“You have no idea who did this, do you?” Mitch asked, eyes narrowed in study. “You have no idea who’s behind this at all.”
Kara sighed. “Right now, all roads are leading to this club, the Ceiling. That’s where we believe Flyte originated from, it’s part of the scene the Chief’s daughter was hanging around, and it was where Caine spent the last night of his life.”
“Have you got samples of the drugs?” Hernandez asked. “Ingredients? Anything we can go on to trace origin?”
“Only in the toxicology reports of our vics. We have the base elements in their bloodstreams and we’re looking into that, but ideally we need the drug itself. We’re still trying to get our hands on some. It may be leaking onto the streets, but trust is still an issue. We think getting it via the club is our best bet.”
“We’re possibly dealing with an entire network here,” Ford spoke up. “Firstly there’s these new drugs, then we’ve got system hacks occurring all over the place affecting our cases, that’s why Cyber are here, and god knows what else is going on. We don’t know who is involved but we smell money and power. I know everyone wants to go charging in there, but if we raid the club now, the business will simply move elsewhere. Floor to Ceiling might just be its current storefront. So before we move, we need to know everyone involved and we need hard evidence, so we can shut everything down simultaneously.”
They all nodded in thought.
“So,” Ford said, “moving forward, all three departments will be working together on this. We’re setting up a portal of shared information under the name Taskforce Trident, and we need more bodies undercover. Kara’s on the third floor and she’s going to keep trying to hit the Ceiling, and then the basement, whatever that is. While she does that, we’re putting more of you in there.” Ford turned to Salvi. “Brentt, I’m sending you in.” Ford then turned to Bronte. “You too, Bronte. You’re going in as a couple. A rich, bored couple looking to spice things up. As a pair, you can stay together and watch each other’s backs. Understood?”
Salvi exchanged a look with Bronte, then caught eyes with Mitch, before looking back at Ford and nodding.
“This isn’t just about the Chief’s missing daughter, or this new drug on the streets that’s going to send our body counts sky-high. This is now also about a cop killer,” Ford said. “And if they took out one, they won’t be shy about killing more of us. Don’t forget that.”
“Why don’t you send more of us in?” Hernandez asked.
“Because we don’t want to draw too much attention. We can’t flood the club. Caine may have been killed for a number of reasons, but if they found out he was a cop, then it’s too risky. That’s why we can’t send you anywhere near there, Grenville,” she said to Mitch. “If they discovered who he was, they may have trailed him and seen him with you.”
“If that’s true, we could all be at risk,” Mitch said. “Brentt and Bronte too.”
She stared at him a moment. “Riverton has confirmed, based on our facial recognition systems, there’s been no crossover between Caine and the other detectives out on the streets. Only you. Our AI assures us the probability of Brentt or Bronte being linked to Caine are minimal. So, it’s a chance we’re going to take.”
“So what you’re trying to tell me is,” Hernandez said, folding his arms, “I’m not pretty enough to go in.”
Ford looked at him, and a smile twitched at her mouth. “That’s exactly what I’m saying. The rest of us will be on standby, watching their backs and ready to move in when necessary.” Ford looked at Salvi and Bronte. “Kara’s already in there, but she can’t do this alone.”
Salvi locked eyes with Kara.
“Everyone clear about what we’re doing?” Ford asked. They nodded and she turned back to Salvi and Bronte. “You’ll need to pack your bags. Until this is over, you will not come into the hub or go home to your apartments again. Kara will get you up to speed on what you need to know.”
The Chief stepped toward Salvi and Bronte. “Anything you need, I will get it for you,” he said, looking them firmly in the eye. “Be careful and watch your back… And if you find my daughter…”
“We’ll bring her home, sir,” Salvi said.
He gave a nod of gratitude, then Ford escorted him from the room.
5: CLUB LYFE
Salvi watched as the room cleared of all but Sorensen, Noble, Kara, Bronte and herself. As Mitch left, he threw Salvi a quick glance, and she could sense the hesitation within him.
Kara moved to stand in front of Salvi and Bronte and folded her arms.
“First thing we have to do is get you a wardrobe to work with.” She looked Salvi up and down. “You need to drop your black and white suits and get some color, honey. And you,” she looked at Bronte, “need to look expensive.”
“You don’t like the 49ers?” Bronte asked, tugging at his t-shirt.
“You look like you’re going to watch a game of football around your buddy’s house. Uh-uh,” she shook her head.
“Speaking of football,” Sorensen said, “that’s going to be your back story. You used to play right?”
Bronte nodded. “In college.”
“You played at UCLA, had potential, but an injury cut short your career,” Eli told him. “You now work in finance. Business development.
