the Contra rebellions.

You know these crime families have earned close to

$100 billion dollars through their association with chaos. The lion share went chiefly to the Gambino’s. It’s all in here his fingers tapped the dossier.

Choi thought of the amount of murder, mayhem, treachery, corruption and treason that hundred billion dollars represented, it was almost beyond comprehension.

Well one would think for such past remuneration the least we could expect in return is a degree of loyalty from the damn weasels; what do they care if the foundation is cracked and the house comes down? They had theirs and they served notice; networks built painstakingly over the years would collapse without their collaboration and they very well damn know it.

Choi’s eyes flickered involuntarily toward Coffman, picking it up said, there was no time to notify you or put it through the proper sanction’s sir. So I acted on the intelligence, he said feeling slightly awkward at being on the defensive.

I’m proud of you David you read the situation well and took appropriate steps to remedy it; I concur with your actions 100%. Now by taking Castellano out of the picture we’ve in effect served notice of fundamental. That we’re professionals, under discipline we’re nothing here, nothing at all unless we maintain that discipline. Chaos was formed

25 years ago with the full consent of the then president of the United States to combat the perceived threat the growing crisis that explains today’s upsurge in crime Satan knows that he and his minions are to be destroyed during the short remaining time he seeks in every way possible false than humans the bad traits mentioned in two Timothy and revelations 12:12 for the government to end crime David it must end Satan’s influence that has been made manifest and fomented within the reactionary forces within the darker segments of the population. Thus for government to end crime in it must get rid of Satan’s influence and also help people to change so that they no longer act in the way described. But is

any government up to this super human task? The methods adopted must be capable of staying the mark therefore the implementation of the covert domestic drug initiative policy, we felt was the best and least expensive way to contain those criminal forces here at home and assured that they never again would foreign governments with inimical designs upon us be able to point to American cities in flames, and say don’t preach to us of human rights until you get your own damn house in order.

I know I’m not telling you anything you don’t already know David, since you signed on with me more than 15 years ago. But perhaps you don’t know that each president upon his inauguration has a. period of 90 days in which to reevaluate chaos in order to decide on its disposition. Not one president I’m gratified to say in five administrations has ever contemplated dismantling us; all of that for a very good reason. We are the best and we are rigidly controlled so ironclad is our discipline that what happened in the CIA more than once could never occur here. We have never had to clean house and we never will. Unlike the CIA operatives who are all on contract, and openly belong to the country, our operatives cling to the shadows. Keeping crime groups like the Italians and their Associates of Blacks and Jews, Chinese Triads, Cuban and Mexican Mafias out front in business dealings, our 20% cut of the billions made each year off of illicit drugs goes to support the Units covert operations. For this reason, Chaos is high on the president’s list of favorite government organizations because we are self-reliant and therefore cannot afford to make any mistakes; Besides Coffman said and his voice held that peculiar note of detached calm that judges used to possess when the country as a whole approved executions. We found in the past that from time to time these killings are necessary it’s good for the guineas public relations.

Dismissing the subject, he perused several pages from the red file. Now look what we have done with Israel. Each year we give them 1.7 billion in military aid even though the country devotes fully half of its annual budget to military spending.

Then we give them a further 850 million and economic aid.

Choi was perplexed, we both know Israel is our only stable ally in the middle East. If we don’t prop them up with the Strategic Defense Initiative who will?

I can’t believe you have swung a 180° and are now advocating cutting aid to them.

No! not at all. Coffman seemed annoyed, as if he were a professor again. And his star pupil had turned into a moron before his eyes. It’s not giving them the aid that disturbs me but what that aid is doing to them. His finger stabbed down at the file once more. Despite our help there is a critical economic crisis in Israel. Inflation is running at over

200% per year! Think of that man! Something drastic will have to be done to stabilize the country. Think of that man! The size which the pounds value is continually deteriorating something drastically will have to be done there soon to destabilize the country the class that the notes in his hand now consider this the industrial nation with the highest and most solid growth rate over the past two decades is Japan what does that tell you?

Choi decided that given Coffman’s current mood, he’d be better off showing his ignorance they given a wrong answer. What are you getting at Anthony?

Just this Coffman said. Israel with billions in military spending each year is on the brink of economic collapse.

Japan’s economy on the other hand, is going great guns. He hunched forward his elbows on the Parquet tabletop why? Could it be solely good management? How could it? The Israelis, as we well know are from stupid. In fact, we do well in some areas to learn from them then what? Could it be the politics of destruction? He said answering his own rhetorical question. The current from which Chaos was formed. The divination I made way back in the dark ages, about the nature of the world in the future. And that future David is today! Coffman slams shut the folder placed his open hand on it like it was the Bible. The current from which Chaos was formed it’s all in this report. What it shows is that there is an inverse co-

relation to military spending and healthy economic growth. Japan’s military spending is almost nil compared to that of Israel’s one of Lenin’s most often quoted phrases is imperialism is the final phase of capitalism. Coffman smiled. What would be a better definition of imperialism than arms sales? Yet the Communist engaged in it, often quite heavily. There is a report here from last year’s Soviet summit on economics in Novosti. The consensus among those gathered was that rising military expenditures were a strong deterrent to their s country’s growth. Last year North Korea supplied $880 million in arms to Iraq, even though it is allied with Iran, Iraq’s enemy. This year the figure will increase half again 31 of the world countries increased by 100% or more their military spending in 1965 to 1985 of course, almost everyone will recognize Egypt, Iran, Syria and Iraq among them But perhaps you and I are the only ones not surprised by the inclusion of Honduras Saudi Arabia, Nigeria Zambia, Zimbabwe, South Africa, and Kuwait. Today military armament is the fastest growing component of world trade, and you know what the second largest component is?

Oil-No, narcotics.

Choi cleared his throat and that’s mostly our doing? He said. Coffman’s eyes were sparkling, oh yes. You and I know that whether his motivations are ideological, religious or merely political, a country’s leader will surely feel safer with a better equipped army than those of his enemies. But we also know that military spending is not just the destructive to economic growth but also to political stability; unless pacification of the disgruntled populace occurs. Choi listened to all of this with one ear. Part of his mind was considering what Coffman had said about how those inside chaos was somehow different, had chosen this life because of that difference. The humdrum: But if Choi was honest with himself he knew that he had not joined Chaos to escape a nine to five prison. He had joined to prove to himself and to his wife that he could be accepted into a club filled with Ivy leagues W. A. S. Ps with MBAs and with Mensa caliber brains.

Choi had graduated in 1972 from Harvard University, where

he’d attended on a fencing scholarship his marks had been middling, which was unusual for an Oriental and when his professors were interviewed while he was being recruited for the company, they said he was an uninspired student at best several could not recall him at all. Even the head fencing coach needed quite a bit of prodding to remember him. The company recruiters liked that, seeing in this vagueness the glimmering of a talent. The fact that not many people remembered Choi. He had that ability to slip through crowds unnoticed his wife Elizabeth noticed him, however. She had been homecoming queen at one of the seven sister’s colleges, she was beautiful and smart enough to finish right behind the valedictorian of that graduating class.

She and Choi had met at a mixer that he and several friends crashed; he had looked so out of place that she gravitated to him at once.

Choi never understood what she saw in him but then he could never grasp the way women saw the world, he could not possibly have understood that by her sophomore year Elizabeth had had her fill of intellectually snobbish young men groomed in style, outfitted in Paul Stuarts clothing, racing through the falling leaves of the campus grounds in it Jaguars and triumph Spitfire. They had spoken of clubs and polo and horseback riding as if these were the world’s primary concerns. She had seen a sweetness and Choi that others mistook for shyness. And taking the time to speak with him, she found him bright, curious and flexible, three qualities she had felt certain she would never find in a man about a second date, she knew that she wanted to see no one else by their fourth she was certain that she was in love. By then Choi needed little persuading to get married, Elizabeth had stunned him from the first moment he saw her coming toward him across the gym floor; her attraction seemed to him more miraculous than his winning the lottery. In this he was utterly serious, his insecurity about her love had led him into a recurring nightmare in which he woke a one morning to find out that indeed he was married to Elizabeth but he himself was someone who wore Harris

Tweed’s, played golf without a handicap and spoke with a Bostonian accent. The dream always ended with Choi staring at himself in the mirror and seeing a face tanned by the sun and wind, healthy and impossibly handsome. He would put his hands up to his cheeks and they would melt like putty, remolding themselves into choi’s true face; seeing this, Choi in his dream felt engulfed by panic that Elizabeth would wake-up and seeing him know what a terrible mistake she had made. Their house in rural Virginia not so very far from Greystoke had during their first years together seemed lifeless. By then he had told Elizabeth enough of what he had gotten into so that she had said more than once that the place seemed to her inhabited by shadows.

For many years he had refused her the one thing that really mattered to her having children. The uncertainty of his life made him adamant, he had lost his father a seaman when he was only seven. He did not want the same fate to befall his unborn children. It had taken Elizabeth threat to leave him for him to see the importance of her having a baby. At last he had relented terrified that his one nightmare would come true. Now later in life than any of their friends they had two teenage children, a boy and a girl not a day went by that Choi did not find himself fearful for them. But he recognized this feeling as something he felt for Elizabeth as well. She had the right all along; if he wanted this life, the fear was something he would have to live with.

The covert drug initiative over the years has insured political stability here at home and is the Chaos Mandate received from the Power Elite (industrial/political/military complex). Coffman was saying now, we are the great arsenal of democracy in the world and the ends do justify the means!

Again, he cleared his throat. Now I am thinking of sending you to Panama to coordinate matters there with Gen. Noriega, Weston can handle any future problems that might crop up in New York.

I don’t understand Choi said, Weston excels at one thing wet work(killing.) Yes that’s quite true but there is a couple of

other things that he excels at, planning and strategy. Coffman tapped his steeple fingertips together as if contemplating these facts for the first time. This is not a snap decision, I assure you. There are still matters in New York that require at this time his expertise, besides you will be far too busy for the next several weeks in Panama City. He drew out several documents from the folder here is the business incorporation certificates the Colombians will be leasing the C-130 cargo planes from, the companies that are registered in Geneva; locations of airfields; the names of other Cayman Island bank’s numbered accounts; the lists of the ordinance you will supply to them.

Choi took the documents, Perused over them slowly;

he felt like a ball of ice