The Wolf of Los Angeles

[Chapter 150: The Mules in Action]

West Los Angeles, Artel Mountain Shooting Range.

Camila gripped a Beretta handgun tightly, aimed at the target ahead, and emptied the magazine as if venting her frustrations. She switched to a new magazine and shot it empty in one go.

Beside her, Ayala restrained her arm, saying, "Let's take a break."

Camila put away the gun and magazines, following him to the break area.

It was a workday morning, and the shooting range wasn't too crowded; there were only the two of them in the break area.

Camila grabbed a cup of coffee and asked, "Did those two switch shooting ranges? They haven't been around for a while."

"No," Ayala replied quietly. "I've got inside info from the precinct that the detectives over there have been dealing with some tough cases lately, one of which is handled by Erica Ferguson's team. She's been incredibly busy."

He paused and added, "Those two are very cautious. We couldn't approach Erica, and when we tried following Hawke Osment around New Year's, our guys hadn't even come close to the perimeter when they noticed they were being watched. I had to pull everyone back in a hurry."

Camila, familiar with the dynamics among the dealers, remarked, "This person isn't simple."

Ayala asked, "Should we continue waiting?"

"We can't wait much longer," Camila understood her men's temperament well. "The brothers can't wait forever like this; they've gotten too accustomed to the wild in Mexico, and being stable in Los Angeles for half a month is their limit."

Her older brother had died at the hands of these people, and the loss amounted to millions of dollars. "Let's adjust the plan. You find channels to explore where this couple is living, see if we can identify a suitable spot to strike."

Ayala nodded slightly. "I'll contact our eyes on the ground in Los Angeles."

"Get to it," Camila urged.

Ayala stepped out of the shooting range, found a place to make a call. The mule gang had developed quite a network of informants in this area to help with shipments, and some of them had direct lines of communication with him.

These individuals were spread across various industries, and some of them weren't even at the bottom of the ladder.

Since most were addicts, the mule gang provided them with the best stuff.

...

The next afternoon, Ayala received a lead and headed downtown Los Angeles.

He waited at a bar for a while until Ramirez, the sales manager from a property development company in St. Louis, entered.

Ramirez sat across from him and quietly said, "I had a few friends check it out. One of them works for a company that developed single-family homes in Silver Lake, and they sold one to Erica Ferguson."

Ayala asked, "Are you sure about that?"

"There's no mistake," Ramirez elaborated. "Erica Ferguson is a star officer with the LAPD; many people know her. With the economy struggling due to 9/11 and the stock market crash, their sales in the Silver Lake community haven't been great. Though they haven't advertised publicly, when pitching to clients privately, they always mention Erica Ferguson and security as a selling point."

Ayala inquired, "Which house did they buy?"

Ramirez pulled a copy from his bag and handed it over to Ayala. "Here's the specific address."

Ayala took it, examined it carefully, and noted the address. "Does she often stay there?"

Ramirez had looked into this before, knowing a fair amount in the real estate business since the mule gang had once approached him and leveraged that insight.

"She didn't stay there much a few months ago," Ramirez recalled. "But it seems like over the last couple of months she's started dating someone, going over there once or twice a week."

Ayala asked, "Is it just the two of them?"

Ramirez replied, "It should be just the two of them. Erica Ferguson and her boyfriend likely use it as a place to spend the night."

"Good!" Ayala nodded, satisfied with the information that Ramirez had provided. "Is that place an open community?"

Ramirez explained, "A significant portion of the property still hasn't sold. It's currently considered a semi-open community."

After confirming details, Ayala pulled out a palm-sized bag from his pocket and handed it to Ramirez. "This is the best stuff."

Ramirez gratefully accepted it, saying, "Thanks."

Ayala left the bar, and Ramirez hurriedly exited as well.

...

Fountain Street, West Coast Media Entertainment Studio.

Compared to before, Hawke had been much more diligent at work lately. Even on weekends, he sat in front of his computer browsing blog sites.

At one side of his desk, the printed list of blog companies and data had piled up to about the thickness of his palm.

These were merely companies from the Los Angeles area.

When one industry became hot, money and personnel rushed in like a swarm -- it was the same all over the world.

The studio door opened from the outside as Caroline walked in, her heels clattering. She checked the fridge for water only to find that her usual high-end brand was missing, and she had to settle for something random.

After taking a sip and grimacing at the label -- definitely not the right taste -- Edward looked up from behind his computer. The semi-illiterate Edward was forced by Hawke to become an office clerk. He said, "Can you grab me a bottle of water? Thanks."

Caroline grabbed two bottles instead, handing one to Edward and placing another on Hawke's desk.

"Thanks," Hawke replied, not raising his head.

Caroline cautiously probed, "Boss, can we upgrade our water standard a bit?"

Hawke replied bluntly, "The sheep on the farm drink straight from the tap."

Caroline dared not push further, deciding to buy her own water in the future but glanced back at Hawke, realizing she might be able to bring him some since he was the boss.

At that moment, Edward said, "You really shouldn't drink tap water directly. I used to work at a water plant, and I heard some technicians talk about how some areas of Los Angeles still use old pipes with too much lead."

Hawke casually added, "I heard lead adds sweetness, right?"

"Not sure about that," Caroline switched back to business. "The paperwork for the non-profit and offshore companies has all been handled. Now we just wait for news."

Hawke, being a good boss, picked up the blog company materials and handed them to Caroline. "Look into these companies' information. I've already highlighted the key points. Starting tomorrow, visit them one by one and see which ones are looking to sell."

Caroline quickly flipped through the documents and reminded him, "Tomorrow's Sunday."

Hawke caught the implication: "Let's start Monday."

He suddenly realized, "It's Saturday; the Golden Globes should be starting soon."

Caroline quickly searched for the remote and switched the TV to NBC.

On the screen, the red carpet for the Golden Globes was unfolding.

Hawke set aside his work to watch the award ceremony.

Crisis management and business strategy consulting would continue, and with the establishment of the independent new media company, their business was still intertwined with the entertainment industry.

Having a direct understanding of industry dynamics was crucial.

Before long, Frank also arrived, bringing along some snacks.

The four gathered on a long couch, indulging in food and drinks while watching.

...

As the red carpet segment progressed into its later stages, the hottest figure of the night, Sarah Jessica Parker, made her entrance.

She wore a specially designed gown that emphasized her protruding stomach.

Standing in the interview zone, Sarah faced many media representatives, issuing a statement against domestic violence.

Frank commented, "As long as she doesn't sabotage herself, she can ride the anti-domestic violence wave for many years."

Caroline, who had long served as Sarah's PR manager, remarked, "In my opinion, she'll crash her image within half a year at most."

Hawke inquired, "Is she going off the rails?"

"A few days ago, she invited me out to dinner," Caroline explained briefly. "Probably to flaunt how she's spending Broderick's money while pregnant with his child, and there were two male models invited..."

Edward could hardly contain his astonishment, saying, "That's just twisted!"

Caroline agreed, adding, "Sarah said the chance of getting pregnant is rare, so if she doesn't experience it well these months, she might not get another chance."

Edward had a light bulb moment: "Boss, how about we set something up to catch her on video with those models?"

"We have a contract with Sarah," Hawke maintained a professional stance. "We can't do anything like that before the contract ends."

Frank gave Hawke a thumbs up, "You're a true moral exemplar!"

As the award ceremony kicked off, the four of them fell into a quieter mood.

...

In the film category, Miramax, controlled by Harvey Weinstein, scored big wins with The Hours and Chicago taking home Best Drama and Best Musical or Comedy, respectively.

Nicole Kidman and Renee Zellweger both won Best Actress awards in the film categories.

Watching the glamorous Nicole Kidman, Edward asked Frank, "Do you think they ran into that jerk Harvey?"

Frank replied dryly, "Winning awards is certainly beneficial for Miramax, but Disney holds absolute control over them, so most earnings go to Disney. With so many actresses in Hollywood, why does Harvey prop them up?"

He added, "Nicole Kidman's feud with Tom Cruise is well-known. Renee Zellweger comes from humble beginnings; they don't have a Douglas backing like Catherine Zeta-Jones."

Caroline interjected, "Using your body to win awards is just the basic and lowest tactic."

With a hint of pride in her voice, she continued, "Our methods are way more refined."

Frank sighed, "Hollywood's morals are getting worse."

Hawke shrugged, "The more scandals there are, the better life gets for us in the media."

As the ceremony moved to the television segments, the first major award was for Best Actress in a Musical or Comedy Series.

No surprises here, Sarah Jessica Parker took home the trophy.

Thus, Hawke's months-long plan targeting Sarah came to fruition, achieving both main objectives.

The contract stipulation required Sarah to win a Golden Globe.

Hawke's hidden goal was to see Broderick crash and burn and end up in prison, enjoying the "wolf deterrent" sprays and other enthusiastic services that come with the territory.

*****

https://www.patreon.com/Sayonara816.