Chapter 27

I watched as the Trooper pulled up next to Mark's unit and shut it off. I saw who it was immediately and wondered what he wanted. He nodded at Mark, looked at the girls and came straight to me.

"Hey Harry. I see you're back at it again. Can't you ever stay out of trouble or at least till your healed?"

"What are you doing here? I hadn't heard the State was called in on this."

He looked at me and busted up laughing. I just looked at him like he was nuts.

"You really don't know do you?"

"Know what, you idiot? If all you're going to do is laugh, just leave. I don't have time for your cryptic comments."

"You're now a Senior Commander with our unit. We were ordered by the Attorney General that regardless of men already on a call, if you were involved we were to back you up in any way we could. You are an Undersheriff for this county, but you are also a State Trooper now and have all of our units at your disposal. I was in the area to replace your M-16 so I took the call instead of a road unit. Thanks to you I got promoted, and I am now a roving Supervisor for three counties. I have your badge and ID in my unit."

"Oh man, just what I need, more confusion on a scene. Did you guys have to take the order literally? This whole deal might be good if your guys know that they are not to interfere in any way."

"They have already been told this and that when they are backing you up, they are under your orders just like they were with any other Supervisor. If you have any problems with any of my men you let me know immediately. The guys on the Air Wing still credit you with saving their lives that night. I don't know the whole story, but you are a hero with them."

"Well you'll have to excuse me for a moment as I still have work to do."

I went over to Bob and explained what we had found and he said he had just the thing to put them in. I watched as he packed them in a foam layered box that was used to transport any explosive thought to be unstable. I left him at his work and walked back to Mark. He was feeding the girls from the bags of food on the hood of his unit.

"Harry, these girls have been out of water for two days and haven't been fed anything for three days. From what they told me, they were brought over the border in a boxcar, then this idiot picked them up and has been having his fun with them every time he stops. If I could shoot him I would. Four is coming now so he will be transported before I lose my temper with him."

I now knew who four was. I had to laugh when he saw me; he did a double take and came over shaking my hand.

"Hey, Harry, glad to see you up and about. Sorry I was late, but the traffic in town is all screwed up with that truck full of live chickens overturning. Everyone in line was helping to catch the ones running loose."

"Good to see you too, Beau. This is what we got."

I told him the whole story and some of the charges he was to be booked with. I also told him he was to call the prosecutor to make sure that he wasn't released because of some screw up. That's when he gave me the news I hadn't heard yet. Trent had been released on bail because the FEDS thought he had turned and would cooperate. Now I was pissed and I asked if Doris had been told or warned that he was free. He didn't know, so I decided I would warn her. I walked back over to where she was and pulled her out of earshot of everyone.

"What's wrong Harry?"

"I just found out some news you need to know, Doris."

I proceeded to tell her and I could see she was upset about it. I gave her the cell number of Shorty's phone and mine, and told her to use it if she laid eyes on him anywhere. The FEDS might have set him free, but we could re-arrest him with the state charges and hold him until I got a chance to talk to the dumbass prosecutor who thought he could turn him. He should have been kept under surveillance the whole time he was out. I decided I was going to call Hadley and ask him who the ass was that came up with this bright idea. I went to the side and called him and didn't give him a chance for any pleasantry. I went right to the subject and proceeded to give him hell about it. I have to admit he never lost his cool, just let me go on until I got it out of my system. I finally ran down and to my surprise he was laughing on the other end of the phone.

"Harry, he is not running free. He is being monitored twenty-four hours by the U.S. Marshals. He has an ankle bracelet and is physically checked every four hours. That young prosecutor made the deal with him. We didn't have a say so about it and I threw a fit about it too. He also refused to release the money because he said it was from crooked enterprises, and the department shouldn't be able to use it a second time for the same thing. I'm sorry, Harry, but it's out of my hands unless you come up with something."

"Do you have his boss's number? I am going to give him a call and mess up that punk's whole career."

He gave me the number in Vegas and I got on the horn. To my surprise, he took my call and knew who I was. He explained that the Director had called his boss and they were all given orders to give me any assistance they could. I explained what was going on and how he had acted in my office, and the whole background of the case. I brought him up to date on Trent and his house, and what we had found and all the weapons he had sold and bought. I reminded him that Trent couldn't be helping much since we had all the records of his deals and buys. I also reminded him that without me and my department they wouldn't have so many guilty pleas and good convictions. I also made it very clear to him that this young pup's attitude towards my department was an insult to me and the men that had worked hard getting his case set up. I told him that if we were going to be treated this way, I would make sure that all the cases from now on would be turned over to California Federal District to prosecute. He immediately said that he would get on it and see if he could get us a prosecutor that wanted to cooperate with local law enforcement. He said he would make a call when we were through and get the kid, as he called him, transferred to Idaho where he couldn't screw up so much. I thanked him for his time and was told the money would be sent back with the release papers tomorrow by armored truck. I thanked him again as I hung up the phone. I was smiling to myself as I walked back to where Mark was still trying to get the girls ready to go to the shelter in town. They would all get showers and clean clothes plus a clean bed to sleep in until INS came to get them.

"I hope you have good news for me, Harry. INS says we have to take them until they can get Border Patrol to transport them back to the border. From what they told me it would be next week sometime. What are you looking so smug about?"

"I'll tell you later. Here's what we are going to do with the girls, Mark."

I told him the plan I had in mind, and he was laughing his ass off by the time I got through laying it all out to him. He looked at me for a minute before saying anything.

"Harry, if I ever make you mad at me, please tell me. I would hate like hell to have you for an enemy. You have got to have the most devious mind I have ever heard tell of. I think it will work but you'll have to be the one to do it. The sheriff cannot be involved in such chicanery by an underling that's not supposed to be on duty."

"Bullshit, Mark, you just want to protect your reputation if it backfires on me. When it doesn't, don't expect any credit, and don't be jealous because I pulled another one off."

"Never entered my mind, Harry, because I have faith in your stupid ideas. Whether they work or not it's still fun to see you work."