Epilogue
“It’s sad,” Mary said as she rubbed lotion onto Dave’s back. “This is such a beautiful place, but not for us. There are too many bad memories associated with this place.”
“You’re right, Mary. But I’m glad you came with me this trip. It kind of provides some closure to a violent chapter in our lives.”
They lay silent as they listened to the waves crashing onto the beach and looked up at the skyline of Cabo San Lucas. Dave stared at the restaurant balcony where Ken had fallen to his death and reflected on the events surrounding the match play golf tournament with Buzz Peters. Was that only nine months ago?
The wedding was splendid. Mary and Dave said their vows at a chapel at the Tween Waters Inn on Captiva Island, Fl before departing on a three week cruise to the Greek Isles. Ken was gone, so Dave asked Buzz to be his best man. It was somewhat ironic, but also fitting. Jill was the maid of honor. 300 friends and family helped the Bradford’s celebrate.
So much had happened since then. Buzz had become a great friend and his brief affair with Mary completely forgiven. More importantly, the FBI had given him a fresh start in exchange for his testimony against Bill and Mario. It was amazing the risks he had taken.
Joe Martinez was allowed to die a hero in the public eye, but his campaign manager and best friend was convicted of several crimes and was now serving 10–20 years in Atlanta Federal prison. Buzz was the star witness.
Mario was convicted of multiple counts of drug smuggling and money laundering based upon the testimony of his former employees, Sam and Ron. Their testimony about their rip-off of the two bags of heroin became front-page news, particularly when the scuba diver, ex FBI Special Agent Buzz Peters, told his story. Buzz was a media hero, a role he didn’t particularly relish. This was a part of his past that he was trying to forget. No mention was made of the episode with Jesus and Diego. All the parties, except Buzz, were dead. There was nothing to gain.
Fred was convicted of wire fraud and money laundering based largely upon testimony from Dagfin Jensen and supported by the wire transfers and information in the laptop computers captured at the Fairgrounds. It was a complicated prosecution and the type of case that was difficult for juries to grasp. Several jurors thought it was a high stakes computer game. Fred had a bevy of good lawyers and was appealing his conviction. Dagfin had been returned to Zurich where he was convicted and is serving 1–3 years for wire fraud.
Dave’s major regret is that the Fred was never prosecuted for the murder of Ken, despite a plethora of circumstantial evidence. There was just not enough evidence. The prosecutor’s theory was that it had been Ken’s bad luck to run into Fred and Dagfin at the airport, which tied everything together. Dag testified they saw Ken in the terminal taking pictures of them. Fred had been irate. The camera had never been found; suggesting the person, possibly Jesus or Carlos, that pushed Ken off the balcony, had taken it. The attorney general’s office concluded that they could not prove that a murder was committed and Fred would be acquitted. “Let’s wait to see if we can get more evidence,” the prosecutor had said. “There’s no statute of limitations for murder.”
Jesus only lived a few weeks before dying of the wounds that Diego had inflicted, including a radical circumcision. Dave laughed as he recalled Steve and Hector recounting the story of why Jesus was so cooperative. It was the kind of cross examination that lives forever in the lore of law enforcement;
“Jesus, you may be dying, tell us what you know. Who hired you to kidnap Mary?”
“Go to hell.”
“That’s where you will be going, if you die without confessing. Don’t you want to make peace with your God?”
“Go to hell.”
“Jesus, can you see what I am holding? I think it’s your penis, but I’m not sure. Can you identify it?”
“Yes, it’s mine.”
“Which way does it go, Jesus? Can you tell me?”
“Damn you, get the doctor. Sew it back on.”
“They would, Jesus, but I haven’t told the doctors that we found this. Maybe, if you were more cooperative and told us who hired you, we could talk to the doctors.”
“It was Martin, Bill Martin. I have been doing jobs for his boss, Martinez, for many years. They paid me $10,000.”
Twenty minutes later they had a complete statement.
When Bradford first heard the story, he had taken the bait, and asked; “Did the surgery work?”
Steve and Hector started laughing and couldn’t stop. “That’s the funny part, Dave. The doctor comes out of surgery a couple hours later and tells the detectives it didn’t take.” “If only we could have started a little sooner, even an hour. The graft might have worked.”
The doctor never figured out what was so funny. He probably thought he was a natural comedian.
Bradford decided he laughed at that story because there was so little else to laugh at. Almost all the friends they had met at the club five years ago are now in jail. Ken is dead, and many lives were ruined.
Not everything turned out bad. The $49M transferred into Dave’s account was paid directly from the Swiss funds. Sven didn’t object and the FBI didn’t care.
Dave loaned a chunk of the money to Buzz, who bought out his former boss, Bill Martin. Buzz now owned the golf club they played at, plus the Interstate-4 real estate development he was still working on. Buzz was doing well.
Pedro formed a Mexican employee group and became partners with Sven in the Cabo casino operation. There were no more cash shortages.
Romano was dead but there were others that took his place. The drug business hardly noticed he was gone.
Joe Martinez’ name remained on the ballot and he received 23% of the vote for governor. His campaign asked for a recount.
Dave and Mary are happy and their relationship has grown stronger as a result of the challenges they faced. Mary is still upset about finishing second to Jill in the club Tennis Championship last year but swears that this year she will do better.
Next week Dave begins defense of his club Golf Championship. Buzz isn’t sure if he will play this year, but Dave is pushing him to enter, for Ken’s sake. Ken would have enjoyed last year’s match.
“Dave, isn’t that Chris walking toward us?” Mary said pointing towards the pool.
“You’re right, what’s she doing here, and who’s that with his arm around her?”
“It can’t be,” Mary said, grabbing Dave’s arm.
“It is,” he replied getting up to visit their friends.
“Hi Dave, hi Mary,” I guess we owe you an explanation.
“Hi Ken.”
Roland Garros
Another Thriller by Jim Plautz
Coming Soon!
The five minute wait in the tunnel seemed to last forever. Both women had dressed in separate areas of the locker room and barely acknowledged each other as they waited. It was more than pre-match nerves. It wasn’t gamesmanship. These two young women did not like each other. The icy relationship was apparent to the television cameras and was picked up on by the commentators. Bud Collins suggested the match be rescheduled for Siberia.
Lisa Bradford walked out of the tunnel onto Philippe Chartrier court smiling and waving to the adoring crowd. Ball boys carried her tennis bag and a beautiful bouquet of roses. The crowd stood and cheered.
Moments later the French crowd greeted Ambre with a chorus of boos and jeers. Only last week she had been the darling of France. Now she was seen as a villain and the associate of the Agbu, the terrorist who had nearly succeeded in blowing up Roland Garros. There was no smile on Ambre’s face. She was all business.
The winner would be French Ladies Open Champion.
Lisa’s older brother, Pete, would play Carlos tomorrow, for the French Open Men’s Championship.
The first bomb went off moments later and Paris’ oldest bridge, often called the walking bridge, crumbled into the muddy waters of the Seine River, taking 14 pedestrians to their
death. The second bomb exploded just after the first at the d’Orsay art gallery and museum. Priceless art works from Monet, Manet and other French Impressionists disappeared in smoke. The third bomb exploded at Police headquarters in downtown Paris. 15 people were killed immediately and three were wounded.
The crowd heard none of this, their attention focused on a small plane flying towards Roland Garros stadium. They strained to read the banner proclaiming “Basque Independence”. The crowd gasped as two F-4 fighter jets swooped down on the plane and four military helicopters closed in from the North. The instructions to the pilots were clear; “Blow him up unless he turns in 10 seconds.” The plane slowly turned away, followed by the military escort. The crowd was still standing when the huge explosion shook the stadium. The blast came from the park just outside Roland Garros.
Agbu, leader of the ETA, the military arm of the Basque Independence movement, took advantage of the chaos to circumvent security and enter Roland Garros. Agbu was beyond making political statements. Agbu sought revenge against the entire Bradford family.
Back Cover
OUT OF BOUNDS is a gripping novel of Corporate Finance, Drugs, and Politics, told in a backdrop of a highly competitive Golf Tournament. What starts out to be a two-day, 36 hole Match Play Club Championship between former friends, becomes a high stakes, life and death struggle with far-reaching consequences. The author has created a cast of intriguing, real life characters and themes.
“You don’t need to play golf to enjoy this book, but it helps.”
“The character development is excellent.”
“The plot has many twists and turns; very much like golf.”
Jim Plautz is a businessman, avid golfer and tennis player and father of three. Originally from Wisconsin, Jim now makes his home in Tampa, Florida with his lovely wife, Rosann. This is his first novel.
“I tried to structure a novel similar to the Richard Frey (The Day Trader, Silent Partner, etc.) books that are action thrillers set in a business environment. If I came close, I was successful”
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