Chapter 6 #3
“I’m sorry to interrupt this very important discussion, but do you think we could get back to the kidnapped couples?
” Gideon asks sarcastically. His phone chimes, and he glances at it.
“Of which there may now be twenty-one. Fuck, I need to make some calls and check.” He strides out, already putting his phone to his ear.
“Just quickly,” I say to David, “can you teach me magic? I mean, I know it’s different to what you use—”
“Yes. Well, I can try.” He grins at me.
My face stretches so much with my answering grin that I’m sure it must look scary.
“Thanks! Now, back to what I was saying…” I glance down at the notepad to remind myself.
“Okay, so this faction figures if they can improve fertility, that would dramatically change the odds in a head-to-head situation and the community wouldn’t have to live in secret? ”
“That’s the best-case scenario. More likely is that they attempt to force humans back into our society.
Worst-case is the annihilation of all humans on the physical plane.
Either of those scenarios would involve having our current system of government overturned.
” Elinor speaks matter-of-factly, though her face is grim.
Fuck.
“What about the magic?” I ask desperately. “It stepped in before when things were going wrong. Wouldn’t it interfere to prevent the destruction of the government it created?”
Andrew sighs and rubs his forehead. He suddenly looks older. “We don’t know. We just… We hope so, but the only way to find out is…”
Yeah. He doesn’t need to finish that sentence.
“Okay. Okay. So… this is a long-term plan, right? I mean, I figure they’re interested in babies with one human parent because they figure there’s a better chance of being able to…
I don’t know. Activate human genes? How does it even work?
And even if they successfully modify these babies once they’re born—”
David shakes his head. “The last time we stopped something like this, the experimentation was happening in-utero. I assume the same this time—that’s probably why all the women are only in the second trimester.”
I push that thought aside. “So even if they can successfully make a modification to increase fertility, these children won’t be reproducing for decades. And then what? It’s not like two dozen people can single-handedly close the population gap. I just don’t understand what they’re trying to do.”
“Neither do we,” Lily says. “We may find more information as we go along. At this stage, we have to assume that the coordinated kidnapping of so many couples with such similar profiles is in support of an act of terrorism against the community, whatever that may turn out to be.”
“Of course.” Definitely we need to help those people and stop the monsters who think experimenting on people without their consent is okay.
“Um, I’m guessing Gideon will give us all the case info when he gets back, but can you give me the file locations for previous cases like this?
I’d like to familiarize myself so I know what to expect. ”
Lily smiles indulgently at me. “You’re such a nerd. Our lives were so much bleaker without you.” She grabs my notepad, flips the page, and begins neatly writing directory numbers. “We keep copies of all case files of this type in a particular sub-directory for easy cross-checking.”
“And you called me a nerd.” Mentally, I begin compiling a list of things I might have to do, depending on how Gideon decides to handle this. “What are your cases like at the moment? Is there anything that can’t be put on hold or handed over to another team?”
There’s a general sense of reluctance and a series of pulled faces, grimaces, and huffs.
“None of us like handing over cases,” Elinor says, leaning back and putting her feet on the table.
“I should be able to wrap up my current one with a couple hours’ work, and then someone else can handle the arrest and processing. ”
“I’ll have to hand mine over,” Andrew grumbles. “If Gideon needs us all on this, which looks likely, I won’t have the capacity to do what’s needed within the time crunch. It’s not too sensitive, though, so as long as the investigator who gets it isn’t an idiot, it’ll be okay.”
I make a note. “Do you have a preference for who to give it to?” He nods. “All right, we’ll talk about that when we know what Gideon needs. David? Lily?”
“I’m in the same boat as Andrew.” Lily’s smile is gone now. She clearly doesn’t like the idea of having to give up cases, but she knows where the greater responsibility is.
“I made my arrests this morning,” David says. “I just need to file the reports.”
“Smug prick,” Lily mutters, and he flips her the bird.
“Behave,” I chide, making notes. “David, you’re on deck to provide immediate support to Gideon.
Andrew and Lily, let me know who you want to pass your cases to, and I’ll arrange the handover immediately.
Elinor, wind up your case today and I’ll tee someone up to handle the arrest. By the time the three of you have done that, I’ll have the information you need to support Gideon. Sound good?”
“Thank fuck you’re here,” Andrew breathes. “I don’t suppose I could get you to manage my personal life as well?”
“Not a chance,” I assure him. “Will Gideon handle advising the lucifer, or do I need to?”
“Oh, Percy already knows. It’s part of the magic of his office. But Gideon will give a full report as soon as we decide what course of action to take.” Elinor puts her feet on the floor and sits up straight as the door opens and Gideon comes back in.
His face is even grimmer than usual. “We’ve officially got twenty-five couples missing,” he states.
“Waiting for confirmation on three more right now. I think we can expect more. I’ve asked Percy to authorize a message to all health care providers, asking them to contact any of their patients who fit the profile and have them check in with us.
” He looks at me. “Can you coordinate the check-ins and then ensure local enforcers are allocated to provide protection?”
“Yes.” Fuck. How am I going to do that? I’ll just have to work it out.
“The closest kidnapping was in a town about an hour away—I’m heading out there now to see if I can find out anything more.”
“David is clear to go with you if you want another set of eyes,” I tell him.
“Or…” I glance at the map on the screen.
There’s another dot not too far away. “Or I can arrange for him to fly out to another site. I know it’s not practical to visit every scene, but if you manage a few, you might find some commonalities that help.
” I might be new to this team, but I haven’t worked with investigators for the past five years without learning some things.
He nods, and for just a second, I see something that looks like approval in his gaze. It disappears fast. “Okay with you, David?”
“Good to go,” David replies.
“Then I’ll get you to drive out to the closer site, and I’ll take a couple of the farther ones, since I don’t need a plane. Can we all meet back here later tonight? The case files are on the system if you’ve got time to review them before then. And then we’ll get a plan in place.”
I get up and go to his laptop, ignoring his indignant exclamation as I examine the map more closely.
David will need at least two hours round-trip transit time, plus time on scene.
“Let’s make it around seven thirty,” I decide.
“I’ll have food here in case you don’t have time to eat. Any preferences?”
“Whatever’s easiest,” Lily says. “Thanks, Sam.”
“No problem. Let’s get this done.”
It’s after seven that night, and not only am I still at the office, it looks like I’ll be here for hours more.
Today has not been what I expected.
But fuck, this job is amazing.
I felt valuable as admin to my old team.
I was helping them help people. Most of the cases they’re assigned turn out to be members of the community who slipped through the cracks—often the very rare children of one-night stands who don’t have a clue that they’re not human, but also those without families and young adults who’ve chosen to leave community-only enclaves and are struggling to cope with hiding from humans.
My job was interesting, well-paid, and rewarding.
This job, though… this is next-level. After I requisitioned a car to take David out to the second scene, giving him time to read the case files on the way, and found investigators for Lily and Andrew to hand over their cases to, I hooked into the system, borrowed an intern from another department, and began fielding responses from couples who’d been contacted by their health care providers.
Some elected to go stay with family elsewhere, and we made arrangements for them to check in with local enforcers and me daily, but most weren’t able to do that, so I organized with their local enforcement departments for them to have protection.
If the kidnappings continue, we may have to relocate these couples—and there are hundreds of them now—to another location where they can be better protected.
Maybe an enforcement base? I’ve already started looking into it.
Sadly, I’ve been advised by seven medical centers that they were unable to contact a client that fit the profile, and when I requested enforcers follow up, they found the couples missing. I added them to the list, had investigators go out to those scenes, and notified Gideon.
A couple hours ago, around the time David called to say he was on his way back but stuck in traffic, I put Andrew and Lily to work liaising with the investigators at each scene and inputting the information into a database that will let us map it out easily.
They’re set up in the meeting room—which I ended up blocking out in the schedule for the next week—beginning the analysis.
Elinor joined them half an hour ago. And I’ve been digging into past case files.
It’s horrifying.