AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Parties and timing...and the victims,” Dorfmann said.
“The victims?”
I scanned the pictures of the men on the wall again. As expected, there were no women or children on there. But I didn’t see the pattern she was talking about. When it came to men, there was a wide variety from a young Russian mobster to an old politician with a cane.
“Senator Ashton,” she said, pointing her pen at a picture of a man in a black suit who was holding a champagne glass. “He was involved with minors as young as thirteen.”
“What?” This information was new to me, not mentioned in my files.
“Ivanov,” she said, redirecting her pen at the tattoo-covered blonde guy. “Trafficked women from Eastern countries to US brothels.”
I knew that.
“Congressman Moss of Oregon,” she continued. “Had a financial investment in child trafficking.”
Suddenly I was standing, though I didn’t remember deciding to do so. The police files of the mobster victims mentioned all these nasty little details. However, not one of my files on the rich and powerful political figures was as thorough as the FBI files apparently were.
My eyes scanned the wall over and over again.
“All...” my voice broke off. “All of them have that same pattern?”
I turned to face Dorfmann. She sighed, then nodded.
“You didn’t know?” She scratched her blonde head. “That means someone powerful is trying to make those little facts go away in your station as well. They accidentally released the files to my unit unredacted. That’s how I know. The updated version is missing most of it in my files as well. Whoever wants Eagle gone wants it done quietly, taking the secrets along with him.”
Eyes wide, I turned to the wall of evil again. That moral fence I had constantly found myself on during this investigation had been literally demolished right underneath me. I stumbled a step back. If I had known what monsters Andrei Kowitsch was taking out, I’d have laughed when this job was first presented to me and then driven to the airport to catch a flight to Croatia, let someone else catch some guy who is a sore in the eye of corrupt politicians. But then...I’d never have met Mila either, which in itself would be worse—to me, at least.
Still, the fact that I felt like I wasn’t the good guy here any longer, and somebody had known about this all along, well, to put it mildly, pissed me off big time! Did the chief know?
“We got a location!” the lieutenant shouted across the room. I jerked his way like a startled prey staring death in its eyes.
“The Grand Hotel in Portland. Room two twenty-one is Mila Kowitsch, so get that damn warrant for the whole floor. His room must be close to hers!”
“How soon can the local team dispatch?” Wilson asked.
“Two hours, maybe a bit less,” the chief answered him.
“Why the hell does it to take so long?” Wilson wondered.
“We only have a handful of trusted cops and field agents to draw from in Portland. They’ll be called in right away, but it’ll take some time.”
“Then why are you still talking to me? Make it happen!” Wilson yelled.
Fuck. Fuck. Fuck!
The operation was in full motion now. For a moment, it seemed as if the walls were closing in on me. I had difficulty breathing; the stuffy and smelly air was unbearable to inhale.
“Where are you going?” I heard Dorfmann’s voice as if it came from a different world.
Good question. Where was I going? My feet were already moving before I had even processed the thought.
To her. To get her the hell out of there.
The operations room had turned into an inferno. People were on their feet, yelling, phones ringing nonstop.
I had to get to her before they searched Andrei’s room and put out that warrant on him. The chief and I had made arrangements that Mila’s room would be left untouched until everything was over, that I could be the one to take her home if that’s what she wanted, and most important of all, she would not be held in custody. For what, anyways? She hadn’t done anything wrong.
But now, those were promises I couldn’t rely on upon anymore. Someone here had been lying to me since the beginning of this operation. This was not about getting funding for the station and taking out a monster on the way. This was a deal behind closed doors between a few parties to benefit each other. And I was going to find out who it was and land a solid little present in that guy’s face when I did. But I had to get to her first, make sure she was safe and out of the way. At this point, I wasn’t even sure if the FBI wanted to arrest Andrei according to the laws of this land or simply get rid of him once and for all.
