times. Nice to see you again, Chief Nelson.” She extended her hand.
“Nice to see you again, too.” His large hand grasped hers and shook it. “Last time was when you helped solve the Wakefield case, right?”
“Yes, that’s right,” she replied.
“I know you’ve been a big help to Colin and Ernie, and I’ve had my eye on you. Have you ever thought about joining us as a consultant?”
“A consultant? You mean like you pay me to help your department?”
“Yes. Seems crime is on the rise, so we could use you on a case-by-case basis. It would save Paradise Valley some money and we’d have two detectives whenever necessary. Colin speaks very highly of you and your skills. Ernie, too.”
“Hmmm.” She glanced at Colin, who was grinning widely at her, then her gaze moved back to his boss. “I’ll have to give it some thought, Chief. I just might take you up on that.”
“Well, I’m going to grab a coffee and find a seat,” Peter said, reaching for a cup.
Within minutes, Isabel arrived at the Paradise Valley police station with FBI Special Agent Tony Ellis in tow. Ellis had a commanding presence, standing well over six feet tall with neatly trimmed dark hair and the typical FBI dark suit and tie with spit-shined shoes.
Right on their heels, Colin’s friend, Captain Ray Decker, from the nearby Boise SWAT team, strode into the conference room. He was dressed in police blues and his light brown hair was buzzed short, military style. He had been a Marine, like Colin, and appeared to be all about discipline and force.
Introductions were made around the room, and Colin suggested they all have a seat and get down to business.
“Emily, why don’t we begin this meeting with you explaining to us what precipitated this gathering and what you’ve discovered so far,” the Police Chief proposed.
“Of course.” She stood and described everything she had witnessed, from the young Asian woman in the hotel restroom, to the family in Camille’s neighborhood, to her experience with the Jade Thai Spa, including her client’s husband who verified there were sexual favors offered at that massage parlor.
Ellis confirmed there had been numerous complaints of prostitution to the Boise Police Department and the Feds were brought in because of the suspicion of moving prostitutes across state lines.
Colin pointed out the seriousness of this meeting in light of the young Asian woman who was recently found murdered.
“We suspect the dead girl may be tied to what’s going on at the Jade Thai Spa,” Emily added, glancing from Special Agent Ellis to Captain Decker.
“And we’ve had a troubling new development, gentlemen, since we made the arrangements for this joint task force to meet,” Colin informed Ellis and Decker.
Ellis’s head tilted and both his and Decker’s eyes lit up with interest. “What kind of new development, Detective?”
“My friend’s daughter, Molly, has gone missing,” Emily blurted out. She went on to explain Molly’s connection to the case, in detail, and how she had seen what she believed was Molly’s bicycle in the suspects’ garage earlier that day.
“That does put an urgency to our plan,” Captain Decker said, rubbing his jaw.
“If they took the girl because they think she knows too much,” Special Agent Ellis explained, “assuming they really do turn out to be traffickers, she could be whisked out of the country within forty-eight hours.”
Isabel and Emily shot a terrified glance at each other. This was Molly they were talking about.
“Maybe we should nix the joint task force and let my men handle this,” Ellis said. “It sounds to me like it’s clearly a federal case.”
“Sounds to me like the FBI will benefit from having the different agencies involved,” Isabel remarked. “We have a better chance of success that way.”
“I don’t know.” Ellis shook his head.
“Let me remind you, Tony, I’ve had a lot of years of experience—at the CIA and the FBI—so you know, that I know, what I’m talking about. Besides, you can still take all the credit when we take this ring down.”
He stared at Isabel, obviously thinking through the possibilities, and everyone around the table fell silent, waiting for his response.
“All right, Martínez, but if this thing goes south, it’s your butt, not mine.”
“Now that we have that out of the way, how old is Molly?” Decker asked.
“Seventeen,” Peter replied.
“Description?”
“About five five, a hundred and twenty pounds, long red hair, green eyes, very pretty,” Isabel answered.
Decker and Ellis both made notes of her description.