“Y’all got the mom and kids out safe, right?” Brody leaned back in his chair, hands crossed over his midsection. “They mentioned something about a daycare center?”
“Yeah. Messy divorce. Wife got custody of all three kids. The ex followed her to the daycare center, and tried to get the kids to leave with him. Fortunately, the staff alerted us right away. The majority of the kids were out back playing and out of the line of fire.”
“Good. Kids need to be protected from the bad stuff. Emotional trauma sticks around for a long time.”
“At least the father’s behind bars now, and after this stunt, he’ll be there for a long time. Endangering not only his own kids, but the others at the daycare—judge will probably throw the book at him. Unless his lawyer goes for diminished capacity, then it’ll be up to the lawyers and the shrinks to sort it out.”
Brody picked up his bottle and began picking at the label, before taking another drink. “So, you said they’ve already assigned you a case. Anything you can talk about?”
“Generalities only. Can’t give you any details. A woman testified in a case and went into witness protection. Something happened to spook her, and she’s disappeared. No one can find her.”
Brody’s gaze met his. “Not necessarily a bad thing. Witness protection means she had to be protected by being given a new identity and a new place to live. Maybe whatever scared her caused her to do the same thing, only on her own, without telling the government why she was running.”
“But it also means nobody is there to protect her if the bad guys come after her. She doesn’t have anybody to turn to for help.”
Brody placed his beer back on the table and leaned forward, resting his elbows on the edge of the table. “If she ran, she’s probably scared of something—or somebody—coming after her. Could whoever she testified against have found her, despite witness protection? Nothing against the feds doing their jobs, but sometimes no matter how hard you work, somebody’s always smarter, faster, or more determined to get the job done.”
Antonio sighed. “That’s what I’m thinking. I don’t have all the details yet, but from what I’ve read in the file, and what the SAC relayed, somebody tried to take her out. Neighbor was killed and she basically ghosted. When she resurfaced, she was in a different city, different state, and contacted WITSEC. She was given another new identity, new job, new city.”
Brody grimaced. “Lemme guess, somehow they found her again.” Antonio nodded, and Brody continued. “Sounds like there’s a leak in your witness protection program.”
“There was. I’ve been told the leak has been effectively plugged.”
“But not quick enough to save your girl, right?”
“She’s alive, though she was hurt. At least, we think she’s still alive.”
Brody picked up his bottle and toasted, “Good for her. I bet she didn’t contact the feds again, and struck out on her own, right?”
“Pretty much. Now I have to find her.”
Brody studied him. “Why? Seems like the witness protection folks failed her not once, but twice. I figure it’s pretty smart for her not to trust anybody else with her safety at this point. It’s what I’d do, if I was in her shoes.”
Antonio scrubbed his hand along his jaw. “If only it were that simple. Unfortunately, the guy she testified against is getting a new trial. Without her testimony, chances are good he’ll walk. Trust me, bro, you do not want this guy walking the streets a free man. Look up the word evil in the dictionary and his picture would be there.”
“You think she knows? About the appeal?”
Antonio shook his head, studying his brother’s face. “I doubt it, not unless she’s got a connection within the feds. It hasn’t been released to the news outlets, but he’s getting a new trial. It’s being kept quiet for obvious reasons. It would be a social media circus. I’ve got my work cut out for me piecing together whatever clues I’ve got to try and find this woman.”
“Good luck. I sincerely mean it, although I gotta say, I sympathize with this anonymous chick. She does the right thing, helps put away a seriously bad dude from what you’re telling me, and she’s done nothing but pay the price since. If I was her, I’d dig the deepest hole I could, and not climb out again. Or better yet, I’d leave the country. Doubt you’d find me then.”
“Brody, don’t even think it. If she’s left the country, I’ll never get her to come back to testify.”
“Like I said, good luck.” Brody stood and picked up the empty food baskets and the two bottles and handed them back to the girl at the food truck. Another thing he liked about Austin, they were big on recycling. He smiled as she put the bottles into a large can marked Glass/Recycle.
He stood when Brody walked back up to the table.
“Ready to hit the town, bro?”
As much
