June 07, 2014:
Another day, another illegal weapons bust.
A police precinct.
Characters
NPCs: None.
Mentions:
Plot:
A Dark Hold
Apocalypse: Only the Strong
Blood versus Family
Bones Of The City
Breaking the Universe
Cyberdata War: First Strike
Dangerous Esterikos Wonderous Mystikos
Dark Gods & Times
De Oppresso Liber
Demon Lord of New York
Diaz de Muertos
Don't Tell Thanos The Babysitter's Dead
Empire of Tears
Escape from Sakaar
From the Ashes
Gateway to the Stars
Genosha: Rebirth
God Of The Dead
Hacker, Sass-Mastah, Engineer, Spy
Himmel und Hölle in Bewegung Setzen
Mood Music: None.
Fade In…
Brooklyn, New York City.
Another day, another case for NYPD's finest.
Captain Peyroux's orders were clear enough - cooperate with the Feds, watch out for the lawyers, and try and get hold of suspects.
That the crime scene involved yet more gang-bangers was obvious; that they were carrying extraordinary ordnance, military-grade, was something that needed digging up, badly.
This time, however, they had survivors. A couple of gang-bangers, sitting there in the interrogation room.
~
Matt Murdock is that lawyer they told you to watch out for.
Is he playing up his blindness as he walks in with the cane? Maybe. "Officers, I trust you've read my clients their rights, that you've not allowed them to incriminate themselves, and that you've followed all of the protocols to a tee."
Matt smiles brightly, recognizing the scents of two of the people nearby. This should be fun.
~
"Check, check, check, and thinking about throwing in a free cavity search," Sara replies as Matt arrives, having taken up a spot against the wall behind the men, where she can lurk and loom, arms crossed loosely over her chest. "I mean, they had some pretty high-tech weapons in there. Who knows what sort of small, easily concealed weapons they might be keeping somewhere on their persons. Ceramics, even, maybe. It'd just be the responsible thing to do."
"They've been read their rights." Paul assures the lawyer. "The interrogation stopped when they lawyered up but whether they chose to incriminate themselves afterwards is always their choice." While Sara looms, he's relaxed and at his ease in a chair on the other side of the desk from the suspects, with his feet up on the corner. Though as the lawyer shows up, he does sit up straighter now that business can recommence.
"You want to talk to them alone, I assume? Or were you planning on advising them to just confess now and make the DA happy when it comes to sentencing?"
~
Murdock chuckles to himself as he walks over towards Sara with a smile on his face.
"Officer Pezzini, it's been a while. When was our last interrogation?" As she finishes her comment he stands in front of her, "Officer, I'll consent to a cavity search only if it's performed by yourself and only if I get to go first." He walks away from her towards the other side of the table once Paul begins talking.
"Manning, you and I both know the DA is an asshole and neither of us should strive to make that guy happy."
He exhales. "So, here's how we're going to do this. You don't want these guys, I don't want you to want these guys, you want to go bigger. I'm going to convince these guys to go bigger, and we all go home happy. These guys go home with new names to new homes and new jobs in new states. Everyone wins."
~
"These guys opened fire in a residential neighborhood, Murdock," Sara says dryly. "The only new jobs they're getting are going to be in a license plate factory, and they're going to be happy it's that and not cleaning the shower floors in prison. And," she continues with a shark's smile that comes through in her voice, "Remember, you volunteered for the cavity search, so no complaints."
~
"Witness protection? For them?" Paul sounds frankly disbelieving. "Low level punks don't get witness protection. Low level punks don't know enough to get witness protection. Giving up the ones who sold them weapons might get them a reduced sentence but they'd have to know the main supplier before the Feds would even think they're worth the time and effort to keep them alive."
~
"Oh yes, Witness Protection. For them. I didn't stutter." Matt leans back in his chair, almost at an angle to one side of his back while crossing his legs. "I only ask that you're gentle, Officer Pezzini. In any event, if you guys don't want to talk, we don't have to talk. You brought these men in here to have a conversation and if there's no conversation to be had, well, we can just pack it in and start preparing for trial."
"But Murdock," one of the thugs begins.
"Quiet."
The thug lowers his brow, defeated.
"Oh, they're worth the time. And the effort. If you want them to talk, just let me know. In the meantime, be sure to give asshole my regards. Don't worry. He's got my number."
~
"I don't get paid by the trial or confession, so it's sort of no difference to me," Sara points out, sticking one leg out enough to poke the leg of one of the thug's chairs with her foot. Just enough to startle him a little.
"What does make a difference to me is letting people get away with something they really shouldn't get away with. I've done my job. Evidence is good. Procedure is good. What happens next comes down to the lawyers in the DA's office. I sort of like the confessions, though," she admits. "Speaks to the Catholic in me. Confession's good for the soul, has a really - how do they say it? - purgative effect. Right, boys?" Nudge. Nudge.
~
Paul shrugs. "Hey, our job is done. By going to trial, you just make the DA happy. He loves prosecuting guys like them. Easy conviction, long prison sentence, looks good on his record for when he's up for re-election. Win win for everyone. Well, except them. And they've given no indication they know anything worth even talking about a deal about." He spreads his hands invitingly.
"Convince us. Or, as you say, we just go to trial. And I'm guessing they won't be able to afford the bail for possessing and using military grade weapons."
~
"Hey, now… we can tell you where we got the weapons from!" one of the thugs protests.
~
"A Catholic too?" Matt says as his face turns towards Sara. "What parish?"
He reaches down to pick up his briefcase and pulls himself up out of the seat, "Gentlemen, we'll talk later today after I've had a chance to look over the files."
As the thug blurts out Matt shakes his head, "Of course you can, but it won't help you. These people don't want to play ball. I'm sure the District Attorney will. Now be a smart guy and zip your lips. There will be a time and a place to tell your story."
"Sorry we couldn't come to an agreement, Officers. I hope you two have a nice day."
~
"Why, you going to come to Sunday mass with me?" Sara pushes off the wall, stepping around the thugs in their chairs to lean against the edge of the table.
"We can find out where the weapons came from," she adds to the thug. "These sorts of things can be tracked, you know. Forensics technology's come a long way. Manufacturer. Serial number. They can even track the sort of rifling on the bullets to figure out where the guns where manufactured. So see, we can get all of that from the scientists downstairs. What we're looking for is names. But, you know," she sighs. "You want to be your lawyer's bitches, that's up to you."
~
"You two don't have newer cell phones, do you?" Paul asks the two suspects. "You know they all have GPS nowadays. We're already getting warrants for it and that'll show every place you've been. Makes finding out where you got them easy. Now who… Well, that might be on your phones too if you were dumb enough to set up the deal with it. Neither of you were dumb enough to do that were you? Because if you were, we don't even need you to tell us. That could take a day though and they might flee the city so we'd prefer that you tell us even if it means making a deal for a lighter sentence. But wait too long and everything is off the table."
~
"Now wait a…" one thug begins, before the other interrupts. "Wait, wait. We want to talk to our lawyer." Mostly, the question was… who hired them, the arms dealer, or…?
~
Matt shakes his head, "I hadn't planned on it, Pezzini. But I'll try anything once. I go to St. Patricks, 11 o'clock mass. But if that's an invitation, you just let me know."
Matt sits back, looks upward, and sighs at Manning. "The interrogation is over, Mr. Manning. Trying to badger these men is unethical at best and a crime at worst. You don't want to talk and negotiate? All of these guys plead the fifth. You don't want to play ball, we wait to talk to the DA's office. They'll cut us a better deal, and with what these guys have, they'll be much more willing to cut a favorable deal. Precisely because it's an election year, as you noted earlier."
~
"Nobody's badgering the bitches," Sara assures Matt, giving the gangsters a pitying look as they try to stick with the we're talking with our lawyer stance.
"Here. I mean, it might be different once they get to lock up, but that's not our problem either. You guys should definitely sign up for the cavity search first though," she advises with false sympathy. "Might help, you know. Make things a little easier."
~
"Badger? Did you hear any badgering?" Paul asks Sara. "I didn't hear any badgering. I was just giving your clients all the facts, Mr. Murdock. They can't make an informed decision without knowing all the facts, can they?" It's not at all a question. "But if you think the DA is going to get them into witness protection just because they know the names of a couple mid level dirtbags…" He shrugs again. "Witness protection is for crime bosses and actual arms dealers. Not used car dealers."
~
"Or for the people who can bring down the big ones," Matt sighs, "Look, I'm blind. Can someone tell me what time it is? We've been talking in circles here for at least 40 minutes in some big dick contest — Pezzini is winning — and we're all wasting our time. Our guys don't talk without a deal, and you both know how unethical you're being right now. I have half a mind to request that this interrogation be taped, because this is ridiculous, and if it is being taped, I'd love to show it to the ACLU."
~
The prosecuting attorney arrives, soon enough, before Sara can even wave her wang.
"All right, Murdock," the no-nonsense bespectacled female attorney responds, motioning somewhere where they can speak out of earshot of the thugs. "Look here, we've got your clients dead to rights on illegal ordnance, regardless of what the NRA's going to say. You're right that we want the big fish, though. So what do you want for your clients to turn evidence, besides federal witness protection? Community service while under witness protection for the next… oh, ten years?"
~
"Somebody in the room has to have one," Sara snorts softly, watching while Murdock talks with the representatives of the more academic aspects of the law.
"Seriously, guys," she turns idly to the thugs. "How you manage to get to trusting lawyers, I'll never know."
~
"Everyone needs someone to trust." Paul points out. "It's not like they can trust each other. I bet soon as we split them up, one rolls on the other for a better deal and we don't need the other one at all."
~
"What these men will give you is information regarding some of the most important criminal elements on the East Coast, and enough information to bring charges against some important people. If you put them in a cell, they're going to be killed. If you let anyone know where they are, they're going to be killed."
"Might as well be you, Sara," Matt concurs with her statement. "That'd be fine, if I'd allow it, Officer Manning, which I won't. They won't roll on each other because they're going to roll on someone much bigger. The more you two talk, the less my guys are going to."
~
"And how -do- you know this?" the no-nonsense prosecuting attorney notes? "They don't have the clout to hire someone as big as you, unless there's something in it for you. So who hired you, Mr. Big-Shot?"
~
"I'm hurt, Murdock," Sara holds a hand to her chest, sticking out her lower lip. Lucky Matt doesn't have to actually see the bad acting. "So little faith in the quality of the correctional system that you think these men could be killed in prison? Besides, look how pretty they are. Nobody wants to kill the pretty guy in prison."
~
"Uh-huh. And they're going to throw away a better deal out of spite." Paul scoffs and doesn't quite glance at the suspects. "I sure wouldn't want you as my lawyer if that's his legal advice."
~
"You couldn't afford me," Matt says to Paul. "And my record speaks for itself." Clearly he's growing weary of this back and forth with the fuzz. Of course, it's an act, the real Matt specifically picked this pair out just a few weeks ago to help fight against Fisk.
To the attorney, Murdock replies, "I'm being paid to represent these four gentlemen." It's a well rehearsed line, likely one to be repeated if asked again.
"These men are pawns in a much larger criminal organization. They want to bring down the upper echelon of drug trafficking in the city. I'm assuming that's what you three want. We all want the same thing here. Let's cut a deal and move on with our lives."
~
That's not what I am asking, Murdock. I was asking, -who- hired you? Their employer?" With a sigh, the attorney waves a hand. "I know, I know, client-attorney confidentiality. Except I don't even know how you know what they know. So you're going in there, and find out -exactly- what you're supposed to know so we know exactly how strong your hand is before we try bargaining."
~
"You know, the way I see it, I was just taking orders is sort of a shitty excuse for criminal activity," Sara muses, inspecting her nails. "The way I remember, it didn't work out great for the nazi soldiers, you know? People know what's right and what's not. They know when it's a bad order. But they make a choice." She pushes off the table, shaking her head. "Room's yours," she waves a hand to the lawyers.
~
"You know no deals are made blind, counselor." Paul states. "If they know something, they need to prove it." Off the record, of course. Otherwise every whore and dealer would be making deals on crap they have no idea about." Standing, he asks "You ready for some coffee, Pezzini?"
~
"Actually, Pezzini, the soldiers weren't brought to trial. It was the higher ups, much like the ones you're going to get now. So your point is poorly made." Matt nods to the men, "Go ahead and tell the District Attorney what you're willing to give her if she gives you a hand, here."
Taking a deep breath, one of the thugs begins, "Look, our leader got the guns from…"
"Hold on a minute," the other thug interrupts. "I know we got a lawyer here, but I sure didn't call you, so before we roll over on our supplier, I gotta be straight here - if you're from our bosses, why would you let us testify?"
"Because it's in your best interest. My job as a lawyer is to represent you to the best of my ability. I need to be sure that you're getting the best deal for you," Matt explains. "That's what I've been sworn to do, and that's what I'm going to do. If you don't want my services, all you need to do is say so."
~
"Whatever helps you sleep at night, Murdock." Sara stops for a moment when the thugs start to ask their own questions, ostensibly to check a schedule posted near the door.
~
"Man, I don't know…"
"Shut up, Johnny, look, we're fucked one way or another. At least this way we have a chance of gettin' out with our skins. Okay, look, here's the stitch…."
The story goes as thus: gangbangers minding their own businesses, at least until suddenly they were offered the chance to 'field-test' new guns. Powerful guns, the sort that did more than projectile-shooting, but plasma-beams, nasty shatter-bombs, and such.
They thought they had it made.
Only, as it turns out, the other side had come armed too, and…
"It was like war out there, bro. Big booms everywhere. And this guy, this guy with big bushy brows, he's probably the one who provided the Jets with the guns too," the thug concludes.
~
Matt straightens his tie as the thugs go into their story. His eyebrows nearly collide in confusion as the thug stops way short. Hopefully he has more than that, or this is going to be a short meeting.
~
"This guy with big, bushy brows." Paul repeats. "Well, that narrows it down. Should lead us right to him. Looks like we're wasting our time."
~
Oh look, she's got a Friday night off. Sara might be able to…stay in and order Chinese again. The detective is quietly checking the schedule just outside the interrogation room. Even if she's listening.
~
"That's not all," the other thug goes on to say. "Basically, all our weapons came from this group, they called themselves Intergang. When the boss went to get the weapons, he always went to this place called the Ace of Clubs in Metropolis. I think he was chatting it up with the owner or some dude from there. They called him "Ugly". "Ugly Mannheim.""
~
Well, that's a bit better, Matt thinks. At least they came out with the name that Fisk asked for. Matt's running a rough gauntlet here, and putting a lot on the line.
"Ugly Mannheim is your guy, VD." He always calls her that. It's probably not the nicest of nicknames.
~
Paul walks over to look over Sara's shoulder. Cops don't make deals anyway so he doesn't need to be there. They just soften them up for the DAs.
~
"You ever get that itch, like it sure would be nice for something to be clean cut, real, solid justice?" Sara murmurs as Paul comes over, grimacing. "No games, no confusion, no gray lines."
~
"Right, right. Mannheim. Intergang crime boss. It figures. I'd love to know where they're getting the tech," the prosecutor responds, sighing, before giving Matt a jaundiced eye. "So it's a safe bet that you're not working for Mannheim. Who is it now? Oh… Murdock, don't tell me, it's…" She cuts herself off, before shaking her head, turning towards the cops.
"Get in here, we're going to need to get in touch with the Feds. Get these people into custody, and don't let anyone near them but the feds or Murdock."
~
"All the time." Paul answers, just as quietly. "The other day was kind of nice that way. With Steve." Clearly defined mission, very black and white. And then that idiot Shift had to go and ruin everything. "Remind me to talk to you later about something related." He looks over at the DA then nods and returns to the thugs.
"All right boys. Seems you just won a lifetime vacation courtesy of the US Marshals and the American taxpayer. Hope you're worth it."
~
"Gentlemen," Matt says to the two accused with a nod, "I'll be talking with you shortly. Perhaps three hours at most. Don't say anything to anyone, unless I'm with you." Murdock rises slowly, reaching for his cane. He scrapes it against the floor slowly, making sure he won't run into anything.
"We'll be in touch," he says to the District Attorney as he makes his way towards the door, approaching where Sara and Paul are coming in. "Officers, thank you for your time."
~
"Seriously?" Sara sighs as she turns away from the wall, coming back into the room and giving the thugs an eye. "Not that, you know, I made plans or anything, but even three-day-old Chinese food and reruns is better company than a holding cell away from the rest of them."
~
Taking a look at their lawyer, the thugs essentially go from defiant to compliant, nodding at Sara as she gives them the stink-eye.
"Good luck, Murdock…" the attorney sighs. "Hope you don't lose your soul in the process."
~
"Pezzini here doesn't think I have one, VD," Matt says with a smile. "Chinese? That sounds great. I think I'll get myself some of that. Till next time." Matt gives a wave and makes his way out of the room.