Chapter 21 #2
We followed them all the way to a gate at the very back of the airport where the biggest planes were kept.
Double-decker monstrosities casually rolled by the windows, large enough to easily be mistaken for a building.
In a different situation, I would have loved to stop and marvel at them.
I’d never been on such a large airplane before and wondered what they looked like inside.
The few times I’d been on a plane left much to be desired.
If only Kitt and I were here for a fun trip. This airport could take us anywhere in the world so long as we had the right ticket. Thinking about it brought such a sense of freedom that I felt myself choke up.
I wanted to see the world. I wanted to travel to new places, try new things, and finally feel free for the first time in my life.
But no. Instead, I was running around hunting down pedophiles and traffickers that the law failed to take care of.
I’d said it before, and I’d say it again. It wasn’t fair.
Clenching my fists at my side, I bit my lip to keep myself from shouting in frustration and stomped down the hallway after our targets with renewed purpose.
Our target stopped at the fifty-third gate in this section of the airport, and it was here that we hit the mother load.
Not only was Grace Calderon there, sitting off by herself as if she were just an ordinary traveler, but there were at least half a dozen other children that fit the description for trafficked victims.
She must really be in a hurry to take such a risk moving so many people at once. I wondered who she feared more, American law enforcement, or the bell ringers themselves. She’d managed to make an enemy out of both.
Kitt and I stepped off the main path into the seating area for gate fifty-two, right across the aisle for gate fifty-three where Calderon and the others were waiting.
“What do we do?” I asked Kitt as we took seats in the too small chairs, pretending to be passengers waiting for their flight.
“According to the info on the bulletin board by the gate, their plane leaves in less than two hours. What can we possibly do in two hours to stop Calderon from leaving? We can’t stop the plane.
We can’t even get security to detain her.
We still don’t have any evidence that she’s done anything wrong. ”
“Maybe we do.”
Kitt pulled out the book he’d been reading earlier and propped it up in front of us, pretending to show me something on its pages so we had an excuse to keep looking in the direction of the other gate.
“Calderon’s got the kids with her. They’re witnesses.
If any of them could speak up against her, accuse her of kidnapping them and holding them against their will, it might be enough for security to at least detain her while they investigate it.
That’ll buy us time to come up with a more permanent way to keep her from escaping. ”
Peering over the top of the book, I studied the kids scattered around the gate.
To an oblivious observer the kids would have looked completely unconnected.
They didn’t sit together, didn’t even look at each other, and showed no signs of knowing each other.
Literally, the only similarity between any of them was that most of them were blond, which was hardly suspicious by itself.
Their handlers were the same. Some were men. Some were women. All were dressed different, and all played a different role. Some were pretending to be a child’s parent, some a sibling, and there was even one who was old enough to pull off the role of a loving grandfather.
“I don’t know,” I said as I watched the eerie scene of pretend. “Even under the best circumstances, these kids are trained to be obedient. Plus, they’re drugged right now, so they won’t be in the best mindset. They probably won’t be willing to speak up. Trust me. I’ve been there. It’s not so easy.”
Kitt squeezed my hand.
“I know its not easy, but is there anything we could do to convince them? Is there anything that would have convinced you back then?”
“Not me...” I said vaguely, my words trailing off as an idea occurred to me.
I scanned the kids again and nodded at a boy who sat between a pair of handlers posing as his parents.
“Our best bet will be that boy.”
“Really?” Kitt studied the boy in question. “Why him? He’s got two handlers. That’ll make him even harder to get alone. Wouldn’t it be easier to try to get to one of the less guarded kids?”
“It’s because he’s got two handlers that he’s our best bet.”
How could I possibly explain this?
The reasoning was instinctual to me. I’d never had to put it into words before. In that moment, I missed Clay. He would have understood as soon as I pointed the kid out. I wouldn’t have to go into such detail because he’d lived through the same experiences alongside me.
Nervously brushing my bangs out of my eyes, I glanced up at Kitt.
The man was patiently waiting for my explanation. He clearly didn’t understand, but he had faith that I would explain, and he was willing to wait as long as it took me to find the words.
Maybe that was better than having someone who already understood me.
In fact, I was thankful that Kitt didn’t have the same experiences as me.
No one should grow up the way I did, and the less people who shared my experiences, the better.
Kitt had something even better to offer.
Kitt valued my input, and he was willing to listen, even when I struggled to explain.
“Okay, so, it’s like this,” I started. My words weren’t eloquent, but I kept on anyway and just hoped that I’d make sense.
“Growing up with the bell ringers, I survived by playing along, doing as I was told, and avoiding trouble at all costs. That also meant avoiding people who brought trouble. That kid is exactly the kind that I would have avoided. He doesn’t play along, and he doesn’t do as he’s told.
If anyone would be willing to speak up against his captors, it’ll be that kid. ”
Kitt glanced at the kid again, reevaluating.
“You can tell all that just by looking?”
I shrugged. “He’s got two handlers instead of one like everyone else.
He’s trouble, and they know it, so they’ve got extra eyes on him.
He’s antsy and glancing around a lot more than the other kids, meaning he’s more alert.
Plus, you see the way he keeps scratching at his skin?
The drug they give the kids to keep them complacent isn’t too bad so long as you don’t fight it, but if you do fight the effects, it can be.
.. unpleasant. All in all, he’s the one most likely to speak up.
I can’t guarantee that he will, but if we’re going to take the risk of trying to separate one of the kids from their handler, that’s the one we should take a risk on. ”
Kitt checked his watch.
“All right. Well, we’ve got about an hour and a half before the plane starts boarding. So, let’s come up with a plan.”