“You’ll probably need a warrant,” Melba offered.
Edmondson nodded. “Do either of you have any more helpful thoughts?”
Melba thought through the possibilities and then offered a suggestion. “I think it might be worth it for Toby and I to head over to Gro-Transport and see what Garfield and team have uncovered. Now I wish we’d brought another vehicle.”
“I don’t think getting a ride to your car will be a problem.” Edmondson grinned before tilting his head to indicate the uniformed man approaching. “I’m sure Chief Kelly will be happy to arrange transport—especially for you two.”
To Melba’s surprise, Kelly didn’t even blink at the request. He did give her and Toby a cool once-over, before pulling out this phone and making a quick call. After he was finished, he gave her a curt nod and then pulled Edmondson away for a private consultation. Melba counted that as a big win. Several minutes later, an unmarked sedan pulled up beside her and the driver’s side window was lowered. A very familiar face grinned at their expressions of surprise.
“Your chariot awaits,” Mitchell quipped before getting out of the car. “I heard you needed a ride, and hope this will do.”
“You’re our knight in shining armor, Mitchell. This is a heck of a lot better service than I expected,” she assured him while shaking his hand, and allowing herself to be ushered to the car.
Toby made do with a mumbled “Hey,” as he made his way around to the other side and scrambled into the back seat.
Melba eased into the passenger seat and buckled up, stashing her bag at her feet.
“Here’s the best part,” Mitchell said as he handed them each a cup of hot coffee from the cardboard carrier on the center console. “I figured you could both use it, given the time of night, or rather, morning.”
She gave him a grateful smile before gulping down a swallow.
“Where’s your partner?” Toby asked as he took the offered beverage.
Mitchell shrugged. “Home asleep I guess, just like I was when the Chief called.”
“Kelly called you?” Melba asked in surprise as Mitchell started up the car and eased the car around.
“Yep.”
“I’m sure Bradley loved that,” Toby grumbled, mostly under his breath.
“What was that?” Mitchell asked cheerfully.
“Must have not heard the snark,” Melba thought as she took another sip.
“Nothing,” Toby answered innocently. “Anyway, thanks for the ride…and the coffee.”
“Sure. It wasn’t a problem. I wasn’t sleeping too well anyway.”
Melba braced herself for some more backseat commentary. Thankfully, none was offered.
“Where are you parked?” Mitchell asked, finally breaking the silence.
“Headquarters,” Melba answered. “We’re parked in the visitor’s lot.”
“Shit!” Toby interjected from the back seat. “I forgot to call Jon! He made me promise to give him an update.”
Melba heard the muffled one-sided conversation from the backseat, but what really interested her was the way Mitchell’s hands momentarily tightened on the steering wheel as he navigated the next turn. “Well, well, well…” she thought. “Isn’t this all very interesting?”
Once Toby finished his call, the rest of the ride passed quietly. Mitchell ferried them to Melba’s car, and waited until he was sure they were safely situated. He flashed his lights once Melba started the engine, and then pulled out with a wave.
She navigated through the now empty lot, and took a right. “Sure was nice of Mitchell to pick us up,” she offered.
“Yeah.”
She let another minute pass. “Did you fill Jon in on where we’re going?”
“Uh huh.”
“Good. At least now he won’t worry.”
He didn’t respond, and she couldn’t suppress her big sigh of frustration.
“I know how he gets, Toby. I’m sure he feels better now.”
“Melba?”
“Yeah?”
“Stop fishing.”
“What?”
“Stop. Fishing.” With that, Toby reached over and turned on the radio, effectively ending the conversation.
After a brief exchange with the officer at the front gate, Melba pulled into the parking area of Gro-Transport and pulled in next to the Crime Unit van. She checked the time on the dashboard display and groaned when she realized it was nearly four in the morning. They headed to the front office entrance and entered the front door, where they were met by Agent Garfield.
“Fancy seeing you two,” she said from behind the larger of the two desks in the room. “I don’t suppose either of you have any chocolate.”
“Sorry, fresh out,” Melba responded.
“That’s a shame. I’m really needing a fix. What are you two doing here?”
“Didn’t Agent Edmondson call and tell you we were coming?” Toby asked.
“Sure did, but that’s not why I was asking.” She stood from her chair and motioned them back toward the door. “You’ll want to be where the action is, and this ain’t it.”
They followed her out the door and down the short sidewalk and then pointed across the lot towards the brightly lit two story house on the other side, near the edge of the property. “That is where the action is.”
“That house is connected to all of this?”
“I knew you were a sharp guy, Toby,” Garfield said by way of answering the question. “That house is damn sure connected. One of the search dogs sniffed its way from the loading bay right up to the access gate. Once the gate was opened, he led us right to the house. Apparently, that there is ground zero.”
“That’s where the missing kids were held?” Melba asked as they started across the lot.
“No doubt about it,” Garfield confirmed.
Melba’s feet were killing her. “Why are we walking? We can take my car.”
“I think the scenic tour will put things into perspective,” the agent answered. “Plus, you didn’t bring me candy.”
She led them to a small set of concrete steps and indicated an open loading door as they passed a uniformed officer and made their way up. “The trucks were loaded from there,” she informed them as she nodded at the cop. “But inside is worth a gander.” She opened a small side door at the top of the steps and allowed them to pass inside. There were a couple of more uniforms milling around the space, and Melba recognized a few crime tech uniforms as well. Following the agent, they made their way to the open loading door they’d viewed on their way in. “The children were loaded here,” she picked up the thread of conversation. “Now, the first thing I thought was maybe the children were held here as well, but this place isn’t set up for that kind of operation. Then we stumbled onto one of these.” She pointed to a large black tub on wheels near the loading door. “Now, they aren’t really out of place, given that they’re a pretty common way to haul tools or garden supplies and can be bought from about a million places. The funny thing was, the lid was open, and I smelled urine.”
Melba was somewhat startled by that information. “Urine?”
“Yes, indeed. A pretty big puddle of it, at that.”
“Why would…” Toby stopped mid-sentence as it dawned on him. “You think they put some of the kids in these tubs and one of them couldn’t hold it?”
“I’m pretty sure of it. I think they used this tub to transport the children from the house to this docking warehouse and then put them on a truck to ship them out. If anyone happened to spot them, they wouldn’t think a thing about someone wheeling one of those to the loading areas.” Without waiting on a response, she headed to the opposite side of the space. She pointed out a couple of spots on the concrete marked with bright tape as they passed. “Don’t step near those,” she instructed. “Those make up part of the trail. One thing about those tubs is they aren’t water tight and there was some leakage.” She stopped mid-stride as one of the techs looked up from his work, frowning at the three of
them. “Oh, damn! We should be wearing booties. Tom Anderson is going to chew my ass. Come on, there’s a box of them over by the back door.” She shooed them along, and they each grabbed a set of plastic shoe covers and slipped them on. “Maybe he won’t know.”
“Don’t bet on it,” Toby and Melba said at the same time.
“Well, I better come clean anyway. It’s the right thing to do. That might gain me a point or two.” She held up her hand before they could respond. “I know what you were about to say, but I can hope.” She checked everyone’s feet and opened another door. “Stay off the marked areas,” she directed as they went out the back. Rather than taking the set of steps, they each hopped down from the small walkway onto the graveled lot. A series of flags on stakes marked a trail of sorts across the lot to a fence a few hundred feet away. They trudged through the lot and through the access gate, and followed Garfield around the house to a set of opened garage doors on one side.
Melba picked her way past the taped markings which had now replaced the flags. “They brought them out through here?”
“Yes,” Garfield confirmed. “Although, they were already in the tubs. Check out the marks on the concrete.” She paused to allow them to take note of the dark scuffs before leading them into the house through the open access door.
They stepped through the door into a dingy, medium-sized room, which was mostly empty except for an abandoned shelving unit. The flooring was cheap, worn linoleum, which had definitely seen better days.
“We think they loaded them here,” Garfield said.
They studied the area, following the marked path with their eyes.
“What’s through there?” Toby asked, indicating the open door at the opposite end.
“Down there,” Garfield corrected. “That’s the basement.” She moved toward the door and stopped. “Better prepare yourself.”
Melba eyed the door, mentally preparing for the worst. “Dead body bad?”
Garfield shook her head. “No. A different kind of bad.” With that, she started through the door, announcing her presence to whoever was waiting below.
Melba caught Toby’s eye as she started to follow and was reassured by his shrug. “Hey, how awful can it be if there aren’t any bodies?” he asked.
“We’re about to find out.”
Through the door, a small landing gave way to a series of wide, worn wooden steps. They started down. Melba stopped just short of the half-way point, caught off-guard by Toby’s gasp of surprise. From this angle, almost the entire basement was visible, lit by the harsh, unforgiving lights the crime scene unit had arranged throughout the space.
Metal cages had been constructed on one side, divided by narrow pathways between rows, and containing only basic cots. On the other side, a series of curtained alcoves had been built. Melba could clearly make out a primitive shower area in one alcove and a large stainless steel table fitted with strategically placed straps in another. The space with the table also contained a multi-shelved stainless rolling cart with a collection of equipment scattered across its top, and an armless rolling chair. Her stomach rolled and she had to look away; her imagination was suddenly filling in the blanks. “Get a grip,” she told herself, then nudged Toby to continue his descent. Anderson was waiting at the bottom of the stairs, engaged in a hushed conversation with Garfield. From the look on Garfield’s face, Melba figured the agent must have filled him in on the bootie incident, or lack thereof. When they reached the bottom, Anderson stopped his tirade and greeted them both with a tired smile.
“I suspect you got the general layout from the stairs,” he offered. “It’s quite a view.” He closed his eyes briefly and scrubbed one hand through his hair. “I hate crimes involving children,” he said through gritted teeth. “Give me a good, clean homicide any day.” He sighed and straightened his shoulders. “Come on. Let me fill you in on what we’ve found.”
He pointed out the key findings as they wound their way through the maze of cages. “Basically, this is where the kids were kept. There are general indications of food and water, as well as primitive chamber pots under the cots. We found evidence of blood and other DNA, so I think it’s safe to assume there was at least some punishment dished out in these areas as well. One of the areas is much worse than the other, and Laurie is working that now. The main thing of note is a partial list of names that’s been torn, or ripped, in half. I’ve provided it to the agents on the scene so they can start working on matching names to any children reported missing, I haven’t found the other half yet, but we’re keeping an eye out.”
Melba could just make out Tom’s lead tech through the forest of metal bars. The young woman’s face was grim and focused, and Melba imagined she could see righteous anger flashing from her eyes through the safety goggles she wore. Knowing the task was in good hands, she followed Tom and the others through the maze to the other side of the basement.
“There’s not much to see here,” Anderson said as he indicated the shower area. “We collected a few badly made smocks, but other than that, it’s pretty much what it looks like. There was also a waste bin filled with a large amount of hair. That’s been sent to the lab already, but I’d bet it’s human hair.” He led the way to the other alcove and pulled back the partially opened curtain so they could all see.
“That table creeps the shit out of me!”
“Me too, Toby,” Anderson agreed. “Thankfully, I believe its primary use was to restrain the subjects so identifying tattoos could be applied. I haven’t found evidence of anything else yet, although I suppose that’s bad enough.”
“You’re referring to the barcodes found on the dead victims?” Melba asked.
“Yes. We’ll analyze the inks and tools and compare them to the samples we have back at the office, but it seems likely we’ll get a positive match. Other than these areas, the rest of the place is more of the same.”
“What about upstairs?” Melba had to know.
“Not much there. Come on, and I’ll go back up with you. I could use a break.” He shouted out to Laurie, informing her he was headed topside and led the way up the stairs. Moving through the door and the utility area, he preceded them into what was obviously the kitchen. “In here, we found a lot of fast food containers, and a lot of overripe fruit. Cheap, generic brand juice, some crackers and a few other food items. Not much that needed to be cooked. However, we did find some pretty significant sedatives, which were probably used to drug the children when needed. We’ll work on running those down in the next day or so. We’ll also be following up with the fast food locations in the area, and hopefully someone will remember who placed orders for a couple dozen kiddy meals on a semi-regular basis.” He paused for a moment. “There were only two other things in the house besides a card table four folding chairs, and a bed upstairs.” He went through the door of the kitchen and stopped in a small eating area. In the center of the card table were the two items, each marked with a small numbered flag.
The first was a bright blue glove. The second was clipboard.
“That’s it?”
“I’m afraid so, Toby. And I have no clue if they mean a damned thing.”
Melba considered the items on the table for a minute, then looked up at Anderson. “Tom, any idea of who owns this place? That would be very interesting to know.”
“No, not yet. I’m as curious as you are, but the country clerk’s office won’t be open until Monday. I’m going to try and call in a favor or two.”
“Okay. If you run into trouble, get in touch with me. I know someone who can probably find out in less than ten minutes flat.”
“Madame Zhou?” Toby asked.
“Got it in one. I think…” she broke off in a yawn. “I think I need some sleep, unless there’s anything else we need to know tonight.”
“No, you’ve had the tour. I’ll call if anything else comes up.”
“Thanks. In that case, I think we’ll head out. Ready, Toby?”
“More than.”
&nb
sp; CHAPTER TWENTY
Lucy was jolted from her fitful sleep by a loud screeching noise. She rubbed the sleep out of her eyes, and was tempted to pull the tape from her mouth, but knew there’d be trouble if she did. Her mouth was dry from whatever they’d stuffed inside, and she wanted a drink of water more than anything. She lifted her head just in time to see Dorrie switch on her prod and turn to Georgie.
“Why are we slowing down? It’s too early to be stopping.”
Before Georgie could answer, a ringing sound filled the dimly lit cargo area, and Georgie quickly fished his phone out of his pocket. “What?” He listened to whatever the caller said, then threw his phone against the truck floor. “Fuck! It’s the cops,” he screamed in frustration. “Timonds says they’ve set up a damned roadblock!”
“You think they’re looking for us?”
“Of course they’re looking for us, Dorrie! Who the hell else would they be looking for?”
“Maybe they’ll just talk to the driver. He’s not gonna’ say anything.”
“And maybe they won’t just talk to him, and maybe he will say something!” Georgie kicked the phone and then lifted his booted foot to stomp it.
“Stop!” Dorrie screamed. “We need that!”
Georgie put his foot down and then kicked the phone again. “Fuckfuckfuckfuck!
The truck lurched forward and then stopped again. Georgie picked up the phone and gripped it tightly in on hand, until the truck slowed. After it came to a stop, he quickly typed something and waited for a response. When the return message came through, Georgie showed the message to Dorrie.
“What are we gonna do, Georgie?”
“Dunno…let me think for a minute.”
The truck eased forward again and Georgie started pacing. When it stopped, Georgie leaned forward and rested his head against the door. The phone rang again, and Georgie dug it out of his pocket and held it up to his ear. “What? No! You can’t do that! Puppet will kill you. I’m telling you—”
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