Chapter Nine #2
Julio moved through the shrubs of the pre-war mansion owned by Jack Blackard Junior and slipped into the unlocked glass doors.
The father and son attended two of the auctions and hosted tonight’s event.
According to the recon, Darren Garfield, the man currently occupying the house, specialized in human merchandise.
Julio tracked the asshole’s movements to this location after several attempts to receive a coveted invitation to one of the events.
Even though they managed to capture the new buyers quietly, someone figured it out.
Two of the last buyers conveniently died from ‘accidents.’ The parties and auctions changed patterns, becoming more impromptu, leaving Jameson and Julio scrambling for backup.
He watched as a woman dressed in a doctor’s coat spoke with Darren Garfield.
He snapped a picture to send to Matthew for facial recognition.
The doctor left the room, leaving the suspect alone.
Julio crept closer, for the first time feeling as if he and Jameson found a solid lead to Rebecca.
Taking out his weapon, he held it to the man’s head. “Don’t move, you son of a bitch,” he growled.
Garfield lowered his cigar, not appearing the least bit baffled by his presence.
“You’re the one who keeps interrupting my routes,” Darren said smoothly.
“You’re the bastard who sells humans like cattle,” Julio replied. “Before I send you to rot in jail for your many crimes, I want some information.”
Darren chuckled. “I’m sure we can come to a compromise.”
“I don’t deal with scum. Show me your books,” Julio demanded.
“I’m sorry to disappoint you. We don’t keep records. It’s a hazard to our privacy,” Darren explained. Julio didn’t buy it for a minute.
“I suggest you come up with something better than that,” Julio spat. “Or you’ll find I’ll be doing more than disrupting routes, I’ll burn the entire organization to the ground.”
“Many have tried and failed, my friend. I’m one of many. Rich people want special pets. I’m merely the provider.”
Julio grabbed him by the neck, jerking him from his seat.
“They aren’t pets, asshole. They’re better people than you’ll ever be.
” He turned the man around, pressed the gun into his back, and headed for the computer on the desk.
Leading him to the chair, he shoved him down in the seat. “Open the logs. I want the records.”
“I’m not stupid. They’ll kill my family and me if I give you any information,” Darren said, shaking his head. “I can’t give you what you want. I only fill the orders.”
Julio shook with rage. He didn’t have time to play games. “You might want to evaluate your risks before getting involved in things such as trafficking. Tell me how this works. Who supplies them?”
“I take the order, and I get a call when it’s ready. They don’t give us access to the people who run everything. It puts all of us at risk.”
“How many people will come to tonight’s gathering?” Julio asked as he opened the laptop, turned it on, stuck in the drive, and watched as it copied all the files.
“You won’t leave here alive,” Darren sneered. “My men will kill you as soon as you leave this room.”
“Then I’ll take you with me,” he promised.
Julio pulled the drive from the port when Darren whipped the cigar from his mouth and held it to Julio’s arm. The burn seared his skin and the smell of burnt cotton rose as Julio flung the offending item in the air and stepped on it. The man grabbed for the gun, but Julio wrestled it away from him.
“Guards,” Darren shouted. Julio punched him in the jaw, sending him to the floor. He struck him again as two men rushed into the room. They pulled Julio away from Darren as Jameson slipped inside and cocked his gun.
“What’s your name?” Jameson asked as he took pictures of them all.
No one spoke, paralyzed by his sudden appearance, and the man holding Julio released him.
“Where are the keys to the basement?” Jameson barked.
One of the men tossed a set of keys and held up his hands, “I don’t want to die.”
“You should’ve thought about that before you betrayed us,” the other suspect said before turning and shooting the man in the head. Shots were fired as Jameson killed the second one.
Julio pressed his sidearm to Darren’s temple. “You see, we don’t play. If anyone else enters the door, we’ll shoot them on sight. Tell me how to get an invitation,” he demanded.
“They watch you now as you speak. It’ll only be a few minutes before they surround the house. My life won’t matter to them, but my family will remain safe,” Darren said, lifting his chin in defiance.
“Shit,” Jameson muttered.
“Plus, you won’t kill me. You scream of some type of law enforcement. No one will issue you an invitation. If you planned to kill me, you would’ve already done it and taken my computer. You don’t want anyone to know you’re here,” Darren surmised.
“I have news for you. I was in law enforcement, but I quit. It seems your friends have their hands tied to our government’s lawmakers. At this point, no one’s playing by the rules and I’m damn tired of it. How do I get an invitation?” he said, his voice going deadly.
Darren Garfield regarded Julio for a moment before speaking. An alarm sounded overhead. Jameson locked the door, making Garfield’s men pound relentlessly on it, calling his name.
“We gotta go,” Jameson warned Julio.
“Not until this bastard tells me what we need,” Julio demanded.
“You need money. They won’t even consider an invite unless you have ten million in the bank.
You must have a friend who refers you…one who has preferably purchased merchandise from us in the past. You won’t find anyone willing to vouch for you when it means their lives,” Darren gloated as his eyes watched the door.
“Call all your men in here. Tell them you accidentally set off the alarm during a disagreement about an order,” Julio ordered.
“No. I won’t send my men in here to die,” Darren said stubbornly.
“Funny, how you have a moral code for them yet think nothing of stealing humans off the street, torturing and beating them,” Jameson said wryly.
“Take him with us,” Julio said, stepping outside and scanning the grounds.
“No, they’ll kill my family if I disappear, assuming I spoke with you,” Darren said stubbornly.
Julio grinned. “I guess you might have a heart after all. We slipped in tonight despite all your guards. You’ll call them and explain the false alarm. You’ll secure me an invite and personally vouch for me or have someone else do it.”
“I can’t” Darren exclaimed. “Plus, you forget you must have the money. Surely someone like you doesn’t have the funds to participate in the auctions.”
“The longer we stand here, we’re risking getting caught,” Jameson warned, glancing at Julio.
“We’ll contact you soon. I will provide you with my name and my bank account information.
You’ll say these two quarreled and shot each other.
Scrub the video and blame it on one of them.
You can make up the rest. It’s not like it’s the first time you’ve ever lied.
If you try to set me up, I’ll kill your family,” Julio said low, letting his threat sink in. “And I’ll make you watch.”
Jameson held the curtain back as Julio slipped out the door and into the night. They listened as Darren shouted orders, telling them to disengage the alarm and clean up the bodies. Jameson led the way back to their original entrance to the property.
“Did you place the tracker on him?” Julio asked as he got into the truck.
“Of course, I did,” Jameson grumbled. “The idiot will waste no time getting out of dodge. Tell me why you let him go again.”
“Because he has connections to the man who holds Rebecca. You saw the last records. Darren Garfield will run to his boss or he’ll help us.
I imagine his boss won’t be pleased we made it this far, and Garfield doesn’t want to be on the receiving end.
The only way to save his ass, will be to work with us.
This man can pave my way to her, and I’m tired of waiting. ”
Jameson merely nodded. The unspoken words rang loud and clear in the truck. Rebecca must be suffering and every day prolonged it. If they lost one of their own, how can they even begin to save the people Kassie Winters set them out to do?
“I’ll call Leo. We’ll need the funds,” Julio said, breaking the silence. “We need more hands on deck. He may send us his team. Matthew has gotten us this far, but Leo and the team assure me they’ll come when we need them. I can’t explain it, but I feel like we’re on to something.”
“We must be. They’ve tightened the circle in Jasper’s nightclub operations.
I can barely get into his office these days.
You need to get some clothes reeking of money and a new identity.
Keep the beard, it’ll throw off your facial recognition, and we can change your eye color.
I’ll send the drive to Matthew and see if we can stop any oncoming shipments and discover the new locations,” Jameson informed him.
“What happened to the woman, Caroline? Have you seen her lately?” Julio asked, pulling into the seedy motel they called home for over two weeks while they waited for the details of the party to become available.
Matthew Cartwright guessed the correct location based on the last clues they discovered, but the day and time weren’t disclosed until the last minute.
Jameson sighed deeply. “She returned a week after her disappearance. They beat her because another woman accused her of hitting on all the men. Caroline won’t even glance in my direction.
I want to tell her, we’re close to getting her and all the women out of there.
I know I can’t, but every time she leaves, Caroline returns, appearing more haunted than before. It makes me sick.”
“Yeah, partner, I’m with you there,” Julio commiserated.
Jameson pulled out his phone. “They cancelled the auction tonight and rescheduled it for tomorrow. They conduct business in the room where you found Garfield. You didn’t even lock the door. Then, you get burned with a cigar. He might’ve shot you. What the hell were you thinking?”
“I lost my focus for a second,” he lied.
His thoughts strayed to Rebecca as he watched the drive load the coveted information.
He never saw the cigar coming for him. The burn throbbed as if it knew Julio relived the moment in his head.
He welcomed it. It made him come to life after discovering Rebecca missing, and each day his body grew numb, protecting itself against the harsh reality she might be lying in a shallow grave somewhere.
The reddish orange ashes may have seared his skin, but they served as a reminder of why he must stay vigilant.
If he must, he’d burn the whole damn place around them if it leads them to Rebecca.