Witness Protection (13 page)

Chapter Thirteen

As expected, the front and back doors were locked. Sadie hadn’t expected a man like Grimes to leave his inventory, or whatever he kept in there, unprotected.

“We can’t break one of the windows up front, can we?” she asked.

“I don’t want to raise suspicion we were here.” Nick moved to the dock door, bent down and examined the lock. He fished a small Swiss army knife out of his pocket and went to work with his flashlight and small pick-looking tool. “I can manage this one easily enough.”

“Can you do this?” Sadie asked, shocked. Surely he wasn’t planning on breaking and entering. Wasn’t that a felony offense? He’d lose his job. Possibly even go to jail.

He deadpanned her. “Not legally. Anything we find won’t be admissible in court. But they’ve involved my family. I’ll do what’s necessary to protect them.”

The way he clenched his jaw left no doubt he meant every word.

She tamped down the emotion tugging at her heart. The air stirred around them. With the way he watched over the people he loved, Nick would make an amazing father someday. He was exactly the kind of man she’d want to father her children someday.

The shock of her realization she wanted kids was only dwarfed by the one that said she wanted to be with Nick.

“What do you think we’ll find in there?” she asked.

“Could be anything from guns to illegals. It’s dark and quiet inside. Whoever takes care of the shipments has gone home.”

Images of poor, hungry people packed inside trucks without air-conditioning popped into Sadie’s mind. Since she’d been in Texas, she hadn’t gone a month without seeing something in the news about human trafficker raids or inhumane conditions.

A snick sounded, and she knew he’d cracked the lock. He closed the tool and stuffed it in his pocket.

He rolled up the door enough for them to squat down and slip inside. “I’ll go first and make sure it’s clear.”

“Okay.”

A few seconds later, he told her it was fine.

She ducked down and crawled into the opening.

Nick pulled the metal door closed, drew his weapon and picked up the flashlight he’d set down.

The thin beam skimmed the large room, exposing a line of twin mattresses on the floor spanning two walls. Some had pillows and blankets, others had nothing but a towel on them. Looked as if they could pack fifty illegals in there at one time. The place smelled like sweat and fear.

Other than that, the place was empty save for shipping evidence like boxes, tape and a small forklift.

Every indicator pointed toward this place being used for moving illegals through the country, and God only knew what else. “Can you call the police? Have them arrested? It’s obvious criminal activity is going on in here.”

“Not without proof.”

“What about those beds?” She pointed before she remembered he couldn’t see her in the dark.

“Circumstantial. Plus, I can’t use evidence gathered without a proper search warrant.”

Seriously? “Isn’t it obvious what they’re doing?”

“Yes. But courts, judges and juries want indisputable evidence and an appropriate paper trail before they send people to jail. A good lawyer would shred this case to pieces.”

“Seems like a pretty screwed-up system if you ask me.”

“From where I stand right now, I wouldn’t argue. But that’s the structure. It isn’t perfect, but it does keep innocent people out of prison.”

“It shouldn’t be so hard to get guilty people off the streets.”

“Agreed.” Nick ran the stream of light up a stairwell to what looked like a second-story office.

Hope bubbled. “Maybe there will be something in there we can use.”

She followed him up the narrow steps.

The wood door was locked. She had no doubts that Nick could pop the door open with one good bump of his shoulder, but he wouldn’t.

Instead, he pulled out his tool and jimmied the lock.

This one took even less time to crack.

The flashlight beam skimmed over the room. There was a solid mahogany desk with a leather executive chair tucked into it.

Nick moved to it. The top was clean. He tried to open the drawers of the desk. They didn’t budge.

“Whatever they’re doing must pay well,” Sadie said, taking in the expensive-looking leather sofa against one wall, and the opulent chairs positioned across from the desk.

“Tells me something else. The big boss works from here.”

“How do you know that?”

“They wouldn’t approve spending this much money on furniture for a captain. And Dallas is a great place to locate his headquarters. We have the worst jury pulls. Even if we gather enough evidence to arrest them, it’s harder to get a conviction here. Criminals know it. Grimes knows it. Everyone in the agency would, too.”

“Grimes. Here?” She glanced around. A band of tension tightened around Sadie’s chest.

“Yes.” Nick moved to a filing cabinet positioned against the wall behind the desk. “Might find something useful in here.”

He opened drawer after drawer while Sadie helped flip through folders.

She pulled one out. “What is this?”

Nick focused the beam on the piece of paper she held. “An invoice for silk scarves.”

Sadie hauled out another one and held it under the light. “And this is for Chinese footwear.”

The rest of the contents of the drawer yielded similar results.

Her heart stopped at the sound of a car pulling into the front parking lot. “What do we do now?”

Nick turned off the flashlight and held her hand. “We wait.”

She had to remind herself to breath.

Was this another paid late-night tryst with the prostitute they’d seen earlier or one of her friends? Sadie couldn’t allow herself to consider anything worse. Like Grimes returning. If he found her this time, would she and Nick be dead?

Minutes ticked by.

A siren blast followed by squad car lights split the darkness.

Sadie thought she could hear her heart pounding in her chest as they waited for the cop to pull away.

Five minutes later, everything was dark out front.

Nick flicked on the flashlight.

Sadie held up another useless invoice. This one was for bracelets. “We aren’t going to find anything, are we?”

“Don’t give up yet.” He pulled the file cabinet away from the wall.

“What are you doing?”

“I learned this trick a long time ago.” He felt along the back of the wood then produced a manila folder. “Taped to the back.”

“Oh, my gosh.” He’d found something.

They moved to the desk. Nick opened the envelope. He dumped the contents out. There were a few documents, pictures and, holy cow, Sadie’s personal information. They had the name of the bakery where she worked, which she already knew they’d discovered, and a picture of her lake house.

She gasped at the picture of her and Nick in the truck, escaping from the bakery. Whoever took it must’ve been with the person who’d followed them.

Her pulse quickened with every new picture. Luke. Reed. Meg. Riley. Lucy. One by one, each of Nick’s family members appeared.

Nick fanned out the photos from the deck and grunted a foul word.

She’d been thinking the exact same one.

The message was clear. No way did they plan to leave his family alone.

* * *

N
ICK
SPLAYED
THE
pictures and documents from the envelope across the desk after making the call to his safe house contact. He pulled out his camera and took photos then texted the new information to Luke. “I’ll forward this to Smith once we get to the safe house. We can examine these more closely there, as well.”

Nick figured it would be easy to hide Sadie in Richardson’s Chinatown among the strip malls.

He pulled onto Greenville Avenue, located Dim Sum, the restaurant, and parked in the dark behind it. Paul Huang’s new Japanese import was parked under the street lamp.

Nick flashed his headlights and Paul zipped past him and out of the lot, slowing down enough for Nick to follow. His contact was about as far away from the U.S. Marshals Service as he could be. No one knew about Paul.

A cold front was due, and Nick would at least give Sadie a solid roof over her head tonight.

Winding into a neighborhood behind the shopping mall, Paul pulled in front of a house and jumped out of his car, motioning Nick to park on the pad in front of the house.

“My man, Nick,” the Asian said, twin plumes of smoke rising from his nostrils.

They shook hands and bumped shoulders in a man greeting.

“It’s been a long time. How’s your mom?” Nick asked.

“Ah, you know her. She slaves away in the kitchen. I finally have enough money to give her a decent retirement. I don’t need the help. She can relax. What does she do? Work. She’s so stubborn.”

“Probably wants to feel useful,” Nick offered.

“That’s true. She worries about getting too old.”

“You have any more trouble at the restaurant?” Nick had intervened on several occasions on Paul’s behalf when gangs tried to move in on his block and force him to pay protection fees or risk having his livelihood burned to the ground.

“No. Thanks to you. They didn’t come back.” Paul stood staring at Sadie, waiting for an introduction.

Nick shook his head. “Better if you don’t know anything on this one.”

Paul, a middle-aged Asian with white hair dotting his temples, nodded his understanding. He popped the butt of his cigarette in his mouth and puffed on it while he stuck the key in the lock. He opened the door. “It’s not a big place but it’s clean. You hungry?”

“Nah. We’re okay for the night.”

“You need anything, you take it. I stocked the fridge as soon as you called.” He tossed a key onto the counter next to the one he’d used to open the door a moment ago. “The restaurant is behind you. This yard backs up to it. Hop the wall and you’re there. If you don’t find what you need here, go there.”

“I appreciate you letting us use your relatives’ place for a few days. We won’t be here too long.”

“Nothing’s too much to ask from you, my friend. You saved my life. My aunt and uncle are out of the country, anyway. Went back to China. I don’t know why. I told them there’s nothing back there I forgot.” He laughed at his own joke and shook his head. “They don’t need to use this place right now. It’s no trouble at all. I put fresh sheets on the bed for you.” His gaze moved from Nick to Sadie. “If not for this guy, I’d have nothing. Those thugs almost ran me out of business. Out of town. But this guy. He stopped them.” He gave Nick a friendly tap on the shoulder. “You didn’t let them push around the little guy.”

Nick smiled. “Glad to help.”

“He’s a good guy,” Paul said, winking at Sadie. “He’ll take care of you.”

* * *

S
ADIE
STOOD
BY
the door as Nick thanked Paul again.

The place was tight, but had everything they needed. From the front door, she could see the living and dining rooms, as well as the kitchen. There was a flat-screen TV on one wall and a hunter-green recliner sofa positioned in front. Pictures of family covered most of the white space on the walls.

She excused herself to the bathroom and starting filling the tub while she undressed. A warm bath sounded like heaven. Besides, she needed a minute to process what they’d brought from the warehouse.

A soft knock at the door startled her.

“Come in. I’m covered.” She sat on the side of the tub with a bath towel wrapped around her.

The door barely opened, and she could see a sliver of Nick’s face. “I don’t want to bother you. Just wanted to give you an update. Smith has the information.”

“It’s fine. I was just sitting here thinking. If there’s a U.S. Marshal involved, then no one’s safe, are they?”

“You are. I am. My family is on their way to Galveston right now. No one knows about our place there. They sure as hell won’t get to us here.” He opened the door a little more and leaned against the jamb. “I just spoke to Reed, by the way. Boomer’s doing fine. It’s probably best for him to be with them right now.”

She nodded, ignoring the ache in her chest. “I do realize that. I wouldn’t want to do anything that would put his life at risk. And especially not just so I can have him with me. He has to come first.”

“He’s lucky to have you.”

“He’s in good hands with your family.”

“Gran might fight you for him later.” He smiled, and it brightened his whole face. He held out two beers. The label read Tsingtao. “I found these in the fridge. They’re actually pretty good. Best of all, they’re cold. Want one?”

“Do I? Yes. I would very much like a cold drink.”

He opened the bottle of beer and handed it to her.

“Don’t worry. We’ll figure this out. We’re getting closer to uncovering the truth. Knowing who’s involved is a huge plus for our side. Now we have to gather enough evidence to put the jerk away.”

His words provided a small measure of comfort. There was something about his presence that calmed her rattled nerves. He was just this amazingly calming man. She could get used to this, to him.

“I’ll be in the other room if you need anything else. I promise not to peek, but do you mind if I leave this cracked?”

“Not at all. In fact, I’d feel better knowing you could hear me.”

He disappeared and she set her beer down, slipped off the towel and eased into the warm water. The tension from a long day evaporated, similar to boiling water turning into steam.

She picked up her drink. Beads of water dripped down the longneck bottle as she curled her fingers around the base. The light taste and cool liquid refreshed as it slid down her throat.

Seeing her abductor’s face again had brought up painful memories. She was exhausted. Her mind was spent, her body drained. She calculated how long it had been since she’d slept. Her body screamed
too long.

Sadie leaned her head back and closed her eyes.

After a good soak in the tub, she washed herself before stepping out and hand-washing her clothes in the sink. The shower rod was as good a place as any to hang her garments to dry, so she did.

There was toothpaste on the counter. She squeezed some from the tube and finger-brushed her teeth. It was better than nothing. She tightened the towel around her, and moved into the hall, closing the door to the bathroom behind her.