Jake finished backing the trailer up to the loading dock while waiting for Park to arrive. He shut down the diesel engine, pondering what he had learned from Peter Newman and wondering about the contents of the forty-foot container. If the general was right, the steel box held currency—real or counterfeit—to be used for buying centrifuges and other nuclear weapons components for the North Korean government. But if Jake understood Park correctly, the crime boss intended to use some or all of what was in the container to pay a three-million-dollar ransom.
It was a few minutes after three and Jake was surprised there was no one here to open the warehouse. Time seemed to be of the essence and he assumed Park and his minions would be on-scene when he arrived. Wondering if there had been a problem, Jake had begun to punch in Park’s number when he spotted the GMC Yukon turning the corner.
Park was driving, accompanied by the Green Hornet and Kato—the two-man security team Park considered to be most reliable. A rental box truck followed Park with three Asian men cramped in the front seat. Both vehicles turned into the alley entrance of the warehouse and Jake knew that in a matter of minutes the loading-dock door would be opened.
As the door slowly rose he spotted the six men through his side-view mirrors. They scrambled around, moving cargo inside the warehouse, making room for the contents of the container. He jumped down from the cab, approached Park, and asked, “Any word, sir?”
“Nothing yet, Jake. Please, let’s hurry.”
Jake pulled the one-page bill of lading from his back pocket and handed it to Park. In his other hand Jake gripped a long pair of bolt cutters. He and Park walked to the back of the shipping container and Jake grabbed the thin metal seal attached to the lock.
Jake examined the serial numbers on the seal and read them off to Park, who compared the numbers to those listed on the bill of lading.
Park said, “Not that I doubted you but the numbers match. Open it.”
Jake wanted to reinforce his integrity. “Mr. Park, I want to assure you no one has tampered with this container since it left Korea. As you can see, the seal is intact.”
Park nodded but was anxious to get the container unloaded. “Yes, I see that. Just get it open.”
Using the bolt cutters, Jake easily clipped the seal and opened the cumbersome steel doors to a container packed from floor to ceiling with . . . rolls of fabric!
Jake was shocked. How would yards of cotton and polyester fund the three-million-dollar ransom to save Jenny and Gracie? This couldn’t be the large shipment of cash Newman had told him about just a few hours ago.
After one of the workers backed the box truck within a few feet of the container, Park ordered the unloading to begin. The men quieted and began the arduous task of unloading the multicolored rolls of fabric, encased in clear plastic, each numbered on the outside in four-inch figures. Park’s two bodyguards stood at the ready. Though weapons weren’t visible Jake assumed the men were well armed.
Jake and Park stood off to the side as Park carefully watched each roll come off the truck. Two men would awkwardly grab a roll and toss it into the box truck, where the third man restacked it. To Jake each roll was identical: six feet wide, a foot in diameter, fifty feet long when unrolled. Park was anxious, mumbling with each roll that was removed. Jake noted the frustration but said nothing.
It was a warm afternoon and sweat was pouring off the men as they moved the rolls of fabric from the container to the truck.
“You guys want something to drink?” asked Jake, knowing Tommy kept a refrigerator full of beer and soda in his office.
The men didn’t respond and Jake wasn’t sure if they understood English. Park didn’t seem anxious to translate and before Jake could ask a second time, Park pointed to a roll of fabric and hollered, “That one.”
The two workers holding the roll looked at Park. Park repeated his declaration in Korean. The men stepped toward Park and placed the roll in front of him. Satisfied after examining the number, he ordered the men to deliver the fabric roll to the office.
Jake was as confused as the workers.
Once inside the office, the men placed the roll on the table next to the desk. Park ordered the workers to return and continue unloading the container. He instructed the Green Hornet and Kato to remain in the hallway.
Jake pulled out two Cokes from the refrigerator. “Do you want me to give them anything to drink?”
Park offered a dismissive backhanded wave as he closed the door. Jake popped the top to his drink and took a long sip as Park ripped at the thick clear plastic encasing the roll of fabric. Unable to tear it and seeing Park’s frustration, Jake whipped out the switchblade from his rear pocket, the blade springing open. The crime boss smiled as Jake easily cut the wrapping.
“Why rolls of fabric?” asked Jake, still trying to come to grips with the criminality of this latest act.
“Imported fabric is a customs violation if it’s out of quota. It carries a civil not a criminal penalty. I wanted to minimize the risk of getting this shipment through the Mexican ports and into the United States.” Park paused, then said, “I still do not know who kidnapped my daughter and granddaughter. Someone from our community, maybe even someone from the inside. I can trust no one, not even my own people.”
Jake started to speak. “Mr. Park, I would never—”
Park interrupted. “Jake, I trusted Tommy. He died trying to save me. Now I must trust you. You knew nothing about the contents of this container, only that I was bringing it in, just as you had done for me before.” Park, still focused on the rolls, said, “Now, help me unroll the fabric.”
“Mr. Park, I don’t understand.”
“Unroll the fabric.” It was an order, not a request.
As Jake and Park unrolled about twenty feet of the six-foot-wide fabric, allowing it to fall to the floor, they came upon stacks of hundred-dollar bills wrapped neatly, several rows deep.
Jake was genuinely astonished. “What the . . .”
Park held up a bundle. “These are Supernotes. Counterfeits made in North Korea.”
Jake grabbed a bundle and held it up to the light. It even had what appeared to be a genuine Federal Reserve wrapper. Removing a single bill, he examined it closely. “I’ve heard about these. They look perfect.”
Park nodded. “They almost are. This is how I will get back my Jenny and Gracie.”
Jake looked confused. “You’re going to pay the ransom in counterfeit bills?”
“Yes.”
“Why? They won’t be able to tell the difference and neither can the banks. Whoever took my family will not be any wiser as to the legitimacy of the currency.”
Jake cautioned, “But if they get caught with the bills, it could come back on you.”
“As long as my daughter and granddaughter are safely returned, it doesn’t matter. I will get my money back.”
Jake considered asking how. Instead he said, “Is there enough here to pay the ransom?”
Park nodded. “There are three hundred packets of ten thousand dollars each. That’s three million, just like the ransom demand.”
Jake understood. “That’s why you think someone within your organization is in on the kidnapping. The kidnappers knew about this shipment and the exact amount.”
Park said, “It seems a little too convenient the ransom is for the amount I just received.”
“Who knew about the Supernotes?”
“Tommy knew the money was coming in but didn’t know it was Supernotes. I told him I was bringing in the money to buy certain hard-to-get items for shipment back to Korea. He and my superiors in North Korea are the only ones who knew of this shipment and the amount.”
“Your superiors. Who are they?” Jake asked.
Park pondered the question for a moment and said, “They are the people who sent me this container and its contents. They are expecting me to purchase certain items with this money. I will tell you more when the time is right.”
“Why did Tommy know about the amount of money in this shipment?”
“I had to trust him because I needed to make sure this container arrived. I was unwilling to chance having it shipped through the Port of Long Beach. I knew I could get it safely into Mexico but had to be guaranteed it would clear the border in San Diego. You successfully brought in my previous container and I knew from Tommy you brought in a container for him and two containers for Yeong. You proved your value and reliability.”
Jake took a sip of the Coke. “So I guess I was hanging out if this didn’t make it across the border.”
“You passed. That is all that matters.”
Jake said, “So other than those overseas, no one but Tommy and you knew the contents of this container.”
“You are correct, Jake, but no one overseas would be behind this.”
“Why would you say that?”
“I am the purchasing agent for some very difficult-to-obtain items needed in North Korea to fulfill their obligations to others.”
“And you’re going to buy these items with Supernotes?”
“Yes.”
“So what are you supposed to buy with this cash?” queried Jake casually.
Park looked long and hard at him before responding. The North Korean intelligence officer’s life had become decidedly more complicated in the last seventy-two hours. He needed a replacement for Tommy and decided on the spot the “round-eye” could be trusted.
“I not only import goods. I’m also in the export business and I need your services for both,” said Park.
“What do you export?” asked Jake.
“The three million was sent here to buy advanced magnetic-suspension centrifuges and special electronic switches and equipment.”
“I don’t know much about electronics, but if the money’s right I’m in.”
Park smiled. He understood avarice and said, “I have been told that the parts are for manufacturing what the American military calls permissive action links—PALs. I need a Caucasian to buy this equipment here and elsewhere to deflect suspicion.”
“What’s a PAL?” asked Jake, hoping all this was being picked up on his miniature recording device.
“Every nuclear weapon has a PAL—it is how nuclear weapons are armed. Each weapon has a different PAL code. The correct code must be entered or it will not detonate.”
“And you can buy centrifuges and PAL devices here?”
“No, but a round-eye with three million can buy a test shipment of the necessary parts. If the equipment is satisfactory to our scientists in Pyongyang and their client, we will be sent much more money for other acquisitions.”
“So who is the client, and does he have the money to make this worthwhile given the risks we’re going to take?” asked Jake.
“I am not supposed to know, but it is Iran. The Iranians have shut down their fissile material enrichment operations to comply with the new international agreement on Iranian nuclear arms. That’s why Pyongyang and Tehran have signed a compact to do all that work in North Korea.”
Jake shook his head and said, “The ayatollahs just contracted it out?”
“You could say that,” Park commented. “But now I must have your help, Jake—and you will be very well compensated.”
Jake paused before responding, staggered by Park’s open discussion of nuclear weapons caught on his undercover recording device. “But how can you use this cash for buying nuke weapons stuff if you’ve already passed it on as ransom to the kidnappers?”
“You are very astute, Jake. That is why I trust you. You are correct. We must deliver this cash to the kidnappers, recover Jenny and Gracie, and then retrieve the money—and we must do this quickly before my superiors in Pyongyang realize what I have done.”
The undercover agent paused for a moment, then said, “Someone with the kidnappers must have known you were receiving this money—and the amount. That’s why the ransom was set at three million for Jenny and Gracie. If you and Tommy are the only ones here who knew the timing and the amount, then it must be someone from overseas. Do you have enemies inside your government?”
In almost a whisper Park said, “I am dealing with honorable men overseas. The family is sacred. They would never target the family.”
Jake shook his head. “We still don’t know who’s behind this kidnapping.”
Park pointed to two burlap bags. “As I said, there are supposed to be three hundred packets of bills, ten thousand dollars per packet. Each of us will count a hundred fifty packets and put them in a bag. Place both bags in my car and we will return to my home to see if there is any news.”