by Margaret Kay
“They’re powerful. No Los Angeles judge or DA is going to,” Kennedy argued.
“It’s on the federal level, not the city of Los Angeles. And don’t forget that what we had to begin with, was good enough to get our wire taps approved.”
Fifteen minutes later, Madison’s phone rang. “Hello.”
“Agent Miller, Stan came here and took her!” Lenora Baker yelled. “He hit me and kicked me.” She sobbed loudly.
“Lenora are you okay? Do you need an ambulance?” Madison asked.
This got everyone’s attention in both vehicles.
“He took my baby,” she wailed. “You have to go get her. You promised me we were safe!”
“We’re on our way now,” Madison said, glancing at how hemmed in they were. The shoulder to the right sloped at a steep grade down the hill. “I’m sending LAPD and an ambulance to your residence now, Lenora. Sit tight. We’ll get Kaliah!”
Cooper already hit dial on his phone.
“Ops, go,” Yvette answered.
Cooper gave her the particulars for Lenora Baker. Yvette tapped directly into the L.A. County 9-1-1 system and entered in the call.
“Angus’ phone is still pinging at his condo,” Garcia chimed in. “We didn’t know he was on the move. I’ll notify the FBI liaison.”
“Abe’s mansion is right over there up in the hills, ten minutes away,” Kennedy said, pointing to the gated community entrance that could be seen in the foothills about three blocks over, off the freeway ramp.
Cooper jumped out of the car. He walked up to the window of the car in front of him and startled the female driver. The car was a good three feet back from the car in front of her. He flashed his badge. “Can you pull up as close to the car in front of you as you can please?”
“Um, sure,” the woman replied.
Then he did the same thing to the two cars in front of her, so he’d have a space to squeeze through to drive down the embankment. In the SUV behind them, Mother followed at a safe distance. Both vehicles bottomed out twice. Good thing it hadn’t rained, or they would be sliding in mud.
“We’re moving on Gallway,” Cooper said into his phone. “Our ETA to his residence is ten minutes. Requesting backup.”
Cooper badged his way past the guard at the entrance to the gorgeous gated community. Kennedy directed them along the narrow tree-lined road higher into the foothills to Abe Gallway’s mansion. Both vehicles pulled past it and then pulled over to the side. Their presence was shrouded by the thick foliage that separated them from the grounds.
Madison dialed her phone again. Kennedy watched her and listened to her talking with whoever was on the other line. “Yes, I’ll wait. Pull him off the bench if you need to. I need that warrant now.”
Kennedy watched as they all donned bullet-proof vests with various federal agency letters on them. She also watched them gear up with small cameras mounted on their vests and earplugs with wires trailing from their ears down the back of their necks and into their shirts.
“Everything we do will be recorded. There will be no mistake what we are walking into and what we do, which will all be one-hundred percent legal,” Gary told her.
Madison pulled her phone away from her ear. “The judge approved the warrant. It’s being pushed through to my phone now. We’re clear to make entry.”
“Where in that mansion would Abe have Kaliah?” Sloan asked Kennedy.
“Second-floor bedroom that faces the rear of the house. I can lead you there and I can get us in past the front door guards too,” Kennedy volunteered. “They have cameras and a guard room that watches the feed. They’ll never open the door to the police, but they will to just me standing at the door.”
“You’re not going up to that door by yourself,” Sloan argued.
Cooper turned to Kennedy. “That control room, where is it located?”
“Right inside the door.”
“Are the guards armed?” Cooper asked next.
“I’ve seen a few with guns, but not everyone.”
“Sloan vest off. You will each drive one of the SUVs up the drive and go to the door, Trojan Horses. Go in and neutralize it before we move. We don’t want their inhouse security warning Gallway. We want film of him with that girl when we bust into his bedroom.”
“You get us in, but then you stand back. Do you understand!” Sloan ordered Kennedy.
“Yes,” she agreed, nodding her head. She’d never heard him use that tone of voice before.
Sloan handed his vest to Sherman. He knew his partner would give it to him once the team joined them at the front door. He wished they had a spare vest for Kennedy. Hell, he’d give her his.
“Dear Lord, keep that young girl safe until we reach her, and keep all bloodshed far from all involved in this mission, we pray in your name, Amen,” Lambchop said a very quick prayer.
“Amen,” the others answered.
Then they all piled into the SUVs, the others crouching out of sight on the floorboards as Kennedy drove, her eyes fixed on the SUV that Gary drove in front of her. She came to a stop and glanced at Brian, who was crouched beside her.
“We got you, momma. Don’t be nervous.”
“Thanks.” Then she met Gary at the stairs leading up to the front door.
He took her hand and gave her a smile. “Just a couple coming to see Abe.”
Kennedy pressed the intercom button and gazed up to the corner where the security camera was mounted. “Melody Sawyer to see Abe.”
The door opened. One of the security men she recognized stood there, iPad in hand. “You’re not on the list today, Melody. State your business and I’ll contact Mr. Gallway to verify.”
Sloan saw no gun on this man. He crowded in, gun drawn and pressed into his abdomen, where the camera would not show it to the monitoring room within. “Federal Agent serving a warrant. Don’t make any moves against me or I’ll drop you. Do you understand?”
The man nodded.
“Are you armed?”
“No.”
“How many in the security force inside?”
“Four,” the man said.
“All in the monitoring room?”
“Two are. The other two men are patrolling the house and grounds.”
“You’re going to lead us in and get the other two away from their panic buttons. We want no alerts going to anyone. You got it? Failure to do so will add obstruction of justice charges to your case. You may not be complicit and have no charges filed against you. How this plays out is up to you.”
The man nodded.
Kennedy was shocked by the threatening tone Gary’s words held. His eyes were dark and focused too. She was glad he was on her side.
The guard let them within the entry. Sloan slid a hand around him, searching in the normal places a gun would be concealed. He was clean. He led Sloan to the door to the control room. Kennedy stood just within the door, nervously glancing around, looking for the two guards on patrol. The guard slid his cardkey through the door lock, and it clicked. He opened the door.
“I need you both out here for a sec,” he said. “I’ve got a problem.”
The men stood and stepped to the door. Sloan could see one was armed, a pistol on his hip. “Which of you gentlemen are in charge?” He asked, already guessing the one with the gun was.
“That would be me,” he spoke up and took a step further out into the entry, towards Sloan.
“Move in,” Sloan broadcast through his comms as he shifted the gun from the first guard’s back, into the lead guard’s face. “Federal Agent serving a warrant. Get those hands up.” The man complied. “And all of you, down on the ground. Now!”
Before they could even move, the front door swung open and the remainder of the team swarmed the entry. Kennedy stood back, watching, in awe of their movements. Cooper disarmed the one guard and helped propel him to the floor. He had zip ties around his wrists within seconds. Danny and Landon did the same with the two other guards. Meanwhile, Madison went into the mo
nitoring room.
“I’ve got one guard in the kitchen, looks armed, a second out on the back patio. He looks armed too.”
“Mother, Birdman, you’re with me,” Lambchop told them. “We’ve got the guards.”
Kennedy watched the three of them take off into the hallway.
“That leaves Abe for us,” Cooper said. “Show us.”
Sloan slid the vest onto Kennedy and fastened it. He’d rather be unprotected, not knowing if Abe Gallway was armed or not or if any surprises waited for them upstairs. She led them up the grand staircase. Gary held her hand, which was just what she needed. Being back here, brought a new level of anxiety to her. She tried to remember to breathe deeply, but it was hard to with her chest as constricted as it was.
They passed the door to the room she’d started the fire in. Abe’s bedroom was up ahead. She was dreading what they’d find. That poor girl. She stopped them at the door. “Here.”
“Stand back,” Sloan said.
He slowly and quietly tried the nob. It was locked. He stepped back and raised his foot. With one powerful thrust, he put all his weight behind it, and he kicked it at what he knew would be a weak point. Wood splintered, the door burst inward, accompanied by a loud crashing sound.
Kennedy was amazed at how quickly all three of them, Gary, Cooper, and Madison, entered the room, guns drawn. Kennedy stepped in behind them, pretty sure she wasn’t supposed to, but too invested in this to remain in the hallway.
The three of them stood in a semi-circle around the bed. There on the bed, laid Kaliah, her shoulders held down by Pete, who kneeled at her head. Abe jumped back from between her spread legs, his pants around his ankles, his white button-down shirt hanging open.
“Federal Agents serving a warrant!” Cooper yelled. “Let me see your hands!” Neither man moved. “Let me see your hands!”
Finally, what he said dawned on them and they both raised their hands into the air.
“Cover us,” Cooper told Madison.
Kennedy watched as both Gary and Cooper moved in. Cooper grabbed Abe and forced him to the ground, face down. Gary pulled Pete off the bed and slammed him to the ground face first as well. Kennedy ran to Kaliah.
“Shh,” she whispered in the crying girl’s ear. “Don’t say my name.”
Her clothing was ripped open. Kennedy knew Abe’s robe would be on the back of his master bathroom suite. She rushed there and got the burgundy, silk robe. She helped Kaliah sit up and prompted her to put it on. Then she led her from the room. Cooper and Gary kept the two men’s faces pressed into the carpet. She didn’t think either one got a good look at her.
In the hallway, she held the frightened girl. “We’ll call an ambulance.”
“My momma. Stan hurt my momma!” Her voice was panicked.
“We got the police and an ambulance to your momma. We’ll take you to her. Are you hurt sweetheart? Did that man push his dick into you?”
Kaliah nodded yes against her chest.
Sloan came into the hallway. He heard Kennedy’s question. The girl was clinging to her tightly. He was glad Kennedy was there to help her. He locked eyes with Kennedy. “We’ll call an ambulance for her. The regular FBI are still five minutes out. Lambchop and the others neutralized the two roaming guards.”
Kennedy nodded. “It’s over and you’re safe now. We’ll take care of you, sweetheart. Just breathe and relax as much as you can.”
Sloan’s eyes were intense gazing into Kennedy’s. “We’ll need the evidence on her preserved. Take her into another bedroom, but she can’t use the bathroom, no wiping off with a towel or anything either.” He felt like a cold prick telling them that. He had dealt with rape victims before. The first thing they always wanted to do was wipe fluids from themselves.
Kennedy directed her into one of the other bedrooms, closing the door behind herself. She led Kaliah to the bed and helped her lay down. She held her and spoke in a soothing voice. “I’m sorry he got you and this happened. Stan didn’t bring his phone with him to your house, which we were monitoring. We had no idea he was heading there.”
Kaliah didn’t say anything.
“And I’m sorry Abe hurt you like this. He’s done it to me too, honey, he’s done it to many other girls. You’ll get past this. I promise you will.”
Madison slipped into the room at some point. “The regular FBI are here. I’ll let you know when they’ve got everyone out. We’re holding the ambulance until then, so no one sees you. They’ve got all suspects down in the entry. It shouldn’t be long. We’re confiscating all digital records.”
“Thanks,” Kennedy replied.
“The FBI is moving in on John Fairborn too.”
“What about Phil Lewensky?” Kennedy demanded.
“There’s nothing on him yet. We’re hoping there will be some evidence on the other three men’s computers that implicate him. Until then, a judge won’t sign off on the warrant.”
“So, he’s not getting arrested today?” Kennedy spat. “As soon as he hears about the others, he’s gone. You know that don’t you? He’s got a private plane, his own Lear.”
“The FBI is watching him and his plane,” Madison said.
“Big deal!” Kennedy yelled.
“Calm down. This is how it works. We’ll get him. There has to be proof of his involvement someplace in this house and we’ll find it.”
“Yeah,” Kennedy said with disgust. “Can you stay with Kaliah for a minute?”
“Sure,” Madison said.
Kennedy slipped from the room. She went back into Abe’s bedroom, which was now empty. She went to his desk, to the middle drawer where she knew he kept a gun. She took it and slipped out the door onto the balcony. She climbed down and crept around the house, watching carefully to be sure no one saw her.
She got to the front corner, hiding behind a bush, in time to see both Abe and Pete placed in the back of black SUVs. Jesus, did all these guys drive big black SUVs? How stereotypical. The cars pulled away and disappeared up the driveway. There were several LAPD cop cars in the driveway as well as several more SUVs.
She tried to get the bracelet off. It wouldn’t budge and it was so tight, she couldn’t even work her finger beneath it. “Oh, screw it,” she whispered aloud to herself. Hopefully they wouldn’t notice her missing long enough for her to get a good head start. All she needed was five minutes. She went to the car at the front of the long line of cars, unnoticed. She eased into the driver’s seat. The keys were in the ignition. No one noticed her drive away.
November
Phil looked up from his computer screen at the sound of the door clicking closed. “Melody, what in the hell are you doing here?”
Kennedy’s lips tipped into a grin. Jeez, he didn’t even know the difference between the two of them. But the fact that he assumed she was Melody meant that he didn’t question for a second who they had killed. That was good.
“And why the hell are you wearing a bullet-proof vest that says ATF? What the hell is going on?”
Kennedy forgot she had it on. Good. The camera was recording all this. All she needed was to get a confession from Phil. “I borrowed it, so to speak.”
“From a cop? What the hell is going on?”
“I came to tell you something I found out recently. Did you know that Kennedy was adopted? My mother actually gave birth to identical twins. That’s why we looked so much alike. Kennedy was in fact my twin sister. And you had her killed.” She pulled the gun from behind her back.
“Whoa, Melody, you’ve got this all wrong.”
“No, I don’t.”
“You’re not going to shoot me. Now put that thing away.” He stood up.
She fired the gun, hitting his prized crystal elephant which sat on the far-right corner of his desk.
Phil screamed and jumped back.
“And just so you know. I was aiming at the elephant.” Her voice was strong, even though the loud sound of the weapon firing had startled her too. The hearing protection they
make you put on at the range really did muffle a lot of the sound. Who knew?
“Melody calm down. I didn’t give the order to kill Kennedy. It was Abe. It was all him.”
“Enk,” she made the sound of a buzzer. “Both Abe and Pete pointed the finger at you.”
“They’re lying. It was all him, Abe. The two men he sent after her are on his payroll. I told him Kennedy could be reasoned with, but he wanted her eliminated. I might be a lot of things, but a child molester isn’t one of them. Abe has this appetite that isn’t right, the younger the better as far as he’s concerned. He was good buddies with Jeffrey Epstein, made numerous trips to his Isle of Sin on the Lolita Express.”
