The Cold Six Thousand - James Ellroy [114]
1946–’47: Whereabouts unknown.
1948–’50: Mercenary work in Paraguay. The Asuncion Ops Station has a 41-page file. MESPLEDE infiltrated leftist student groups at the behest of the Paraguayan Association of Police Chiefs. MESPLEDE (Spanish fluent) assassinated 63 suspected Communist sympathizers per association guidelines.
1951–’55: French Army service (Indochina—now Vietnam—& Algeria). MESPLEDE served as a paratrooper, saw action at Dien Bien Phu & allegedly became bitter over the French defeat & withdrawal. Reports (unconfirmed) have him moving opium base & hashish to his next duty station in Algiers. In Algiers, MESPLEDE transferred to an occupation unit & taught torture techniques to members of a mercenary police unit employed by wealthy French colonialists. MESPLEDE (a committed anti-Communist) allegedly executed 44 Algerian nationalists suspected of Communist ties & gained a reputation as a superb wet arts specialist.
1956–’59: Whereabouts largely unknown. MESPLEDE is believed to have traveled extensively in the U.S. during this time. The Atlanta (Ga) PD has a 10/58 file note on him. MESPLEDE was suspected of taking part in the bombing of a synagogue targeted by neo-Nazis. The New Orleans PD has a 2/9/59 file note. MESPLEDE was suspected of 16 armed robberies in N.O., Metairie, Baton Rouge & Shreveport. Note: unconfirmed rpts. state that MESPLEDE traveled in Organized Crime circles during this interval.
1960–’61: Mercenary work in the Belgian Congo. MESPLEDE (a known associate of our KA LAURENT GUERY) served as an enforcer for Belgian landowners & worked with an Agency liaison in the anti-Lumumba incursion. MESPLEDE & GUERY engineered the capture & execution of 491 leftist rebels in Katanga Province. The landowners gave MESPLEDE carte blanche & told him to implement a deterrent measure to scare would-be rebels. MESPLEDE and GUERY herded the rebels into a gully & killed them with flamethrowers.
1962–’63: At large in France. MESPLEDE (who lost land holdings when DeGaulle granted Algerian independence) allegedly joined the French OAS & took part in the 3/62 & 8/63 assassination attempts on DeGaulle. MESPLEDE resurrected in Mexico City (9/63) & has allegedly been in touch with our KAs GUERY & FLASH ELORDE. MESPLEDE is known to be committed to the anti-Castro cause & as previously stated, is determinedly anti-Communist, Spanish fluent & has both probable narcotics experience & military experience in the Southeast Asian Theatre. All in all, I think we can use him.
I’m heading back to Saigon. Pouch all future communications through my P.O. box at Arlington. We’ll use drops & cutout couriers from here on in. Remember: We’re Stage 1 Covert, like our Tiger ops in Miami. You know the old drill: Read, memorize & burn.
Thumbs up on MESPLEDE, if you think he fits in. You can recruit the rest of the team on your own autonomy. Per MESPLEDE: Watch out. His curriculum vitae is a bit scary.
For the Cause,
J.S.
58
(Mexico City, 10/2/64)
A Mex brought coffee. Said Mex kissed ass. Big teeth/big bows/big compliance.
Pete lounged. Pete noshed rolls. Pete taped his piece under the table. The trigger sat flush. The silencer worked. The barrel faced the opposite seat.
Pete sipped coffee. Pete rubbed his head. Mexico City—nyet.
It’s a skunk zone. It’s rife with dog turds. Give me pre-Castro Havana.
He looked for Flash and Laurent. He tapped out. He dropped a note. Mesplède dropped a note back:
Let’s talk—I’ve heard about you.
He killed time. He called Barb every day. He called the K.C. Local. He dropped names. He asked questions—per Arden Elaine Bruvick.
The gist: She was Frau Danny Bruvick. Danny ran Local 602—’53-’56. Danny stole Teamster money. Danny split. Jimmy H. decreed a hit. Danny vanished. Arden stayed in K.C.
Jimmy pulled strings. The KCPD popped Arden. Arden bailed out fast. Arden split K.C.
Pete knew a KCPD guy. Pete called him. He ran Arden’s bail stats. He called Pete back.