The rest of the evening went quickly, with the four of them talking about nothing important, just enjoying each other’s company.
As the clock struck eleven, Sin could see that her father was exhausted so she made a yawning motion and stretched out her arms. “Excuse me,” she said. “I didn’t realize how tired I was.”
Troy took the cue and said that he had to work in the morning and needed to be on his way. The two of them excused themselves and walked out front to say goodnight.
“So,” Troy said, “how do we end this? Do we insult each other or do we . . .”
Sin reached up and pulled his face towards hers. “Shut up and kiss me before I regret it.”
They embraced—collided―in a fierce kiss. The longer it lasted the softer and more passionate it became.
As they separated, Troy had a mischievous twinkle in his eye. “Now what?”
Sin matched his look and then rolled her eyes. “Now you go home and dream about what you wish had happened.”
Troy laughed and kissed her forehead. He inhaled the smell of her shampoo and perfume. “Damn, you smell good,” he purred.
“Home, Tiger,” Sin said pointing to his truck.
She watched him leave and walked back into her house thinking, this is getting complicated.
16
Sin sat in the sand, knees to chest, and wrapped her arms around her legs as she looked out at the rolling waves visible by the star-lit sky. Her thoughts soon drifted to everything that happened since she had been back in Tumbleboat.
There has to be more to this than I’m seeing, she thought. If Heap is the head of this beast, the agents should have been able to figure it out. What am I missing? While deep in thought, Sin heard the sound of someone approaching. She glanced at her watch and saw that it was exactly three a.m.
“A penny for your thoughts,” Charlie said as he sat down.
Sin moved her windblown hair away from her face and rested her head on his shoulder. “You first. Were you able to find out anything or were you kicked out of the game for not having a ticket?”
Charlie laughed at her choice of words. “You should know by now that I don’t need to be invited to join a party. I just show up.”
Sin thought of different times when Charlie has ‘saved’ her when she was younger. “You do have a way of getting into places.” She sat up straight and looked Charlie in the eye. “So, what do you have for me?”
Charlie’s expression turned serious—dead serious. “Before I tell you what I know, I want you to be truthful with me.”
Sin squinted and the side of her mouth curled upward. “You’re the one person I’ve always been honest with. What do you want to know?”
“Well, while I was checking on the things we discussed, I decided to pull up your dossier. Damned if I couldn’t find jack. Just a bunch of bull about you being in the military.”
“Frank had my file scrubbed and replaced with what you saw.”
“Why? The feds don’t normally go to all that trouble, they just make a fake file.” Charlie shifted his weight so he was facing Sin. “They erased you completely. I couldn’t find a trace of you since you left basic training except for the bullshit.”
“Didn’t you wonder how four of the bureau’s best men, including Alex, ended up killed?”
Charlie nodded. “There must be a mole in the agency.”
“Worse, they think the mole has access to all communication coming and going from D.C. Whoever it is has tapped every agency and the Pentagon, not just the bureau.”
“That makes sense, but if that’s the case, how are you communicating with—”
“I’m not,” Sin interrupted.
Charlie dropped his head and shook it. “Fuck, this is a death mission. Sinclair they asked you back because they know you’re expendable.”
Sin didn’t flinch at his words. “I know,” she mumbled. The words caught in her throat.
“So why did you agree?”
Sin looked up and a single tear slid down her cheek. “They knew they had me when they showed me the pictures of the girls. You know my past and the reason I was booted from the bureau better than anyone. I couldn’t refuse, knowing that if I did, more innocent girls would continue to be abused. I don’t know what the hell is going on here, but it looks a lot like the human trafficking I’ve witnessed over the years.”
“But.”
“But nothing,” Sin stood and slapped the sand from her jeans, “if some sick fuck is kidnapping girls from Central America or convincing their parents that a better life is just a plane ride or a boat lift away, and then taking these children and torturing them for their amusement and for money, I’m going to find out and end it.”
Charlie ran his hand through his beard and stared out at the ocean. “You’re in over your head, Sin.”
“If I have to die hunting these animals, so be it,” she said through gritted teeth. “But I promise you, I will be taking someone to hell with me.”
“Come on,” he said pushing himself off the sand, “I know of an all-night coffee joint where we can talk and I can show you what I found out.”
“All night coffee joint, I like the sound of that. Where is it, and I will follow you?”
“No need,” Charlie said. “We can walk.”
Sin looked up and down the beach but saw nothing but the old Johnson mansion that had been empty since she was a kid. “You sly fox,” she grinned. “You own the Johnson place, don’t you?”
Charlie grinned. “Come on and I will make you a good cup of coffee, not that swill you drank in the hangar earlier.”
They walked in silence until they came to the ‘no trespassing’ signs on the beach.
Charlie led Sin past the signs and with a key fob he opened what looked like a boarded up rear door. Once inside, he flipped a switch
