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The man spun around, raised his weapon and released a bullet. Cursing, Derrick ducked behind the side of the house, then fired a shot in return. The bullet pinged by the man’s head, and he dove into the front seat. Staying low, Derrick crept toward the driver’s door, then aimed his weapon at the man’s head. “Drop the gun or you’re dead,” Derrick ordered.
He dropped it with a loud curse. Breath heaving, Derrick dragged him from the car and handcuffed his hands behind his back. When he looked up, Ellie was shoving the woman, who held her head high, toward them.
“Call an ERT, and I’ll search the house,” Ellie said. “If she’s lying and Ava’s here, I’ll find her.”
One Hundred
Crooked Creek
Ava wasn’t at the cabin.
Ellie sighed in frustration as she and Derrick escorted Serena and her accomplice into the police station. The sheriff met them there with Autumn, who took one look at Serena and asked for a deal.
“I’ll question Autumn,” Derrick said. “Then we’re going to throw the book at her.”
Bryce’s glare scalded Ellie. “Once again, you should have called me to be in on this, Detective.”
“We had information and had to act quickly,” Ellie said, unwilling to take the bait. “But you’re here now—if you want to question Serena’s partner and see if he’ll give up details of MWC, I’ll push the woman.” After all, she was the one in charge. Let Bryce feel like he was going head-to-head with the brawn.
Serena lawyered up the moment they’d arrived.
Ellie didn’t bother to hide her disgust as she entered the interrogation room and faced her.
After seeing the fear in Daisy’s eyes and knowing what Lara was going through, she despised this woman with every fiber of her being.
“I’m Detective Reeves,” she said curtly as she dropped into the chair and faced the woman and the lawyer, Wyatt Humphries, she was hiding behind. She’d already planned her strategy. Derrick might not approve, but right now she didn’t care. “I have just come from the hospital with a very frightened little girl who has been severely traumatized by your efforts to sell her on the black market.”
Serena’s unflinching steely gaze met hers, but Ellie met her with equal animosity.
“Whether you realize it or not, Ms.Morino, we already have enough evidence to put you away on charges of child kidnapping, child endangerment, trafficking children, and… I don’t know, a half dozen other charges.”
“You’re bluffing, Detective,” Humphries said. “You can’t possibly make all those charges stick.”
Ellie cleared her throat. “Actually, we can. The FBI has already tracked information on the dark web for the group called MWC that your client runs, and special agents and a SWAT team are storming their primary location now.” The evidence bag holding Serena’s cell phone crinkled as she waved it in front of the attorney’s face. “Amazing how much information our phones hold, isn’t it?” she said with a challenging look.
“I told you we’re providing a service, arranging adoptions for needy children and helping parents who are desperate to have children,” Serena insisted.
“At the bargain price of a hundred K,” Ellie snapped.
The lawyer shifted. “Come on, Detective,” he said. “You’re just blustering now. That’s entrapment.”
Ellie saw red. She stood and placed both hands on the table. “Maybe a judge will see it that way. Maybe not. Frankly, Ms.Morino, you’re in my jurisdiction now and the only thing I care about is finding this little girl.” She slapped a picture of Ava onto the table. “You see, Ava had surgery a year ago and she needs immunosuppressive medication for a transplant she had and could die without it. If you have endangered her life in any way this is not going to go well for you, even with your pricey attorney.”
The attorney shuffled in his seat, his eyes flashing with nerves.
The woman’s seething look settled on Ellie, but then she gave a quick glance at the picture.
“Did you take her?” Ellie hit the table with her fist for emphasis.
The lawyer leaned toward his client, using his hand to shield his mouth as he whispered something to her. Serena listened, then gave a little nod and lifted her chin, a gleam in her eyes. “I told you no, that we only took homeless kids because we were doing them a service.” She tilted her head, “Besides, if she had health conditions, it would be harder to place her.”
“Now, my client answered your question, Detective,” the attorney said. “She is not responsible for that little girl’s disappearance.” He stood with a dramatic flare. “Let’s go, Serena.”
Ellie folded her arms.“Not so quickly.”
“You said all you were interested in was knowing whether she abducted Ava,” he said with a snap to his eyes. “And she didn’t.”
Ellie stepped away. “I did. And I am done with her. But the FBI is not.” She gestured toward Derrick as he entered. “She’s all yours, Special Agent Fox.”
