Page 91 of Secret
"Where's Faith today?" Noam asked.
"With my sister. She didn't want to go, but I forced her. I'm not letting her withdraw from my family. I know better than anyone that they can be hard to deal with, but they are family. She'll pout and give me a hard time for a few days, but it's for her own good," Matt told him.
"How's the trampoline team coming along for her?" Kasey asked as he sat down on a long lounge chair and motioned Noam to sit with him.
"Good. She still doesn't want to be alone, so either Xander or I have to go to all the practices, but she's slowly opening up. I don't blame her for her trust issues. I'm guessing they'll be around for a long time."
"She's an amazing girl. It's good to see a success story come from all the negative." Noam leaned back against Kasey. "Seeing her makes it all seem worth it."
"It does. We don't often follow up with the kids we save. We keep tabs on the pedophiles, make sure the courts do their job once they are arrested, but until Faith, I hadn't really seen what happens once the kids go home. I guess every case is different, but it's good to know that maybe most of the kids can get somewhat of a normal life back in time." Bryon stood near the edge of the patio, sipping his beer.
The afternoon went on, and by the time that Kasey had the burgers ready, Noam was relaxed and a little drunk. Just enough that he wasn't worrying, wasn't thinking about the past or the future for a change.
"You look happy." Kasey sat down beside him.
Noam glanced around, watching as the others talked as he tried to ignore the signs that another migraine was coming on. "I am. I've never really had friends like this. At least not since leaving Israel. I threw myself into work. I'd go have a beer from time to time with the other detectives, but it was nothing like this. You've got a great group of friends, Kase."
"I do. They are more like family. I guess you can't do what we do without being close. I have to trust them with my life. They have to trust me. You're part of that family now. My most important part actually." Kasey kissed him softly. Casper nudged his leg, dropping a ball at his feet. He picked it up, tossing it to the other end of the yard for her to chase.
"Thank you for welcoming me into your circle." Noam smiled.
"You are my circle," Kasey told him. "If you're not there, I don't want to be."
"Good thing, cause I'm not letting you go." Noam grinned.
"Guys, I need Carter and Trenton with me at the team house. Beau just called. He's got a case at the hospital that demands immediate attention." Bryon called over the yard as he stared at his phone, typing something as he talked.
"What is it?" Xander stood.
"Young girl just walked in. Said she'd been held hostage and managed to escape. I don't have details yet, but she mentioned other kids on site, but…" Bryon sighed. "She can't remember where she was. She ran from a house and just kept running. No idea where she ran from. A woman helped her call the police, but she said the girl looked as if she'd been running for a while."
"Police are looking then?"
"Yeah, they are, but we have some resources they don't. I want us to try and track where she came from. Business cameras, home security cameras, traffic cameras, something must have recorded her running. If we can backtrack the camera feeds, we might have a chance at figuring out where she was being held." Bryon shoved his phone into his pocket.
"And the police have to contact each home or business personally to get the video, where we can just hack into them," Kasey said softly.
"Can we help?" Noam asked.
"Not yet. Let us see what we can find. This might be tricky. The police are looking. We can't send a team in unless we are sure we are way ahead of the police finding her location. Best case is for the police to find it, but if we don't have a choice…" Carter ran his fingers through his hair.
"We'll call if we need muscle." Bryon nodded to them. "Thanks for the beer and food."
Noam stood, Kasey rising beside him. "Thanks for the help moving."
They watched as Bryon, Trenton, and Carter made a quick exit.
"Well, looks like we may have to work tonight after all." Dyson tossed his empty beer bottle in the trash.
"Yeah, hopefully." Xander set his plate on the table. "I didn't use to look forward to stings. What does it say about me now that I can't wait to get in there and make these pedophiles suffer a little?"
Noam looked up. "That you're human?"
Kasey nodded. "You can't help wanting justice, even if it's not within the law."
"Well, I'm going to head home and wait for a call." Xander sighed.
"Yeah, thanks for dinner. We need to do this more often. It was fun." Matt stood.
Dyson nodded. "Next time we can have it at my place. I'll put you guys to work laying sod in my backyard."
"What happened to the lawn you did have?" Kasey asked.
"I got rid of that old garden back there. I never planted shit. I'd rather have the yard space." Dyson tossed his plate in the trash. "Anyway, thanks for a good afternoon. Maybe I'll see you guys later tonight."
As they watched everyone leave, Noam realized how much of the team's lives were spent dealing with the issue of pedophilia in one way or another. It didn't consume their every thought, but they seemed to always be thinking about the next sting, or the next case. They never seemed to fully relax.
Was this what his life would be like soon? He hoped he could help fight the problem, but he vowed that he would not let it consume his life. Afternoons like this with Kasey were too important to him. It would be easy to fall into a habit of working tons, but he promised himself as he looked over at the man he was in love with that no matter what, they would always come first.
