Page 92 of Lost Truth
Abby shook her head. “We still have a few to review, but looks like we’ve already found the big lead. Now we need to find a legit way for Mina to get the information.”
“We sure can’t taint the evidence by coming right out and telling her to get a warrant for the video files,” Gabe said.
“Shouldn’t be a problem now.” Nolan gave a weak smile. “Not if Collins rolled over on Palmer, and she knows they’re in this together. She’ll request a warrant for Palmer’s house, and I feel certain she’ll include the security cameras. Still, I can casually mention we noticed a doorbell camera when we were surveilling his house. She’s sharp enough to read between the lines and know she needs to pull those videos.”
Hayden let his gaze travel around the group. “I get that everyone is tired, but watch what you say around her. We don’t like withholding information from her, but by sharing anything we know about Ivers, he could walk free.”
Cady shook her head. “I don’t know how law enforcement officers remember all of that to keep from ruining a solid prosecution.”
“Sometimes they don’t, and it really stings to see someone walk.” Hayden didn’t want to bring his team down more, so he pointed at the next item, which was the review of the documents found in the locker.
Reece tapped the stack of papers in front of her. “We confirmed Kai’s financial commitment to the Emerald Scorpion Group. It’s been going on for months. Plus, there’s a signature on the final page that could be Odin Ivers’s name. I don’t think it’s clear enough to prove his involvement, but maybe it can be enhanced by forensics.”
“I’ll ask Sierra if they can do anything,” Hayden said. “If they can, I’m sure she’ll need the original signature.”
“Let me talk to Mina about getting that to Sierra,” Nolan said.
Hayden jotted the information on the board then tapped the next item. “Nick and I have algorithms running to see if we can scrape the dark web for information about the group and if the code names Fletcher gave us are tied to it.” Hayden did his best to keep an upbeat tone. “As of now, our efforts haven’t returned anything for either of us.”
“Speaking of Nick,” Abby said, “has he had any success with cracking the flash drive from Kai’s bungalow?”
“Not yet, but he’ll contact me the minute he succeeds.”
“Hearing the conversation between Ivers and Collins,” Abby said, “sounds like whatever is on that drive will compromise Ivers’s trafficking operation.”
“I’m sure you’re right,” Hayden said. “But there’s nothing I can do to speed Nick along. He’s working as fast as he can.”
Hayden’s phone rang. “It’s my ICE buddy.” He answered. “Adam. Mind if I put you on speaker in front of my team?”
“They’re all involved, so they might as well hear this too.”
Hayden tapped the speaker icon. “Go ahead, Adam.”
“Dude! You’ve been busy tonight.”
“You heard about our rescue of trafficking victims.”
“Heard about it? It’s all the talk right now. The Coast Guard crew you requested stopped theRed Dragon Voyagerand boarded the vessel.”
Cady had come to her feet and was eyeing the phone as if it were a rattlesnake ready to bite her. “What did they find?”
“Legit cargo for the most part, but four containers held humans smuggled from Beijing.”
“Four containers?” Hayden gaped at his phone. “How many people in all?”
“Fifteen people per container, so sixty total.”
Reece gasped, and the others bristled with barely contained anger.
“Were they captured in Beijing and forced to come to the United States?” Abby asked.
“No. The worst part is they actually paid to be smuggled into the country. But we all know how this ends. Preliminary reports show the ship makes multiple stops along the Oregon coast, dropping off about fifteen people at a time.”
Hayden slammed his fist into the wall, relishing the pain in his hand. “Did you learn anything about the organization?”
“Nada,” Adam said. “But give us time and we will, starting with the local contacts who’ve been farming these people out for quite some time.”
Locals.People like Collins, Palmer, and Ivers.
