by T. J. Kline
“I should go get that. It’s probably Jones.” He pushed himself off the bed, looking for his pants.
“Clothes are in the bathroom,” she reminded him, unable to dredge up the slightest bit of shame at the scratches her nails had raked over his buttocks.
The ringing downstairs stopped, and she reached for her own phone on the bedside table where Leo must have plugged it in some time last night. Another wave of gratitude for this man washed over her. She watched the screen expectantly but nothing happened.
“Why wouldn’t Jones call my phone, especially if he can’t get through to you?” She appreciated that her partner was trying to protect her, but she wasn’t about to let him shut her out of this case, regardless of how close she was to the latest victim.
The word made the blood freeze in her veins.
Leo walked into the doorway between the bathroom and her bed, tugging his jeans up and zipping them. “No clue.”
No man should look as sexy as he did right now, bare-chested and sweaty from their tryst. He jerked his dark T-shirt over his head and leaned down to look at the bandage on her head, pressing a quick kiss to her temple.
“Unless it’s not Jones. Either way, I need to grab it.”
He headed downstairs and dread curled in the pit of her stomach, like a rattlesnake about to strike. Her phone vibrated in her hand, Jones’s number popping up on the screen. A tremor of warning shot through her, her intuition in overdrive as she swiped her finger over the screen to answer it. She couldn’t shake the feeling that this wasn’t a call she wanted to take.
13
Leo ran downstairs and grabbed the cell phone he’d left in the dining room, surprised to see the call hadn’t been from Jones. He waited impatiently for the voicemail notification.
“Hi, um…Detective. This is Kara. I remembered something about the other girl you were looking for. You told me to call if I did. I wasn’t sure who else to trust. Can you come to the hospital? They are keeping me for a few more days, something about dehydration and watching for withdrawals, so I’m still here. Room 1136. Um…bye.”
Kara. The young girl in the cage. She'd suffered her own torment and had every reason to put the entire ordeal behind her yet she called to help him. Did she mean Megan or Rose? He selfishly hoped she meant Rose but the chance was slim.
One of the kitchen staff approached, pointing at the food on the table. “Sir, breakfast is ready.”
“Thanks, I won't be staying after all. Can you tell Toni?”
“Yes, sir. I’ll prepare something for you to take.” Before he could refuse, she disappeared into the kitchen.
The amount of staff in the house, as well as the amount of money it took to keep it operating smoothly, was mind-boggling. Vanessa, Toni and Rose’s mother, entered the room and jumped in surprise when she saw him.
“Oh! I didn’t expect anyone else to be in here.”
The twins looked so much like her, it was almost eerie. Normally, she passed for their older sister, with only a few more wrinkles and her hair a shade lighter to hide any gray. But this morning, her eyes swollen, the dark circles made her look as if she hadn’t slept in days. With the recent death of her husband, depression set in and adding the grief of Rose's disappearance, she looked exhausted.
“I was just leaving. Toni is upstairs. Would you like me to get her for you?”
There was a flicker of accusation in her eyes. “No, I don’t think—never mind.” With the Judge gone, she and Toni argued about the best options for the estate. But this open resentment for her daughter was new. With Rose missing, she was looking for an outlet for her grief.
Vanessa took a deep breath and looked at the food on the table. “You're not staying for breakfast?” She noticed the phone in his hands and hope filled her eyes. “Did you find out something? Is that why you’re leaving?”
“I don’t know but I don’t think it’s directly related to Rose’s disappearance but there's a possibility of a lead on a potential site where someone hid her. I’m hoping this conversation will give us more direction.” He eyed the staircase, wishing he could be two places at once. “Let Toni know for me.”
He didn’t wait for her affirmation, hurrying from the house to his car. If Kara had new information and wanted to talk, he needed to get that information from the source and quickly. Before something, or someone changed her mind.
“T, there's nothing else to do right now.” Toni heard the despair in the other agent’s voice, and it seeped into her bones. “We’re…at a loss.”
They’d followed Tank to a strip club, and he’d given them the slip.
How hard was it to monitor the guy? With that immensity, he stuck out in a crowd. He couldn't exactly slip away unseen. But, according to Jones, one minute he'd been at the strip club and the next, his truck sped away. However, no one had spotted him at the club or on the road again.
And Monique Bentley had disappeared from the city limits altogether. Her car was parked at her house and agents watched the place, but no one, other than staff, had come or gone. With nothing left to do, the agents were patiently watching and waiting for either of them to make a mistake and reappear.
But time was the one commodity Toni didn’t possess. Every hour her sister was still missing decreased the likelihood of finding Rose alive. She didn’t want to imagine how her captors might be treating Rose after what she’d found in the basement yesterday. The entire room was a modern-day torture chamber. Drugs, zip ties, and a room filled with cast-off designer clothing and makeup. It was obvious, upon inspection, that the basement was a staging area, a room to house the women before moving them to a more permanent location.
She wouldn’t sit here, waiting for Jones to call her again to inform her that there were no new updates. She had to do something proactive. “Okay.”
“I recognize that tone, T. What are you thinking?”
That legalities tie your hands whereas I no longer care about the law. That if I continue waiting for the FBI to follow the rules and relay data, my sister will become a sex slave. Or worse.
“Nothing,” she lied. “I wish there was something I could do.”
“We’ve got every available agent on this, T. We’re not the only department working on it. We'll find her.” He paused as if waiting for her to agree with him. She simply didn't lie that well. “T, please, stay calm. We're doing everything we can.”
He knew her too well. “Is Leo heading over there?” she asked, deliberately changing the subject.
“I haven’t talked to him since this morning when I called to check up on you.”
The slam of the front door and a car engine starting up reached her. Toni hurried to the window in time to see Leo edge his car out of her driveway toward the road outside the gate. He left without a word, which meant he'd discovered some new piece of information and decided not to share it with her, or the FBI.
The snake of dread that had previously coiled inside her struck out hard. She gripped the betrayal and rage with both hands, letting them dance through her. Both welcome partners. Both strong enough to cast her own guilt aside, giving her something else to fixate on.
“Do me a favor, Jones.”
“Anything, T.” Nothing but truth in his quick reply. And loyalty. Jones would never hide anything from her.
“Call Leo. Ask him where he’s going. If he asks how you know, tell him you have eyes on him for his protection. Lie. I don’t care. Just find out where he’s headed.”
“Why don’t you ask him?”
“I can’t.” She didn’t elaborate.
“He left you at the house?” Confusion colored his voice, followed by apprehension. “You’re staying put, right?”
She heaved a long sigh. “Yes, I’ll be right here. Call me when you find out.”
“T?”
“Yeah?”
“Don’t screw me on this. I'm trusting you.”
“Never.”
Surprised by how easily the lie slipped from her lips, Ton
i hated herself for doing it. But this wasn’t about her, or Jones. This was about finding Rose before it was too late.
With a quick swipe of his finger, Leo ignored the third call from Jones, sending it to voicemail again.
"You can take that if you need to."
Leo looked back at the fragile girl in the hospital bed. “You look good. Better than when I saw you yesterday.”
Kara tipped her head to one side. “Well, no shit, Sherlock.”
So much for fragile. “I see you’re feeling better too.”
She rolled her eyes. “So, you want this info or not?”
He leaned back, trying to appear nonchalant in the uncomfortable hospital chair. “I guess. I came by to check—”
“Bullshit.” Kara reached for the remote for her bed, pressing a button to lift the head of her mattress, adjusting the pillows behind her. Leo jumped up and moved to help her but she waved him off. “You’re here because I called, Detective. Don’t act like you’re my babysitter. I can take care of myself.”
He'd had ample experience dealing with a hard-headed, stubborn woman to back up, giving Kara her space. He didn’t point out that her version of taking care of herself ended with her in a cage and shot up with who knows what. Then again, he couldn't fathom her circumstances and it wasn't his place to judge.
“Okay.” He slid back into the chair. “Evidently, small talk isn't on the agenda.”
She arched a knowing brow at him. “Do you have time for that? I’m pretty sure you don’t. Because, if Casey wasn’t moved out already, she will be, soon.”
“Rose,” he corrected.
“Whatever.” She eyed the door. “Were you followed?”
“No.”
“You’re sure?”
Leo nodded, curious about her paranoia.
She looked less than convinced but leaned forward and waved him toward her. Leo moved the chair closer. To anyone coming in the room, he looked like a cop interviewing a kid he rescued, but he was close enough for her to whisper and still hear her.
“I didn’t remember it yesterday but, after they moved me into the basement, they talked about where they wanted to send me to work for them later. Monique asked me if I could dance. Megan mentioned dancing a few nights before she disappeared. She came back that night thrilled. At first, I assumed it was just the X. Then, she disappeared for good.”
“A club?”
“Some kind of strip club,” she said. “But I'm not sure where it’s at. She came back smelling like smoke, talking about having fists of money and that she'd earned enough to go to L.A. soon.”
“Did you ever see the money?"
“She said Monique was holding the rest for her.” She gave a hard snort. “To keep it safe.” Her gaze met Leo’s and the fact that there was no emotion in it at all made Leo pause. “I doubt she ever saw it again. Then Megan was gone. Monique said some guy wanted her.”
“Prostitution?”
“I’m sure. I mean, that happened at the Center.”
She shrugged, not phased at all by discussing what she’d seen. To someone else, she would sound callous but Leo understood Kara’s lack of emotion. The poor kid had shut herself off to survive.
“No, I'm sure it was more than that. Right before, I saw a lot of strange men speaking Spanish at the center. I got the feeling that Megan left Vegas.”
Which coincided with the picture Jones had shown him. He made a mental note to tell Jones to check on the girls in that house in Mexico.
"Do you know where this club is?"
Kara shrugged. “I never danced there. I got thrown into the cage first.”
Leo had to inform Toni and Jones about this new lead. He tugged his phone out of his pocket.
“Hey!” Kara tried to climb out of the bed, the various wires attached to her chest and arms setting off alarms. “You can’t tell anyone about this.”
“I have to.”
“No! You promised. They’ll kill me.”
“No one will know it was you.”
“They won’t care which of us it was. They’ll kill us all.”
It wouldn’t benefit anyone to agitate this girl so she refused to help him further. Hell, she just gave them the only break they’d had in the case.
“Okay, settle down. I’ll keep this confidential, but I need to get my guys searching the strip clubs to find Rose, Kara. We need to act on it fast if we’re going to find her.”
“Yeah, I guess.” She climbed back into the bed. A nurse ran into the room and edged between them. Kara glowered at her. “I’m fine, I…I have to use the bathroom.”
The nurse scowled at Leo as if he’d been the one to set off the alarms. He ignored her, dialing Jones’s number. He had to tell him about the strip club and assign agents to comb through them, which would be difficult considering Vegas had at least twenty of them. The phone rang repeatedly before Jones picked up.
“Where the hell are you?”
Adrenaline shot through his veins, making it hard to remain seated. “Why?”
“I thought you were staying with Toni, keeping an eye on her.”
“I was.” He glanced at Kara as she slid back into her bed, eyeing him carefully. “Something came up. I’m heading back now but—”
“She’s pissed you left.”
Leo shook his head, not comprehending why she was angry. “She was fine. I—”
Jones didn't let him finish. “Something’s up, Leo. It was in her voice.”
“Shit,” Leo muttered, running a hand over the top of his head. “Okay, I’m heading back to the house. If you find out anything, call me. And, Jones?”
“Yeah?”
“We need someone looking at the strip clubs.”
“What are we searching for?”
“Rose.”
“On it. You go back to Toni and keep her at that house. Chain her up if you have to.”
Jones might be joking but Leo realized it would take at least that to keep Toni from trying to stay involved in this search. He dialed her number but, after several rings, it went to voicemail. He tried again with the same result.
His heartbeat slowed, the cold fingers of dread gripping his chest. An unanswered call shouldn't be cause for alarm. What if Toni needed some time, a little peace? She was worried about her sister. Maybe she was eating breakfast with her mother. Or had gone back to sleep after he left.
But that wasn't what happened.
Toni’s voice told him to leave a message before a shrill tone sounded in his ear. “You better keep your ass safe. I’m on my way.”
Leo knew exactly what Toni was doing, but that knowledge wouldn’t help him find her. Toni had gone searching for Rose.
14
Toni flashed her badge for the agent guarding the doorway of Monique Bentley’s office at the 4Teen Center. She tugged on latex gloves as she slid into the chair behind the desk, reaching for the top drawer, surprised to find the lock picked. They’d cleared this room of evidence and had moved on to several of the other offices nearby.
She caught the attention of the FBI agent at the door. “Did you open this?”
“No, but I can find out who did if you like.”
"Please."
The agent disappeared down the hall, exactly the obedient reaction Toni hoped for. It made it easier for her to begin her search for anything that would lead her to her sister. She might as well try finding a needle in a haystack, with nothing to direct her other than knowing there had to be something here. Most days, she’d love to puzzle out the solution but today, with her sister’s life at stake—
She jerked open the first drawer, finding nothing but sticky note pads, envelopes, and extra pens. Toni moved the items from the front, finding some spilled paper clips and a steno pad behind them. Since agents had combed the room for weapons and evidence earlier, she didn't expect to find anything obvious, but there had to be something they'd missed, something that connected Monique to this case and her sister's disappearance. Something that would
lead her to where they held Rose. As she pulled her hand back, her knuckles brushed against the top of the drawer, scraping her hand and tearing the glove. Toni wiped away the blood that welled on her knuckle as some mechanism inside the desk clicked.
She pushed the chair backward, ducking her head and looking underneath the desk, surprised to see a wide cavity along the left side. Unless she’d been looking for it, there was no way she would have seen the near-invisible opening.
She reached inside to find a 9mm and an extra magazine with a book behind it. Careful not to drop either as she pulled them out, Toni laid everything on the top of the desk. She checked the weapon, unloading it, before setting the gun and magazine to one side. Toni would bag it after she examined the ledger. Agents walked past the office and she glanced up nervously but no one paid the slightest attention to her inside. She was just another FBI agent, processing the scene.
Fanning the pages slightly, Toni read line after line of names. Most had digits afterward and a two-letter designation that appeared to be the abbreviations for various states: however, the last combination of numbers and letters were daunting. They read like a short serial number and she wondered if they weren't some kind of filing system. Toni opened the book to the first few pages, hoping to find some sort of key, but found nothing to help her decipher the codes. She flipped to the last page, the final entry raising the hair on her arms. Beads of sweat broke out over her temples as she read it again.
Scribbled beside what looked like a two hundred thousand dollar payment, was the name “Casey,” followed by an “NV” and four digits - 1621 - but no further combination of letters and numbers like the other entries.
Toni pulled out her phone to call Jones and noticed she had two missed calls from Leo. She clenched her teeth together. As much as she wanted to talk to him, to hear his explanation for running out this morning and betraying her by keeping his silence, she didn't want to listen to bullshit excuses. Leo could wait, her sister couldn’t. She swiped her finger across the screen and called Jones instead, scanning the codes in the book again.