'I want closure. Chief.'
'We'll push a little harder. Governor.'
'I know you will. Get something out to the media on it. Let them know the manhunt is continuing. Now, tell me about these charges against Bucky Watson. How solid are they?'
'They're very substantial.'
'Do your people have their facts straight?'
'Yes, they do.'
'He was a heavy contributor to my reelection campaign.'
Andy chose not to respond.
'Will Watson's arrest affect anyone else?'
'Watson has implicated your nephew and Sherman Cobb in a money laundering scheme.'
No surprise registered on Springer's face. It was clear that Vance Howell had kept the governor well informed.
'I find that hard to believe, Chief Baca.'
'It does create an uncomfortable situation,' Andy noted.
'How are we going to handle it?' Springer asked.
'I plan to keep working the case, Governor.'
'Let's think this through. I don't want any political fallout to occur because a member of my family may be accused of a crime.'
'The situation will get the public's attention,' Andy said.
'That's why we need a flexible strategy here. I think the investigation has to be completely separated from my administration.
What if I asked the attorney general to step in?'
'I'm not sure such an abrupt change in the investigation would be wise,' Andy said.
'I understand that. But the attorney general is a Democrat who holds an elective office completely removed from my administration. If he agreed to appoint a special independent prosecutor for the case, that would erase any doubts of political interference on my part.'
'I'd rather not see the investigation slowed down.'
'I'm sure the attorney general can act quickly,' Springer said.
Andy gave up arguing and got to his feet. Springer was telling him what was going to happen, not asking.
'I'll give the attorney general my full cooperation.'
Springer flashed a winning smile.
'That's the kind of talk I like to hear, Andy.'
'This must be hard on you. Governor.'
'It cuts deep, Andy. But we'll get through it. I've been talking to the legislative leadership about that budget expansion request you want for new equipment.
If you can cut costs a little bit more, I'm sure we can get you that appropriation.'
'I'll work up some new figures.'
'Good.' Springer stood, pumped Andy's hand, and showed him to the door.
'Hold up any further action on this Watson mess until we've got the attorney general in the loop.'
On his way back to the office, Andy stewed over his meeting with Governor Springer. It made no sense, except as political face-saving bullshit. Springer wanted him to catch cop killers, yet he had just pulled the plug on the only investigation that could possibly lead to an arrest and conviction of the murderers. And when Springer pledged his support for new money for the department, it made Andy feel like a co-conspirator in a cover-up. He didn't like the taste of it at all.
Two officers had given their lives and a third had been wounded.
Turning over the case to the attorney general would be a slap in the department's face. The case belonged to the department and nowhere else.
He swung the car out of traffic, parked at a small diner, and went in for a cup of coffee. He had some heavy thinking to do. neil ordway had left no forwarding address with the Mountainair town clerk, and there was nothing in his police officer certification file that yielded information on his current whereabouts. Kerney phoned the agency that administered the police pension fund and got lucky; Ordway had made a request to withdraw his retirement contributions. He had asked that the check be mailed to a street address in the town of Bemalillo, just north of Albuquerque.
Kerney stopped by Andy's office and found it empty.
He decided not to wait for Andy to return from the governor's office before taking off. It shouldn't take more than an hour or two to round up Ordway.
He paid a quick visit to Joe Valdez, who had his head buried in a stack of papers. Kerney cleared his throat and Valdez looked up. He had a gleam in his eye and a smile on his face.
'I was going to call you in a few minutes. Chief.'
'To tell me what?'
'Do you want the technical or the bonehead explanation?'
'Keep it simple, Joe. I have trouble balancing my checkbook.'
'It's a round-robin scam. Bucky's companies are nothing but conduits for De Leon money. He pumps it through Tortuga, which lends cash to Matador, Magia, or some other front, and then it's funneled into projects like Rancho Caballo. Everything comes back to Tortuga nice and clean.'
'Does it all come back as cash?'
'No way,' Joe said.
'Shopping malls, raw land, apartments, subdivisions, commercial and industrial developments-take your pick. De Leon has too much cash; his quandary is finding ways to convert the money that keeps pouring in.'
'How did you get to it so quickly?'
'It's a high-tech world. Chief. Even drug lords use computers nowadays. Bucky's computer was linked to the one at Tortuga International. When our computer specialist found the link, I asked him to search the data fields in the Tortuga computer system. It's been a damn gold mine.'
'Have you seized the Tortuga computers and any hard-copy corporate records?'
Joe looked at his watch.
'Agents from the Las Cruces office should be at Tortuga right now. It took a while to do the paperwork and get a court order signed.'
'Have you been here all night?'
'Yeah. Again.'
'Have you got any steam left?'
'I'm good for a few more hours.'
'Where do we stand with Sherman Cobb and Roger Springer?'
'Both Bucky and De Leon kept track of their payments to Rancho Caballo by computer. Plus, I've got Springer and Cobb signing off on loan applications, countersigning checks, authorizing payments, approving contracts, and accelerating repayments. Put the hard-copy evidence together with Watson's confession and we've got more than enough probable cause.'
'Arrest Cobb and Springer,' Kerney said.
'Take a couple of agents with you.'
'Now, won't that be fun,' Joe said with a grin. *** andy pulled into his parking space just as Joe Valdez and two other agents hurried out the door. Valdez spotted Andy's car and walked to it. Andy opened the window and waited.
'Chief, I left a note on your desk.'
'What does it say?'
'Chief Kerney went down to Bernalillo. You can reach him by radio if needed.'
'Where arc you off to?'
'To arrest Springer and Cobb.'
'Tell me what you've got,' Andy said.
