“So, Miss Kim couldn’t narrow it down any more for us?” I asked Kitt as we sat at one of the airport’s overpriced restaurants, watching the people walk by.
Kitt never looked up from the book he was supposedly reading, yet although his eyes seemed to be moving over the page, I was certain he was paying close attention to every person in the crowd.
“We’re already pushing our luck that she was able to tell us what country Grace Calderon was probably fleeing to. Otherwise, our whole plan would have fallen apart as soon as we hit customs. Asking for her to also tell us exactly whichgate Calderon was flying out of and when, would be asking too much.”
I pulled out the ticket that I’d stored in my pocket along with my passport. It had been two days since the shoot out at the safe house, and most of that time had been spent retrieving my vital documents from the safety deposit box at the bank where I’d stored them.
Airports were a tight mess of security. A person couldn’t just waltz up to a departure gate, especially not for an international flight. We had to have tickets, and to get those, we first had to have proper identification.
The whole process had given me a headache, and Kitt had handled most of it.
He was right. Without knowing which country Grace Calderon was headed for, this never would have worked. However, there it was, printed in bold text on the ticket I didn’t even plan on using.
Ukraine.
As an escape destination, it made sense. The country was rife with war and civil unrest right now. Whether that was Calderon’s final destination, or just a temporary hideout, it was an easy place for her to disappear.
“You’re right. Miss Lily’s already done more than we could ask for. We’ll just have to find Calderon the hard way.”
After storing my ticket and my passport safely back in my pocket, I checked my watch. Based on the timeframe Miss Kim had given us, we had about an eight-hour window before Grace Calderon would have successfully fled America and escaped our reach for good.
Eight hours was not a lot of time. We weren’t going to get far checking everyone in the airport one at a time. If we had the help of an entire security team, we might have had a chance, but not with just the two of us.
“And you’re certain we can’t alert airport security?”
Kitt turned a page in his book.
“Not without anything substantial to give them. Calderon will have at least a few members of security in her pocket in order to get through customs. Without knowing who’s in her pocket, we’d just risk handing ourselves over to her. Besides, even if we managed to find an honest member of security, at face value, neither of us would seem that reliable. We’re not law enforcement, so we don’t have any authority of our own, and all our evidence comes from a source that we can’t reveal.”
Okay, so people watching it was. We, of course, also made sure to check every departing flight that left for Ukraine, but in between these scheduled take offs, we sat and observed the crowds, waiting for something to catch our attention.
I idly stirred the straw in my drink, which I’d only bought to blend in with the other restaurant patrons. Honestly, four dollars for a soda that was more ice than drink was practically robbery.
Another half hour passed as we watched the people coming and going. We’d specifically picked this spot because it was near the main hub of the airport, right between the international customs check-in and a wall of digital billboards announcing all arrivals and departures. Everyone would have to come through this area at some point, which meant it was the best place to look out for anyone suspicious.
I’d nearly finished my overpriced soda when someone caught my eye. It wasn’t Grace Calderon, that was obvious with a mere glance, but I still nudged Kitt.
“Hey, do you see that kid over there?”
I didn’t want to obviously point at the kid that had caught my eye, but in such a large crowd it wasn’t immediately obvious who I was talking about. Kitt had to put his book down and wrap and arm around me, pretending to kiss along my neck and whispersweet nothings into my ear like a loving couple while he aligned himself closer to my line of sight.
“The blond boy over by the restroom? Yeah, I see him. What about him?”
“You said Calderon wouldn’t just be running away on her own. She’d try to bring assets with her. For a human trafficker, that means kids. I think that boy is one of the bell ringers’Angels.”
Kitt’s arm tightened around my waist. “You recognize him?”
I shook my head. “Nah. Too young. We wouldn’t have been kept together at the same time. But I recognize the look.”
The kid in question seemed to be about ten, but I knew from experience that appearances could be deceiving when it came to kids who had been trafficked. Not only did the bell ringers specifically pick kids for their young looks, but growing up in such an environment didn’t encourage healthy development.
According to my own doctors, it was probably one of the reasons I was a bit on the short side. I’d hit puberty later than I should have, and my body had never fully caught up with that delay.
Kitt studied the kid on the other side of the bustling lobby, but even before he said anything, I could already tell he didn’t see what I saw.
“What look?” he asked. “If you don’t recognize him, how can you be certain he’s one of the bell ringers’ victims?”
Closing my eyes for a moment, I leaned my weight against Kitt as I searched back in my mind for one of the many memories I didn’t like thinking about.
