Markers (Joshua Stokes Mysteries Book 3) (3 page)

Lita Folb McIllwain

455 Cobalt Ln, Fulton Heights Subd.

Atlanta, Georgia 30032

The suitcase that had fallen out of the trunk of the car was lying to the side of the road. Joshua picked it up and toted it to his patrol car. He wanted to look through the suitcase to see if there was anything in it that would help with the investigation. He fully intended to call the FBI and get them involved, especially after what the woman had told him about her husband and how he came to be her husband.

Besides the clothes inside the suitcase, there was about a thousand dollars in cash and a baby book. On the cover, was printed the title “Our Baby’s Album - The First Five Years.” Inside, on the about the forth page, was the ‘Our Baby’s Name’ space. In the space for the name was the handwritten inscription - Anna Leigh McIllwain - underneath that was the space for the meaning and origin of name. It said that Anna Leigh meant, a ‘Graceful Field.’ The origin was Hebrew. Next was the space for date of birth-weight- length
etc.
It said, Born: Nov 11, 1974, that meant that little Anna Leigh had just turned one year old the past November. Her birth weight was five pounds six ounces and her length was nineteen inches.

So tiny, thought Joshua as he turned to the next page. On that page, was listed the parents names and wedding date. It said -

Father - Jonathan McIllwain b. March 24, 1940 Augusta, Georgia

Mother - Olita Folb b. February 18, 1955 Marijampole, Lithuania

The Marriage was listed as August 22, 1970 Atlanta, Georgia. That meant that Lita was only fifteen when McIllwain married her. McIllwain was fifteen years her senior. Joshua wondered if this McIllwain fellow had Lita since she was ten years old. Good Lord, he thought to himself. What sort a sick bastard enjoys sex with a child? A garbage dump off Highway 43, a few miles south of Mount Vernon, in Washington County, Alabama flashed through Joshua’s mind; he quickly pushed it away…

On the next page was a growth chart and on the next a small lock of hair was taped into the space provided for that purpose. Joshua closed the book. He understood why this girl was on the run, however, he did not know what to do to keep little Anna Leigh from being returned to her father, other than to call in the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

He radioed Ida Mae and told her to get in touch with John Metcalf and have him meet him at his office. Ida Mae asked him to repeat what he had said, that she
thought
he said to have Metcalf meet him at
his
office
. He told her that, yes that was what he said. She said she just wanted to be certain she heard him right because he rarely asked that anyone meet him at his office.

Joshua lit a cigarette and watched the skid-truck driver winch the car onto the back of his truck, chock the wheels, and then strap it down. He was only about a mile and a half from his grandfather’s place, and as much as he wanted to go there, going through his parent’s belongings would have to wait a little while longer. He needed to stay ahead of this if possible to prevent this McIllwain fellow from getting a hold of little Anna Leigh.

As soon as the tow truck driver drove off heading toward Eight Mile Bluff, Joshua left headed in the same direction. He wanted to talk to Metcalf before going to the hospital. There were a couple of things he needed Metcalf to check into, he had come to value his opinion and input. Like him, John Metcalf was levelheaded and Joshua could depend on him not running his mouth about whatever they discussed to anyone else; a quality some of his deputies lacked. Over the years, he had discovered that even if they did not discuss it among themselves, most of his deputies did discuss their work in the privacy of their bedrooms…

Five

A Name is a Name

John Metcalf was waiting for him when he walked into his office. He could tell that John was curious as to why he wanted him to come there so he did not dally with his reason for calling him. He said he needed the phone number to talk with Joe Barnes of the FBI, and then explained why. He told Metcalf everything he knew about the dead woman, her child, and what she had told him before she died. Metcalf appeared shocked.

“We can search the missing person’s data bank and see if she or the child is listed. I can go do that right now,” he said quickly. “I have Barnes number, Sheriff, but his office is less than a half-a-block from here. As soon as I check through our records, call Atlanta and get them to check theirs, we can go talk to him in person. Don’t you think that would be better?” he asked.

“Yeah, you’re probably right, John. Go check, then come back and let me know what you find out. I want to go to the hospital as soon as I can get there and check on the child. I told the people on the ambulance not to let anyone near that baby unless it was a doctor or nurse, but I still worry. What if her husband is already here in Mobile; he could get to her if he wanted to. That’s why I want to get her placed into protective services.”

Joshua opened the windows and lit a cigarette. It seemed like an hour before Metcalf came rushing in nearly out of breath. Joshua could tell he had sprinted across the courtyard; he hoped he had good news.

“I called and checked Atlanta’s missing persons. They found nothing fitting our search under the name of McIllwain, using all possible spellings, and then I got them to check under her maiden name, still no matches. On a hunch, I checked our records here in Mobile and lo and behold, I found them. Both she and McIllwain had applied to have their address changed on their drivers licenses!” he handed Joshua a piece of paper. Written on the paper was an address in Wimbledon Park located in the affluent Country Club District located in West Mobile.

“That figures,” Joshua said, “I ought to have known that whoever it was would have money, how else could he afford to buy a child sex slave and then keep her against her will all theses years.” Joshua had read somewhere that these people liked to buy them young so they could control them better and train them to please them sexually.

“Sheriff, that ain’t the worst of it. This Jonathan McIllwain is a doctor, a pediatrician. I don’t know about his practice-where or what. I couldn’t find out if he has his own office or if he works at a hospital. I don’t think they’ve been here too long.”

“Damn’it to hell,” Joshua almost shouted the expletives.

“The applications were just filed last week, so they’ve probably only been here a short while. They had 30 days to change them after moving here. Most people do it quick so that they don’t encounter problems when writing checks or getting their mail forwarded. Most places won’t except out of state identification.” John Metcalf offered.

“We need to find out exactly where this McIllwain dude works or has his practice and we need to talk with Barnes about keeping that son-of-a-bitch from taking the child. I know the woman was not lying and she would not have chanced taking her child and running away, if she were not afraid that he was going to harm her or as she said, sell her when she was old enough. It took guts for her to do what she did. Many of those women are so brainwashed by the time they’re grown that they never try to escape.”

“Do you need me to go to Barnes office with you?”

“Nah, I can handle that. I know it’s not in your job description, but I want you to work on finding where this Dr. McIllwain works. I am going to talk to Barnes and see what he can do before I blow my stack and find McIllwain myself. I would love to get my hands on that bastard and put my boot up his ass…” Joshua paused as he considered his options. If it were up to him, he would waylay the dude, put a bullet in him, and bury his body in the bayou, but that would only stop him, it would not stop the others.

Joshua and Metcalf left his office at the same time. Joshua walked the short distance to Joe Barnes office. He did not even have to enquire of Barnes’ whereabouts. As soon as he entered the office, he saw Barnes’ name on a door behind the receptionist’s desk. He never slowed down, just headed straight toward the door, opened it and walked in.

Joe Barnes sat behind his desk with a folder and papers spread out before him. He looked surprised to see Joshua but stood and graciously extended his hand. He said, “Come on in Sheriff and have a seat.”

“I hate to just barge in like this Barnes, but I need your help.” Joshua saw the look of surprise on Barnes face, and then Barnes composed himself.

“Please, have a seat and let’s talk,” Barnes said, as he gestured toward an office chair. Joshua was too restless to sit, so he remained standing.

“Mr. Barnes, this morning, a young woman was involved in an automobile accident. The accident occurred on Lott Road, a few miles above Georgetown. She died shortly afterward. Before she died, she told me that she was a victim of the sex trafficking trade. She claimed she was brought to our country from Lithuania when she was just nine years old and sold to an American. The man that bought her and later married her, when she was fifteen years old, is a man by the name of Jonathan McIllwain. My investigator discovered that they recently relocated here from Atlanta. They moved to a house in the Country Club District. The
husband
is a doctor. Not just any doctor but a pediatrician.” So far, Barnes’ expression had not changed. Joshua did not know if what he was saying was sinking in. “The woman had her one year old daughter in the vehicle with her. She told me that she was trying to escape because she thought her ‘master’ as she first referred to him, was going to put her child into the trade as soon as she was old enough… I promised that young woman that I would keep her child safe and keep her father from finding her. I need your help to do that.” Joshua paused, waiting for Barnes to speak.

“Sheriff, we have to have proof that a child is in danger, before we can take that child from its only living parent.”

“Well, if you’re not going to help, then I will handle the situation myself,” Joshua said stubbornly, and made to leave.

“I did not say that I would not help, Sheriff.”

Joshua stopped and turned toward Barnes.

“We can make sure the child is safe until we can either clear the father of any wrongdoing or convict him. What did you say his name was?” Barnes asked as he slid a notepad in front of him and picked up his pen.

“Jonathan McIllwain - recently from Atlanta.”

“Sheriff, let me run his name through the bureau’s data bank in Washington and see if I can find anything on him. He may already be on our radar.” Joshua nodded, hoping that was the case. “We do have
some
intel on these people, Sheriff Stokes. Actually, there is an ongoing investigation into this human trafficking ordeal, has been for several years now. It all came to a head when a shipping container containing about a dozen young girls was seized in New York City a couple of years ago.” Barnes added.

“Yeah, I read about that,” Joshua said. “I remembered it when the woman told me all of that this morning.”

“What’s sad about it is that we never found who shipped that container or who was to receive those girls. These people are cunning, Stokes. They know how to leave a convoluted paper trail that is almost impossible to trace.”

“I’d like to convolute them,” Joshua mumbled.

“I’m sure you would, as would I, Sheriff Stokes. In our line of work, we see what goes on in our world. We see the cruelty, the sickos, the psychos, and the disturbing things they do to other human beings. Once in a great while, one of these victims surface, somehow having escaped their bondage. We had a young woman come forward about a year ago. She told how she came from Poland in a similar container with other girls when she was a child. She said that when she was twelve, she was dressed in finery, had her hair and makeup styled, and was then led onto an auction block to be sold to the highest bidder. From what she told the bureau, the man that ‘bought’ her, paid 20 grand for her. That is a lot of money, Sheriff. That’s why these people are in the business of selling humans. The worse part is that many of these children are sold to the traffickers by their relatives, brothers, uncles; many times, it’s the children’s own parents that sell them into slavery. I don’t know if they do it thinking they are sending them to a better life or if they do it for the money so they can support the rest of the family.”

“Good Lord, can you imagine the number of women that must be out there, thinking that no one cares what happens to them…” Joshua paused as the fact overwhelmed him.

“Its not just girls, Sheriff, Many of these victims are boys. You’d be surprised at the depravity that goes on in some places in our world.”

“No, I wouldn’t be surprised at all. I have read plenty of what goes on, Barnes. I read about Charlie Chop-off in NY and the Candy Man out in Houston. Between 1973 and 1974, that pervert in Houston and his accomplices raped and murdered at the least 28 young boys, it’s downright sickening… and that’s just the serial killers. These traffickers sell the boys and girls to men who want to keep these victims around for a while.”

“Yes, and then when these boys and girls outgrow being children, which is what some of these men prefer, then what happens to them? I have wondered this many a night as I lay awake trying to decide if I am making a difference…”

“I know the feeling. Many a night I’ve done that myself.”

“This child you told me about is what we need to concentrate on right now,” Barnes said. “I will send one of my agents over to the hospital to guard her until she is released. Then we will make sure she is in an undisclosed location until we know it is safe to remove her. Hopefully, we can collect enough evidence to keep her
father
, and I use that term loosely, from regaining custody of her.”

“Thanks, Barnes; I’m heading over there now. I’m worried the son-of-a-bitch is working at the Women and Children’s Hospital, which is where they were taking the dead woman and her child, and that he will get to the baby girl before we can stop him.”

Joshua walked the short distance back to the courthouse complex and went directly to Metcalf’s office. He could tell by Metcalf’s expression that he did not have any good news. He felt his gut tie up in a knot.

“I’m sorry, Sheriff, but I haven’t found out anything yet,” Metcalf said solemnly.

“Just keep working on it; I’m headed to the hospital to check on the baby.”

“Yes, sir; as soon as I find anything I’ll get Ida Mae to page you and you can give me a call.”

Joshua reached down to make sure his pager was attached to his belt before turning to leave. “That’ll work,” he said over his shoulder, as he walked out the door of Metcalf’s office and to the parking lot. He got into his vehicle, reached under the seat and pulled out the bottle of whiskey. He stared at the bottle a full minute before placing it back under the seat and starting the car. Driving to the Women’s and Children’s Hospital, he was thinking hard on what he needed to do. He did not know exactly what he needed to do, but knew he had to do something to protect the child.

Joshua lit a cigarette and inhaled deeply. He wished with all his might that the deer had not ran out in front of Lita McIllwain’s car that morning, and that she and her child had made good their escape from his county. If he had not come upon the accident, he would have driven on to his granddaddy’s house and searched through his parent’s belongings. He might even have found his mother’s journal…