"Fuck! Sonny Black is a useless piece of shit. Acted so tough to my face, but it's been over a week and he still hasn't caught them!"
David Abbot obviously knew what "suit and clown" meant. Out of four guys who hit Pacific Standard Bank, that was one he considered most dangerous.
Yeah, David had met all four. But despite looking like ruthless thugs, Phil and Dennis didn't scare him.
As long as those two didn't corner him in some dark alley at midnight, David had plenty of ways to completely fuck them over.
But Lawson was different. David couldn't read that young Asian guy at all. Gave off incredibly dangerous vibe.
As for Donnie, David figured he was zero threat. Just a lackey.
Yet Sonny Black somehow failed to catch most dangerous one. David was so pissed he wanted to spit curses.
David could give FBI attitude because feds were bound by red tape. They couldn't use violence on him.
Dealing with Sonny Black, David had to play nice because Mafia had no problem using violence within their own rules.
But Lawson? Guy had even fewer rules holding him back than Mafia did!
Thinking about it drenched David in cold sweat.
"Fuck this, I need to call cops right now!"
Three seconds after hanging up, David grabbed receiver again to dial 911.
This was upscale neighborhood. Response times were insanely fast. If David connected call, cops would protect him.
But right then, David realized line was dead.
"Dammit! That motherfucker definitely cut phone line! Cell phone... where's my cell phone?"
In year 2000, cell phones weren't absolute necessities yet. David didn't carry his around constantly.
"Remembered it. In study!"
David didn't even bother grabbing slippers. Sprinted straight for second-floor study, nearly eating shit on stairs.
Moment he stepped into study, David regretted it.
Because man wearing clown mask and sharp tailored suit was sitting right there, holding David's cell phone.
"Mr. Abbot. In such a rush to see me?"
David's legs instantly turned to jelly. Forced smile that looked uglier than crying.
"M-Mr. Clown. What brings you here?"
"Why am I here? Obviously because someone sold me out. Leaked our info to someone else."
Lawson's gaze was lethal, freezing David to bone. David knew if he said wrong thing next, he was meeting God early.
"It was Sonny Black! Bonanno family's Sonny Black threatened me! Look, he even broke my finger!"
David held up his splinted finger.
"Oh? And what exactly did you tell him?"
"I... I just gave Sonny Black dashcam footage from that day."
David's eyes darted around. True, he hadn't spilled much verbal intel, but dashcam footage was plenty.
Phil and Dennis were already Bonanno soldiers. Both had glaringly obvious physical traits. No wonder they got bagged.
Lawson raised eyebrow. Definitely his own fuck-up. Didn't expect David's car to have dashcam.
Though dashcams became standard issue twenty years later, they were pretty damn rare in this era. Missing it was understandable.
Proved David was highly paranoid. Guy didn't reach his current status by accident.
"Mr. Abbot, give me Sonny Black's contact info."
David acted like obedient little bitch. Immediately grabbed pen and paper, dropping to floor to write down Sonny's info.
Lawson sat with legs crossed, tapping fingers on armrest, figuring out how to handle David.
Even though David dumped all blame on Sonny Black, Lawson didn't buy banker's innocent victim act for second.
This asshole likely planned to make crew take fall from day one. Exactly why he never warned them vault gold belonged to Bonanno family.
"Mr. Clown, here's Sonny Black's contact info."
"Excellent, Mr. Abbot. Your obedience is highly satisfying. Too bad you still completely fucked me over, so you require punishment. I'm giving you two options. Do you prefer biological death, or social death?"
Biological death meant flatlining. End of life.
Social death meant complete destruction of public image and network. Permanently exiled from mainstream society.
Both options were completely unacceptable to David Abbot.
"Mr. Clown, this really isn't my fault! It's all Sonny Black's fault..."
David tried to keep passing buck, but Lawson walked right up and patted his shoulder.
"Mr. Abbot, I really hate forcing people to choose. If you don't want to make choice, I can pick for you."
Lawson's low voice sounded like literal demon whispering. Made David shake uncontrollably.
David's mind was absolute mess. He froze, unable to choose.
So, Lawson dropped another line.
"Clock's ticking!"
"Wait! I'll choose! I'll choose! Social death! I choose social death!"
Social death would strip David of absolutely everything he owned, but at least he'd still be breathing.
Biological death meant game over permanently.
"Smart choice. Now confess exactly how you caused bank massive losses, colluded to rob your own bank, and fabricated damage reports. Spill every single detail. Do not hide shit."
Lawson whipped out Megan's camcorder and recorded David's entire confession.
Confession wouldn't directly send David to prison. Videos filmed under obvious duress weren't admissible evidence.
But once Pacific Standard Bank executives saw footage, they'd launch massive internal investigation.
Some shit stays hidden if nobody looks. But once they start digging, they always find bodies.
Moment video leaked, David was completely done in LA. If he got lucky, he could flee California with some cash.
But Lawson figured bank would absolutely sue his ass into oblivion. Guy would spend rest of his life picking up soap in federal prison.
Wondered if desperate inmates would even be interested in such an old, blown-out asshole.
"Appreciate cooperation, Mr. Abbot! I'll be borrowing your phone. Hope this little lesson teaches you something. Oh wait, you probably won't get next time! In case I don't see ya, good afternoon, good evening, and good night."
David stayed glued to floor, sobbing uncontrollably. Knew his life as upper-class elite was completely dead.
Meanwhile, Lawson—guy who ruined him—had already vanished without trace.
Standing outside David Abbot's mansion, Lawson used David's phone to dial Sonny Black's number.
"David Abbot? What do you want?"
When Lawson spoke, his voice sounded exactly like David Abbot.
"Mr. Sonny, I have intel on Clown!"