The Trafficked

43

The next morning whilst they were waiting for Remy to fly them to Puerto Galera, Mann left Becky interviewing the children who had had dealings with the DDS whilst he went to check his emails again. The PC was in Father Finn’s study. It was a small white-walled room overlooking the courtyard at the back. It was wall-to-wall books and thick files, all documenting the years of bringing western paedophiles to justice or trying to get permission to build his refuges.

Mann sat and punched in his email address. The first thing he saw was another message from BLANCO.

Did you enjoy the BarrioPatay?

Give Father Finn a message from me…PRESS

Father Finn’s image appeared with a naked child sat on his lap and a comic-strip cartoon of an exploding gun by his head-Bang Bang.

‘I’m sorry if I woke you, David,’ Mann said down the phone.

‘It’s okay, I was working anyway.’

‘I got a couple of emails from the kidnapper. In one of them he sent me a photo of Amy Tang with a noose around her neck.’

‘She’s already dead?’

‘No, I think it was a dress rehearsal.’

‘What are they waiting for? Why don’t they just do it?’ asked White.

‘It’s all part of their strategy to keep us looking and to give them time to achieve their real aims-but what they are I don’t know yet. That little girl is just bait in the centre of an elaborate maze, and we are man oeuvred this way and that down one alley just to find it leads to another. We are part of the game. The kidnapper knows where we are, David. He knows who we are, where we’ve been and where we are going. He knows our every move.’

There was a small pause at the other end of the phone.

‘Do you think Becky is the mole?’

‘I hope not, but I’ll limit the information I give to her for a few days. I need to get some inside help with this. The White Circle have the DDS in their pay, and we all know who hires the DDS. Someone in government is making a lot of money from the trafficking. Can you try and find that mayor of yours, Fredrico?’

‘I will try my best. But I am surprised they can be so brazen.’

‘They don’t care. They are still locking kids away in jails, even though the world press has seen them do it on CNN. The Columban fathers are looking after a young lad who is willing to testify against the government. He is in hiding.’

‘Where?’

‘Here at the refuge.’

‘Probably as safe as anywhere. About the mole-I will contact Shrimp and warn him-we are all in danger.’