After the Rain

by Karen-Anne Stewart

  “Yes, sir, I just got it loaded.”

  Kas steps beside Raina, wrapping his arm around her waist as he peers at the screen next to Dexter.

  “Those are my CDs,” Raina whispers, her face blanching. “There was a substantial amount of money in there. How much money was used for the group of girls from Romania?”

  “We traced $115,000.00 to a bank account overseas that we believe is connected to an alleged handler in Romania.”

  “There’s more.” Raina grasps the back of Johnson’s chair to steady herself, “Prikrak’s purchased more, or he’s planning to. I had $350,000.00 in those certificates.” Tears well in her eyes, and she brings a shaky hand to her mouth, “We have to stop him before he buys more girls.”

  Kas pulls Raina to his chest, protectively wrapping his arms around her, but she pulls away, sorrow and rage searing her, “No, don’t comfort me, don’t try to make me feel better!” she yells, “I just paid to send those girls to hell.”

  Dexter places a chair behind Raina, grabs her shoulder and guides her down, “You didn’t do this, Raina.”

  Tears are streaming down her face, but she doesn’t care. She feels like she just lost her soul.

  “When was the money removed from her account?” Kas demands.

  “Sunday, November 11th.”

  Kas doesn’t have to work too hard to remember that day. “What time?” Kas growls.

  “8:38 p.m.,” Smyth replies, studying Raina, his resolve of her guilt rapidly dissipating by her shattered state that appears to be completely sincere.

  Kas grabs his phone, “Erik, I need you down here, now.” Closing the phone, he turns towards Smyth, “Raina was in the interrogation room with me and with Wakely during that time frame.”

  “Senator Wakely?” Smyth’s eyes widen.

  “I don’t have to tell you how sensitive this information is. However, I will tell you that Senator Wakely is not currently a suspect for any illegal activity. You can watch the video, it’s time-stamped, but you’re not allowed access to hear what was said. You don’t need audio to see that Raina was nowhere near any device for at least an hour.”

  “My technicians will view the footage, Agent Pierce. I don’t want any of your men handling it first.”

  “Your implied insults against the integrity of the people in my department will not be tolerated! Do I make myself clear?” Dexter growls, the vein on his head pulsating furiously.

  A long silence is followed by a slight nod given by Agent Smyth, and Dexter returns to his spot on the edge of his desk.

  “Your technicians are welcome to be present when the video is viewed, but it will not be leaving this office,” Kas states, his tone of authority leaving no room to be challenged.

  “Fine. They will be here in twenty minutes.” Smyth makes a quick call, then nods at Raina, his questioning gaze eliciting an explanation.

  Raina pauses, not wanting to continue this conversation, not wanting to waste any time that could be better used trying to find the girls. Sighing, she leans back against her chair, resigning to the inevitable, “What do you want to know?”

  “Why would this Evan Parker use your money, and if he took it then, why wait until now to use it?”

  “I don’t know! Maybe because he’s angry that we’re close to nailing him? Because he thinks all of this is a game? Or because he’s a bad person, a really bad person,” she blurts out, her voice trailing at the end as she drops her head into her hands.

  Kas rubs her shoulders, filling Smyth in on how Raina hacked the recovered equipment, linking Parker to the large ring. “How in the hell did you ever make it to your position?” Kas barks.

  “Pierce,” Dexter warns.

  Calming his tone, but only slightly, Kas continues, “Let me put the pieces together for you since you can’t seem to manage on your own. Parker took the money out of the CDs knowing they would rarely be checked because they’re not due to mature for a few years, and he made sure the bank wasn’t aware of his actions until he needed them to be. The bastard’s been studying us just as much as we have him. He chose a Sunday evening knowing that’s the least likely time Raina would have a solid alibi. Now that we are getting close to nailing his ass, he wants to put her out of commission.”

  “So, he hacked the hacker that hacked him,” Smyth states with dry amusement.

  Raina feels Kas’ hands tighten, and she glances at him, for the first time seeing the true depiction of ‘if looks could kill’.

  Crossing his leg over the other, Smyth studies Kas, then Raina. He presses his fingers to his pressed lips, “Tell me more about Parker.”

  Chapter Fifteen

  This cold wind is punishing as it whips around Kas. Slamming the door to his jeep, he picks up his pace to the lobby of the building where Chase lives. Full scale, no holds barred, warfare is raging inside of him; the discordance between his head and his heart is tormenting.

  Chase has the door open before Kas raps on it twice. “What the hell are you thinking?” he tears into Kas as soon as he steps inside.

  “Well, I guess the calm, rational discussion you’re so proficient at is out the door,” Kas grumbles, not attempting to hid his agitated sarcasm.

  “You hate my calming techniques, remember? You want it blunt and real, well this is about as blunt as I can put it, Kas. You’re out of your mind for even considering doing this to Raina, not to mention, being a huge jackass. Even though the reasons behind it are drastically different, you’ll be doing what her father did and what Chris tried to do. I’m telling you now, if you go through with this, it will explode in your face with a backlash you’re not prepared to handle.”

  Kas takes an angry step towards his best friend who is currently thoroughly pissing him off. “Are you actually accusing me of being like those bastards? Like her father?” he yells.

  “I’m telling you that your actions, if you follow through with them, will be like her father’s as far as how he controlled Raina.”

  Kas’ menacing glare is full of fury as he growls, “Her father beat the hell out of her, locked her up, and starved her for days to control her, Chase. You saw what he did to her! I’ve never and would never control her like that. I’ve never raised my hand to her, ever!”

  Chase’s own anger riots as he steps directly in front of Kas, his nose almost touching his as he yells back, “If you honestly think that I would even suggest that you have abused Raina, then you truly are out of your mind, and you’re a complete idiot! If you would calm your overbearing ass down long enough to actually listen to what I have to say, you’d realize that I’m just trying to explain that you would be controlling her life. I never said by physical harm, but if you put her back to only translating, not allowing her to continue working on cases with the team, you will cause damage.”

  Kas’ jaw twitches as he stares at Chase. A part of him knows he’s right, and that’s the part that is killing him with guilt, but that doesn’t minimize the danger. He turns away, trying to tame his anger, to tame the conflicting emotions ripping him apart.

  Chase sees Kas’ internal struggle and takes a deep breath before continuing, “I know what you’re trying to do, what you’re trying to prevent, but I’m looking at the big picture here.”

  Kas spins back around, his pain darkening his eyes as he yells, “I’m looking at the picture that will keep her alive!” Raking his hands through his hair, he crosses the room, staring out the large window. “Parker’s upping his game. We both know what he’s capable of doing,” Kas tells him as his voice breaks. He presses his hands against the window and drops his head, slowly shaking it; his voice is barely audible as he continues, “I’ve never felt fear like this before. I’m terrified of Parker’s reach, his power. The thoughts of what he might do to her scares the hell out of me! The possibility of him hurting her—I can’t take it. Dammit, Chase, sometimes it feels like I can’t even breathe.”

  Chase places his hand on Kas’ shoulder as he steps beside him, “I know, I have the sa
me fear, but I’m also scared of what will happen if you take this next step. Raina has made tremendous progress, and your encouragement and involvement have been monumental in that progress. If you take this away from her, you’re stripping away the very control you helped her restore.”

  Kas’ gaze never moves from the floor, his heart aching from the decision he’s already made, “I don’t want to hurt her, or control her, but the risk is just too high.”

  Chase sighs, knowing Kas’ mind is already made up. He understands his decision; he can’t honestly say he wouldn’t make the same one if he were in his position. “Raina won’t just walk away from the team.”

  Slowly turning around, Kas meets Chase’s gaze, his eyes an excruciating mixture of relief and agony, “I know.”

  Knowing Kas use his authority to push the issue, Chase runs his hand down his face, frustrated at the infuriating situation, “Just think about it first, Kas. Try to step away from this and have an objective view before talking with her. Will you at least do that?”

  Kas punches the side of the solid oak door frame, his anger at what he’s about to do to his wife mauling him, “But, if I don’t do this, how in the hell am I supposed to protect her? She’s suffered too much already.”

  “Looks like it should be you sparring with Si Fu Shang tonight instead of Rain,” Chase tells him, throwing him a kitchen towel to wipe the blood off his knuckles.

  “I’m losing it,” Kas readily admits, cleaning his hand.

  Knowing exactly what he means, Chase laughs dryly, “You’ve already lost it, if it was ever yours to begin with, bro, haven’t you figured that out by now?”

  Leaning his head against the frame, he closes his eyes, “Yeah, I know. How do I change what I’ve built my entire life around? I make the decisions, I’m the one in control, I’m the one responsible for the team’s lives. They do what I say, when I say it, because they trust me to make the best decisions for them. I want Rain to trust me like that. I need her to trust me like that when it comes to her life.”

  Chase smacks him, hard, on the side of his head, “She does trust you. She’s proven over and over again just how much she trusts you. This isn’t about you, butt munch.”

  “Butt munch?” Kas laughs, relieving at least a fraction of the tension, “What, are you six again or something?”

  “We were seven the last time I called you that, and you were acting like an idiot then, too, taking my skateboard and going down that huge ramp, almost breaking your damn neck to impress Wendy Stacey.” Leaning against the wall next to him, they laugh at the memory of Kas falling off the skateboard halfway down and landing on his arm, the skateboard landing on his head, breaking his nose and dislocating his shoulder, “I will never forget how you picked up that board with your good arm, flashed your bloody smile to Wendy, and then walked off like it was just a scratch.”

  “Dad was pissed,” Kas chuckles harder, finding the laughter immensely therapeutic.

  “That’s an understatement,” Chase states, doubling over with laughter, “and your stunt didn’t do any good anyway. You got all busted up, and Wendy went off with that rich, preppy kid, kissing him behind the slide at the playground instead of you.”

  “Yeah, I guess that plan backfired,” Kas laughs, then suddenly stops, punching Chase in the arm. “Dammit, don’t think that I don’t know what you just did. I really hate you sometimes, you know that?”

  Chase shrugs innocently, flashing his best know-it-all grin, “I don’t have a clue what you are referring to, bro.”

  Raina mindlessly sifts through the mail she grabbed from the box on her way out of the drive. Erik’s music is blaring so loudly, she can feel the vibrations in her chest when she steps into his office. Shaking her head at the earphones over his ears, she lowers the heavy metal band that makes her ears want to bleed.

  “Hey, I was listening to that.”

  “You were going deaf to that,” she corrects him, “even through these.” She playfully pulls one side of the earphones back before letting it slap against his head.

  Tossing the unopened mail aside, she slides in the seat next to him at the table, “Am I allowed full access to all accounts now?”

  “Dexter gave the all clear this morning,” he tells her, giving her a wink, “not that you needed that anyway.”

  “I have no idea what you mean,” she attempts feigning innocence.

  “We are bad influences on you, girl. Don’t even try to tell me that you didn’t hack the system last night.”

  “You could tell?”

  Erik bursts into laughter at her frightened expression, “No, I couldn’t tell, even though I busted my ass trying. We’ve got to work on your poker face, though, you’re a terrible liar.”

  “Breaking the law and lying, you really are a bad influence,” she laughs, the small act feeling so good after worrying herself sick over the past eighteen hours.

  “I said ‘we’ are bad influences, buttercup, don’t go blaming your recent decline of your previously unblemished upstanding citizenship solely on me.” Erik sees the sadness shadow her face, “Crap, Raina, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to be callous, I’m just trying to get you to smile.”

  Raina wraps her arms around his neck, “I know, and I love you for it.”

  He gives her a reassuring squeeze, “Did you find anything?”

  He feels her shake her head underneath his chin, “Don’t worry, you will. We’ll get him, and we’ll get the girls. How’s Kas handling this?”

  Raina pulls away, giving him a look like he’s lost his mind to even have to ask.

  “That well, huh?” he laughs, chucking her under the chin.

  “I think he’s contemplating murder.”

  “Honey, we all are,” Erik only partly jokes.

  Raina pulls her MacBook Air from her bag, flipping through her mail before firing it up. Throwing a couple of credit card solicitations in the shred pile, she stops when she sees a plain envelope addressed to her. She slides her finger under the corner of the flap, tearing it open at the top, then turning it over to empty its contents. Her chair makes an appalling screeching sound as it is sent flying backwards when Raina jumps out of it.

  Her hand shoots to her mouth, trying to repress the urge to vomit as she stares down at the heinous photos. Erik wraps her in his arms before he even sees what has caused her to violently pale. His embrace tightens when he feels her trembling, and his glance follows her horrified stare. Quickly turning her arm, he shields her from the sight before reaching into his pocket to grab his phone. “It’s okay, Rain, it’s okay,” he whispers soothingly as the phone rings. Pick up the phone! “Kas, we need forensics up here, now! You need to get up here, too.” Erik doesn’t wait for an answer as he closes the phone, turning his full attention back to Raina, who looks like she might faint.

  “Please tell me they aren’t real, please!” she begs.

  Erik rubs his hands softly up and down her back, “I wish I could.”

  Rage replaces her shock, and she spins around, grabbing a coffee cup and sending it hurtling across the room. Kas steps back as the projectile almost hits him when he walks through the door. The glass crashes against the wall.

  “I’m sorry!” Raina calls out as the glass smashes, causing splintering shards to shower the floor and Kas’ shoulders.

  Kas looks at Raina, concerned, never before seeing her react with so much anger, “What’s going on?” The look in her eyes causes him to rush to her side, “Talk to me, sweetheart.”

  Raina is struggling between deciding to burst into tears or flames, so she does both. Hot, angry tears scald her cheeks as she thrusts an outraged finger towards the horror scattered on the table, and her body trembles violently as she tears herself from Erik before furiously pacing the room.

  Taking his pen, Kas slides the pictures out side by side and studies them. His own rage riots at the depictions of a brutal beating delivered before the suffering ended in death. The girl, maybe sixteen, is laid out on a floor, her
face bruised and swollen, her neck slit, but it’s her eyes that guts Kas’ soul. They are half open, and the lifeless baby blue spheres seem to be staring right at him, pleading for help that never came. “Where did these come from?”

  Kas’ voice reaches Raina, but she doesn’t respond to his too calm, too quiet query. Her mind is to too busy flashing images of the dead girl through her head.

  He tenderly takes her arms in his strong, assuaging grasp, “Where did you get these, Rain?”

  Her eyes meet his, but she’s not fully there; most of her is on a dark path devising revenge. “Mailbox,” she finally breathes.

  “Our mailbox?”

  The response is one sharp nod.

  “He knows where we live.” Kas dials Chase, leaving a message requesting him to come by the agency as soon as possible.

  Thomas, a short, dark haired man with graying tips, from the Forensics department knocks on the door frame before stepping into the room, his boot making a loud crunching sound as he steps onto the broken glass. He points down with a sheepish expression on his face.

  “That’s not what we need analyzed,” Erik assures him.

  Relief washes over Thomas’ face and his jovial smile returns, crinkling the corners of his eyes. The twinkle in them is so out of place for Raina’s current cloud of darkness. He resembles St. Nick, even without the beard depicted in the children’s book her mother used to read her. Thomas is a kind, gentle man, and Raina likes him for that, but every time she sees him, she’s reminded of the legendary Santa Claus and her mother, for that, she loves him.

  “What’ve you got for me?” Thomas asks, shaking his boot and knocking it against the leg of the table to free the glass from its sole.

  Erik places his arm around Raina’s shoulder. She scoots closer to him, needing the warmth of his body to stave off the coldness permeating through her. Kas shows Thomas the pictures, telling him to send a team to their home to dust for prints, check for fibers, and everything else the forensics techs do to trap a perp.

  “These were put in your mailbox at your home?” Thomas asks, the jovial smile disappearing as his gaze shifts to Raina then back to Kas.