After giving her hair a quick brush and applying a coat of pink gloss lipstick, she was ready. She pulled the letter from Soo-Lin out of her purse, went downstairs and found her parents out on the patio off the kitchen, drinking iced tea. Her dad had stretched out on a lounger in his cowboy boots.
“Sorry I took so long. What a great help I am!” Ally saw that her mom had already brought out the food and plates to the serving table.
“Don’t worry about it.”
“You look lovely,” her father said. “I understand we’re expecting a Texas Ranger for dinner.”
“Yes. I told him to be here at six. But before he gets here, you and Mom should see this.”
Ally handed her dad the letter and watched his face darken as he read it. Wordlessly, he handed it to her mother, who was proficient in Chinese, too. She started to read it. “Poor Soo-Lin. I know how much she wanted a baby.”
“It breaks my heart, but the other news is even sadder. Keep reading.”
After a minute, her mother cried out, “Oh, no—not Yu Tan!”
“Horrible, isn’t it?” Ally said. “But I don’t believe the story about her running off with a man.”
“Neither do I,” her father muttered.
“Because Luckey sought me out at the university yesterday needing help on a case involving female trafficking, I showed him this letter today.”
Her father sat up with a grim look on his face. “Why would you do that?”
“Please don’t be upset, Dad. Oh—there’s the doorbell. I’ll let him tell you the whole story.”
Her mother jumped up from her chair. “But not before we eat. Larry? Will you start the steaks?”
Ally walked through the house. The second she opened the door and saw Luckey dressed in a black sport shirt and gray chinos, her legs turned to mush. “You made it. Come in.”
“It’s gorgeous country up here.” His dark brown eyes enveloped her as he said it, sending a curl of warmth through her body. Only then did she notice the file folder under his arm.
“Follow me. We’re out on the patio.”
Ally made introductions and her mother handed Luckey a glass of iced tea. They chatted about casual things before filling their plates and seating themselves around the wrought-iron table to eat.
“These beans are out of this world, Mrs. Duncan,” he said, causing her mom to beam.
“Thank you. It’s an old family recipe.”
“Is that steak done the way you like it, Luckey?” Ally’s father asked.
“It’s perfect.”
“We’ve never had a Texas Ranger for dinner before. You’ve made my daughter’s night,” he added. “When she was a little girl, she was crazy about the Lone Ranger.”
Oh, no.
Luckey’s gaze swerved to hers. “Is that right?”
“We bought her a pony she named Silver. She must have had half a dozen black masks.” Her dad was on a roll. “I think there are still a couple of them out in the tack room left over from the good old days.”
“Those I’ve got to see,” Luckey said.
Ally cleared her throat, eager to change the subject. “Luckey? Why don’t you tell my parents why you came to my office yesterday?”
With those words, the atmosphere around the table changed. Luckey got up from the table to get the file folder he’d left on one of the loungers. After he sat down again, he passed around the pages with the photos of the Chinese writing and explained where they’d come from.
For the next twenty minutes he discussed the case he’d been assigned and the information he’d gleaned from forensics. Her parents didn’t say a word. They were too busy absorbing everything he was telling them.
“Your work fighting the trafficking program hasn’t gone unnoticed, Mrs. Duncan. Your name came up at a conference I attended a month ago, praising your efforts.”
“Thank you,” she said.
“Ally tells me she’s helped you when she could. That’s why she brought Soo-Lin’s letter to me. When I read about the disappearance of the young woman who hoped to be an Olympic gymnast one day, it reminded me of something Dr. Wolff told me at the morgue. He said the victim’s body indicated she was probably either a dancer or a gymnast.”
A gasp escaped Ally. She eyed her parents, who looked equally stunned.
“I’m not assuming that the dead girl is the girl your family knows. If I showed all of you her picture, would you recognize her?”
“No,” Ally said at once. “It’s been nine years since we were at the wedding. She was only seven at the time. But if Soo-Lin saw the photo you have, I’m sure she would know one way or the other.”
“That’s good to know, and we can explore that avenue later.” He eyed her parents. “Ally examined the dress and described the special elements to me. She said it had probably been made rather than bought for a girl of the higher class. If I could find out where that material came from, I might be able to discover who bought it and had the dress made. That could lead me to the girl’s parents.”
“And you could unite them with their child,” Beatrice said. “What a blessing it would be if you could do that.”
Luckey eyed Ally. “Do you know if the Tan girl learned the Nüshu language?”
She shook her head. “But Soo-Lin would know.”
Ally’s father got up from the table and walked around for a minute. “Dad? What are you thinking?”
He turned to them. “I’m thinking I need to make another trip to China.”
“No, Larry. You’re not the ambassador anymore and another visit would be monitored the second you get off the plane in Beijing.”
“Mom’s right, Dad. But I could make a quick trip to Yongzhou to see Soo-Lin.”
“Absolutely not,” her father said sternly.
“Then with Luckey’s permission, we could send that swatch in a letter to Soo-Lin in the usual way.”
Her father shook his head. “Having learned about all this, we mustn’t put your teacher or his son in any more danger. It puts the embassy itself at risk. I shouldn’t have allowed it to continue after we left China. So, no more using the diplomatic pouch. For the time being you’ll have to stop corresponding with Soo-Lin. If Yu Tan was indeed kidnapped, I don’t want the lives of the Tan family further jeopardized until there can be an investigation.”
Ally felt sick. “How long do I have to wait to write her back?”
“At least until fall, when I’m no longer working for the government. Then we’ll see if we can find a different way to contact her.”
“If I may say something,” Luckey interjected. He’d gotten to his feet with the file he’d brought. “I need to leave, but before I go let me assure you I have my own methods to track down the material. It’s not my only lead and I have other ideas I’m working on. I’m confident I’ll be able to find out the name of the girl in the morgue and inform her parents, if they can be found. If it should turn out the girl is Yu Tan—”
“Then her father will say she didn’t dishonor their family,” Ally interrupted, with bitterness in her voice. “That will mean more to him than the fact that she was murdered.”
Her mother stood up and started clearing the table. “There are too many Chinese girls missing from their families. Bless you for the part you’re playing in this, Ranger Davis.”
“Amen,” her husband said, and shook Luckey’s hand.
“It’s been an honor to meet all of you. Thank you for the delicious dinner.”
The night was ending.
Ally took a deep breath. “I’ll see you out.” Her heart sank to her feet as she and Luckey walked through the ranch house to the front door. After she opened it, he turned to her. “Despite the tragic circumstances we talked about tonight, I had a great time.”
“So did I,�
� she said.
His eyes danced over her features. “I’ll be in touch soon. Good night, Ally.”
“Good night.”
She closed the door, not ready to see him walk away, but there was nothing she could do about it. Needing an outlet, she returned to the kitchen to help her parents do the dishes. Her father smiled at her. “Your Ranger is the reason they’re still legendary.”
“He’s even more handsome than your childhood movie idol,” her mom added.
“I’m afraid he’s not my Ranger, but I agree he’s pretty amazing.” She finished loading the dishwasher. “While you’re both still up, there’s something else I need to tell you. The case he’s working on involves more than one victim.”
Both of them looked surprised.
“He told me that the bodies of three other young women, Chinese and Indonesian, have been dumped on the streets of Austin over the last ten months.”
“Ally!” her mother gasped.
“The one wearing the cheongsam was killed a week ago. When the police couldn’t find the person or persons responsible, they turned it over to the Texas Rangers and Luckey was assigned. It’s his opinion that the crimes are related and the women were possibly murdered by the same killer or ring of killers. Since he has access to the paperwork from the morgue, here’s what I’m thinking.
“Mom? Could I make a copy of the list of missing girls we assembled in China and give it to him? With his special resources, he could check the photographs in your files against the photos of the victims in the morgue. I know it’s iffy, but maybe it will help him. What do you think? I trust him with my life.”
Her parents looked at each other, and her father nodded. “It would be a start in the right direction.”
“Tell you what, darling. Let’s go to the den and I’ll print out what we have on the computer for you to give to him,” Beatrice offered.
Ally had never loved them as much as she did in that moment. “Thank you so much!” she said, kissing them both on the cheek.
She couldn’t wait to give him the information. It would be the excuse she needed to see him again. Already he was so important to her, she couldn’t imagine life without him.
* * *
WEDNESDAY MORNING LUCKEY got started early and met Randy at the site where he’d found the body last week. His brother had copies of the crime scene photos with him, and the two scoured the area, trying to see if the detective had overlooked any evidence that could help identify the car involved in the drop.
After that, Luckey met with the police officers who’d found the other three bodies. They walked around the crime scenes. He’d hoped to find something that had escaped the forensics team, but didn’t come up with any new evidence.
En route to work he phoned the lab at headquarters. “Stan? What have you got for me on that DMSO cream used by athletes?”
“Wish I could help you out, but no brand on the market in the US matches the evidence. It had to be manufactured in a foreign country. Where do you want me to look?”
Luckey made a mental list. “Indonesia, China and Japan, for starters.”
“For starters, huh? You’re funny.”
“I know. It’s like looking for one particular grain of sand on the beach.”
“I’ll get on it, but it’s going to take time.”
“I know,” he repeated. “Thanks.”
He clicked off, only to accept an incoming call on his car phone. “This is Ranger Davis.”
“Luckey?”
Only one woman had that slightly breathless voice. Ally had been on his mind throughout the night. He’d planned to call her later in the day, but to his delight she’d come to him.
“Would you believe I was about to phone you?”
“That relieves my guilt for bothering you once again.”
He drew a sharp breath. “In case you’ve forgotten, I invaded your office on Monday.”
“That was our family’s lucky day.”
Luckey was happy to accept that collective compliment. But he was waiting for the moment when it became more personal.
“I’m calling to find out if you’d like a copy of my mother’s work on female trafficking that she compiled while we were in China. She has names, addresses, descriptions of lost girls and in some cases photos, all from areas in the Jingjinji metropolitan region and the Hunan Province. I was thinking—”
“You were thinking maybe one of the photos might match one of the girls in the morgue?” he interrupted.
“Yes.”
“It’s entirely possible. That would be a real gift for the department. Are your parents on board with this?”
“I wouldn’t have offered it otherwise.”
“No. I’m sure you wouldn’t. Where are you going to be this afternoon?”
“I’m helping out at the orphanage that brings in special-needs children from China and finds them homes here.”
“One of your father’s projects?”
“Yes,” she said quietly. “He got the foundation started a long time ago, through friends and donors.”
Why wasn’t Luckey surprised? Her family was amazing. As for Ally... “What time will you be through?”
“At five.”
“Why don’t I meet you there.” He wanted to see the orphanage and find out the backgrounds of the staff who worked there, but he’d talk to Ally about it when the time seemed right. “Then we can decide on a restaurant to go for dinner and I’ll look through the information. Tell me the address.” When she’d given it to him, he said, “You’ve made my day. See you this evening.”
The rest of the afternoon he made phone calls to silk merchants in several of the big cities in Texas, until he located a fabric store called Hui’s, in Houston. The employee who answered the phone explained that they got their silk fabric from a Chinese merchant who traveled from their main outlet in Beijing every other month. He happened to be in Houston right now. Luckey made arrangements to meet with him the next day.
With that accomplished, he’d done as much as he could on the case today. Tonight he’d be having dinner with the woman who’d captured his attention the moment she’d accidentally run into his arms. He couldn’t think about anything else.
After stopping in at home to take a quick shower, he drove to Barton Creek and looked for the historic home on Maravillas Loop that had been converted into an orphanage. As he pulled up in front, he saw Ally sitting on a porch swing holding a toddler-aged girl in her arms. He got out of the car and started up the pathway to the door. That was when he noticed a young Asian woman in a chair next to the swing.
“We’re glad you’re here,” Ally said. “Meet Shan. She works with the day shift.” He shook the timid woman’s hand and was surprised to see bruising on her arms. “And this is little Bu. She has cystic fibrosis, but it can be managed with the right care.”
“How do you say ‘hi’ to her?”
“Ni hao.”
Luckey tried it. The little girl didn’t respond, but stared hard at him. “Her parents couldn’t keep her?”
“I don’t know the whole story, but she’s precious.”
Ally kissed both her cheeks and said something in Chinese. It was the first time he’d heard her speak the language. The little girl said something back and started to cry. Clearly, she didn’t want Ally to go. The tender scene pulled on his heartstrings.
Ally turned the girl over to the other woman, who looked to be about nineteen or twenty.
“Let’s go before she has a meltdown.” Ally reached for her purse and a loose-leaf binder that had been on the swing beside her. She and Luckey walked down the steps together.
“Where’s your car?”
“Around the side.”
“We’ll go in my car and I’ll bring you back later.” When
they reached it, he opened the door for her, then got behind the wheel. “Ally? One of the penalties you have to pay for being with me means I’ve got this latest case on my mind. Sometime soon will you do me a favor and let me see the orphanage books? I need to make a list of all the Chinese people who’ve worked or still work there.”
She looked alarmed. “What are you thinking?”
He took a deep breath. “I’m anxious to track down as many young Chinese women as I can, in case they’re in trouble. If any of the employees here are tied up in any way as part of this trafficking ring, maybe one of them will recognize the girls in the morgue. I’m acting on every lead possible.”
“I’ll talk to my father.”
“Thank you.” He pulled onto the main street. “Now that we have that out of the way, what are you in the mood for?”
“Anything.”
He smiled. “Then let’s go to The Grove and sit on the deck.”
“I love that place. All those huge trees.”
“The Italian food isn’t bad, either.”
Before long they reached the restaurant and were shown to a table. Once the waitress took their orders, Ally handed him the binder. He thanked her for it, but didn’t open it.
“When I get home tonight, I’ll spend hours digesting this. But right now I want to ask you a question.” She looked so beautiful in her filmy, short-sleeved blouse and white skirt. He hadn’t been able to miss the fact that every guy who walked past their table openly checked her out.
“What’s that?”
“Is there an important man in your life? Am I treading on any toes?”
Her eyes seemed to turn a deeper blue. “No.”
“Not even someone back in China?”
“I dated several American men while I was there. There was one I was pretty serious about. His name was Jack Reynolds. He was a judge advocate in the Marines Corps, working in international and operational law. I came close to marrying him.”
“Why didn’t you?”
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