by Stacy Green
Her eyes went wide. “Are you kidding me? He’s all I got, and there’s a lot worse people I could end up with.” She snapped her head back and forth. “I shouldn’t even be talking to you. No freaking way am I going to steal from him.”
Now wasn’t the time to waste energy and convince her. He’d had her long enough she probably couldn’t be set straight. “So back to Sarah and Preacher. What do you think happened?”
Riley started tearing the wrapper into tiny pieces, scattering crumbs all over the table. She mashed those down with her fingers.
“I promise you can trust me,” I said.
She made a disgusted noise. “Everyone says that. But they’re liars.”
“You’re right. People lie. I lie. All the time. I know how to get what I want from just about anybody. I learned from a young age how to manipulate people, and it’s getting easier and easier.”
She looked as if she didn’t know whether to believe me. “This isn’t helping me trust you.”
I smiled. “But you know what? Kids are the only people I’ve ever been really devoted to. That’s why I was a social worker for ten years, and that’s why I left.”
“If you left, then you’re not devoted.”
“Wrong. I’m more devoted than ever. I’m out here with no one to answer to, doing whatever it takes to protect you guys.”
She considered this. “I don’t think you’ll turn me in. But I don’t think you can protect me, either. If Preacher found out I talked to you, he’d kill me.”
If only she knew the truth. Would she feel safe then? My ego chattered in my ear, at war with my common sense. But who would Riley tell, really? Who would believe her?
“Did you know,” I started, “that a few weeks ago, a young boy was dropped off at a fire station in Maryland. He’d been the victim of a national sex trafficking ring. And he was brought from Ohio. Some people think he was sold to a man driving a semi. You know, a long haul driver.”
Riley stared. The fear and apprehension on her face thrilled me on some deep level I didn’t want to acknowledge. As if feeding the beast would give it so much power I’d lose myself.
“What’s even more interesting,” I continued, “is that a few days later, a truck driver was found dead not twenty miles away, in a green semi. He was half dressed, and at first police thought he had a heart attack and froze to death. But drug tests are showing something wasn’t right. Some people think that man was killed because he was helping sell kids.”
She swallowed hard, looking as terrified as the elementary school kid hearing about Bloody Mary for the first time. “Who are some people?”
“The ones who are willing to help you.”
That was all she was going to get. I’d risked enough already.
She looked over at her small charge, still playing happily with the truck. Sensing her attention, he waved and gave her a gap-toothed grin.
“I don’t know if Preacher killed Sarah,” Riley finally said. “He didn’t like her paying special attention to me. He threatened her about spending alone time with me. She was better than you think, you know.”
I didn’t argue the point. “And Preacher?”
“He hasn’t acted sad over her dying. Pissed he’s lost a location. But that’s not what bothers me.” She took a deep breath. “Sarah had this locket. Always wore it. Some kind of special meaning.”
I had no idea if the necklace was found with her body, but I had the feeling I was about to find out.
“The thing is,” Riley said. “Preacher’s wearing it now.”
Riley was long gone by the time I rejoined John in the car. I slammed the door shut and shivered in the cold. I’d given the little guy my hat, and my forehead was freezing.
“Well?” John sounded impatient.
My mind warred. Telling John meant more muscle to use against Preacher and a witness to help sell the truth to the police. But did I trust him and the Senator? The nagging feeling I hadn’t been able to pin down since talking with the Senator finally clarified itself. Why did he need me? John might not have any connection with Riley, but he had enough experience he would have figured out a way. My involvement felt more like a distraction. A way to keep my nose out of whatever was really going on.
“It sounds like it’s business as usual since Sarah’s murder, but I may have a lead on a trafficking case.” I gave John the information about Riley’s friend. “I’ve got a name and description, but I don’t know if that will help. At any rate, maybe that will make the Senator realize there is more than just prostitution going on.”
John grunted. “Maybe. I’ll drop you off at your car.”
20
Some time before dawn, the piercing ring of my cellphone drummed me out of a terrifying dream. Floating in darkness, in a void as big as space, I silently screamed for help. At the breaking point of my vision was Chris, watching helplessly, his outstretched hand much too far away for me to grab. Just as the last vestige of him faded, the phone rang.
Bleary and still semi-trapped in the dream, I hit the green button and forgot to speak.
“Hello?” Todd Beckett said. “Lucy?”
“What? Yeah, it’s me. What time is it?”
“4 a.m. I shouldn’t be calling you. But for some damn reason, I’m risking my job.”
The cobwebs cleared even as my limbs turned to heavy weights. “What is it?”
“As a former social worker, your DNA is in the system.”
“That’s correct.”
“The skin under Sarah Jones’s fingernails has been positively identified as yours.”
Sweat trickled down from my hairline and into my ear. “Are you still at home?”
“As a matter of fact, I’m outside your building. I think it’s better if we speak in person.”
All my fears balled into a knot in the middle of my shoulder blades. I couldn’t let him know how scared I was. That would cause mistakes. “Give me five minutes.”
Todd refused to take off his coat, standing in the middle of my living room in his trench coat, his ears pink from the cold. I should have offered him coffee, but I didn’t want to take the time to make it. “You know she and I had physical contact at Maisy’s.”
“The problem is, we’ve got two different witnesses at Maisy’s who confirm your altercation and also confirm the dress you wore. Green on a redhead stands out.” His eyes flickered to mine and then just as quickly to the wall behind me. “They’re still testing those fibers. But if they match, I’ll have to bring you in on a hold.”
“I wore that dress in the salon that day. The fibers being in her blood only mean my dress shed, and she bled onto them. That’s not conclusive evidence.”
“It’s enough to make life really miserable for you.”
“Why?” My voice began to rise. I snatched back the fear and composed myself. “Why am I the only one you’re looking at? You know Sarah was into bad things, and there are any number of suspects. You are too good of a cop to be so narrow-minded, and it’s more than just your boss wanting to get the case closed. Who’s leaning on you?”
He sighed. Looked down at the floor and then finally back up at me. Pity and frustration darkened his face. “You know things aren’t always black and white. Sometimes people get involved in these investigations when they have no business.”
“Who is it?”
“I can’t tell you.”
I rubbed my aching jaw muscles. I’d been grinding my teeth, and the headache crept up my temples. “Can you give me the less detailed version?”
“A high-end client is claiming Sarah called distraught about a thief in her salon. She told the client there was valuable personal information in her phone that could lead to her investment accounts. The client offered her husband’s help in recovering the phone. He’s got a lot of pull, and now he’s using it.”
It all began to make sense. “You ever stop to think why he might care? Were they personal friends of Sarah’s?”
“Business only.”
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“Business.” I spit the word. “I bet he was involved in the business. Probably the sex business without his wife knowing. Or hell, maybe she does. Either way, he’s trying to protect himself. He thinks I have the phone and if I expose Sarah, I could expose him. Have you told him I don’t have it, and that all the information from it was lost?”
“It doesn’t matter.” Todd paced my small living room. “He believes our personal history is enough to make me skew the truth for you, and he’s got enough pull to put the seed of doubt in my superiors’ heads. This guy is in the mayor’s camp. Who’s my chief’s boss. You get the picture.”
“So what am I supposed to do? Allow myself to be railroaded? And I’ve got an alibi.”
“Do you?”
I hesitated a fraction of a second. “Yes.”
He stared at me for what seemed like far too long. I should have taken advantage, tried to wheedle the string-puller’s name out of him, but I was struck numb with fear and anger and whatever conscience I actually still possessed.
“For what it’s worth, I’m on your side with this one,” he said. “But this whole thing is slipping right through my hands. I’m already being accused of not running the investigation properly because of our prior relationship. I’m telling you, get yourself in order because shit is coming down whether I like it or not.”
“Thank you.” It almost hurt to say the words. I wanted Todd to be the enemy, even if having him as an ally saved my ass. His friendship made my decisions complicated, and I didn’t like it.
“Have you looked into Roderick Reed?”
“Who?”
“Preacher. The guy I told you Sarah was working for. That’s his real name. He’s wearing the pendant Sarah always wore. Strange, isn’t it?”
A flicker of agitation in Todd’s eyes. “And you found this out how?”
“I can’t reveal my source.”
“And yet you expect me to believe you, as always.”
“I know you believe me,” I countered. “That’s why you’re here. That’s why I gave you Riley’s name. You have evidence Sarah was part of an active child prostitution and human trafficking ring. Preacher was her immediate superior, and he’s Riley’s pimp. Either he killed Sarah for talking to me or had someone else do it.”
“Except there’s no solid evidence Sarah was involved in anything. Just a lot of notes and accusations on your part. The phone’s worthless. If this is for real, our–your–best shot is getting this Riley to come in and tell us what she knows.”
“You haven’t found her.”
He shook his head. “But I’m sure you have. So go back and get her to talk. She’s not going to get arrested. I’ll meet her anywhere.”
“She won’t do it.” I wanted to scream. All the kids I’ve helped, and the one I really need to back me refused to stick her neck out. “She cared about Sarah, I think. But she’s afraid of Preacher.” I told Todd about the kids who disappeared. I didn’t dare mention the truck driver because the suspicious death of a pedophile would get Todd’s instincts up.
“You better figure out a way to get her to,” Todd said. “Because without her corroborating statement, here’s what it looks like: you’re tracking down sex rings, you’ve admitted that. You found one–or you think you’ve found one. You’re still traumatized from seeing what Kailey went through, maybe even blaming yourself because we all know that’s a favorite thing of yours. You confront Sarah, steal her phone. You have some kind of public conversation, and she winds up dead. Witnesses claim you argued, even got physical. The DNA under her fingernails, the fibers. See how easy it looks?”
“I’m not a big woman.” I was grasping. “Sarah and I were the same size. How did I kill her?”
“It was a blitz attack from behind with some kind of blunt object. Maybe a hammer. There’s no sign Sarah fought back, so her attacker wouldn’t have injuries. You know how to pick a lock.”
“I have an alibi.” I felt like I was clinging to the edge of a sharp cliff, with just my fingernails to anchor me to the rocky earth.
“Lucy.” Todd closed his eyes. They flickered behind his lids, back and forth, making his thoughts easy to read. Should he tell me more? What good would it do? Was I worth risking his career? He opened his eyes. “ADA Hale isn’t going to lie for you. His housekeeper claims she stopped by that night and neither you nor Chris were there. Her information gives enough time for you to have gone to the salon and killed Sarah.”
“But you’re on my side.” The desperation in my voice was humiliating. My hands shook, and stupidly, shockingly, I reached for Todd’s arm. “You believe me.”
“I’m not the only one working the case. Two more detectives were brought in, thanks to Mr. Big Shot client. He found out I had a personal connection to you.”
I dropped his arm and stepped back. “Personal connection? I thought your little brother was the scum of the earth and tried to put him back in prison.”
“But you ultimately did right by him, and I admired you for that.” He flushed and looked down. “Publicly.”
Shame slid over me like rotting slime. Any plans I might have had to manipulate Todd into doing my bidding evaporated. “I didn’t know that.”
“Lots of things you don’t know about me.”
“And yet you think I did something to the Harrisons.”
He nodded. “I do. I think you believe you had good intentions, but you still did it.”
“So why try to help me now?”
He dragged his fingernails across the side of his neck, leaving red marks on his fair skin. His fingers went to the lonely spot above his lip where his moustache used to be. “Because there’s a lot of good in you.”
A strange sting settled in behind my eyes. I blinked and hoped the tears wouldn’t fall. “What do I do?”
“Get Riley to talk. Soon. I’ll check out this Roderick, but don’t count on it going anywhere unless he’s got a nasty record.”
Throat bound and aching, I stepped away. Todd walked to the door. Before he could close it, I swallowed the fear blocking my throat. “I like you without the moustache.”
21
I called Chris as soon as Todd left. Sitting at the kitchen table with my legs curled up in the kitchen chair and Mousecop snoring in the window, I didn’t bother with a greeting. “Your uncle knows you lied. His housekeeper said she was there, and we weren’t.”
“What?” Chris’s voice was thick with sleep. “How did you find this out?”
I told him about Todd’s visit, including Mr. Big Shot client and probably pedophile pushing me for suspect number one. “But you said the security system would show–”
“I forgot to set it when I ran out for food.” He groaned. “She stopped by and the system was off. No wonder she remembers. Shit, my uncle is going to be mad as hell.”
I dropped my head to the table. “I’m sorry. That’s my fault.”
“You’re right.”
I couldn’t be angry at his honesty. Chris and his uncle were close, and I’d put him in a lousy position. “I honestly don’t know what to do now.”
“Todd’s right. You need to find Riley. Put the pressure on her.”
“It’s not that easy.”
“You know how to do this,” Chris said. “You manipulate, wheedle, extract what you need. You know what kids like her need to hear. Make her understand.”
“It feels wrong.”
Chris started laughing. “After all the things you’ve done, this feels wrong?”
I didn’t see any humor in the situation. Chris hadn’t seen the real effects of a pimp like Preacher. Riley represented all the girls I saw in CPS who’d been manipulated into believing her pimp loved her, only to be turned out when the moment was right. Girls like her didn’t know how to believe in themselves, and people like Preacher knew how to turn that weakness into a festering sore. “She’s a kid who’s been beat down emotionally and physically most of her life. Low self-esteem and scared. And I’m supposed to take a
dvantage of that?” I dragged my empty coffee cup in circles around the table, leaving an ugly trail of liquid.
“It’s rotten,” Chris admitted. “But if you don’t, you’re on the hook for this.”
He was right. A horrifying sense of desperation wracked my body. How did I get here? Up against the wall when I’d really done nothing illegal? I could hide my own crimes. I knew their nuances as well as I knew my own brain. But this? When someone else was pulling the strings and I couldn’t even see the end of them? I had no idea what to do.
“Like I said,” Chris’s voice softened. “I know it sucks to have to work the girl over. It’s not right. And she might end up more screwed up. But if you don’t, you’re in big trouble. And no one is going to help her or any other kid involved in this mess.”
He knew that would get to me. Knew the helpless kids were my weakness. “I don’t like how well you know me.”
“I told you, we’re cut from the same cloth. Even if yours is dirtier.”
Chris drove me to North Philly, insisting I was too keyed up to drive. Besides, if Preacher or another pimp showed up, I’d have back up. Any other day I’d be insulted, but today I was grateful.
“I have no idea how long this will take,” I said. “We might not even see her.”
“Kelly has no other information?” He asked.
“None. Riley doesn’t have a record, and she’s not listed as a missing person, which means either her family didn’t care or that’s not her real name.”
“I guess I’m naive,” he said. “Which is kind of ridiculous considering what I came from. How does an organization like this not get brought down?”
“They’re criminals, and they’re good at it,” I said. “With the girls, even though the pimps have classed up and sometimes the girls too, it’s the same story. These men are the ultimate players. Voyeurs, you know? I knew a girl, back in CPS, who’d been at her boyfriend’s in Kensington. Not the best area, not the worst. They got into it, right? She took off walking, planning to go to the bus stop. Boyfriend called her, they had a big argument over the phone. Before long a nice car rolled up with a harmless looking guy. She told him what happened, played right into his hands. He started in about how she deserved better than that, no man should make her cry.” I rolled my eyes. “He convinced her to come hang out with him and some friends at a place nearby.”