by E. M. Leya
Marshall smiled as if the news made him happy. "Then it's time to relax." He took Danny's hand in his again.
The front door opened and Faith, Xander, and Matt walked in.
"Sorry, we're late. I thought California's freeways were bad, but Denver comes close to being worse." Xander shook his head. "I can't imagine it in the snow."
"It's not fun." D grimaced.
Faith smiled at Danny. "I'm glad you're here." She pulled him into a tight hug.
Danny pulled back and stared at her. "Have you always known about this?"
She shrugged. "I had a pretty good idea right after I was rescued, but none of the guys would say much. They kicked me out of the room anytime the conversation got serious. It wasn't until I was about sixteen or so that they really started letting me stick around. I'm still not allowed in the computer rooms very often if they're searching up videos and pictures, but they'll at least talk around me now."
Matt tugged on Faith's braided hair as he stood beside her. "She thinks she can be a team doctor someday. I'd rather her far away from all of this, working safely in some hospital."
Faith rolled her eyes. "I can do both. Beau and Rani both work and take care of a team."
Danny wondered if that meant they planned on creating more teams in the future. He wasn't going to ask a ton of questions now. Hopefully, he'd learn more by just listening.
"Let's get you through medical school first," Xander said from across the room.
Patrick walked into the kitchen, giving Danny a smile and a thumbs up.
"Okay, I don't want to be here all night, so let's get this meeting started." D reached for a thick file folder that was on the kitchen table. "The first thing on the agenda is Roger Demstrum. A fifty-two-year-old math teacher at Jefferson High School. He's been blackmailing his students. Higher grades in exchange for oral sex favors which he records and has been uploading the videos to the dark web. You can hear him telling the students that they better not tell anyone or he'll release the videos for everyone to see. His victims are both male and female. Right now, we know of twenty-eight students he's blackmailed over the last three years. He has them come to his home where he talks them into the exchange. While the videos consist only of blow jobs, they are violent and degrading. We've got enough on him to go in. I'd like Patrick to take this one Tuesday night."
Patrick gave a nod.
Danny listened as they talked about two other cases. His stomach turned as he thought about how many children were being abused if there was enough to keep a team like this busy. He thought he'd been one of very few to face abuse, but he was learning that the numbers were a lot higher than he ever imagined.
"How are things going with the search in Colorado Springs?" Jessica asked after the other conversations ended.
Marshall glanced at Danny and said, "we think that's where Larry is. His family has a ranch in the area. We've linked the ranch to a series of child pornography videos that have been released over the last few years. While the man in these videos isn't Larry, we do think Larry is linked to this man somehow and probably now staying with him."
"Videos?" Danny swallowed hard. "It's not me, is it?"
"No. These videos show the same two children over the last few years. The videos are scripted and we think whoever is in them is scripting them and forcing the children to act out scenes. We know there are two adults at the location, but so far, we haven't been able to confirm one of them is Larry," Marshall told him.
Danny wrapped his arms around himself. "How do you confirm it?"
"We're watching business cameras in the area, hoping if it is Larry, he'll venture out and let us see him, but the thing is, we have enough evidence on the other man to go in. The man is Larry's cousin, Dale. We haven't been able to identify the children so far, but we finally did link the videos to the location. Satellite and heat-sensing imagery show the children never leave the back room they are kept in." Jeremy glanced at D. "We have enough to go in if you approve it."
D nodded. "Plan it, but since we can't confirm the identity of the second man, we only restrain him. If we get on location and it is Larry, then we go through with castration. If it's not him, we just don't have enough to warrant dismemberment. Dale will get the full treatment."
"The second guy has to be Larry. I'd bet everything on it." Marshall sounded mad.
"I hope you're right. And if it is, we'll make him pay for what he's done. If it's not, we only restrain because we don't have enough evidence to tell us this other man is guilty of anything more than bad choices in living arrangements," D said.
"You know that's bullshit. If he's living there, he has to know at the least that the kids are being held in that room." Marshall sighed.
"We all know that, but we can't prove that. We work on proof. So if you want the okay to go in, you'll agree to those terms." D stared at Marshall.
"Of course he agrees." Danny gripped Marshall's shoulder. "Right?"
Marshall nodded.
Danny took a deep breath. "It's Larry. I feel it."
Jeremy nodded. "Everything points to it being him. We'll know once the team is on-site."
"When are we doing this?" Jessica asked.
D looked around the room. "Friday night."
Danny's chest tightened. That was less than a week away.
D looked directly at Marshall. "That night, I want you and Danny at home. Matt will still be here and can help Jeremy on the computers. I want you and Danny to go out to dinner, go to a movie, be seen around town. I want to make sure that there is proof you were in Denver at the time of the sting. I don't want to give anyone reason to think this might be Danny seeking revenge. While the castration will link the team to the sting, I want you both with alibies."
Danny glanced at Marshall.
"That's fine. Just promise me you'll make it hurt if it's Larry." Marshall stared at D.
"I promise he'll pay." D nodded.
Marshall turned to Danny. "You okay with all this?"
He wasn't sure he understood all of it, but he knew enough. "I trust you to do what needs to be done." He glanced around the room. "I just don't want any of you in trouble for any of this."
Xander smiled. "Don't worry about them. This is what we do. Everyone will be just fine."
Faith nodded. "If it's Larry, you won't have to look over your shoulder anymore."
"And if it's not him?" Danny asked softly.
"We won't give up looking," Jeremy promised.
"Who's going to Colorado Springs?" Jessica asked.
"All three of us. Because of the location, I want three of us to go in. The site is large and we aren't sure what we are going to be walking in on. We'll sit down and go over everything soon. I'm working on a few other things to ensure our safety." D glanced at Jeremy who gave a single nod.
Danny wondered how they could all be so calm. It was as if they were talking about a short shopping trip. Just thinking about what was going to happen had his stomach in knots. Maybe he really didn't want to know what was going on with the team. He couldn't handle it if anyone got hurt or arrested trying to take down Larry. He took a deep breath and looked around the room. "Thank you for this." The words were hardly enough, but what more could he say?
"You're welcome." Jeremy smiled. "But you need to remember, we'd do this even without knowing you. This is what we do. I don't want you feeling like you've made us do this. Don't carry our actions on your shoulders, okay?"
He nodded, but still worried.
"And looking into next week, date yet to be announced, we have Darrel McDonald. This man will not be up for father of the year. He's been selling his ten-year-old daughter to pay off his gambling debts. He has joint custody of her and we'll need to make sure she's not there when we go in, but I want this asshole stopped. Videos of the girl surfaced last week, alerting us to her. Once her father realized what people would pay for a young girl, he decided to not only use her to pay off his debts but rent her out to others for pay. What makes this wor
se, the girl is disabled. She's confined to a wheelchair and is non-verbal. This case will probably draw media attention as Darrell McDonald is also the assistant district attorney for the city of Denver."
"Fuck," Patrick cursed.
"I knew there was something I didn't like about him." Jessica shook her head. "He and I have butted heads in the past when I've tried to push through tougher sentencing for sex crimes. I had a meeting last year with several of our local senators and he was there, arguing against everything I suggested."
"You won't have to worry about him again once we get to him. Jeremy and Marshall have pulled up enough evidence against him that he'll be going away for a very long time. Once the police get the evidence we'll leave behind, it should take down at least four others he's sold his daughter to. Darrel wasn't very careful about hiding faces when he hid the cameras in the bedroom. There will be fallout. Some of these men are prominent businessmen in the area." D grinned.
Danny couldn't believe what he was hearing. "Is it always this busy?"
"No, not always. We can go weeks without a solid case, but we are always hunting and working on collecting evidence. The hardest part of the job is what Marshall, Matt, and Jeremy do. Linking the evidence they find to the source is time-consuming, not to mention mentally draining." Xander reached for Matt's hand.
"Faith, what did you think about Gary?" D asked.
Danny's head snapped up. "Gary, my therapist?"
D nodded. "When I found out Faith was going with you, I asked her to get a feel for the guy. We need someone to work with the team on a permanent basis. What we do can fuck with your head. In California, the team has to see a counselor every so often just to make sure their heads are in the right place. You can't do what we do every day and not have it mess with you. I'd like to invite Gary to join the team, but I need to know if we can trust him before doing that."
"He'd report to you?" Danny didn't like the idea that Gary might tell D what they talked about.
"Yes and no. What is said in any session is always confidential, but as a team counselor, he would let me know if he thought anyone was having a hard time or needed some time off. More than anything, it's just a place for team members to talk and decompress. None of us like talking about this shit, but we all have to admit that there are times it's helped. We see things that a lot of people couldn't handle. We torture other humans as part of our job. No one needs to carry the weight of that alone," D explained.
Danny nodded but still wasn't sure he liked the idea of Gary being that person.
"Faith?" D glanced at her.
"He's a good guy. Laidback, easy-going. I sense he's dealt with a lot of abuse cases. It was the way he would lead into a question but not force answers. He knows when to back off a bit. When I talked about my rescue and the heroes who came in to save me…" She grinned at Xander. "He didn't flinch at hearing about the castrations. In fact, he looked a bit impressed."
D glanced at Jeremy, then back at Faith. "Any negatives?"
"He sucks at Mario Kart." Faith grinned.
"Compared to you, we all suck at it." Matt rolled his eyes.
"Seriously, I liked the guy. Not knowing his background, I can't tell you if he'll snitch the team out to the police, but I didn't get the feeling he was that kind of guy. He was supportive and compassionate when I told him my story. He didn't ask a ton of questions, just let me talk. The only thing I can say that bothered me, and it could be just because I'm used to someone else, but I felt as if he should push a bit harder to get Danny to talk." She turned to Danny. "The stuff we talked about yesterday should have been brought up sooner. At least I feel it should have."
Danny swallowed, ducking his head, praying they wouldn't ask him what was said or why he didn't discuss it.
"Faith, do you remember how long it took you to open up? You were having late-night talks with Xander long before you opened up in a counseling session. There were several points I considered finding you someone else to talk with." Matt smiled at his daughter.
Faith shrugged.
"How do you feel about the idea of hiring him for the team, Danny?" Jeremy asked.
"He's a nice enough guy. Easy to talk to and listens well. The issue of not talking is mine, not because of anything he's done. I think he'd fit in with the team as far as personality, but I can't say how he'll react to what you do." Danny wondered how his own sessions might change if Gary knew everything.
"Does anyone here object to me setting up a meeting with him so I can get a read on him?" D asked.
No one responded.
"Okay, then I'll talk to Rani later. If he doesn't object, I'll set up a meeting with Gary and see how things go. From all the research I've done into his past, I think he'll be a good fit and is someone we can trust. I'll keep the team posted on how it goes." D settled back in his chair. "Anyone else have anything?"
Jeremy cleared his throat. "I've been watching a guy who records himself chatting like a teenage girl online, then goes out to meet the men who are trying to have sex with her. He doesn't do more than confront them and put the video online for people to watch, but I'd like to give you his name and information to look at. He might be a possible team member."
"For computers or cutting?" Jessica asked.
"I'm not sure yet. He's got some computer skills, but not enough to do what we do here. He could be teachable, but I was thinking more cutter. The anger and hate he seems to have for these predators has to come from somewhere. I haven't dug too deep into his past yet. I wanted the go-ahead before I really looked into him."
"Find out what you can and get it to me. Send me links to his videos. Let me see how he handles himself. If he's got too much anger, we don't need him." D looked around the room. "Anyone else?"
At the silence, D nodded. "Then I'd like to officially welcome Danny to the team. We'll leave it up to you how involved you want to be, but know that you're welcome here anytime and have the full support of the team if you need anything."
"Thanks. I know how much trust it takes to let me be here. It means a lot that you are willing to let me come with Marshall when he's working. I don't know what I can do, but if anyone needs anything, just let me know."
"Jessica's cake recipe." Patrick grinned.
"If anyone needs anything I can share without risking my life, let me know." Danny laughed, smiling at Jessica across the room. "I might be nice enough to bake when I'm here."
"That would make you the most important member of the team," Jeremy teased.
"We might need a bigger house with more bedrooms if you do that. No one would ever leave." Jessica smiled.
"Alright, back to work. We'll meet again next week. Same time. Until then, let's make sure we're ready for these stings coming up. I want everything to go smoothly." Jeremy stood.
Marshall turned to face Danny. "I'm done here for today. How about we grab something for dinner and head home."
"KFC?" Danny asked.
"Sounds good to me."
They said goodbye and headed out the door. With the sun slowly setting, Danny looked up at the purple hazed sky and smiled. They were close to getting Larry, and once that was done, he could finally move forward with his life.
CHAPTER THIRTY
Marshall transferred that final file onto the thumb drive, the last of the evidence they would leave at the scene when the team went in. He pulled the small drive from the computer and set it on the desk. "Everything is set to go for tomorrow." He glanced over at Jeremy who was chatting with someone on the dark web. "You got something?"
"Guy just messaged me asking if I was interested in paying for time with a twelve-year-old boy." Jeremy's voice held a tone of disgust.
Sadly, this happened all the time since the team worked hard to create fake profiles online that cast them as pedophiles who were interested in things like that. It was one of the many ways they worked their way into the inner circles of some of the darkest groups on the internet. Playing the role and faking interest wasn't easy, but
knowing that it would hopefully mean protecting the children in the end, made it worthwhile.
"I'll play nervous and scared for a few days, let him slowly talk me into it." Jeremy kept typing.
Marshall gripped Jeremy's shoulder. "You need me to stay?"
"Nah, go ahead and go. I'm not going to stay much longer. D's cooking dinner and I promised to be home early. Matt, Xander, and Faith were going out. " Jeremy smiled over at him before turning back to focus on the computer monitor. "I'll talk to you tomorrow and keep in touch through the night as I get information."
"Talk to you then." He stood, taking a moment to grab his drink and a candy wrapper from beside the computer before leaving the room.
The house was quiet, which wasn't unusual. Rani was working, and Patrick, if he was home, spent most of the time in his room. The rest of the team was off, everyone getting ready for the sting in Colorado Springs tomorrow night. Just the thought made Marshall restless. He wanted this over with. He wanted Larry in custody, though that would bring on a whole new load of stress because it would mean pending court cases and interviews that Danny would have to go through. He wished there was a way for Danny to avoid all of it, but there wasn't if they wanted Larry to pay for what he'd done.
He made his way to his car, thinking about Danny and how huge a part he now played in his life. He was falling for him hard, emotions he never dared hope to have growing stronger every day. He'd just wanted to protect Danny. Help him get on his feet, find his way in life, but now, it was so much more. He wanted to see his smile as he walked through the door, feel his arms around him at night, and hear his laughter throughout the day. He wanted to look into the future and see them together.
Detouring, Marshall pulled into the parking lot of a small florist and went in, inhaling the sweet scent as he looked around at the flower arrangements. Though he liked the daisies, he grabbed a dozen red roses instead. It was probably the first time Danny would get flowers and he wanted him to remember it. He liked being Danny's first at almost everything and bringing him flowers was just another one of those things. Maybe next week he'd get him chocolates. Make a weekly habit out of giving him small gifts.