The Guardians

Post helps guard Quincy’s room in the hospital’s intensive care unit since he’s worried someone will try to finish the job and kill Quincy off. Quincy remains unconscious, and there’s a chance he may not wake up. Quincy’s brother Marvis is on the way to the hospital and may have to consider “pulling the plug” (259). The Guardian Ministries team decides to notify the FBI of the attack. Post starts investigating to find out which prison inmates jumped Quincy and how the attack was allowed to happen—he assumes that guards were complicit. He agrees to pay a prison guard, Mosby, $5,000 in exchange for getting the details about Quincy’s attackers.

It’s a little over a day since Quincy’s attack, and his vital signals are stabilizing. Quincy’s brother Marvis arrives. Mosby reveals that Quincy was jumped by two white men, members of the Aryan Deacons gang. A guard acted as a lookout, turning his back to allow the jump. Post goes to see the warden of the prison, who feigns stupidity and acts as if he has no clue how the attack happened. Post knows he’s lying and threatens to bust him in federal court.

Post goes to meet an FBI agent, Agnes Nolton. He summarizes:

I give the opinion that Quincy was framed by a drug gang, with a lot of help from the ex-sheriff of Ruiz County. Now that we’re pushing for post-conviction relief, those responsible for the murder of Keith Russo are feeling the heat. I give the names of Nash Cooley, the drug lawyer in Miami, and Mickey Mercado, one of his henchmen. I speculate that these two along with other unknowns are responsible for the rather brilliant idea of ending our investigation by eliminating our client (275).

Agnes is interested in pursuing the case.

Two FBI agents corner Adam Stone, the prison guard who was in on the plot to attack Quincy, and tell him they know he’s taking cash for jobs like this. They threaten to indict him—which would mean losing his job, the cash he’s taken as bribes, and possibly going to jail. In response to their threats, Adam agrees to cooperate with the FBI, acting as an informant. The FBI is interested in the case because they want to get to the senior Aryan Deacons. Post is interested in the case because he wants to know who paid for the hit on Quincy.

Judge Plank denies Quincy’s petition for post-conviction relief. The next step is to appeal to the state supreme court. Quincy remains in the hospital, unconscious and under 24/7 watch by guards. Meanwhile, the FBI is working with the prison guard Adam to find out who paid for the hit on Quincy. Adam is wearing a wire when he meets Skip DeLuca, an ex-con who’s higher up in the Aryan Deacons. Meeting at a bar, the two discuss the fact that Quincy is still alive. Skip reveals that his men have checked the hospital to see if they can “finish the job” and kill Quincy there, but Quincy’s too heavily guarded. After Skip leaves the bar, the cops pull him over for drunk driving. While he’s being held, the FBI searches and then bugs his apartment. They also attach a GPS monitor to his car.

Post meets Glenn, the old Seabrook lawyer, again. Glenn reached out after learning about Quincy’s attack and that Quincy’s petition for post-conviction relief was denied. According to Glenn, “The rumor is that Kenny Taft got wind of the plan to burn the shed where the cops stored crime scene stuff, and that Taft removed several boxes of evidence before the fire” (297). This is news to Post, who wonders if Kenny’s family may still have this evidence.

The FBI investigation makes progress. Four men are indicted: The two prisoners who jumped Quincy, the guard Adam Stone, and Skip DiLuca—the man who gave Adam money to stand guard over the attack. However, the FBI doesn’t care about these people, who are “small fish.” Rather, the plan is to scare Skip into revealing the next person up the food chain, bringing the FBI one step closer to the big fish they want. Post explains: “The FBI has no interest in wasting time pursuing prison guards who peddle dope or prison gangs at war with each other. But Special Agent Agnes Nolton can’t resist the scenario of a crime boss hiring the Aryan Deacons to kill an innocent man whose lawyers are trying to exonerate him” (297).

The scheme works. Once arrested, Skip agrees to cooperate, providing a written statement: He was contracted by Mickey Mercado to arrange the hit on Quincy. He concludes, “Mercado wants me to monitor Miller’s recovery and find a way to finish the job” (309). Instead of arresting Mickey, the FBI continues a “cat and mouse” game, following him to see if he will lead them to another person higher up on the food chain. They follow Mickey to Martinique, where Mickey meets a cartel member named Ramon Vasquez.

Frankie goes to visit Riley Taft, one of Kenny’s last living relatives. Frankie reveals the theory that Kenny was killed because he knew too much about Sheriff Pfitzner’s involvement with the cartels and framing of Quincy. Post explains they believe Kenny stole evidence related to Keith Russo’s murder case. Frankie suggests the evidence is in the old Taft home, now deserted. Riley is reluctant to allow Frankie into the home and says he’ll think about it.

Quincy has regained consciousness and is undergoing various surgeries to aid his recovery. Meanwhile, the FBI has figured Ramon Vasquez is “longtime senior management in the Saltillo Cartel, sort of semiretired now” (324). Ramon was Diana’s boyfriend when Keith died, and the two are still together. The FBI also tracks Mickey to a meeting with Sheriff Pfitzner. This is a big break in the case: “We finally have a link [between the Sheriff and the cartel]” (326). Skip DiLuca, now an informant for the FBI and wearing a wire, meets with Mickey Mercado to set up one last hit on Quincy’s life. Mickey and ex-Sheriff Pfitzner then meet for lunch. Pfitzner gives Mercado cash—the “down payment” on the hit. The FBI then arrests them both.

To celebrate their win, Agnes and Post go to dinner. They discuss their personal lives but also talk shop. One thing confuses them:

We are baffled by the actions of Bradley Pfitzner. For many years now he has lived a comfortable life away from the scene of his crimes […] He did a fine job of putting Quincy away and making sure Kenn Taft would never squeal. Why would he now run the risk of entangling himself in a plot to kill our efforts by killing Quincy? (335).

Meanwhile, Skip DiLuca has joined the witness protection program and left town with a new identity—this was in exchange for his cooperation with the FBI.

After Mercado and Pfitzner are arrested, Post realizes Quincy potentially has a strong civil lawsuit against the state: “With the active complicity of a state employee, Adam stone, the assault became an intentional tort far more actionable than the garden-variety prison beating. The State of Florida became liable” (335). Post hires a renowned tort attorney Bill Cannon to represent Quincy. Bill files a $50 million federal lawsuit against the Florida Department of Corrections, Mickey Mercado, and Bradley Pfitzner. Cannon then convinces a judge to freeze the bank accounts and assets of Mickey and Pfitzner. The FBI raids both men’s homes to seize assets. But according to Post, “Quincy is not thinking about money these days. He’s too busy trying to walk” (339).