America 1982-Chapter 333 - 24: Helping Others with Joy_3

He turned around in disappointment and walked towards the door, muttering a complaint as he did so, "Maybe my boss is an actor too, it’s quite common for lawyers to lie and deceive, right?"

"Let me remind you, officers don’t lie outside of the courtroom," Earl said with a smirk as he watched him leave.

After the police had left, Chapman took a deep breath of relief, but Earl’s expression turned grave, "Sir, you’re in big trouble. You should know that lawyers don’t just show up to help ordinary people out of the goodness of their hearts."

"Big trouble? But... it was an accident, your information just now can testify for me, Mr. Rash," Chapman replied, puzzled.

Earl shook his head, "Intimidating a cop, that’s just a low-level stunt. Do you think Big10 is going to believe it’s true? I’ve received word that he’s hired another well-known Black lawyer, preparing to sue both you and your television station, of course, including my client. We’re both innocents here; my client was merely testing signal transmission technology, and your station just happened to go live at that time. Two innocent occurrences coincided, resulting in this accident. Do you think you can come up with $150,000 for legal fees and prepare $2 million for compensation in case of defeat?"

Chapman’s eyes widened in alarm at the numbers that Earl threw out just after he had let out a sigh of relief.

"Judging by your expression, things don’t look too optimistic," Earl said, sighing and then looking back at Chapman, "My client, Stanley Jack, is a broadcasting enthusiast. He’s been tuning signals and such because he’s thinking about setting up a small television station. If you don’t mind, I can offer a foolproof suggestion to avoid any losses for you."

"What suggestion?"

Earl spoke calmly, "Let my client invest his state-of-the-art transmitter equipment into BHH, becoming a shareholder of BHH Television Station. This way, two defendants become one, and I alone can handle the legal matters instead of you hiring your own lawyer. We won’t have to do duplicative work, and we’re not interested in interfering with BHH’s operations. Just let Mr. Stanley Jack indulge his technical passions, and if you think I’m joking, we can sign a formal contract, binding each other by law to fulfill our respective obligations. Please believe me, I just enjoy helping out."

"I don’t think that’s a good idea, Mr. Rash, I..." Chapman shook his head, rejecting the proposition; he didn’t want others to have a say in his station’s operations. But before he could finish, the phone rang.

Chapman picked up the receiver to hear a cold male voice, "Mr. Chapman Tang? This is the attorney representing Lang Hodgins, also known as Big10. Sutherland Campbell Law Firm speaking. I am calling to ask for your television station’s detailed address to ensure you can receive our legal notice. May I..."

"Hold on a second." Chapman hung up and turned to Earl Rash, "Just a minor shareholder, without interfering in BHH’s day-to-day operations?"

...

Ed Finch sat dejectedly in the patrol car, driving off a couple of streets before stopping to light a gloomy cigarette. The passenger side door opened, and Bernard, the eldest of the three Big Jack brothers, sat down, expressionless, eyeing ahead.

"Who the hell gave you the courage to get into my car, nigger?" Ed, with his cigarette in his mouth, turned his head with a fierce look and asked Bernard.

Bernard also turned his head, his expression equally murderous, "Hey, pig, you think I can’t make you learn how to smoke that cig with your ass in less than ten seconds?"

"Just like you used to do to those idiots in Central Prison?" Ed said contemptuously, but then he smiled and raised his large hand for a shake with Bernard.

Although Ed had suspected that Earl in Chapman’s office was an actor, in fact, Ed was the hired actor.

He was a member of the Compton executioner’s police proxy gang. The incident last night, with the local Blacks witnessing the racist song on TV and becoming incited, wasn’t a big deal in truth. It was merely a broadcast accident, not something the police would usually handle.

In fact, the call to the police was made from a public phone by Stanley, the second eldest, and then the youngest, Josh, had led people to smash the hip-hop singer’s sports car, giving Ed the opportunity to step in and scare Chapman.

Bernard lit a cigarette, "Did the old guy crap his pants in fear?"

"Of course not, Bernard, it’s just a broadcast screw-up, not like his wife gave birth to a white kid. It’s not that scary," Ed replied, "Speaking of, why are you messing with television stations?"

"I don’t know either, boss’s orders. The boss introduced a big Black guy to us, told us to follow his lead. If the Black boss likes messing with TV stations, we just have to keep him happy. Of course, Stanley said there would be perks for us too," Bernard puffed on his cigarette.

Seeing that Bernard was unwilling to divulge more details, Ed didn’t press further but hesitated to mention something else, "I know this isn’t the time to bring it up, but I... Bernard, I still have to say, that money I and a few other fellows from the squad owe might not be able to be paid on time..."

"Don’t make a fuss, buddy, we’re family, it can be delayed," Bernard said as he took out his wallet and handed Ed a stack of bills.

"What’s this?"

"The due amount for that payment. You’ll repay me when it’s time; Stanley says business is business. We can’t let people think anyone can break our rules about repaying on time. I can cover for you privately, but you must pay me back when it’s due," Bernard said earnestly to Ed, "And I’ve been too busy lately to go to the station. I’m thinking of entrusting some of the financial work to you, Ed."

Ed took the money, "This is the benefit of working for big shots, huh? You’re even willing to give up lucrative work like lending money to cops, clearly, you’re about to make big money, Bernard."

"You better do everything I tell you before I become a big shot, so I can guarantee you’ll make big money one day too, and not just be a nigger cop who can only get laid by the cheapest street trash," Bernard said with a smile, patting Ed’s shoulder.

At that moment, his cell phone rang, and Earl’s voice came through, "The old man at the television station has taken the bait. Start moving on to the next one, Big Jack."