"That was Nell. Kensi and Deeks found Cassie Coverman. The night guard lead them to a storage locker facility. The girl was inside one of the lockers. Kensi is in the ambulance, on the way to the hospital, with her now." Callen said.
"The girl's alive?"
"She's alive. She's been heavily sedated, but she is alive."
"Alright" Sam replied as the two partners fist bumped.
"Did they arrest the night guard?"
"No, Kensi and Deeks stayed back until the guy left the facility and then they broke into the locker. The locker's been set up as some sort of an office with computers and filing cabinets. Deeks is still there helping Eric to hack into the system and download the files. They'll be done, in a few minutes, and then Deeks will be heading to the hospital to meet up with Kensi. Our two co-partners did manage to put a GPS tracking device onto the van. Nell said the night guard is heading to our location."
"What does Hetty want us to do?"
"We are to watch and take pictures. We follow only if the hot dog vendor leaves with the night guard. Hetty has asked the LAPD Lead Detective, in the case, to quietly arrange for a couple of undercover detectives to be at the storage facility to watch the locker, in case someone we are not aware of shows up. She is having Nell and Eric fool around with the hydro signals on the street. As soon as the work crews show up to do the repairs, LAPD will send a couple of cruisers over to block the one road into the storage facility. That way if the night guard tries to check on the locker again alone he won't have access. Hetty and the Lead Detective want to try and catch both of our suspects at the locker together."
"Try to catch them both red handed." Sam stated.
"Makes the case a lot easier when it goes to court."
"Heads up G. There's our guy now." Sam said as he grabbed the camera.
LAPD Lead Detective Joseph Martin ended his phone call with Hetty Lange and then stood staring at his phone for a moment.
"How did the NCIS manage to find this child? My people are still in the first stages of their investigation. They hadn't even managed to find where the perps had parked their car without the help of NCIS. Now I have to figure a way to get Mrs. Coverman out of her house and to the hospital without any of my fellow LAPD officers knowing the real reason I am leaving with her or where I am actually taking her. Oh and I have to get past all the news reporters down the street. Not to mention that I have to keep the entire investigation continuing as if the child is still missing."
Detective Martin walked into the Coverman's living room and headed towards Mrs. Coverman who was still sitting on the black leather sofa.
"That was Agent Blye on the phone." Detective Martin said to Mrs. Coverman.
"It may be easier to get Mrs. Coverman to co-operate if she thinks it was Agent Blye I was speaking with. She was here earlier and Mrs. Coverman knows she is working on locating her daughter. It is a bit of a connection that may just be enough to get her to come with me."
"She would like me to bring you to meet with her. Her partner and she may have uncovered some evidence they would like you to view."
"It is a lousy excuse, but hopefully it will be sufficient."
"What kind of evidence?" Jessica Coverman said in a barely audible quivering voice.
"She wouldn't say anything other than it has to do with your husband's military background. I assume that is the reason I have to take you to her rather than she comes here."
"Boy, I am really bullshitting it here. Can't believe any of my guys are buying this."
"Please Mrs. Coverman. It will only take a short amount of time."
"Will it help find Cassie?"
"It may."
"What if the kidnappers phone when we are out?"
"Our guys can have one of the police women handle the call. We have the technology to make her voice sound exactly like yours."
"Please Mrs. Coverman. We should leave."
"Okay, I'll go."
Ten minutes later Mrs. Coverman was sitting in the passenger front seat of a LAPD black SUV wearing a borrowed LAPD jacket. Her blond hair was done in a bun and hidden under a LAPD cap. Dark sunglasses hid her blood shot, tear filled eyes. Detective Martin drove the SUV through the police blockade, past the news media and curious bystanders.
Three blocks later Detective Martin turned left. Once the SUV was clear of the intersection, two LAPD cruisers drove into the intersection blocking traffic. The odd news caster that had attempted to follow them was now blocked. Thirty minutes later and a vehicle switch, at an underground garage, the pair pulled into the parking lot of the hospital.
By now Mrs. Coverman had shed both the LAPD hat and jacket and Detective Martin had removed his LAPD badge from around his neck. In a sense they looked like any couple arriving at the hospital.
"Is this where Agent Blye wanted to meet?"
"Yes, please bare with me Mrs. Coverman. I assure you that this is not a waste of time. The moving around was simply to try and not be followed by the media. We are meeting Agent Blye and her partner here."
The two walked to the emergency entrance of the hospital.
Kensi had registered Cassie as Candice Byers at the hospital. The story she gave to the attending physician was that Candace had been drugged by a foster parent and left sleeping on a basement floor. She had been discovered by a case worker performing a random inspection. NCIS had been contacted, as the child's biological mother was in the US Navy.
Deeks met the pair at the front desk of the emergency department.
"Don't say anything right now, just follow me please. I'll answer any questions you have in a minute." Deeks said in a low voice.
Deeks led the pair to the room Cassie was being treated in.
"You have something you want me to look at." Jessica said in a confused voice.
"We do, if you could just look over here." Kensi said as she pulled the curtain back to reveal Cassie sleeping on a hospital bed.