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“I know the owner. He got some amazing Blue Point oysters in. So with my belly full of oysters and beer, I was walking back to my car when I spotted this car. And I thought, there’s no way that’s Lucas and that damn doctor sitting in that car, just waiting to ruin my one night off in two weeks.”
“No one invited you into the car,” Lucas bit out. “Get out.”
“I thought, maybe the car is stolen,” Hollis continued as if Lucas hadn’t spoken.
Snow twisted back around to look at Hollis. Lucas groaned and grabbed the steering wheel, his hands tightening around it so that it creaked. “So you got in the car with potential carjackers?”
“Yeah, because that would be a hell of a lot better than whatever the fuck you two are into!” Hollis said, his voice getting louder with each word until he was yelling. “What the hell? Can’t I have one night off in peace from you guys? I—”
“Shut up!” Lucas shouted and this time Hollis listened. They all went perfectly still for a breath and then Snow heard it to. Andrei had spotted Gratton at the mouth of the catwalk, forcing a young man into the spotlight to start the long, terrifying walk past the potential buyers.
“What’s going on?” Hollis demanded. Snow looked up to find that the detective had slid to the edge of his seat and was leaning forward so that he could see the tablet tightly gripped in Snow’s hands. Snow glanced over at Lucas who just gave a frustrated wave of his hand. Yeah, there really wasn’t much point in hiding it now.
“There’s an auction going on in Music Hall,” Snow explained.
“Why do I feel like you’re not talking about a Rocky Horror performance?” Hollis asked, almost in a whine.
“They’re selling young boys as sex slaves,” Lucas snapped.
“I know this is a stupid question, but why the hell didn’t you call the cops when you found out about this?” Hollis said and then stopped, his body freezing as his eyes dropped to the tablet again. This time Snow could feel himself cringing as the cop started to put the pieces together. “Who…is in there?”
“Andrei, Jude, and someone you haven’t met. Geoffrey. They’re following a lead on Melissa’s killer.”
Hollis fell back against the backseat, his mouth opening and closing several times. With each passing second, his face became redder and redder. “What the fuck is wrong with you?” he finally bellowed. “Do you not understand how to dial 9-1-1 on your phone? You should have called the cops. Called me. Normal people don’t do this shit!”
“Breathe, Banner,” Snow said, twisting in his seat. “You’re going to give yourself a heart attack and I’m not giving you mouth-to-mouth.”
“Fuck you!” Hollis said before jerking to the edge of his seat again. “Tell them to get out of there now. I’m calling this shit in.”
“Give them just ten more minutes,” Lucas said almost absently, his fingers pressed to his left ear where he’d placed the ear piece, listening intently to the conversation. “Andrei is going after Gratton.”
“What?” Snow snapped around, his heart stopping in his chest for a second before racing off. Hell, he was the one who was going to have a heart attack. “He’s leaving them alone? He can’t do that! Andrei, stay with the table!”
Lucas stunned Snow by slamming him against the door with his right hand. Snow swore at his best friend, but Lucas didn’t flinch. “You knew this was a possibility,” Lucas said in a low voice. “They will wait ten minutes. If Andrei isn’t back by then, they quietly leave. We’re close to catching Gratton. We can still do this.”
“But Jude and Geoffrey are in the dark. We can’t warn them if something goes wrong with Andrei.”
“Ten minutes,” Lucas said firmly, but Snow was no longer sure if Lucas was trying to reassure Snow or himself.
“Boys, I don’t think you’ve got ten minutes,” Hollis groaned, staring at the forgotten tablet in Snow’s lap.
Snatching it up, the trio stared at the images. Andrei’s camera showed him deftly moving through shadowy corridors, but Jude’s showed that Geoffrey was now standing near the opening closest to the catwalk, his beautiful, young face twisted in pain. Jude was trying to soothe him, get him to sit again, but it looked like a losing battle. Geoffrey was going to blow their cover.###
A boy stood in the center of the catwalk, the bright lights blinding him. He blinked slowly, clearly drugged and confused, but he was aware enough that he was trembling in fear. His shaggy brown hair, wide eyes, and bony frame left Jude thinking that the kid couldn’t have been more than maybe twelve or thirteen. Across the small tablet that had been placed under the candle, he could see the bids already flashing across the screen.
