Page 43 of Special Agent Joseph

Megan watched as Lucia ran to the small, dank bathroom, and while she waited, she made a few phone calls. When Lucia didn’t return, the lapse of time made her uncomfortable. Realizing that the teen had been gone too long, she rushed to the door, flung it open, and found the girl sprawled on the floor behind the toilet, totally buzzed.

Feeling for a pulse and finding it, she slapped her cheeks, yelling, “Lucia. Look at me. What did you take?” Searching her body, she found a plastic bag with a half-dozen pills at the bottom and knew that Lucia had decided to have one last fling before they forced her to face reality.

Waiting for Joe to arrive, having called him to take over the investigation, she also called Vinnie who answered the phone on the first ring.

“You found her.”

“Yeah, she texted me. Vinnie, she’s in trouble. I found her beside a dead body. Look, I called the FBI… Agent Joseph Marcus. I had no choice. There’re others who saw what happened.”

“You should have called me. I could have made it go away.” His gritty voice barked out the comment. “On the other hand, I do trust Joseph.”

“Look, I don’t believe she’s in too much trouble. From her explanation, I figure the guy died from a heart attack.”

“Then she’s free to leave.”

“Not until we can positively determine the cause of death. We’re waiting on the paramedics to arrive. They can help with that.”

“I don’t care what they find, I want you to bring her home.” Vinnie’s tone brooked no argument.

Too bad, Megan thought. Since she didn’t answer to him, she told him what she meant to do. “Sir, that’s not what she wants or needs. Look, calm down. I’m positive the guy she was with had a heart attack, so she won’t be held responsible. But she’s in bad shape herself from taking the crap that’s on the streets. I expect it’s fentanyl or one of the spinoffs. Once the police are done with her, I want to take her to a rehab facility. You make the arrangements, or I will, and mine won’t be near as posh as what you can afford.”

The hesitation that followed made Megan wince. Praying he’d do the right thing, she felt giddy with relief when he agreed. “Right. Okay. I’ll get on it now and let you know where we’ve booked her.” The phone slammed so hard that Megan held it away from her ear. Talking to herself, she mumbled, “Hmm, I’d say he’s kinda angry.”

“Who is?” Joe arrived just in time to see her reaction to the phone call and made his way to her side. “You okay?”

“Yeah. But look at our little darling. She’s blistered… higher than the Time’s Square lit sphere before it drops.” Megan pointed at Lucia humming nonsense to herself as she played with her fingers.

Joe chuckled. “That she is. Dumb kid is on that shit now.”

“Yep. I just talked to Vinnie and told him to make arrangements for a rehab. Also told him I’d called you in to make the arrest.”

“Arrest? What did she do?”

“Guess you missed the corpse in the other room. The medical team is taking their own sweet time as are the cops. Called them almost an hour ago.”

“It’s this neighborhood. Can’t blame them. They don’t get a very good reception when they do show up in this pit.”

“Who’s fault is that?” She looked at Joe… who stared her down. “Right. Goes both ways.”

“No argument from me. Wait. That’s them now. Okay, you deal with the ambulance, and I’ll talk to the police. Once they finish a preliminary investigation, I’ll take our little addict into headquarters and get the ball rolling with her. Let me know what Vinnie comes up with so I can bring her to the rehab.” For the first time, Joe sounded like a cop who knew the ropes.

But Megan had her own plans. “Nope. Once I’m finished here, I’ll pick her up and deliver her. After all, as her bodyguard, she’s my responsibility.”

As if he heard the guilt she couldn’t hide, he reached out to touch her arm. Head shaking, his warm hand gently held her in place, so she’d listen to his words. “Uh huh. Not your fault, Megan. Don’t you dare go blaming yourself. She’s a sixteen-year-old with a brain and free will to make the choices she did. Sure, it’s a shame she chose this, but if it’s anyone’s fault, it’s the fuckers who make this shit available.”

Weakened from his intuitive understanding, Megan had a hard time believing later that she’d leaned her head on his chest, her way of saying thank you for the support. When he dropped a kiss on her hair in passing, it loosened her tears to where she had to blink them away.

Chapter Thirty-one

Earlier, when Joe got Megan’s call he couldn’t move fast enough. Knowing she was alone in a place filled with soulless drug zombies, he’d rushed to get there.

While en route, he thought about his day and felt it started off well with Kramer. He’d enjoyed learning more about himself and his skills that were revealed at the shooting gallery. From the beginning he’d felt he had an expertise with rifles but knowing he could handle all weapons reduced his tension over the coming threats he faced.

Deep inside he accepted that he’d never turn away from the commitment he made to help the FBI. Though still existing in that dark fog of uncertainty, somehow he had no doubts about that promise at all. Now he just had to convince the others in the department.

His mind returned to the recent meeting with Sheila, and he couldn’t shake the feeling that the woman he saw leaving her office was Megan. Sure, she’d lost the red wig and changed backto her dark curly mass, but he’d seen her that way before. It was more his reaction to her body that couldn’t be ignored. The instant knowing that she was close. Deciding that later he’d ask her why she’d been there, at the moment he focused his mind on what they’d eventually discussed in Sheila’s office.

The ASAC displaying her aggressive side, had basically barked out her information. “The ship is expected in L.A. on Saturday, and the freight will be trucked here a few days later. We need to know in which of Vinnie’s warehouses they plan to store the dolls before they ready the drugs for market. More importantly, we need to know if we can rely on you.”

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