Chapter 13
The first delivery vehicle, an ice cream truck, was only twenty minutes away from its destination and the Headman was already en route to the western warehouse with the keys in hand. If things went according to plan, he would have all the raw materials he required for the synthesis of his street narcotics in one secure location within the next few hours. He would then be able to produce enough of his special drugs to increase his earnings tenfold. With that kind of money at his disposal, he could easily afford to pay for any and all available treatments for his dear mother, and the resources to travel anywhere in the world to obtain them.
He drove his convertible over the recently abandoned shipping road to the back of the property and parked close to the front entrance. Using the flashlight on his cell phone, he unlocked the padlock securing the overhead garage door to loading dock one. The door didn’t want to budge at first, but eventually, he was able to force it open. Once inside, he checked the walls for visible circuit breakers in order to illuminate the large area. His perseverance paid off when he flipped on the circuit breakers that energized the overhead lights. The mercury filaments began to grow inside their recessed fixtures and the large open warehouse began to come into full view as the increasing intensity of the bulbs began to slowly illuminate the vast area.
“This is way better than I could have hoped. This space is enormous and it appears that there are still forklifts and some conveyor belts still in place.”
He rubbed his grubby hands together, as only an evil genius could do, then he pulled out a burner phone in order to send a message to an individual he referred to as simply, the Mechanic. A few moments later his phone lit up with a phone number. He pressed the send button on his phone. The line trilled once and a deep voice answered.
“Are you in need of my services good sir? Please understand that if it is a large job, I will require a place to stay and some of my payment up front.”
“Funny you should say that Mechanic. I do have a rather specialized job that requires your skills, and there is a place set aside for you to stay at while you get things up and running. Are you interested?”
The cartel lord already knew the answer to his question and was already filling in the address on his text screen as he received his verbal reply.
“Text me the address, and I’ll be there within 24 hours time.”
The Headman hit send and smiled, not just because the Mechanic was on board to help get the place up and running, but because he could see the approaching headlights on the first official delivery vehicle. It was an “Eat it All” ice cream truck driven by a rather unremarkable man in a white uniform and a goofy white paper hat. The truck drove through the open loading bay door and rang its bell before coming to a stop. As the rear door of the truck opened, two fully geared Headhunters emerged. They stopped to salute their leader and then inquired where they should begin unpacking the goods.
“Leave them in the truck for now. I need the three of you to help me scout out the rest of this area as everything is new to me at the moment. I will require your assistance to assess the current inner workings of the building, and as long as we get everything that was being stored at the docks transported here, I will be more than satisfied.” The two troopers nodded in agreement. “You there, driver. I need you to make sure that as the next trucks arrive they all park over on the left side of the building. Tell the individual crews not to unpack the goods. Have them secure their vehicle and leave all materials on board. Then have them report to their squadron leader for further instructions. Am I understood?”
The driver stammered a bit but managed an audible response. “Yes sir, Mr. Headman. I will make sure of that for you.”
As the lead drug dealer led his foot soldiers in the exploration of the recently acquired warehouse, the sounds of a second delivery truck could already be heard pulling inside. This one was a “Farm at the Edge of the World” milk truck. It too was driven by a uniformed worker and escorted by two armed troopers, the back door could be heard opening as the two emerged. The Headman smiled as he heard the ice cream truck driver delivering his orders to the new arrivals. At this rate, it would not be long before all his precious cargo was successfully vacated from the storage facility and their previous presence was completely eradicated from the Newark pier.
The impending issue with Captain Teach and his employer, Zartan, and the Dreadnoks, had left him uneasy, and he didn’t want to run the risk of some rival either stealing or torching up his product in retaliation. He would not put it passed the Dreadnoks to put out a bounty on his organization or to offer a sizeable payout for an outside mercenary to sabotage his storage facility. His adversaries were under the impression that the Headhunters were just a fledgling organization, but the truth was, they had been secretly expanding underground for nearly five years. In that time, they had become much more than a group of small-time drug dealers. He had grown his criminal empire into a sizeable cartel. In addition to street narcotics, he was also dealing in illegal firearms and fugitive trafficking. These lucrative activities coupled with his charisma, and high IQ, had allowed him to rise in the ranks of the most dangerous drug lords, and to extend his influence well beyond the small barrio of Irvington, New Jersey.
The Dreadnok nation was a bit more established and through its network on international biker chapters, had the potential to inflict irreparable damage upon his current organization. What the criminal mastermind wanted to avoid was the threat and costs of a turf war looming over his shoulder. Up until this time, the two organizations had peacefully coexisted and he had even employed members of the Dreadnoks and vice versa. If there was a chance to salvage the relationship, he would find it, but in the meantime, it didn’t hurt to exercise caution. In addition, he found the new scenery and corporate perks quite agreeable.
As the three sorted through the boxes of various materials on the lower level, they found a variety of replacement machinery parts, light bulbs, and even unused packing supplies.
“Go and gather up some more stormtroopers. I need to get the majority of those boxes upstairs and easily accessible for when the Mechanic gets here.”
“Yes sir, I’ll go get the others to assist as soon as I carry this box up.”
The six foot three soldier easily hoisted the box of steel gears and cogs over his head and ascended the stairs to the main level. The second trooper followed directly behind him. As the two emerged from the staircase, they noticed that a third and fourth delivery truck had already parked in the loading bays. With the current rate of progress, the dock warehouse should be completely empty within the next two hours. The newest arrival of Headhunters had exited their delivery trucks and was eager to assist the others with carrying the boxes of mechanical parts and some of the smaller machinery up to the ground level.
The final truck arrived at 2:13 a.m with Gristle arriving thirty minutes later in his own private vehicle. Danimal walked confidently into the new warehouse and looked around. The delivery trucks were lined up along the western wall and the place was a bustle with activity as the various squadrons had been assigned to various tasks within the warehouse. Some of the troopers were busy replacing light fixtures, while others were already sweeping up areas and removing accumulated garbage from years passed. It didn’t take long before he found his employer. The Headman was overseeing all operations from the window of an elevated foreman’s office located on the eastern wall. He walked over to the staircase and was greeted by two armed guards. They stepped aside and allowed him to begin his ascent. The building had an extremely high ceiling to accommodate the arrival and servicing of many different types of vehicles including railroad cars. The steel tracks were still present in the old concrete floor bisecting the interior floor plan. Therefore the presence of the elevated overseer office was a useful addition. He knocked on the door and waited to be let in. The door opened seconds later and he was greeted by the well-dressed Headman.
“So nice to see you again Danimal. What do you think of the new facilities? Granted, I know that it could use a good cleaning, but you have to be able to see it for the much bigger picture.” He motioned out the window so his second in command could better see the floor plan. “The Mechanic will be here within the next day in order to make modifications and get everything back up and running. Then we can begin stage two of our plans.”
Gristle absorbed the aerial view and could easily see the potential that the new place held.
“I like it, boss. It’s older, but it’s got good bones. Do you think we’ll be able to efficiently synthesize our products from inside here?”
“Oh my dear boy, we have an entire corporation populated by skilled biochemists and engineers at our disposal. If we can’t get the work done using the facilities here, I’m sure the good doctor will be able to provide the necessary assistance. Better yet, in a few short months, Bacro Industries will be expanding and joining the ranks of an international corporation. With a manufacturing presence in Europe and the Middle East, we will successfully be able to remove our current middleman from the equation of all future shipments. The Headhunters may soon have the monopoly on street distribution both here and throughout parts of Europe, Africa, and Asia, and our rivals will be none the wiser. If our expansion efforts continue to go as planned, we will soon be able to eradicate the competition down south. The survivors can then either join us or be eliminated!”
As he slammed his fist onto the steel table before him, the expression on his face conveyed the severity of his proclamation and spoke volumes about his future goals for the Headhunters.
Gristle nodded in complete agreement. This is what he had been waiting for. He knew that the Headman was the “up and coming drug lord” in the United States, and he had always believed that he had the brains and business savvy to extend his influence well beyond its borders. He couldn’t think of anyone else he would rather be employed by.
“I like the sounds of it boss. For too many years, the Mexican and Colombian cartels have had a stranglehold on our growing drug empire, while our foreign supplier’s costs have prevented us from experiencing exponential gains. It’s time for a new leader to reign supreme!”
“Yes, Mr. Rogers. I couldn’t agree more.”
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