Page 30 of Ravage
“All right, got it. Let’s get back to that guy at the gala, yeah?”
He pulls out a manila folder from his drawer and drops it on the desk between us. I reach over to pick it up and find a man’s profile sheet, some photos, and employment records inside.
“Are you sure this is the right guy? It says he’s a paramedic,” I muse while flipping through the pages.
“You’re correct. I had my doubts at first. This doesn’t seem like any higher tier member of the organization. I almost couldn’t find any connections between him and GE. And then I was able to pull the GPS history on the ambulance he works in.”
“You were able to do what? How?”
“Not me. I know someone who could.” Right. Connections. “Once we had that and the 911 dispatch call history for the days he worked, we found more than half of his stops weren’t from emergency calls.”
“So, the guy kept taking a break in random locations?”
“That’s most likely what his employers believe, if they do track their ambulances. But once we add the times and locations to a map, it looks like he’s going to very specific places. There’s hardly a break between an actual call and going to these locations. And he doesn’t stay there for long at all. Almost as if—”
“He’s picking something up and dropping it off between calls,” I finish. Or someone. “He’s the one that grabs the kids from the recruiters to take them to the testing site.” The reason that questioning recruiters means nothing is because they just take the kids to a random drop site and call it in and then the children disappear.
Elias nods. I whip out the map to look at the noted locations he and his “friend” worked on. “That’s what we suspect as well. The downside is that every location is different. He never dropped off at the same place. So even if you go to one of the sites, they’ll be long gone and using another one.”
Damn!
I close the folder. “So, what you’re saying is, I need to ask this guy for the next drop location or find out how he gets that information in real-time.”
“That, or wait to see if I can dig up anything else.”
I’m not great at waiting around. But I’ve also learned not to jump right into chasing someone down without doing my homework first. I need to follow his routine to find when he’s alone, then come up with my plan to question him.
I stand, and Elias immediately follows. “Thank you again, Elias. Let me know if you find anything else on this guy or someone else from the gala.”
“Of course, Rae. I promised to assist you in any way I could.” He buttons his jacket and slides his hands into his trouser pockets. “Before you leave, I should warn you that there’s a chance I’m being followed. I’ll be keeping a low profile here for the next few days while it gets vetted out, but keep an eye on your back as well in case someone is onto us.”
My heart sinks. They couldn’t have found me so soon. And Elias wasn’t supposed to be in danger by helping me behind the scenes. Could it have been the gala?
This is why I should work alone. I knew people getting close to me put them in danger, and now that I’m starting to care about Elias, I can’t let anything happen to him.
He gave me another lead, and I’ll have to make the best of him and do the rest on my own.
“Stay safe, Elias,” I offer with a small smile before walking out. He tries to say something to stop me, but I’m already walking to my apartment before he can try to change my mind.
A week passes of following the paramedic and learning his routine. Elias keeps trying to check in on me and get me to stop by to see him, but I ignore his texts and calls. He’s smart enough that I know he’s figured out what I’m doing. I can only hope he’ll get tired of that soon and go back to finding other people to help.
He doesn’t.
He shows up at my door.
I’m tying my hair up in a ponytail when the distinct beeping sound of the buttons to enter my apartment goes off. I know better than to assume it’s Elias because knowing Aiden, he’d somehow be able to find out my apartment and code to threaten me again, so I withdraw my longest blade from my thigh holster and cover myself behind the wall of the bedroom where I can still see the door.
I mentally curse him for the millionth time for ruining my gun because I’m now back to close combat fighting as my only real option. Asshole.
The door opens, and Elias calls out, “It’s just me. I know you’re here, so stop ghosting me.”
I sigh and lean on the bedroom doorframe so he can see me. “If you know I’m doing it, then you obviously aren’t getting the point.”
He pauses when he sees my outfit and frowns. I’m in black cargo pants, boots, and a tight long-sleeve Henley with a gaiter wrapped around my neck. The gaiter can either cover the lower half of my face or come up to cover my entire head except for my eyes. Then his gaze falls on the dagger in my hands. “Am I interrupting something?”
“Yup. I was just heading out. What can I do you for, Elias?”
“Out? Do I want to know what for, dressed like that? Never mind, I don’t. I can already guess.” He strides to the couch and sits, leaning against the back cushions with his arms outstretched on either side and one leg propped up over the other. “Is there anything I can do to help?”
