Regnad Kcin- Private Eye... The Case of the Erstwhile Accountant- Part XII

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On the way to the office I convinced Elnora that it would be wise to have Kevin and Vito stay at the house on a temporary basis, that way she and Flora would be protected if I was somewhere else, or God forbid, something happened to me. Also if there was nobody home, they would be there to deter any unwanted interlopers... just because the sweep turned up nothing didn't ensure that "they" wouldn't try something later.

"You're still going to stay with me aren't you?" She asked. "I don't know what..."

"Sure baby," I assured her. I was getting kind of used to having her around and I was beginning to like it. She settled back down and put her head on my shoulder. When we arrived at my office we found Otto and Flora hard at work.

"I think I've made some connections," he began, "between upticks in the number of children placed into foster care and deposits in the offshore accounts. They all occur within a day or two of each other... the problem is that we don't have the names on the accounts and those banks won't give it out."

"What does that tell us?" I was confused. "What does foster care have to do with any of this?"

"Over 60% of the kids being trafficked come from foster care," it was Flora that answered. "In some states people put in orders for what kind of kids they want- for example blue eyes and blonde hair are the most popular. Then they get "adopted" and disappear into the pipeline." She had really been doing her homework.

"What pipeline," I asked. This was making less and less sense to me as it went along.

"The child trafficking pipeline," Otto said. "Child Protective Services goes in and takes the kids, then they go to foster care from where they disappear. I'm setting up a database that tracks the missing kids state by state."

"I still don't get it," I told them. "You're saying this isn't just here in LA?"

"No," Otto replied, "it's a big network. LA is an important hub because a lot of the demand is here, but so is Atlanta, Tucson- that's where a lot of kids from south of the border come from- and other places across the country... including Washington DC."

"Holy shit," I said slumping into a chair. I looked up at Elnora and asked: "Did you know any of this?"

"I had an idea," she said. "I knew about the link between LA and Washington DC, my father and grandfather had a lot of powerful friends in politics as well as Hollywood."

I decided to wait until we were alone to ask her any more... I wanted to take another look at that photo album again. I also wanted to talk with Manny again to find out if he knew about any of this, especially the link between CPS and the family courts who oversaw foster care. Foremost in my mind was whether or not the police commissioner involved in this... Weasel Cummings wouldn't have surprised me in the least- if it was dirty, he was likely involved, and if he was, so too was Blackie McKinley in all likelihood.

"Well, at least it looks like you're getting somewhere," I said. "Good work." I felt like the odd man out- everybody else seemed to know more about what was going on than I did. I still didn't know how any of this was getting us any closer to finding Elnora's erstwhile brother. Right now my biggest concern was keeping Flora and Elnora safe from McKinley. I gave Mike Patterson a call...

"Hey Mike," I greeted him. "Did you get a chance to work on what we talked about?"

"Just wait until you see," he said with a laugh. "You're going to love this. Just let me know about an hour before you head home so I can catch up."

"Why don't you come out to Elnora's in Thousand Oaks for dinner, we'll pick up some steaks and do barbeque," I told him looking at Elnora for conformation. She nodded assent.

"It's a remote control device," Mike informed me, "I want to be there to see the fun myself."

"Ok," I said, "it's 4:30 now, we'll head out in 15 minutes. Meet us at the Safeway on Moorpark."

"Sounds good," said Mike before hanging up.

After assurances from Flora and Otto- who predictably didn't eat meat- to meet us at the house, we set out. Flora would drive my ZX and bring Otto along with her and Elnora and I would go on ahead in the Bentley... all we needed was Blackie to follow suit so I called Kevin on an unsecured line to inform him we were on our way home.

Five o'clock in the 101 was hell... I had planned it just right. We were stuck in traffic from the time we got off the onramp. In my rearview I could see Blackie in his Crown Victoria several cars back. He was either not very adept at tailing people or throwing caution to the wind not to lose us in the heavy traffic. After dragging along for what seemed an interminable time we were about a half-mile from the exit to the 23 Freeway when a car behind us burst into a cloud of thick black smoke... it was Blackie. His car suddenly stopped inching along and stopped causing the drivers behind him to start laying on their horns. He was helpless. There was nothing he could do but but sit there as cars began going around him... one containing a laughing Mike Patterson who waved as he went by.

We were all still in stitches when we met up at the Safeway several minutes later. "How the hell did you pull that off?" I asked him still laughing.

"It's completely harmless," he laughed, "they'll be able to fix it... just a little oil in the intake manifold. You should have seen his face when I went by."

We practically bought the place out of prime angus T-bones. I had invited Manny so I could ask him about CPS so we had quite a crowd. One reason I invited Otto was to get Kevin's take on him, he, or perhaps I should say Vito, is a great judge of character... if Vito didn't like him, then Kevin wouldn't like him- so naturally neither would I. There was something about vegetarians I just didn't trust.

Dinner went great, Vito gave Otto his seal of approval- much to my disappointment. Elnora was the perfect hostess although the present company was undoubtedly different than what she was used to. Manny promised to look into the CPS link before heading out and Flora invited Otto to spend the night.

"They're both grown," Elnora chided me when we were alone.

I cornered Flora in the kitchen... "Are you sure you want to do this?" I asked a pained look on my face.

"I like him," she responded defensively. At least if he got rough I wouldn't have so far to send Kevin this time. God only knew how many times I had to send him to her apartment to throw some bum out. "Why don't you approve of him Dad?" She laughed.

"Well," I said, "he's a vegetarian." It was the best I could come up with on the spot.

She rolled her eyes and walked away. Kevin came up to me with Vito in tow: "We're going to check the perimeter before turning in," he said.

"If you hear anything coming out of Flora's room, don't hold back," I instructed him. He rolled his eyes before walking away.

Elnora and I had a nightcap before turning in... "Bring that photo album if you would. I want to take another look at those people in there."

"Anyone special?" She asked.

"No," I replied, "just trying to make some connections. This thing is getting big, but if we're going to find Harold, I think the key will be closer to home."

Elnora's album was a treasure trove, a hundred plus pages of California's rich and famous... there were a few celebrities, studio bosses, senators, representatives, mayors and more from the California elite- names like Getty, Pelosi, Newsome and more going back a couple generations... all including Elnora, her father or grandfather, and of course Harold.

"Elnora," I asked her, "was it just your father and grandfather that forced themselves on you? I want you to tell me the truth- it might lead to finding Harold. You were just a kid... none of this was your fault- you were the victim."

Slowly at first she began pointing to pictures and naming the predators. Some I recognized, other I was familiar with by name and reputation... all had the power and resources to crush me in an instant. If they were involved in this trafficking network, the likelihood of them being prosecuted for it seemed about nil. Moreover, some were no longer alive.

When she finished she began sobbing softly so I took her in my arms and stroked her hair reassuringly... "You did great baby," I cooed. I felt a bit overwhelmed, but my resolve was also strengthened. If what Otto said about these children being sacrificed and worse was true, I couldn't back away from this evil. I wanted to ask Elnora about any rituals she had witnessed, but that would have to wait for another day- she had been through enough for now. I wrapped my arms around her and we went to sleep.