In the room the whiteboard from before was covered with a paper map of the five boroughs. Several locations had been circled.

  “Former Agent Stone indicated to Kane that Roxanne would be more prone to use a place that could easily be converted into cells for the people that she has taken as political prisoners or for selling or whatever she is currently doing. Since we also believe they are coming in by boat, we’ve circled all the abandoned areas next to water.”

  Quinn pointed them out on the map as he spoke.

  Ericka looked at them. Some she remembered seeing on a tour of the city. To be a good detective one needed to know the dives in the area.

  Some of the marked locations she didn’t remember at all.

  She was betting that the one Roxanne would choose would be one less traveled.

  “That one. I think it is that one.”

  “Why?” Greg narrowed his gaze at the map.

  Ericka approached and pointed as she spoke. “Several ways in and out. Good access to the water. And I’ve never been there, have you?”

  Greg frowned.

  “When I arrived, you took me on a tour of all the places that criminals like to hide out. The road less traveled tour, I think you called it. We never went here.” Ericka pointed at the map. “Why was that?”

  “Contaminated.” Greg said the word as he leaned over the desk and began to shuffle through papers. He pulled one out and held it up. “This property was condemned as being contaminated by a chemical spill almost twenty years ago.”

  “Any way to check the validity?”

  “On it.” Maggie had her phone to her ear and moved away from the group as her professional voice began to emerge.

  “If Roxanne and her crew chose this location, they must know that it is safe. Which means—”

  “They have someone working for them in the county records office!” Ericka interrupted Quinn but he didn’t seem upset. He just pointed his finger to the air and nodded with her correct assumption.

  Maggie returned. “So, Greg was correct. The building was officially condemned twenty years ago; however, another buyer came in about five years later and cleaned the place. The records on that little activity were never made public.”

  “She’s made herself the perfect landing place.” Greg shook his head.

  Silence filled the room.

  Then in a flurry, Greg started throwing out orders. “Quinn, get Director Manis on the line and tell him we have a potential hide out. Maggie, call Bert in SWAT and get his guys lined up. Tell them the details that we have. Ericka and I will head to the warehouse and send back any intel we have while we wait for the others to arrive.”

  “On it.” Maggie and Quinn stated at the same time.

  Ericka tried to keep down her nerves. If all went well then, they would be rescuing Bud soon. No word had been given on Tito or his abductor, Amy Guild. He could be held in the same location. It was possible.

  Now they had two people to protect and potentially more.

  The more eyes and intel they had before they rushed onto the scene the safer it would be for everyone involved.

  She yawned behind her hand.

  Greg said, “Let’s all get a couple hours of sleep before this happens. It’ll take that long to rally the troops anyway.”

  The sun was rising, and their activities would better be done in the dark. Ericka took the chair and cradled her chin in her hand. She really should have gone home and changed her clothes.

  ****

  Sloan arrived at the club right as the place was opening for the day. His lip throbbed from where Tito had struck him. The fellow was brave, Sloan had to give him that.

  Jacket tugged down; Sloan entered the dimly lit room. Musicians were on stage tuning instruments. The bar was mostly empty and only a few booths held people.

  He’d thought about coming the night before, but instead he’d gone home and gone to bed. When he awoke that morning, he had the stupid idea that taking Tito Santos with him might help him learn more. The guy was a cop. Sloan could have forced him to use his credentials on threat of hurting the boy.

  It would have worked if his two men hadn’t been fighting like cats and dogs when he arrived. It was hard to find good men these days.

  “What can I gettcha?”

  “Information.” Sloan slid a twenty across the bar.

  The bartender pocketed the money and went back to rubbing the surface. “What kind?”

  “I heard you had a fabulous new singer here last night. Is she coming back today?”

  “Doubt it.”

  “Why?”

  “She was just some chick who wanted to prove she could still play the trumpet and boy could she. She packed the house. People have been asking about her all day. That video some patron shot has went viral.”

  “I see.” He tapped his fingers on the bar’s surface. “So, she wasn’t here for a specific reason.”

  “Nope. She never left the stage except to leave.”

  Sloan thanked the man and rotated on the stool until he faced the men in the band. He wouldn’t get any more from them. They looked tight lipped.

  He left the bar and went back to pick up Roxanne. She’d gone to the nail salon to have her toes done. They were in the middle of a transaction, and she still had to have her toenails done. One of these days he would be free of that nonsense.

  ****

  Tito bit the rag in some vain hope that it would disintegrate. It certainly tasted old enough to do so. Amy Guild, famous rescuing agent, stood off the side of the room consuming a sandwich. He could smell the pickles and mustard. It was as if she was just rubbing in the fact that he wasn’t free, and she was.

  “Oh, don’t look so rejected. I’m sure that it’ll be over soon.” Amy slapped crumbs off her hands as she closed the distance between them.

  He would have replied, but with the gag it was impossible.

  She settled on a stool in front of him. At least they’d let him sit on the floor now. The stool from his previous time in the warehouse had been its own torment.

  “My sister believes that I’ll be able to waltz right back into the office and act like everything is normal. What do you think?”

  He narrowed his eyes.

  “Ooo, you’re angry. I get it. Your guilty conscious doesn’t understand how I could take money for kidnapping people then rescuing them. It’s simple. They have, I don’t. And I want it, so I take it. No one really gets hurt. Maybe a little trauma but they can afford a therapist.” She studied her nails.

  Tito would have come off the floor and sent her flying if he thought it would help or that he could get up once he finished. Movement was difficult with his hands behind his back… again.

  “But let’s be real. My sister would just kidnap them and sell them. At least this way some of the higher profile people get to go home.”

  Her rationalization was making him physically sick.

  “Anyway, it’ll be over soon. The boat arrives tomorrow and all these people who sought asylum from their home countries are going home! They get to be a part of their family’s life, probably from prison but still not a bad deal. Of course, a few of them that didn’t get the country’s ransom will be sold to the highest bidder, but those are the breaks.”

  Amy stood as the door behind her opened. Roxanne and Sloan entered the room.

  “All are secure for the evening. We’re headed out.”

  “I’m staying a bit longer.” Amy winked at him. “Tito and I have some catching up to do.”

  Tito had no idea what she meant by that. Did she plan to torment him more with words or physical blows? He didn’t know which hurt worse.

  “Suit yourself. Remember that you have to go back to the office tomorrow before anyone gets suspicious.”

  “Yes, sister.”

  Sarcasm oozed from Amy’s words.

  Sloan rolled his eyes. Tito hated the man, but still wouldn’t wish his position on his worst enemy. He was caught between two sisters who couldn’t stand each other but were completely dependent on the other.

  Sloan still carried marks from their earlier fight. Tito couldn’t help but wonder if Sloan had discovered anything on his little jaunt to the jazz club. Driving over from the cabin had given him time to think. If he was a betting man, he would bet that the club Sloan was going to be the same one that Ericka had been singing at on the television. The question was why? What had he hoped to discover?

  Roxanne and Sloan left the room and Amy retook her regular seat. “I thought they would never leave.”

  Tito put away his thoughts as he waited for Amy to say more, but instead she just finished her sandwich. The afternoon wore on. The room grew darker and darker. Nightlights plugged into the wall were the only source of light. He could hear kids crying from the hallways. No doubt they were scared. He wished he could get to them and comfort them, especially Bud. He’d been with him in the van, the jail, and the cabin before they were escorted back here again. He hated this place.

  The dank smell messed with his allergies. His eyes watered. His nose ran. He felt itchy. This and he was in the office. He could imagine what it would be like out on the floor.

  Amy knocked crumbs off her lap and stood. “Guess I should get too it.”

  She opened the door and didn’t close it all the way. He watched her phone flashlight light the way along the hallway. The sounds of chains rattling echoed along the emptiness. Moonlight cascading through the upper windows cast an eerie glow on a chair sitting in the middle of an outside room.

  Tito scooted one butt cheek at a time until he could see more clearly through the cracked door.

  A man with head bent over was thrust into the chair. He grunted as his head was roughly pulled back by his hair.

  “Andre, how good to see you again.”

  Andre spit. He must have hit Amy directly, because she released him and used the back of her hand in a swipe across her face.

  “I guess I deserved that, however, before you get any grander ideas, I want you to know we have Eliott.”

  The man gasped.

  “That’s right. We found him. Hiding him in the cab of that truck was brilliant, but not brilliant enough. Especially when the cops found him and started sharing his photo so he could be reunited with his parents.” In a sing-song voice, she said, “Reunited and it feels so good…”

  Andre didn’t respond.

  “Oh, I know you’re an agent. I didn’t tell Roxanne or Sloan. They think that you stowed away on that political ship that you’re a worker or something that brought his kid on a holiday. But my contacts in Russia reached out. So, I know you wanted a way out, and bam, the ship had an opening, so you came along.”

  “Why didn’t you tell them?”

  Tito detected an accent, but he couldn’t place it.

  Amy shrugged. The shadow of her shoulders moving up and down looked huge from his angle.

  “I’m not sure. I guess I thought maybe you and I could be beneficial to one another.”

  “I don’t think so.”

  “Oh, but you haven’t heard my idea yet. And if you love your little boy then you want to hear my idea.”

  Andre’s shoulders slumped as if with defeat. Tito wished he could offer encouragement. He wished he could tell Andre that they would help him, but right now it wouldn’t look like a very positive thing.

  “What do you want?”

  “Much better.”

  The voices lowered as Amy closed the gap between her and her prisoner. Tito couldn’t make out what she was asking, nor could he hear Andre’s response.

  One thing that he had figured out though was that Eliott had to be Bud. Bud was the only kid that the cops had been brandishing around trying to locate parents. His father had put him in a truck which had dropped him at the diner where he’d climbed into Greg’s car. That was something that Tito knew for certain. Andre had done all this to protect him and now the kid had ended up right back where he started.

  Now Tito felt defeated. If someone didn’t find them soon all hope of rescuing Bud and his father would be lost. Tito understood that now. Amy had a plan to use Bud to get what she wanted, and she was well into her plan at this very moment.

  If they weren’t rescued soon then he would be personally responsible for their freedom. No pressure there.

  Chapter Twenty-One

  “When we arrive, we need to put on our protective gear, grab our service weapons, and walk the perimeter. Phones and radios on silent until we meet back at the car.”

  Greg knew he was preaching to the choir, but he couldn’t help it. He had to say something. They’d had this great afternoon almost like a family in the park. The entire scenario had matched the dreams he’d had. Then Bud had been snatched, and everything turned upside down again.

  Not only did they need to get the kid back, but he needed to decide how he felt about Ericka.

  Heidi had been calling non-stop. He’d put her off because he had to help with Bud although that wasn’t exactly true. He needed time to think.

  Heidi was amazing.

  Except for her cooking

  They connected. They fit. They had a lot in common.

  But she wasn’t Ericka.

  They had slept, ate, and Ericka had changed. He wasn’t happy about that part. But she couldn’t parade around in that jazz club outfit while rescuing people.

  SWAT had called to say that they were ready but would hang back until called. Director Manis had given the go ahead. Now they were in the car.

  Greg squeezed the steering wheel until it hurt. Night fell and the streetlights in the area had gone out long ago. The high beams on his car were barely enough for him to keep from running into the water. Lights might also alert anyone in the area of their coming. So, using the moon was all he had.

  “We need to stop before we reach the warehouse.”

  “Agreed.”

  He pulled over and parked his car in a strip of moonlight. He popped the trunk and climbed from the vehicle. Ericka followed. At the trunk she grabbed her vest and shrugged into it. She pulled out her service weapon, pushed in a clip, and pulled back the slide.

  “Remember we’re on surveillance. As soon as we prove that they are inside meet back here and we’ll call it in.”

  She nodded.

  She hadn’t said much since they returned to the house. He knew her well. He figured it was the guilt bothering her. Guilt was certainly bothering him.

  Her guilt would be over going back to check on her father without saying anything. His was for entirely different reasons. One thing was that he’d asked to date her, but he was still thinking about Heidi.

  The warehouse wasn’t close, and they jogged to the location at the same pace. Once there, they split up. Ericka went one way and he the other. If the people were being stored inside, then they were in the dark. There wasn’t a single light to speak of.

  Greg eased around the building. There wasn’t a sound. Not even a whisper could be heard. He came to an open door. He eased it back, praying it didn’t creak. They hadn’t agreed to go inside, but he couldn’t tell anything from outside.

  As soon as he opened the door an inch, he knew they were in the wrong location. The building didn’t have any walls. It was only a shell.

  They had made a mistake.

  Now what?

  He stepped back outside to find Ericka. Across the river he saw dozens of tiny lights coming from a mostly dark building. One of the lights seemed to move as if someone was walking with a flashlight.

  “You see it too?”

  Ericka’s voice caused him to jump.

  “Sorry, I should have announced myself.”

  “Humph.”

  “This place is clearly empty, but that place over there, I think that’s it. All the tiny lights.”

  “Why didn’t we look at that place on the map?”

  “I’m not sure. Let me call Quinn.”

  She called Quinn on the phone. Greg could hear her asking about the place across the river.

  “What? I’m telling you there is a place there. It’s a huge building.” She paused. “Why would I lie? And I’m looking right at it.” Pause. “Fine, have Maggie call and check to see what I’m already looking at. Call us back.”

  Greg waited for an explanation.

  “He says that building was torn down.”

  “I see.”

  “Maggie is calling to check.”

  Greg admitted that a building that didn’t exist would be the perfect place. Plus, it was right across the river from a potentially contaminated building. The hiding spot didn’t get much better than that.

  Ericka’s phone rang. She nodded and nodded. When she hung up the call, she looked at him and drew in a deep breath.

  “I think we’ve found our hiding spot. How do we get from here to there?”

  “Leave it to me.”

  ****

  Ericka didn’t care for the awkward vibes of being in Greg’s car. Why did she keep doing this to herself? She felt like she was a kid outside holding a flower and saying, he loves me, he loves me not. But instead, she was saying, I love him, I love him not.

  If she could cradle her head and shake it, she would. There had to be an easier way to answer this question. Not that it really mattered. He was clearly into Officer Heidi Goodall.

  The lady was strong, capable, and beautiful. Plus, she seemed to really care for Greg. She would have more time to give him the things he wanted. Family, and stuff like that. She probably knew exactly how a family worked.

  Ericka didn’t even know if she wanted that kind of stuff.

  She probably wouldn’t be good at it. Even if she wanted to.

  Her head ached. Why didn’t she know what she wanted in life anymore?

  Greg.

  He was making her thoughts change.

  She looked at her hands clenched tightly in her lap as they drove along the river and toward the bridge. There were two bridges but only one led to where they needed to go.

  The only light on the bridge came from barrels lit at random intervals. Men and women bundled in multiple unmatched layers huddled over the flames. Their hollow faces illuminated by the blazes stared at Ericka as they passed, and she fell back against the car’s headrest.