Tone of Deceit

Disclaimer: I own nothing

A/N:

Chapter 20 (The Boys' Sacrifice)

Jade studied her phone with a heart heavy with nervousness and confusion, she didn't know why, but something felt very wrong. Tori's message told her she needed to go over to their place urgently, but didn't give a lot in the way of details.

She'd been watching the news, as a urgent news broke out of a fire at some strip club and evidence of a prostitution ring had been discovered. Something about that terrified her as well, so rather than question Tori outright, she rushed over as quick as she could.

When she arrived, she saw Cat and Robbie but was shocked to find Beck and Andre weren't there. The expression the Vegas had on their faces was long and frustrated, though Tori looked more upset than angry. "What's going on?"

She started to ask if they ought to wait for the boys, but the unsettling feeling in her gut bade her to hold back. "You should have a seat," Tori reasoned. Jade nodded and took a seat in the recliner. She raised her head towards David and Trina. Trina was leaning against her elbow on the kitchen counter while David was standing a few feet from the dining table with his arms crossed.

"Is it all bad?" Jade started to cringe, fearing that they may well be in trouble. Trina shut her eyes and pressed her lips firmly together while David looked to his youngest daughter, as though preferring her to speak. Tori shared a glance with him, inhaled deeply and then exhaled.

"No," she answered, "It is not all bad; but it is not good either. Beck and Andre have gone missing." Her heart stopped and as the words slowly processed, her entire body began to shake. Her lips opened in a circular motion and mist began to appear in her eyes.

She quickly looked to Cat, who was seated on the Vega's fireplace, as if afraid she too would vanish. "B-Beck? Andre?" Jade slowly shook her head and raised her hands towards her face. She studied her trembling fingers, perhaps she felt she could will them to cease their endless vibrato. "That can't be. How? We were watchful."

"Apparently Andre decided to take matters into his own hands." Tori crossed her arms and leaned back in her seat. Jade lowered her hands to her knees and let a tear stroll down her cheek. "Robbie knows a bit about what transpired there." Her eyes opened wide and she lifted her gaze to the single boy in the room.

He gave a defeated sigh and ran his hand through his coarse hair. "We were investigating Mr. Anthony and found something in his office connecting the guy to a single buyer." He dropped his hand. "I'm not sure why, but when I gave Andre the name of the guy, he got this wild look in his eye and went back to Mr. Anthony's place."

Trina pushed herself up from the countertop. "Following that," she interrupted, "I got a text message from him saying he was at a strip club." Jade raised her eyebrows. "He decided to infiltrate this prostitution and porn ring that Officer Malone has his people investigating. The leader of the ring was apparently a buyer from those we're investigating here."

Jade was still trying to process and wanted to know more about what happened to Beck. She was concerned for Andre, yes, but every moment she didn't know what was going on with her boyfriend was a moment she feared the worst. "So Andre's not exactly missing?"

"Not completely, but we don't know where he is now. All I know is he is determined to find Sherri." A gasp left her lips and her heart flickered for a split moment.

"He found her? Or knows?"

It was Robbie who answered, with a very brief smile cracking on his face. "She and Gabriella were taken by this same guy." He looked down, his fists clenching while the others looked towards him. "Andre texted Trina because he found Gabriella…she was there at the strip club…"

Cat walked over to Robbie and placed a hand on his shoulder. He turned to look at her and she gently placed her head onto his temple. Jade moved her hand towards her chest and leaned forward. "What kind of state was she in? Tell me she was found alive."

"She was." His voice trembled while each of the Vegas shut their eyes. "But what she went through…she's in the hospital now, the police are in touch with her parents, I think."

"We're flying them in on a plane right now," David replied, "They're happy she's alive but we explained to them that they'll want to have patience and help her through what is without a doubt going to be years of trauma coming out."

Jade let the news sit with her, thankful that Gabriella was alive. Sure, the worst was over for her, but she'd live the rest of her life recovering. "I saw the news about the strip club, I didn't realize Andre was even there." She curled her fingers above her kneecaps and looked to Trina. "Did you guys manage to save anyone else?"

"The majority of those that were in that club were brought out alive, yes. There were some injuries, but no deaths. We arrested the bouncer of the nightclub, especially considering the police caught him setting fire to the place…so we'll hopefully get some information out of him. Mr. Anthony was found stabbed, but he survived his injuries long enough to be taken in to be hospitalized."

"So he's alive?" She gave a breath of relief and leaned back slowly in the recliner. "Good. That's one of the suspects then, right?"

"Yeah. He's alive. He told the paramedics that Andre used him to trick the crime boss into letting him join his ranks." Trina smirked, a small glint of pride shone in her eyes. "Apparently he told the guy that Mr. Anthony was planning to betray him and had already called the cops, so when we showed up, it was due to Mr. A."

"Points to Andre for that one."

"Hopefully he'll be just as chatty when he's in recovery." Trina folded her arms across her chest and exhaled. "While I am upset with Andre for taking this into his own hands, I am happy that two good things came out of it. One victim was discovered and rescued in the nick of time-with another hopefully to be found; and we have a suspect detained in custody that has solid evidence of transactions in a trafficking ring."

"Let's just hope he stays alive." Jade rolled her eyes. "It's unnerving how the suspects drop like flies every time we get close enough."

"Yes well…" Tori shrugged and Jade turned her attention to the girl. "If he doesn't survive, we have another one in custody too." Jade's eyebrows shot up and she sensed a moment of hesitation within Tori's gaze. The girl paused to look at her and Jade felt her heart start to sink once again.

She knew what was coming. They said all they could about Andre, or at least, what they knew. "Beck," she whispered, "Where is he?" Cat walked over and knelt beside her recliner. She placed a hand onto Jade's wrist, a comforting gesture; but one that was difficult to receive amidst the fear threatening to eat her like a demon.

"We don't know where he is." Jade lurched forward, a startled gasp flew from her lungs and out her lips. "We know who grabbed him. It was Lane." Her hand flew over her mouth and she stifled a cry. "The man isn't talking, however."

"How did you find him?" Cat inquired with a furrowed brow. "How did you discover Lane was the one, or even that Beck was taken? When did it happen?"

"Today, just before the events at the nightclub." Tori looked towards her dad. "I think Dad knows a bit more about the situation, right Dad?" David nodded slowly and whisked his hand away from his chin.

"We received a distress call from Beck's father this afternoon, he had been on the phone with his son at the time." Jade felt her heartbeat skip, she was delighted to hear that the man took the steps to try and help his son. At least, she hoped he would-even if it was too late. "I suppose Beck must have dropped his phone, because we found it when we searched Lane's office. It was between the cushions on the couch-we think Beck may have been there before Lane was and was caught off guard."

She shut her eyes and her fingers constricted over her heart. "Oh Beck…" Her shirt fabric bled between her trembling knuckles and she started to sob, fearing and imagining the worst of encounters.

"Mr. Oliver seemed to think his son was searching the man's office, as one of the last thing he remembers hearing his son say before Lane walked in was something about a lockbox. After that, he listened to a conversation Beck was having with Lane, then he heard what sounded like a struggle to him. He called us immediately, fearing that something happened."

"You got him though." Jade practically screamed the words through her tears, as though demanding that Lane was in custody. "Lane's arrested, right?"

"Yes. We caught him on the way to Beck's house." She froze, seeing the danger Beck's father may well have been in. "We think he probably realized Beck was on the phone with his father, or if not, he may still have been going there with some plan for the guy. Either way, we've also placed the man under protective custody, just in case."

"But you said Lane isn't talking?"

"No, but that's not such a horrible thing." David picked up a glass of water from the table and brought it to his lips. His eyebrows rose gently and a sharpness grew in his eyes. He lowered the glass with a sigh and his lips curved into a tiny smirk. "There was a treasure trove hidden away in that lockbox Beck spotted." Jade gasped out, hoping and praying that this was something truly helpful.

Judging by the man's expression and the calm confidence in his words, she had high hopes. "Tell me, tell me it's something useful. Tell me Beck didn't get kidnapped for nothing."

"Lane is very clearly the record keeper. What was found in that lockbox were allocated funds, a logbook detailing various transactions made over time…it hugely implicates Hollywood Arts staff as a whole of being a part of a human trafficking ring."

She pulled her hands over her mouth and screamed into them, her entire body was fraught with a mixture of grief and yet relief. She felt Cat reach up, gently rubbing her back.

Her chest shook and she started to cough. Everyone was quiet as David brought her a bottle of water to drink, which she graciously accepted.

"Sadly there is a part that is difficult to stomach." David crossed his arms and seemingly watched as Jade took a long sip of her water, quenching the fire in her throat. "We've only been investigating Hollywood Arts for two years. Kids, though rather infrequently and not nearly as often, have been going missing since they opened their doors over ten years ago."

Jade's breath caught in her throat and she started to lower the bottle. "You can't be serious."

"What you guys said the other schools accuse H.A. of being? Seems like they're right, Hollywood Arts is a sham. A front for human trafficking…And Helen? We're still looking for her, but Lane's records don't indicate her as taking any funds or participating, so we think she may have been a victim of becoming principal at the wrong place, wrong time."

"At least you're still looking…"

"It's possible she could be a tremendous help to the investigation; but certainly we've got enough to essentially shut down the school. At least, we can prevent anyone else from being abducted, thanks to Beck."

Jade leaned forward, pleading. "You're still going to look for him?" David raised an eyebrow.

"Of course. We're going to be searching for all the missing students." He looked off to the right for a moment, then snapped his fingers. "Beck may well be with those Knights though. His father made a comment that he remembered hearing the gang mentioned, to which he believes Beck said 'they wouldn't want' him."

Jade paled and sank back into the recliner, horror overcame her and she looked to Cat with a distraught expression. It was as though her greatest fear had been realized, and yet somehow she knew deep within that the Knights would've been responsible for Beck.

"Then they have him," Cat whispered seemingly reading Jade's mind. The girl lowered her chin and gaze for a few seconds before looking up to David. "No way they'd just hand him over to some random gang, right? I mean, he ran with them for a time and then ran away from them. You think maybe they might capitalize on forcing him to do whatever they want?"

David scratched at his chin and looked to his daughters. "It is an interesting thought." His brow furrowed and he looked back to Cat. "Certainly worth looking into, though I'd like to find the connection between them and the school…which one is in true control and which serves only as a source? Hollywood Arts is a front, and 'front' usually indicates that it is only part of the organization in which it serves. Eikner and his staff may well only be employees of the traffickers."

"And if it's the Knights?"

"Then that would mean Eikner serves the Knights, and they are the true human traffickers." He tilted his head and furrowed his brow. "But most of the records go directly to the buyer and don't indicate a particular gang. So the gang that is trafficking is safeguarding themselves. If Beck truly was taken to the Knights, it can mean one of two things…"

He lowered his hands behind his back and started to sigh. "That the first, which we already suspect, is true and the Knights are the gang that has been heavily involved all this time." He rolled his head towards the other side. "Or they are just one of the buyers."

"You still think the first situation though?"

"Beck has told us before that the knights were involved in human trafficking, and they are a small enough band that has been known to distribute various illegal goods to other gangs and customers. I see no reason not to believe that they would be the main band in question here."

"We saw Jesse though," Jade remarked, "Their leader. He can't be much older than Jason is-so ten or more years…if the Knights have been involved all that time, their gang surely must have had another leader back then."

"They probably did, probably the very person that started Hollywood Arts up."

"Eikner?"

"No." David furrowed his brow and looked towards Trina. She furrowed her brow and pursed her lips. "Eikner wasn't in charge of Hollywood Arts in the beginning, I believe someone else was." Trina moved across the room with a heavy sigh. "I don't know for sure because it's never been discussed in detail; but it may have been Mr. Sikowitz who started the school in the first year."

Ah, I just knew this chapter would be a turning point. Jade received some truly terrible news yes; but Beck and Andre didn't go out without a bang, certainly not in vain. Anthony and Lane are in custody, Hollywood Arts is about to have the hammer brought down upon it. Though you have to wonder about Mr. Anthony, something seems different, as in he never seemed to go through the Black Knights, rather directly to Roger. Could be he's part of the prostitution ring and got caught up in the other ring at the same time? Anyway, a lot of information in this chapter, yes, a lot of discoveries and answers to questions that lead to more questions. Such as that last suggestive one...could it be possible that Sikowitz was in charge at one time? Hmm, what thoughts do you have about it all?