“I get it.”
She pushed her business card across the table. “Other than that, if you think of anything, no matter how small it might seem to you, call or text me. Promise?”
“I promise.”
Josie stood and put her hand out. “We’re done here.”
Ryan shook her hand, but awkwardly stayed standing behind the table.
“Was there something else?” she asked.
“I just want to say thanks. I’m going to get my act together.”
Josie patted him on the back and led him down the hallway.
*
After Ryan left, Josie and Otto walked back to the dispatch station for an update.
“Border Patrol has two vehicles en route. Both are northbound on Interstate 10. Two state troopers are posted just before the Van Horn entrance ramp to the I-10.”
“That’s awesome. Quick work, Juan.”
He grinned. “If he’s on the interstate, we’ll get him.”
Thirty-five minutes later, they listened as dispatch near Van Horn fired up. Border Patrol stopped a white twelve-passenger Econoline van with Texas plates. Josie and Otto listened to the dispatch traffic as Josh and Macey Mooney were arrested for transporting four female passengers with no documentation. Twenty minutes into the episode, Josie called one of the officers and received confirmation that Isabella Dagati and the other three women in the van appeared to be unharmed.
ELEVEN
At ten the next morning Josie and Otto arrived at the Arroyo County Jail, where Texas state troopers had transported Josh and Macey Mooney after capturing them just outside of Van Horn, Texas. The four women were now patients at the trauma center undergoing thorough medical examination, three of them getting treatment for dehydration.
The jailer already had Josh Mooney sitting in the interrogation room next to his court-appointed attorney. The attorney had met with Josh at eight that morning to discuss the case against him. Josie was surprised that meeting had been pulled together so quickly, but a looming murder charge usually speeds the process.
The attorney was Oliver Greene, a public defender from Presidio. Greene was an expat with a dignified bearing and a soft British accent. He managed every client as if their case were the most important of his career, but he never resorted to unnecessary drama. He was one of Josie’s favorite attorneys to work with.
Josie and Otto sat down across from them. After the preliminaries were finished, Greene gave his standard verbal warning to Josh.
“I expect you to consult with me about anything that might be considered incriminating. That may not always be clear. If you aren’t sure, don’t answer the question until you’ve checked with me first. Do you understand?”
Josh nodded his head vigorously and Josie glanced at Greene, who looked weary. She wondered how he tolerated most of the people he dealt with. At least when Josie arrested someone she could stick him in a jail cell and move on. Greene had to have extended conversations with lowlifes like Josh Mooney.
Josie began the interview with a list of charges brought against him, which included rape, the federal charge of kidnapping across a national border, and the threat of a potential murder charge. The prosecutor wasn’t yet sure how the rape charges would be handled, since the rapes occurred in a foreign country, but he had assured Josie he would pursue the steepest penalty under the law, including extradition if appropriate.
At the word murder Josh slapped both hands down on the interview table and tipped his chair forward like a little kid. “Okay. I might have done some things wrong, but I never killed anyone. You have got the wrong man.”
“You were looking for her. You spent several nights outside my home searching for her. When you couldn’t catch her, you shot her in the back.”
“Someone else was looking for her too,” he said.
“Who?”
“I don’t know her name.”
“Her name?” Josie asked.
“Yeah, the lady I work for.”
“What’s her name?”
“She won’t tell me.”
“Does she live in Artemis?”
He hesitated a moment and shifted in his seat. “Maybe.”
“Do you think your boss killed Renata?”
“I don’t know. I swear I don’t know what happened to her.”
Josie paused and looked at Josh for a long moment before continuing. “I’m going to ask you something that I already know the answer to. If you answer truthfully, then I’ll be more inclined to think I can trust you. If you lie to me, your credibility drops to zero.”
Had the subject matter not been so serious, Josh’s wide-eyed stare would have been comical.
“I have two different witnesses who gave me your name, and one who identified you in a photograph, as being responsible for repeatedly raping both Isabella and Renata on the trip from Guatemala to the U.S. Do you admit to that?”