Escape To Sunset - Sharon Hamilton Page 0,45

want it, either. But I got her involved because I thought she’d do a better job interviewing some of the victims I’d located.”

“Wait a minute. You found some of the missing girls?”

“I found other girls. Not the missing ones. But I think some of them knew the missing ones.”

“How many girls are we talking about, Kiley?” asked Martel.

“I’ve got tapes on six. Some written material from three more. With very little verification, I could make a case for at least ten girls who have disappeared that we know of. If this criminal enterprise has been operating for many years, then there could be many more. Hundreds, perhaps.”

Kiley noted Aimee’s pensive stare at the ball of light now melting into the horizon. Within seconds gray streaks formed, the orange and golden yellow clouds were outlined in light purple, and then everything began to fade, going purple and deeper gray. The water on the gulf went from bright azure blue to navy within ten minutes. The pilgrimage to the surf was over and now was reversing, as people made their way back to their homes or cars parked nearby.

The magic was dissipating, and Kiley actually felt sad.

Aimee continued staring at the water as she whispered, “Do you think we’re in danger here?”

Before she could answer, Andy slid the glass door wide and jolted them all. “Hey! I got beautiful steaks downstairs, corn on the cob and a killer salad. I’d like some company for all my troubles.”

After dinner, Aimee began clearing plates. Kiley rose to help her.

“No, you stay put and tell Andy what you started to tell us upstairs. I’ve got this.”

“Thanks, babe,” Andy winked.

Martel opened and then began to pour their second bottle of wine of the evening.

“So, Andy, I talked to Jason earlier and he asked that I explain the pickle I’m in. He said you’d have some good advice.”

“Okay, shoot,” said Andy.

“Darn, I didn’t bring my computer. I shouldn’t have left it at the house, either. That was totally dumb of me.”

“I’ve got a laptop. Can you log in on mine?”

“I can try.”

“No, Andy, you have all that encrypted stuff. You don’t want to mix this stuff with your SEAL things.” Aimee pointed to the ceiling. “Martel, go get my laptop on the side table upstairs on my side of the bed.”

Martel took the stairs two at a time, her long graceful legs digging into the polished wood with her toes. She returned not more than a couple of minutes later.

Aimee dried her hands and opened the computer to a guest icon. “Here you go. Log in with Safari, or do you use Chrome?”

“Chrome.”

“There. Now put your passwords in and we’ll delete everything when you’re done.”

Kiley found her portal at the paper and called up the four articles on human trafficking, dragging them to the four corners of the screen so Andy could read them all. She proofread her last article and was mortified to find a couple of typos.

Andy was able to read and summarize at the same time. “So you were looking into the case of an immigrant girl from Central America smuggled across the border by Coyotes. She traveled with a group of three other young girls, all ranging in ages from ten to fourteen.”

Andy read further. “You found they came from the same village, and—their parents wanted them to have a better life in the United States. So, they allowed the four friends to come to the U.S. to work as domestics.”

He sat up, frowning. “That’s a little young, isn’t it? Ten?”

“I was able to contact their parish priest, an American who had been in the Peace Corps and stayed to continue his work there. He said the girls in that village often married before they were fifteen. He told me a man and woman, recruiters, came into the village and looked for girls they could find from poor families, where the parents would appreciate not having to feed one more mouth. And they were compensated.” Kiley watched as this sunk into her friend’s faces.

“They sold their own children?” Aimee said, covering her mouth.

“Yup.”

“Isn’t that against the law?” asked Martel.

“It is,” started Andy. “But you wouldn’t believe the plight of children all over the world, Martel. It’s not a safe place for a child. They are bartered for pennies in many areas of Africa, the Orient, even South America. There are groomers too. People who train them for the slavery they’ll be doomed for. Mostly the sex trade. And they get them hooked on