Faithless in Death (In Death, #52)(103)

“Your support and assistance is very much appreciated, sir.”

“As long as I don’t get in the way,” he finished. “I’ve studied your operational plans, Lieutenant. Very bold, very thorough. Let’s make them work.”

Like Jenkinson, he walked away to take a seat.

Eve spotted Mira. “Jesus Christ, don’t tell me you’re planning to go on this?”

“Of course. Some of the prisoners may require immediate evaluation, medically and emotionally.” She patted Eve’s arm. “I’ll be well out of the way until needed.”

Let it go, she told herself. Let it all go but this.

She waited for Teasdale, Conroy, Reo, Reo’s boss, and all the others.

And realized too late she still had the room’s AC on her menu. Coffee flowed like a rich, dark river.

“Sit or stand, but be quiet. Inspectors Abernathy and Jonas, Interpol, are on speaker, as are Special Agents Clyburn, Reese, Monica, Rosen-croft, and Paulson, FBI. We’ll coordinate with them on every step.

“Lieutenant Lowenbaum and his unit are even now converging on the block in Tribeca, while Special Agent Teasdale has agents outside the compound in Connecticut to pick up anyone who leaves. This will cut off any opportunity for communication back to the HQ, the island, the farm system, or the subjects who will be picked up in New York and elsewhere.

“This is a major and multipronged operation. We’re going to take it step-by-step.”

She started with Strong and the other detectives on the busts, and the search teams who would follow up at those locations. She had Interpol and the FBI brief on their areas.

And stepped away to answer her comm.

She stepped back in as they wound it up.

“Thank you. The first stage, Tribeca, is complete. The block and its residents are contained.” She’d expected the cheer—she felt one inside herself—and let it ride.

Teasdale lifted a hand. “Two male individuals have been detained after leaving the compound. They are being transported for questioning to FBI headquarters.”

“So far, so good. Here’s what we’ve got coming up. Roarke?”

The holo of the compound spread at Eve’s feet, and got a lot of murmurs.

“Nice.” Feeney grinned at it and slurped his coffee.

“McNab, on-screen.”

She picked up her laser pointer. “We’ll breach the walls at these locations. One team, consisting of an e-cop and a detective or uniform, at each. Roarke and I go at the gate, and if successful, I’ll give the go to the other breach teams. Each e-cop will carry a hand device, which, when the code is engaged, will shut down the security system for an area of fifteen feet—not a millimeter more or the system goes on alert. It will take four minutes before the code can be resent for the next fifteen feet.”

“It’s down to two minutes, ten seconds,” Roarke told her.

“Two minutes, ten.”

And she ran them through every step, assigned teams to the breach points, to the backup, to the specific targets and takedowns.

“When we hit the targets, Captain Feeney will jam the comms and open the gate. We can’t risk doing this until we’re inside and in position. When he jams the comms, Interpol and the FBI get the green. The teams in New York, and elsewhere, hit their targets.”

It would work, she thought. Timed right, it would all work.

“No one who is not on breach, backup, or takedown teams enters the compound until it’s secure and contained. Exception for medical personnel if needed.

“I want anyone held in what we believe is a prison freed and taken to safety. I want you to look at this face. McNab, bring up Foxx. Ella Alice Foxx, who risked a hell of a lot passing me a message. They abducted her, they have most certainly tortured her, she is being held against her will. Remember her face. Remember there will be others like her.

“Questions?”

There were a lot of them. She answered, or lobbed to Feeney or Teasdale or Reo.

When the questions tapered off, she wound it up.

“Everyone—and that includes those who remain outside the compound during this operation—will wear vests. Everyone going in wears black, will have night-vision goggles. Everyone will have earbud comms and recorders. Every step of this is on record. As I said before, we don’t know how many weapons may be inside. We don’t yet know if they have armed foot patrols, human or droid. Stunners on medium for quick incapacitation. You’re going to be fucking stealthy.”

She checked her watch. “Compound teams, meet on Garage Level One at twenty-three-thirty. Be equipped, be geared up, be ready. Meanwhile, get some rack time if you can. Dismissed.”

Shelby hurried to her. “You put me on the backup team on HQ.”

“That’s right. Do you have a problem with that?”

“No, sir!” She actually snapped to attention. “I didn’t expect, with my limited time in this division, to be part of this operation. Thank you, Lieutenant.”

“Don’t screw up and you’ll be fine.”

“That’ll be my mantra. I have a question, sir, I didn’t want to ask before.”

“Go.”

“Do you think Gwen knew all this? I mean about the human trafficking, the torture, the rapes, the slavery?”

“She experienced some of the torture herself. Yeah, she knows. Nothing matters to her but her own comfort and position. We probably can’t prove it, but she knows.”