Exceptional Merit (23 page)

Once they were seated, they each ordered a cocktail to start off with.  They reminisced about old times and their days together in high school and college.  Castillo asked about Balentine's wife.  They had been together since college.  Castillo felt momentarily depressed in the fact that he did not have anyone significant in his life.  The waiter, who was dressed in a white buttoned down shirt with black slacks and bow tie
, returned to the table and set their drinks down in front of them.  After placing their orders for lunch, Balentine got to the heart o f the meeting.

“So tell me Louie, how in the world have you gotten yourself involved with the I.R.A.?”

Castillo had grimaced at the question.  Although he knew it would be impossible, he was hoping to skirt the issue altogether.  Castillo at least had the luxury of knowing that he could trust Balentine, unequivocally.  Balentine was not only Castillo's oldest friend but he was also the only one who had stuck by his side through thick and thin.  While others chastised Castillo for going to I.A.B., Balentine supported him.  Balentine was true to Castillo but he still somehow felt uncomfortable sharing the details of this case with him.  He took a deep breath before answering.  “I really can't say too much because right now I'm only playing a hunch.”

He took a sip from his drink to quench the dryness in his mouth before continuing.  “If it turns out I'm right, this will be on the headlines of every paper in the city…guaranteed.”

“So…since your internal affairs…it’s a safe assumption to say you’ve got a New York City cop involved with the I.R.A.?”

Balentine’s interest was piqued.  Castillo dropped his eyes and stared down at his drink.  There was a slightly uncomfortable pause as Castillo weighed whether or not to tell his friend.  Balentine sensed the reluctance but continued to probe him any way.  “Can you tell me a little bit without getting into great detail?”

Castillo raised his head and nodded to his friend in agreement.  “All right Frank.  Just please promise me that you make sure you keep it under your hat.  I’ve been burned already and don’t even have the job’s backing on this case.  I can’t afford them finding out that I’m still working it off the queue.”

Balentine shook his head knowingly.  He empathized with his friend’s predicament.  “You have my word Louie.”

Castillo brought his glass to his lips and this time took more of a gulp than a sip.  He began to explain.  “I think I'm on to a well known and ranking member of the department, deeply involved with the Irish Republican Army.  I can't say any more than that Frank, unfortunately he's already made me but I still think I can make the case against him.”

“Wow.  All right, I won't put any more pressure on you.”

Balentine digested the information.  “Do you want to take a look at the pictures?  I had a friend of mine in the Anti-Terrorist Unit run a check through the computer for anyone with an arrest record in Northern Ireland who had a tattoo of a shamrock on his right arm.  He also reached out to the anti-terrorist unit in Northern Ireland.  We came up with eight possibles.  I pulled a few strings and was able to come up with arrest photos of every one of them as well as a picture of their tattoos.”

“It sounds like you had to call in a whole lot of favors for me.”  Castillo was humbled.  “I really didn't want you to knock yourself out over this,” Castillo lied.

He knew since he was basically on his own, he could use all of the help he could get.

“No problem Louie.  You would have done the same for me.  After all
, what are friends for?”

Castillo knew his friend was right.  He would bend over backwards for Frank Balentine if he asked him to.  Nevertheless, he still felt awkward for inconveniencing him.  “Frank I want you to know how much I appreciate this.”

“Why don't you open up the envelope and see if the information you're looking for is inside?”

Castillo agreed.  He picked up the envelope from the seat next to him.  Just as he unsealed it, the waiter came to the table with their lunch.  “Right after we eat, that is.  Perfect timing.”

Both men shared a laugh.  Castillo was torn between wanting to tear the envelope open to see what was inside, and being afraid to, in case there was nothing inside to help further his investigation.  If the latter were true, Castillo may have come to a dead end.  It was quite apparent that he could no longer tail Keegan since his cover was blown.  He couldn’t even ask Inspector Marsh for assistance, believing Marsh was responsible for tipping Keegan off.  Castillo was less than pleased that his entire case could hinge on what the contents of this one envelope held.

Balentine appeared to thoroughly enjoy his lunch while Castillo did very little more than sample his own.  Castillo ordered another drink as the anticipation was eating away at him.  Balentine noticed his friend's preoccupation with the envelope.  “The food here is outrageous.  Why don't you just open the envelope up now and then maybe you can enjoy your lunch instead of play with
it?”

Balentine reached for the envelope and held it out, offering it to Castillo.

Castillo felt like a child being scolded by his parent.  He took the envelope from Balentine.  “I suppose you're right Frank.  I'm just a little nervous that the whole case could go down the tubes if there's nothing in here to help me.”

“Well Louie, there's only one way to find out.”

Castillo was slightly uneasy as he peeled open the envelope.  Along with the photographs, the envelope contained additional information such as pedigree of each man as well as all arrest records.  These included sealed cases and juvenile arrests.  All eight of the men had tattoos of a shamrock on their right arm.  After each picture of their face, was a close up photo of the tattoo itself.  Castillo slowly examined each picture, one by one.  He noticed they had been arranged in alphabetical order, according to the subject’s last name.  The tension grew in Castillo's stomach as he looked through the first four without any luck.  When he pulled the fourth photo from the top of the pile, revealing the fifth, he felt like he hit the lottery.  “I think that's him Frank!” Castillo announced, almost out of breath.  “His hair is much shorter in this picture and he had facial hair back then, but I'm pretty sure this is my man.”

Castillo turned the photo over and read the name of Gerald Flynn, which had been written on the back.  He compared the photo that he had taken with the photo of Flynn and decided this was probably his man.  Just to be sure, he compared the two photos of the tattoos.  The photo he took in the bar of the subject’s tattoo depicted a small mole just below the shamrock. 
Bingo!
  There was no doubt, seeing the matching mole on Flynn’s arm.

Castillo felt a great sense of accomplishment knowing that his case was now stronger than ever.  It went from a hunch, to now having tangible evidence that Lieutenant James Keegan, if nothing else, was associating with an Irish terrorist.  And the case could only get stronger from here, he reasoned.  He now had a name to go with the face.  He decided he would continue to browse through the remaining photos to see what else was in there when the very next photo also caught his eye.

The next photo was of a man with an identical tattoo in the same place on the arm as Gerald Flynn's.  The man’s face also shared similar features to Gerald Flynn.  Castillo turned the photo over.  The second man's name was Patrick Flynn.  A quick study of the close up photo of the tattoo revealed no mole.  Castillo was relieved.  There was no doubt in Castillo's mind that these men had to be related, however.

“Can I ask you for one more favor, Frank?” Castillo imposed, knowing his friend wouldn't turn him down.

“You are lucky I’m in a giving mood.  Sure, just name it.”

“Can you check to see if there is any current information available on these two guys, including their current whereabouts, if known?”

“On one condition Louie.”

Castillo was curious.  “What's that?”

“On the condition that you forget all about the case for twenty minutes so you can enjoy your friggin' lunch.”

Castillo chuckled at his friend’s joke and agreed.  “You got yourself a deal.”

Balentine’s recommendation had been right on the money.  The food was excellent and the service was great.  Castillo figured this place would not be cheap but it was worth every cent.  Not only for the food but for the priceless information he acquired.  After deciding to pass on dessert, the waiter brought the check.  Both men reached for it but Castillo's hands were quicker.  “This is my treat Frank; it's the least I can do.”

Balentine shook his head with a smile on his face.  He snatched the check from Castillo’s hand, reached into his back pocket and retrieved his wallet.  He showed his friend a credit card.  “Don't be silly Louie, this is on the Bureau.  This was official business after all.  You’ve got all those pictures to prove it.”

“Oh yeah, I almost forgot about the fringe benefits of working for the feds.”  Castillo smiled and put his wallet away.

“I told you to go with the Bureau instead of the police department.”  Once again, Balentine teased.

Castillo returned to the office shortly before two o'clock.  He walked directly to his desk, opened his briefcase and removed the file on Keegan.  He opened the file and stared at the pictures he had taken of James Keegan and Gerald Flynn.  What
the two of them could possibly be up to, he wondered.  While he didn’t know, one thing he did know was that he was determined to find out.  Castillo was so distracted by his own thoughts and photos that he never saw Inspector Marsh walk over to him.  “Louie, have you got a minute?”

Marsh caught Castillo off guard and Castillo quickly and as nonchalantly as possible stuffed the photos back into the case folder.  “Sure boss,” nervously responded Castillo.

Marsh then invited Castillo to join him in his office.  Castillo followed his supervisor into the office. 

“Louie, close the door behind you please,” Marsh requested of him.

Once the door was closed, Marsh motioned with an open arm, inviting Castillo to have a seat on one of the blue fabric chairs in front of his desk.  Castillo could feel his palms begin to sweat.  He took a seat opposite Inspector Marsh’s desk waiting to see what he wanted.  Marsh stared out of the window momentarily before taking the seat as his desk.  “Louie I haven't seen too much paper on the case you've been working on.  I was curious to know how it's progressing.”

Castillo thought for a moment, trying to decide how to respond.  He feigned confusion and crinkled his eyebrows.  “Which case is that Inspector?”  He was trying to buy precious seconds to think of the answers he knew he would still have to come up with.

Marsh grew slightly annoyed and it showed in his tone of voice.  “How many cases have you been working on lately, Louie?” inquired Marsh as he sensed the apprehensiveness in Castillo.

“Oh, you mean the case on Keegan.”

“Yes I mean the case on Keegan.”

“Well, I haven't really made too much progress at all.”

Castillo lied in an attempt to protect the integrity of the investigation.  “In fact, I was thinking I might've been mistaking about him after all.  I'm going to just close the case out I think.”

Now it was Marsh who crinkled his eyebrows.  “Really?”
  Marsh was clearly surprised by this revelation.  “I thought you were so high on this case and sure Keegan was dirty only a few weeks ago.”

Castillo felt backed in a corner.  “I did.  I guess we all make mistakes, don't we boss?”

“Louie, do me a favor.  Get the case folder for me; I want to look through it.  You haven’t submitted a single
five
for me to review in nearly two weeks now.”

“No problem boss.  I’ve fallen a bit behind on the paperwork but I can bang out a couple of
fives
and bring the folder up to date.”

Castillo got up from the chair and left Marsh's office.  He closed the door behind him and walked back to his own desk.  He removed the file from his briefcase, opened it up and as quickly and smoothly as he could he removed the photos he had just received as well as many of the more incriminating documents that he had yet to tell his supervisor about.  He put these items in his desk drawer and locked it.

He inserted a pink DD5 into his typewriter and detailed a fictitious surveillance he conducted of Lieutenant Keegan.  He then did the same regarding Dan O’Brien.  He signed the bottom of the forms and now added them to his case folder.  The case was now up to date…at least as far as the paperwork was concerned.

He returned to Marsh's office and presented the file to Marsh for review.  Castillo stood in front of the Inspector’s desk patiently as Marsh skeptically read through the file.  The five minutes it took for Marsh to examine the file were painstaking to Castillo.  Marsh put the file down on top of his desk.  Looking up at Castillo, he removed his eyeglasses and put them down on top of the file.  “So you think your chasing shadows on this one now Louie?”

Castillo could sense the doubt in his voice.  “Yes I do, Inspector.  I was going to ask you if I could close it out as unfounded.”

“Well if you feel there's nothing going on, then close it out.  But Louie, if you dig up anything else I want you to report it to me immediately.  I want to be kept abreast of anything you find out in this case.  No surprises.  Got it?”  Marsh handed Castillo back the file.