Early Sunday morning found Compton in the forensics lab being wired for sound. Ivory Thompson was up next, making both McGarrett and Duke wonder exactly where Che was planning on putting the microphone. Lu was watching intently.
"Explain to me one more time why Ivory is getting the whole James Bond treatment." Lu said.
"It'll be more believable if we go in as a couple," Robbie Compton said. "See, there are separate Sunday school classes for men and women. This way we cover both classes."
"Just be careful, okay?" Lu wasn't very happy with the arrangement, but Ivory had volunteered to go with Robbie as part of his cover. When she had shown up at the lab with him that morning, curious about the entire procedure, Che had suggested she wear a wire also, giving them both backup for anything Compton might uncover as well as an opportunity to see what was going on with the women in the group.
"She'll be fine, honey," Duke reassured her. "We wouldn't send her in if we thought she would be in any kind of danger."
"There will be a surveillance van parked down the street with two men from the lab as well as two HPD officers," Steve said, hoping none of the backup he had in place would be needed. "and there are two blue and whites on patrol around the church. One word and they roll."
Che finished attaching the wires to Compton. "Okay, Ms Thompson, you're next." Ivory stripped down to her bra, exposing a lot of caramel colored skin and a rose tattoo. Che was having a very hard time deciding where to look, much less where to attach the wire. "Uh, Sgt Yablanski, I'll let you do the honors." He handed Lu the small and extremely sensitive microphone. Lu followed his instructions, clamping the microphone to Ivory's bra strap and taping it securely to her skin.
Che activated the mics and tuned the antenna's to the proper frequency. "Ready to go," he said.
Compton and Ivory put their shirts back on. Compton surrendered his sidearm and police ID to McGarrett. He was going in as what he was, a Gulf War vet who was still a member of the Army Reserve, and Ivory as his active duty girlfriend. They were suppose to attend the Sunday school classes and listen to the sermon and pretend they were interested in attending more services. Ivory, who had grown up in a family who believed in being in church every time the doors opened was instructing Compton in some of the finer points of piety, pointing out that if he wanted to be believable he should be carrying a Bible, preferably the King James Version.
"No one has one of those these days," he said.
"I do," Ivory stated, pulling the battered, dogeared, and bookmarked tome from her bag. Her name was embossed on the front in gold letters.
"Where'd you get that?" Compton asked.
"From Bible School when I was ten. If you learned your verses, you got a Popsicle. Amazing what a kid will do for a Popsicle. Then if you could recite them all at graduation, you got a Bible with your name on it in gold." She gave an elegant shrug that bespoke her Creole heritage. "Always did like sparkly stuff. Guess I'm part magpie." She and Compton were instructed to report to the Five-O offices at Iolani Palace when the church service was over for debriefing, after first making sure they weren't being followed. They were in Ivory's Hyundai Accent with the Ft Shafter parking stickers in an effort to look authentic, especially since Robbie's pick-up had an HPD parking pass stuck on the front windshield.
"She's going to be fine, Susan," Duke said. "All they're doing today is listening."
Lu nodded. "She's a grown woman. I know she's capable and can handle just about anything that comes her way. Doesn't mean I'm not going to worry. I'm her first sergeant and she's still my responsibility."
Duke put his arms around her, holding her tight, oblivious of the raised eyebrows from both Che and Steve. "You continue to amaze me, magic lady. You know she wants to be a cop when she gets out of the army?"
Lu rolled her eyes skyward as she felt herself relaxing against Duke's shoulder. "I'm not surprised. So, you're recruiting from Ft Shafter now? Count me out, thank you. And that goes double for you, Commander." Lu said, glaring at Steve.
"I don't think either HPD or Five-O is ready for you, Sgt Yablanski." he said. "Duke, you have everything under control here. I think I'll take my fiance to brunch as soon as she gets off duty. We'll meet back at my office at one."
"Steve," Lu said. "Look, I'm not sure how to say this. I'm kinda worried about Maggie. The stuff that's being delivered tomorrow, some of it she hasn't seen since before the War. I know cause I'm the one who packed up her quarters in Germany while she was still at Walter Reed. I know there's some stuff in there that's going to upset her. You may want to go home at lunch and check on her." Lu was nervously chewing on her index finger. "And don't tell her I told you. Okay? Tomorrow's going to be a bad day for her."
Neither Steve or Duke had ever seen Lu looking so anxious. Duke tightened his hold on her.
"I'll check on her," Steve said. "First thing tomorrow I have to drive out to Oahu State Prison to meet with a sociopathic homicidal maniac. I'll drop by the house before I go back to the office. You want to tell me what it is that's going to upset her."
"No," Lu said. "That's up to her. Speaking of brunch, Duke, I'm starved. Let's get out of here."
She kissed Steve on the cheek as she left. She'd done her part, the rest was up to him.
There was a trail. Steve smiled when he saw it. She always left a trail after overnight duty that started by the door where she'd dropped her duty bag. A desert cammo utility cap was on the table by the door, the top dented by her car keys. Next was a desert cammo shirt on the floor by the sofa. A Dooney messenger bag was on the coffee table. He followed the trail into the bedroom. A pair of size three desert combat boots were next to the bed, a pair of beige socks, a tan tee shirt, and a beige sports bra led the way into the bathroom. He could hear the water running in the shower. He picked the scattered clothes up from the floor and dropped them into the laundry hamper by the door.
"Maggie, sweetie," he said, "I'm home." The one time he thought he would surprise her by stepping into the shower unannounced had frightened her so badly he would never do it again. He heard the water go off and held out a soft cotton towel for her as she stepped out of the shower. Her skin was soft and warm from the water and the rose scented soap she used. He wrapped her in the towel, pulling her close.
"How was duty?" he asked.
"Long and mostly boring. At least I didn't have to get anyone out of jail this time. I thought you were going to be at the office most of the day."
"I'm taking a break. I thought maybe you'd want to go get some brunch at Maholo's."
"Only if you help me get this hair combed."
"Anytime, my Little Menehune. Where's your comb?"
"On the dresser. I'll be out as soon as I dry off."
He turned down the covers while he was waiting. She came out, wearing a soft pink robe. She sat crossed legged on the bed, unwrapping a towel from her hair and letting the long damp strands of silver hair fall down her back. She loved it when he combed or brushed her hair. He was always gentle, his long fingers working through the tangles until her hair flowed like wet silk.
"I love it when you do that," she said as he gently massaged her neck and shoulders.
"I love doing this," he said, draping her hair over one shoulder, exposing her neck to nibble the soft skin. "Beautiful," he whispered, "so beautiful." He tilted her face up to kiss her. "I missed you last night. This bed felt so empty without you."
"How does it feel now," she asked, leaning back against him.
"Like it's suppose to. I think we may be late for brunch."
"Me, too," she said wrapping her arms around his neck. He untied the sash of her robe, pushing it aside to bare her shoulders and breasts, loving the way they fit so perfectly in the palm of his hand. As his lips moved down her neck, trailing kisses to her breasts, she realized the only thing she was hungry for was him, for the feel of his big hands on her body, for the weight of his body pressing against hers as he moved inside her, for the sound of his heart beating and his breath against her ear as he whispered her name in that deep rough voice that would always remind her of smoky bourbon and black velvet.
"My Little Menehune," he whispered between kisses and nibbles. She lay back against the pillows, loving the way he touched her, the way his hands felt as they moved across her skin, the way his lips and tongue felt as they explored her body, and, at last, the way her bones seemed to melt and her blood turn to fire as he moved inside her, his lean hard body sending wave after wave of pleasure through hers. She was so in tune with the feel of his body against hers that she could tell that he was responding to the soft warm flesh that surrounded him so completely, her legs wrapped around his, pulling him ever deeper, until she felt him explode inside her, liquid heat pouring into her body as he whispered her name and told her he loved her.
She held him and prayed for a child...
McGarrett found Kono waiting in the outer office when he got back to Iolani after tucking his very sleepy fiance into bed and kissing her good-bye.
"What have you got?" he asked.
"Some strange stuff, Brudah," Kono said, handing him a file folder. "That United Church of the Living Truth is all over Hotel Street. They got some sort of mission down there. Or at least dat's what they callin' it. Got a lot of traffic in and out. A lot of if from GI's judging by the haircuts. Lot's of wahine's, most of them real young looking."
"You think the mission is a front for prostitution?" Steve asked.
"I'll about bet it is," Kono said.
Duke came in, having dropped Lu off at her car. He hadn't wanted the weekend to end, only she said she had things to do to get ready for the next week. He was missing her already.
McGarrett handed him the folder. "What do you think?"
"That's what I was afraid of. I've had officers making routine checks on this place since it opened. Maybe it's time to send in vice. I suspect most of the girls that frequent the place are underage. Probably runaways. Not so many from the mainland these days, since it's getting harder to get on a plane, but lots from Asia and plenty of local girls."
"Talk to the Chief about that Monday. See what you can come up with."
There came the sounds of an argument from the hall. "NO! Dammit, Ivory, no! Not just no but hell no! Don't even think about it!"
"You are not the boss of me, Mr. Man!" Ivory shouted back. She burst into the office, her face flushed with anger.
"Would either of you mind telling me what's going on?" Duke asked, as calm as ever.
"Sir, we got tape. I even got a couple of pictures with my phone. The lab has already downloaded them to their computer and are promising pictures for tomorrow. There is some major cash going through that church."
"Yeah," Ivory said. "Lots of fat tithing envelopes and collections for everything from community outreach to the building fund. I don't know where all the cash is coming from. The church is located in a dodgy section of town. Half the congregation looks like it doesn't know where their next meal is coming from and the other half looks like they just strolled in from Hotel Street, if you catch my meaning. Robbie's just pissed 'cause I got lucky and he didn't."
"How's that?" McGarrett asked.
"I had the lab techs edit this down for you. Robbie's got the whole thing. This one's mine. I am so going to love being a cop." She handed McGarrett a CD with the date and time burned into the disk.
McGarrett motioned for then to come into his office. Ivory sat cross legged in one of the big leather chairs with Compton standing protectively behind her. Duke and Kono exchanged glances, wondering who needed protecting from whom. McGarret inserted the CD into the player on his desk.
"You can skip through the first forty five minutes of that," Ivory said. "It doesn't get to the good part until after Sunday School, when Sister Roxanne made me an offer."
McGarrett was fast forwarding the CD. "Got a last name for Sister Roxanne."
"If she doesn't," Duke said, "I bet I do. Roxanne Harris. Better known as Roxie Harper, Reggie Holmes, or Ramona Hall, depending on what mood she's in and what name is on the warrant. Tall, what was once referred to as 'packed and stacked', bleached blonde hair, fake tan and double "D" breast implants."
"Yeah, that's her all right. I kept getting the feeling she decided to give God a try when she got to old to be a stripper. Kinda pushy, too, I might add. And doesn't know the Bible for beans. Read the lesson from a prepared script, and not very well either."
"She's also a known associate of Big Chicken from way back." Kono added.
"An associate of who's? What's a Big Chicken?" Ivory asked.
"Someone you do not want to mess with," Duke said. "We thought we'd seen the last of him about twenty years ago. It seems we were wrong."
McGarrett hit the play button.
"What brings you here, hon?" said a brassy voice roughened by too many cigarettes and way too much booze. Ivory identified it as belonging to Sister Roxanne.
"I'm stationed out at Shafter. I'm looking for a new church home. My boyfriend and I have been having some problems and I thought that if we started attending church it would help."
"What kind of problem would that be, hon? You can tell Sister Roxanne. I promise it won't go any further. Minister's privilege."
Ivory appeared to hesitate for a minute, then she gave a little sob. "I'm sorry. It's just that he hasn't been the same since the War. He's changed. I love him so much and all he wants to do is smoke dope and bet on football. We're about broke. He just gets a little check from the reserves and what little I make barely covers rent."
McGarrett, Duke, and Kono were all staring at Ivory. The girl was a natural. Compton didn't look happy at all.
"What does your boyfriend do for the Reserves, hon? I may know someone who can help him find work." You could tell from the tone that Roxie was on a fishing expedition.
"He works in the arms room. That is when he bothers to show up for meetings." That much was true. Compton was an armorer and spent most of his reserve training repairing and maintaining military weapons.
"And what do you do, hon. Pretty girl like you should be working for a general."
"I wish!" Ivory said. "I'm just a clerk typist. The men give me handwritten reports that I have to turn into neatly typed documents. They all need to learn how to type."
"Would you be interested in some part time work? As pretty as you are, you could make more in one weekend than the Army pays you in a month. And your boyfriend don't even have to know. You just drop by the mission on Hotel Street next time you're in the area and we can have a little talk."
"I may just do that. I could certainly use the money."
"Can't we all. Look, the sermon's about to start. You better go find your boyfriend before he starts worrying about you."
McGarrett hit the stop button on the CD player. "Good job, Specialist Thompson. You've been a lot of help."
"When do you want me to go to the mission on Hotel Street?" she asked.
"You are not going near that place and that's final!" said Compton.
"And you think you're going to stop me?" she asked.
"Enough!" Duke said, "I swear you two sound like my kids did when they were about ten. He's right, Ivory. You're not going anywhere near that place."
"Why not? She practically asked me I wanted to be a hooker."
"Because it's too dangerous," McGarrett said. "Ivory, we sent you in to listen, not participate. These people are dangerous. We've been dealing with them and the fallout they leave behind for a long time. They won't hesitate to make you disappear if they think you're from the police."
"But," Ivory started.
"No argument, young lady," said McGarrett. "You got us enough on tape to get vice in the mission. Let the police handle it from now on. You don't go near that church again. I don't trust any of them."
"I sure as hell don't trust Reverend Leeds." Compton put in. "I don't like the way he was looking at Ivory and he spent more time begging the congregation for money than he did preaching."
"Find anything on the Reverend, Kono?" McGarrett asked.
"'Dat's another mystery. So far not a thing. It like he appeared out of thin air one day. All the records we got are the ones from here on the Island. No school records, no credit report, no criminal record. Nothing before he landed here three years ago. And no fingerprints anywhere. Not even with the DMV. If he's got a license, it ain't from Hawaii."
"Looks like Danno's got his work cut out for him next week. What time is he getting in?"
"Plane lands at five," Kono said. "I'm picking him up at the airport."
"It's a long flight from DC. I hope he caught up on his sleep."
There was a choked off laugh from Kono. Danny was in DC attending a conference on cyber crime sponsored by the FBI at Quantico. Everyone knew that he wasn't going to pass up the opportunity to see Petty Officer Beverly Patterson, who was attending federal law enforcement classes at the same facility. Danny was so obviously in love with the redheaded sailor from Alabama and missed her so much that Jenny had spent a week searching for an excuse to send him to DC.
"Give him a rundown on what's been happening when you pick him up. That's a wrap for now. I'll go back over the tapes and see if I can find anything interesting."
"Would a fingerprint from Leeds help?" Compton asked.
"Sure, Brudah," said Kono. "If he got prints on file. Where you gone get prints."
Compton carefully removed a flier from his jacket pocket. "How about off this? I asked about phone numbers and web addresses and he gave me this. I just wanted the info, didn't even think about fingerprints until you mentioned it."
McGarrett smiled as Kono bagged the flier for the lab. "Kid, we'll make a cop out of you yet." He took Compton's gun and ID from his briefcase and handed them back to the young police officer.
"Thank you, sir. Come one, Ivory. It's a nice day out. Let's go for a drive on the coast and then we can get dinner afterward." He was trying to make up for what was obviously disappointment at being sidelined from the investigation.
"I suppose," she said. "Look, call me if you need any help. I can do this."
"Ivory," Duke said, "I know you can, but you are not a police officer, and I'm fairly sure there are a lot of people who would have my head on a spike if anything happened to you, starting with Colonel Dale and going downhill from there. It's too risky. Let HPD handle this from here on out." And I'd really like to keep my girlfriend, he thought to himself, liking the way 'girlfriend' sounded.
"You are so taking all the fun out of life. Come on, Robbie. Let's go see what we can get into." She stood up, giving Compton a hug when she did. "I probably shouldn't have yelled at you, or called you a dumb cracker."
"Sweetie, I don't even know what that means. Let's go, baby, I'll buy you a Popsicle." Compton said. They left holding hands.
Ivory was from New Orleans. McGarrett had observed that when she, Maggie, and Beverly started talking, the Southern came out and it was like listening to an entirely new dialect.
"What do you think," McGarrett asked after they had left.
"That Compton had better watch his step around that one."
McGarrett laughed. "About the case, Duke. What's your take on all this?"
"That Big Chicken is in this up to his ears. He and Roxie Harris go back a long way. She's been off the radar for a few years now. We need to find out what she was doing and how she got in so tight with Leeds and his crew."
"Maybe she was in jail. Could be 'dat where Leeds found her." Kono speculated.
"If she was it wasn't here," Duke said. "Could be on the mainland. She was here one day and then she wasn't. I was hoping she'd crawled back into whatever hole it was she crawled out of and was going to stay there. No such luck."
"Wasn't she picked up about ten years ago on the suspicion of importing underage girls for prostitution?" McGarrett asked.
"Yes, and all the girls were conveniently deported before they could testify. I wouldn't doubt it if she was up to some of her same old tricks."
"This time we're putting a stop to it. Get me the book on Sister Roxanne. I want to know where she's going before she gets there. Kono, see if you got snitch on Hotel Street than knows anything. I've got a bad feeling that all of this is going to lead back to Big Chicken."
"On it, boss. I'll go shake the trees until I have to go to the airport." Kono left. He'd be happy when Danny got back and resumed his share of the workload.
Duke stretched and stifled a yawn. Sleeping was something he hadn't done a lot of that weekend. "If you can't think of anything else, I'm out of here. I'll put a tail on Roxie and see where it leads us."
"Good idea. Send out the photographers. I want pictures of everyone coming and going at the mission and at the next church service."
"You got it." Duke left and headed to HPD to set things into motion.
McGarrett listened to the CD from Compton's wire. Compton had been right, the sermon consisted of more calls for contributions than altar calls. There were vague hints about the money being used to support the church's mission, with very little being mentioned as to what the mission was. Towards the end of the recording was a short and pointed message about the needs of newly released prison inmates, how Sheriff Murphy was planning on entrusting several of them in their care, and how expensive that would be, what with housing and job training and medical care. McGarrett, an occasional Catholic, felt as if he needed a shower after just listening to Reverend Leeds. Somehow the Reverend, Big Chicken, Sister Roxanne, and the mission down on Hotel Street were all connected. He was determined he'd find out how.