Page 13 of Stand By You
“I agree,” Nick said.
A phone ringing in the background disrupted their conversation. “Sorry, I need to take this,” Simons said, before muting himself.
“Do you feel you have enough resources to do the job currently, Nick?” Hank asked. “Or should I send you help?
“Thanks, but I feel I’m good for now,” Nick replied.
“Okay,” Hank said. “But you say the word and it’ll be there when you need it.”
“I appreciate it,” Nick said.
“Sorry, that was my partner Kohl,” Simons said, unmuting himself as he rejoined the zoom meeting. “We’ve been assigned another case. Nick, let’s touch base in a few hours about this again.”
“Sure,” Nick agreed. “I’ll give you a call.”
“It was great talking with you all about this case. I’m totally devoted to getting Travis back even if I’m being pulled away,” Simons said before he left the zoom.
A few seconds passed before the meeting resumed. “Swede, can you put up the different camera angels from the Zoo Miami that you have been able to cultivate,” Hank said.
“Sure.”
Nicks laptop screen switched from one image to several squares of different videos running at the same time of people walking and viewing the reptile exhibit.
“As you can tell the camera angles do not give a good view of restroom area,” Swede said. Then he changed the video feed to one screen again. “But this camera gives the best footage of those going in and coming out if you watch closely. And I believe this is the two young men who have Travis. As you can see, the taller of the two is carrying a sleeping figure on his shoulder, which looks small enough to be a child.” The feed froze on the two men in question.
“They look like hooligans by the way they are dressed,” Nick said, not liking their baggy pants and oversize shirts.
“Or they are trying to blend in with the crowd,” Kenneally said. “But they are carrying a child as Swede suggests. You do see that don’t you?”
“Yes. I do.”
“Good. And I believe you mean they are dressed like skateboarders,” Kenneally further corrected him. “Look at their shoes and low hanging pants. Don’t you recall Reggie who worked for us as a runner in Virginia before you moved down to Miami? He dressed this way on his days off. He was into skateboarding.”
“Yeah. Yeah, I do,” Nick said. “So, you think that is who these guys are? Skateboarders hired to pick up this kid as a side job?”
“We won’t know until you follow up on it,” Hank said. “Swede, can you send him good quality photos of their faces?”
“Can do,” Swede replied.
“Excellent,” Hank replied. “We are getting somewhere.”
“But we have no idea what kind of vehicle they drive,” Nick said.
“Actually,” Swede said before the screen switched to a different surveillance footage of the two leaving the zoo and heading into the parking lot.
“How did you get this when the police couldn’t even come up with it?” Nick asked.
“I have my ways,” Swede said. “Just between us, the police were relying on the Zoo surveillance footage while I have satellite surveillance I can tap into.”
“I’m glad you are on our side,” Nick said.
“So are we,” Hank agreed.
The computer guru chuckled. “Here we have our guys getting into a blue delivery van, but once they traveled thirty miles away, they switched into this silver Subaru,” Swede explained. “Theplates are not registered to it and were lifted off another car. Unfortunately, I’m afraid I lost them as they left the city because of rain in the higher elevations that messed with the satellite surveillance I was using.”
“Don’t apologize. You’ve given us a good deal to go on,” Kenneally said. “I’ll call Detective Simons and pass along the location of where the blue delivery van was ditched. He’ll get some prints from it. If we can figure out who the two were that snatched Travis, we’ll be one foot ahead of the game.”
“Sending you the address now,” Swede said.
