“I need to know what happened when you left the foster home. Could you tell me about that?”
“When I woke up that morning no one was up yet and I wanted to see my mom and my brothers and sisters, so I snuck out. I was going to go to my brother Hayden’s house ‘cuz I knew he lived close, but I couldn’t find it.”
“So, what did you do?”
“I was walking through the park and that’s when I saw my dad. Well, he saw me and he called my name. I was going to run but then he said, ‘Cole, it’s your dad.’ It didn’t look too much like him but it was his voice, so I looked closer. He took me home to the bridge and I stayed there with him.”
“Did you ever go out?”
“I went out a couple of times to find food. Mama T always gave me the best food but I went to the store a couple of times and stole some things.” He looked down. “I’m sorry,” he added and then continued. “I went to see Hayden at school one day, but then a teacher came and I had to run. I wanted to go back home but then I started getting sick.”
“Is that why you stayed under the bridge?”
“At first I stayed to help my dad. He really needed me. But then I got sick, and I really wanted my mom.”
Sabre pictured that poor little boy stuck inside a shopping cart in a pile of rubbish, sick, afraid, and missing his mother and she felt her eyes get misty.
Cole’s mother walked into the room. “Hello, Leanne,” Sabre said. “Could I talk with you a minute?”
“Sure.”
Sabre directed her out of the room and Leanne led her down the hall to a waiting room. “Have you spoken with the doctor today?”
“Yes, he was in early this morning. He said Cole has really improved the last twenty-four hours.”
“That’s good. Did he tell you how much longer Cole will have to stay here?”
“He doesn’t know yet but it’ll be a few more days for sure, maybe longer.”
“And the social worker, have you spoken to him?”
“Yes. He’s been very good to us. He arranged for Hayden to visit tomorrow, and Allie the next day. I think one at a time is best. And he lifted the supervision requirement.”
“Leanne, the social worker recommended a 360. It’s a voluntary agreement, of sorts. Your attorney can explain the particulars to you. The social worker will see that your aid is reinstated and your heat is turned back on, and then the children will be returned to you.”
“All of them?” A pained look appeared on her face, like she wanted to smile but feared it wasn’t warranted.
“All of them.”
Leanne burst into tears. “I’m sorry,” she said. She jumped up and hugged Sabre. “Thank you. Thank you so much.”
“You don’t need to thank me. Those kids need you. You’re a good mother and with a little guidance you can do this. Once Cole is well and you are settled in, you can look for work again. Maybe DSS can even get you some kind of training.”
“Can I tell Cole?”
“Just tell him we’re all working on a plan to get your family back together, but the main thing for him is to get well. You don’t want to say too much, but he does need to have hope. And this is all contingent on the court’s approval. But as long as you do what you’re asked to do, the judge will approve it.”
They walked back to Cole’s room. Leanne couldn’t stop smiling.
“There’s one other thing. Cole’s father was arrested for child endangerment.”
Leanne shook her head. “Maybe it’ll sober him up.”
Sabre waited outside Department One for her trial to begin or to settle. Bob walked up to join her. “Hi, Sobs. My trial was just continued. What’s happening on yours?”
“It looks like it may settle. I hope it does. Judge Shirkoff is grumpier than usual today.”
Bob sat down on the bench next to Sabre and leaned back against the wall. “That guy needs to get laid. Maybe you could do that for us … you know, for the greater good.”
“Eww …”
“For a million dollars?”
“No.”
“Two million?”
“Not for any amount.”
“Ten million?” Bob kept at it.
“Stop. You’re creeping me out.”
“Usually with a judge, one side or the other likes him. But with Judge Jerk-off nobody does.”
“Because he’s so abrasive and he doesn’t know the law. He’s always making the wrong calls,” Sabre said. “And it wouldn’t kill him to laugh or even smile once in a while.”
“I saw him laugh once.”
“When? Did you record it?”
“A week or so ago. I went into his courtroom and he was talking to Gillian. They were both laughing.”
Sabre looked at Bob and wrinkled her brow. “She was in his department a lot. Every time she came to court it seemed like I’d see her in there.” Sabre’s eyes opened wide.
“Yeah, I saw her in there a lot, too.” Bob smirked, “Are you thinking what I’m thinking?”
“Oh, my God! That’s why he called us into his chambers. He was fishing. Trying to see what we knew.”
“He’s certainly positioned well. That’s all the Route 66 gang would need. The adoptions would go off without a hitch.”
“Should I sneak into his chambers and see if I can find some evidence?”
“No, don’t be crazy,” Sabre said.
“Our hunches won’t be enough. We need to find some connection between the judge and one of the other suspects.”
“Are we just seeing what we want to see because we can’t stand the guy?” Sabre said.
“Maybe, but there’s some reason why he had that bizarre conversation with us that day. And Gillian
was
in his department an awful lot. It won’t hurt to check it out.”
“I’ll get JP right on it.”
55
The next day JP walked into Sabre’s office. “I’ve got it,” he said. He walked around behind Sabre and tossed a small packet of papers onto her desk. “After we knew who we were searching for, it was so simple. Look at this.”
Sabre thumbed through it. Her smile grew with each page. “Yes!” She jumped up and hugged JP. “I love you, cowboy! You’re the best!” She looked at the papers again.
“Who’da thought?” JP said.
“Things aren’t always what they seem, are they?”
“No, ma’am. You can put your boots in the oven, but that don’t make ‘em biscuits.”
Sabre picked up her phone and dialed. “I’m calling Bob. He’s going to love this.” When he answered, Sabre said, “We found the goods on Judge Shirkoff. You’ll never guess who his mother is. Old Lady Betts!”
“Are you serious?”
“She gave birth to him before she married Barry’s father so they’re half brothers, hence the different last names.”
“And he was raised by the crazy woman?”
“For the first thirteen years of his life. Then he went to live with his father.”
“That’s great, but it still may not be enough for an arrest or even a search warrant.”
“JP’s on top of it. He talked to the investigator on the case and they’ve already questioned Mother Betts. She told them enough to nab him. She didn’t realize she was giving anything away, of course. She was a wild card for them, but I expect no one ever thought we’d make the connection between Shirkoff and Betts. Besides, what are they going to do? Kill their own mother?”
JP caught her eye. “Tell him to meet us at the courthouse. They’re picking him up as soon as he’s off the bench. We can watch it go down.”
“Yes!” Bob said before Sabre repeated it. “I’ll be right there.”
Sabre, Bob, and JP sat in the chairs nearest the metal detector at San Diego Superior Court Juvenile Division. The lobby was still full from the morning calendar. At 11:05 a.m., Mike, the bailiff in Department Four, approached them.
He leaned over and spoke softly. “Department One just started their last case. It shouldn’t take too long. You may want to go outside. Judge Shirkoff is meeting with a traffic commissioner across the street for lunch. The plan is to take him as soon as he goes out the door.”
“Thanks, Mike. We would’ve been very disappointed if we’d missed this.”
“By the way, they’re searching his house as we speak.”
The three of them walked outside and stood against the building. Several other people were milling around near the door. Most of them were out there to smoke while they waited for their cases to be called. Three detectives were strategically placed near the entrance. JP pointed them out. Bob lit a cigarette. They watched in anticipation every time the door opened. They waited.
Seven minutes passed. The door opened. The judge walked out letting the door fling back, paying no attention to the young woman with the baby behind him. Mike was close behind. He stepped forward, grabbed the door, and said, “Your Honor.” The judge turned around.
“That jerk, he didn’t even hold the door for that woman with the baby,” Bob said.
One of the detectives stepped up and slapped the handcuffs on him. “You’re under arrest for kidnapping and conspiracy to commit murder.” Mike smiled. Several camera phones snapped, including Sabre’s. Before they had a chance to escort him away, eight more sheriffs emptied out of the building. A few of them walked behind the detectives to the car. Others dispersed the crowd that had gathered. Bob, Sabre, and JP waited until the detectives drove off with him in the backseat. Bob waved as they passed.
56
A week had passed since the judge was arrested. His arrest had made national news, and every day some new piece of the “Devil House” puzzle was uncovered. Sabre listened as the news reporter gave her account of the events.
“Another teenage mother has come forward this morning in the ‘Devil House’ case. Our sources tell us she was forced to participate in tree-worship meetings for the last three months of her pregnancy and to continually chant, ‘I believe in the power of the oak.’ The satanic hysteria that has hit this city has shaken each and every one of us. Judge Shirkoff, a man whose job it was to protect our children, has been allegedly terrorizing families for nearly two years.”
Sabre muted the sound and answered her doorbell. “Thanks for going with me this morning.”
“No problem, Sobs,” Bob said, as he walked into her living room and saw the news story running on television. “I see you were watching the latest on the ‘Devil House’ case, as the media is calling it. And juvenile court is rid of Judge Jerk-Off.”
“Yeah, they have most of their facts straight. This is the first time the chant was released to the public. JP said the cops have been chasing a lot of bogus reports.” Sabre walked toward the kitchen. “Would you like some coffee? I’m afraid it’s decaf.”
“That’s okay.” Sabre poured Bob a cup of coffee and then picked up her half-empty cup. They stood in the kitchen at the counter.
“I hear DSS has been scrambling to right the wrongs they’ve created. All but one of the juvenile court cases that had been filed proved to be either Gillian’s handiwork or that of a couple of social workers who were diligent but overzealous. Several of the cases were dismissed. The rest were re-filed with new allegations. The one case that is still pending wasn’t one of Gillian’s cases, but it had evidence of devil-worship throughout the household. Did you hear about that case?”
“Yeah. The mother had two young children, ages two and four, and a long history of mental illness. It was that case that gave Gillian the idea to plant and twist evidence to create a diversion.”
“Have they tracked all the missing children?”
“Not all of them. Since the judge was arrested the rest of the suspects have been talking like mad, each trying to get the best plea bargain. The DA thinks they have the information on all the marketed babies, but the buyers have a lot of money, so some of them have been hard to catch.” Sabre took a drink of coffee. “And on top of it all, some of those children have been with these families for two years. Now, they’ll be ripped out of those homes.”
“Have the children been treated okay in those homes?”
“It appears that most of them have, but the only screening ever done on the adoptive families by the Route 66 gang was to their bank accounts. Who knows what the children have had to endure.”
“So, was Shirkoff the leader?” Bob asked.
“They’re all pointing the finger at him, but it seems his brother Barry Betts came up with the idea. Apparently, Barry and Ric had remained friends. Ric persuaded Rob and Gillian to help. It was a natural move for Rob. He had been protecting his brother all his life and when he needed him, all Ric had to do was ask.”
“Only this time it got him killed,” Bob said. “But why would Shirkoff do it?”
“Apparently, it was all about the money. They were taking in some really big bucks. In two years, they raked in over five million dollars.”
“And it would’ve continued except for Apollo’s film project.”
“Yup.” Sabre nodded her head. “And, they hadn’t counted on Scott showing up and blackmailing the doctor about the Route 66 situation. Dr. Ric was keeping him satisfied with a few drugs here and there and that would’ve been it, but when Scott got Bailey pregnant it opened up an irresistible opportunity for another baby sale. More greed.”