Through the Wringer
Charlie closed the door and let Dani sit down across from Jack. Dani stared the perp for a minute before speaking.
"You're in a lot of trouble here, Jack," she began.
"I don't want to talk to you," he muttered. Charlie licked his lips and sat down in the chair next to Dani.
"Then how about you talk to me," Charlie offered. Jack nodded and turned his attention to Charlie.
"Why'd you do it?" Charlie asked. Jack was about to open his mouth when Charlie cut him off. He wasn't in the mood to play 'guess the police division' today.
"We're not here about the boy. We want to know about Frances Vaughn," Charlie added. Jack shut his mouth for a minute. He seemed to be weighing his options in his mind. He slowly nodded his head.
"I want to make a deal," he blurted.
"We're not making any deals until you tell us what happened," Dani informed him.
"Are you sure you want to talk to us without your lawyer present?" Charlie asked. Dani glared at him.
"I don't got nothing to hide," Jack spat.
"I killed that guy, so what," he added after a minute or two.
"Why, Jack? Did you think he was going to spill your secret?" Charlie asked.
"No. The bastard ripped me off. Said he'd pay three hundred thousand and he only gave me one thousand," Jack said, sounding annoyed.
"Did you ask for payment in full?" Dani pressed.
"Of course I did," Jack snapped.
"So…you figure you have to shut him up," Dani began to try and reconstruct what happened.
"You take the crowbar from your car and you beat him with it to make sure he doesn't talk," she continued.
"And then you figure that he's still conscious so you stab him to make sure he never tells a soul what you were trying to do," Dani concluded.
"That how it went down, Jack?" she shot, leaning in close.
"Get out of my face," he hissed.
"Is that what happened, Jack?" Charlie asked. Jack nodded.
"Yeah…" he muttered.
"Just…one more question. Where's the knife," Charlie pressed.
"In the glove compartment of my car," he said. Dani pushed a pad of legal paper and a pen towards him.
"Write it down," she ordered, walking out of the room. Charlie didn't follow. He sat and watched as Jack wrote down his confession. Outside, Dani saw Noah reuniting with his parents. The boy caught sight of her and waved her over.
"Thank you so much for finding him," his mother said.
"The man who did this is never going to hurt your son or another child again. He's going away for the rest of his life," Dani said, bending down to Noah's level. He gave her a smile and a a hug. Dani stood and looked at Rhonda.
"We've been talking to Noah. We're going to get him into some counseling," Rhonda said softly.
"He's writing out his statement for us. Once he's done, you can have him," Dani said back.
"Thanks," Rhonda said and Dani began to walk away.
"Hey Reese," she called. Dani looked over her shoulder.
"Thanks for the help," Rhonda said.
"Next time, follow procedure and you won't need it," Dani replied. Rhonda nodded and saw Charlie walk out of the interrogation room. She caught her partner's eye and they headed in.
"Ready for this?" Dave asked. They took the seats that Charlie and Dani had vacated.
"Let me guess, you're the sex police," Jack said coolly.
"Yeah…we are, Jack. And let me tell you something, you're never going to hurt a little child again. With that murder wrap alone you're never going to see the outside of a prison cell again," Rhonda said coldly.
"And you know what else, Jack. Inmates don't like sex offenders," Dave added.
"I'm not afraid of you," Jack replied.
"You should be," Rhonda spat.
"Why'd you do it? Just couldn't keep your hands off little boys?" Dave asked.
"My users were getting tired of the same kids all the time. I had to give them something new," Jack replied.
"So you kidnap Noah. He's a fresh face," Rhonda continued.
"Yeah," Jack affirmed.
"So why sell him? Did he bore you that fast?" she pressed.
"Hardly, detective. My users expressed and interest and so I gave them what they wanted," he replied.
"Now…I want a deal," he demanded.
"We don't deal with creeps like you," Rhonda said and stood up.
"You have to want something, detective," Jack taunted.
"I have that little boy back safe. That's all I care about," Rhonda replied and pulled the door open. Dave followed her and two uniformed officers took their places in the room.
"What about the rest of his users on his website," Dave hissed in her ear.
"We can get a subpoena for the ISP addresses," Rhonda answered.
"I want this bastard to suffer, Dave," Rhonda told her partner.
"I know you do," he sighed.
"So he confessed?" Charlie asked.
"Yeah. WE got him on both charges. We'll have his website shut down by tomorrow morning and a list of all his subscribers," she said, reaching for her coat.
"Where you heading?" Dani called.
"Back to our precinct to start working on the paperwork. We're going to have to call the DA and get him arraigned tomorrow," she answered.
"Call us when you have a time. We'll be there," she said.
"Thanks again for everything," Rhonda murmured and she and Dave headed out. The lead federal agent closed the distance between Karen's office and Dani's desk.
"We're going to leave this in your court," he said.
"If you're sure," Dani said. He nodded and headed to round up his agents. Just then the two officers that had been guarding Jack led him out and in the direction of a holding cell.
"I hope he gets to speak with his lawyer," Charlie said.
"Crews, I don't think he has one," Dani answered.
"Hey come on…let's go get something to eat," Charlie offered. Dani let out a sigh but picked up her jacket and followed him out of the station.