A quizzical look tensed her brow. "Who did she keep company with?"
"It looks like she was laundering money for the cartel.”
Rachel bit her lip and hesitated for a moment. "I don't know what she had going on, but there was some weird stuff happening around here. I just kept my mouth shut and minded my own business. As long as the checks cashed, I didn't have any complaints. As far as Senator Bergen goes, she handled the whole procedure herself. Usually, I come in and set everything up. She does the tooth prep, then I finish, doing the scans and temporary placement. I thought it was weird when she didn't want me involved. I figured, hey, whatever. He's a high-profile guy. People like that often want her to do everything, start to finish.” Her face crinkled as she thought for a moment. "It was kind of weird, because I think she sent it out to a different lab than normal. If you look through the transactions, there's no order record for his crown.” She shrugged. "But hey, there are always weird things like that happening around here."
I thanked her for the information, and she continued into the back to gather her belongings. JD and I finished up, rounded the counter, and left the office.
"What the hell do you think's going on?” JD asked as we took the stairs down to the first floor.
“I have a bad feeling. And I’m not sure I want to know."
"You think she's involved?"
I knew he was referring to Catalina. The thought had been bouncing around in my head from the moment Greg said he heard a woman’s voice. I tried to dismiss the notion.
As we climbed into the Porsche, my phone buzzed with a call from an unknown number.
42
“Deputy Wild,” a concerned woman said.
“Speaking.”
“Paige Vesper. It seems I need your help.”
“What can I do for you?”
"It's Tonya," Paige said. "She's been kidnapped."
That took me by surprise. I inhaled a breath and tried to stifle my frustration. "Remember what I said about playing with fire?”
"I don't need a lecture. I need someone with a particular skill set.”
"Have the kidnappers made any ransom demands?”
"Yes. They want the data Evelyn took.”
"Where is the data now?"
"It's in a safe place, and I'm not going to discuss that over an open channel.”
"Where was Tonya taken from?”
"The hotel room. We checked into the Coral Cottage. I paid cash. I made sure we weren't followed. I'm not sure how they found us.”
"How long has she been gone?”
"I went out to a coffee shop to make some calls from a burner. When I got back, she was gone.”
"Have you gotten proof of life?”
"No.”
"That's the first priority on your next contact with the kidnappers. I'll notify the sheriff, and we can get the feds involved."
"No.”
"Do you want your friend back, or don't you?”
