Chapter 70

Mark Pace sat in his cell, weighing his options. The feds came by once a week to see if he was ready to talk. Meanwhile, his lawyer remained confident that the DNA evidence could be proven tainted by medical experts. After all, the body had been in the ground for more than a year before discovery. It was all a matter of getting the right expert on the stand, he said. Evidence of motive was weak since there were so many other suspects who had been leveraged by Damon into signing contracts. The jury had to vote beyond a reasonable doubt to convict him. In today’s political climate, no one was in a hurry to convict Black men.

The main decision to be made was still there. Did he roll over or not? But Mark understood there was no upside to it. If he cut a deal, he would still face 20 years in prison. The only thing he would gain would be Leon in a cell next to him. He had nothing else to give them. After days of thought, he could not do it. Leon was his blood. He had shared so many successes with him. Besides, there was still a chance that Leon or his contacts could intervene on his behalf. If Mark rolled over, the jig was up. No one would help him then. So he resolved to keep his mouth shut and fight the case all the way to the jury.

Leon felt guilty about Mark rotting in prison. But there was nothing he could do about it. Mark had a good lawyer, and maybe he could get him off. Besides, Leon had worked hard to get back into business with the organization and did not want to jeopardize his new role. His meeting with Mrs. Fields had produced the desired effect. The heat was off, and the Black Lives Matter idiots had gone off to harass other targets of opportunity. If the lawyer got Mark off, they might return, but he would cross that bridge when he came to it.

Simon held his own update meeting with the colleagues.

“Allan Groosjean is on board. He has agreed to give us the same information he gives the competition.”

“Excellent. Hopefully other targets will see the light in a similar manner.”

“We’ll address them one by one going forward.”

“What about Leon?”

“He’s performing well and happy to be back with us.”

“And his cousin?”

“The case is proceeding slowly. Nothing else to report so far.

“Keep a close eye on the proceedings for anything that may impact the organization.”

Detective Jones and his FBI partners held their regular briefing at headquarters.

“Mark Pace’s lawyer is filing motion after motion for forensic review and medical expert testimony. They’re going hard after the DNA evidence.”

“That’s to be expected. Without any witnesses, that’s all we have.”

“What are the odds?”

“Hard to tell in today’s political climate. No one is in a hurry to convict Black men these days. And the lawyers know it.”

“So we don’t think he will roll on Leon.”

“Seems unlikely. With his lawyer encouraging him, he’ll probably fight it out all the way to the jury.”

“Perhaps, but keep visiting him to keep the flame alive. We’ve seen other surprise flips from the accused in the past.”

“Right.”