American Detective: From TV Rookie to Seasoned Cop

The next day, Jane sent Jack an address, which led him to a motel on the outskirts of El Paso. Jack drove there and knocked on the door of a room.

Jane, with the security chain still latched, opened the door just a crack, her lips pursed in mock seriousness. "Password?"

Jack glanced around to make sure no one was nearby, then leaned in and gave her a quick peck. "FBI, open up!"

Jane chuckled, her playful mood evident as she opened the door wide. She quickly summarized her experience from the previous night. She had taken Matt and Alessandro on a trip to Tucson, where they brought back several Mexican migrants from an illegal immigrant shelter.

"They're in the next room now, and it looks like they've pretty much confirmed everything."

As she spoke, Matt knocked on the door and entered, his expression full of mischief. "Hope I'm not interrupting anything?"

Though he still had his usual irreverent attitude, it was clear he was in a great mood.

"Any progress?" Jack ignored his teasing.

Matt's excitement grew as he answered, "Guillermo wasn't lying. We've found the entrance to the tunnel near Highway 86. Drones are watching it 24/7."

"And the next step?" Jack, always tactful, played along, allowing Matt to lead.

"This tunnel is the fastest route back to Mexico. We need to push Manuel Díaz to use it and report to his boss, 'The Executioner,' Fausto Alarcón. Any ideas?" Matt's tone carried a mix of inquiry and a slight test, as if gauging Jack's response.

"Get the IRS involved, hit them where it hurts—their wallets. Money is everything. If there's trouble with their finances, Manuel Díaz will have no choice but to return and report to Alarcón. After all, Fausto is just his cousin, not his father."

Jack had figured out Matt's plan on his drive over. Since their ultimate target was Fausto Alarcón, there was no need to touch Manuel Díaz yet. If they arrested Díaz now, Alarcón would surely catch wind. As the third-ranking figure in the Sonora Cartel and a local Mexican power broker, finding him would be even harder than tracking Ian Doyle.

"I heard you've got connections in the IRS?" Matt asked, a sly smile creeping across his face.

"Heh, something like that."

---

The interrogation of Guillermo hadn't just uncovered the tunnel. He'd sold out Díaz completely, revealing money laundering channels, his usual hangouts, and even his hideouts.

With their roles divided, Jack contacted his IRS friend, Ray King, to request help in Phoenix. The best candidate for the job, naturally, was Dana, Chris's girlfriend. Jack made sure to prioritize his own allies whenever possible.

Jane, on the other hand, reached out to her old anti-kidnapping team, since dismantling the Sonora Cartel's money laundering network in Arizona wasn't something SEALs could handle. Her police team was a better fit.

Meanwhile, Matt and Alessandro tracked Díaz's movements, a task well-suited for the CIA.

Two days later, everything was ready. Dana, who had been vacationing at the Wolf Brothers farm in Los Angeles, rushed to Phoenix. She met Jack in a bank parking lot.

"Long time no see, Jack." Dana greeted him with a warm hug, standing on her tiptoes to press her cheek against his.

"This is Dana Cummings from the IRS, also my good friend's fiancée. And this is Jane Banner, my current partner," Jack introduced the two women.

Jane's previously tense expression vanished as she shook hands with Dana warmly.

"Let's talk inside," Matt called out from a van parked nearby.

Inside the FBI surveillance van, the live feed from the bank's internal cameras was already up and running. Dana was no longer the petite accountant who needed Chris's protection. After two years as an IRS investigator, she'd seen her fair share of intense situations. She jumped straight into her role, getting down to business.

"So, who's our target this time?"

Matt pointed at a blonde woman with a white purse visible on the screen, currently conducting business at the counter. "Her. They have dozens of operatives like her, each depositing $9,000 daily. We need you to follow these accounts and freeze every related transfer. Can you do that?"

Dana nodded but looked puzzled. "That's easy enough, but you know this will only be a temporary fix, right? As soon as they get a decent lawyer, they'll be able to reclaim the funds, even from the IRS."

As if hearing something hilarious, Matt burst into laughter, and soon the whole van was filled with chuckles. Only Dana remained serious, nudging Jack to get the others to focus.

"Come on, guys. I'm serious," she scolded.

Matt, though laughing, kept glancing at Jack for confirmation. Jack nodded, signaling that Dana was trustworthy.

"Ahem, the thing is," Matt explained, "our goal isn't Díaz or the money. It's the Sonora Cartel. We need to throw them into disarray."

Jack chimed in with a grin, "And maybe soon, that money will become ownerless."

Dana's eyes lit up. "Okay, if that's the case, I can freeze those accounts for at least six months through legal channels. That should be enough time, right?"

Matt waved it off. "Plenty. In fact, the money doesn't concern us at all. Let the higher-ups worry about that."

Dana didn't press further. She stepped out of the surveillance van and entered the bank to present her credentials. Meanwhile, Matt turned to Jane.

"Tell your guys to be ready. As soon as the suspect leaves the bank, grab them. Make sure they don't swallow the receipt."

Jane picked up her radio and whispered instructions.

Soon, the blonde woman with the white purse walked out of the bank, heading toward a GMC pickup. A group of plainclothes officers quickly moved in, pinning her to the ground. At the same time, others pulled a man from the driver's seat at gunpoint.

Jane returned shortly, holding a black sports bag stuffed with wads of cash. "All set. Want to take a look?"

Matt quickly declined. "No, no, we can't show our faces. This needs to be IRS-led, so Díaz won't know what's going on. We need to stay hidden—our best advantage is that he doesn't see us coming."

Jane nodded in understanding and handed the sports bag to her officers. She returned to the van to wait. An hour later, Dana came out of the bank with several sheets of paper, copies of the bank records.

"All done. These guys are smart."

"What do you mean?" Jack asked, taking the bank records. The columns of numbers made his head spin. Even Matt, looking over his shoulder, frowned.

"I'm not a math expert, but I know enough to ask—why is there a minus sign in front of these numbers?" Matt pointed to the total amount at the top, which showed over $17 million in negative figures.

Dana shook her head, exasperated. "That's a loan account. These transfers are used to repay the loan, so it doesn't show up in the system as cash. Instead, it offsets the loan balance, which means it doesn't get reported to the IRS or DEA, making it harder to track."

"Uh, so this negative amount is the total?" Matt asked, pointing to the $17 million figure. "Seems a little low."

Dana rolled her eyes. "This is just one account. The total we've found so far is $150 million. I'll probably have to stay in Phoenix for a while. I'd guess that once we dig everything out, the total might double."

Matt whistled, his wrinkled face breaking into a mischievous grin. "Well, the IRS can handle that."

Jack handed him a cigar. "Congratulations, you've successfully lit the fuse to a war. I can almost smell the smoke and blood already."

---

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