Page 34 of Girl, Sought

‘Whoa,’ Luca breathed. ‘Did we actually…?’

Her finger hovered over the mouse, suddenly afraid of what they might find. One result out of millions.

'Yes, we did. We got a live one.'

‘Go. Click the result.’

One click would either break this case wide open or send them back to square one. Ella held her breath and clicked.

The screen flickered, then resolved into a basic webpage; plain text, minimal pictures, no design elements. It was the website’s raw code assembled within the software – one of the loopholes it exploited to get into pages that were usually off-limits.

Text, pictures, HTML code.

And about ten pictures of a rare, preserved cockroach.

The site's header read ‘RARE SPECIMENS EXCHANGE - VERIFIED MEMBERS ONLY.’

It was an auction listing. Time-stamped three weeks ago. The images marched down the screen like a Rockette line of arthropod horror - dorsal view, ventral view, close-up of the mandibles. Each one crystal clear, each onefamiliar.

EXTREMELY RARE SPECIMEN – Salto-blat-tella monti-stabularis (Jumping Cockroach).

Posted by: A_Finch_Entomology.

Location: Chesapeake, VA.

Price: $70,000 (Serious inquiries only).

Ella clenched her fist so hard it hurt. ‘We got you, you son of a bitch.’

‘Stupid hyphens,’ Luca said, tapping theSalto-blat-tella monti-stabularison the screen. ‘That’s why we couldn’t find it before.’

Ella was too busy reading to reply.

SPECIMEN DETAILS: Adult male, collected 2019. Perfect condition, no damage. Professionally mounted in museum-grade display case. Full documentation of origin and collection circumstances. One of only three known preserved specimens in North America.

This exceptional specimen represents one of the rarest insects in any private collection. The Salto-blat-tella monti-stabularis, discovered in 2011 in South Africa's Table Mountain, is notable for its unique jumping capabilities and is considered the ‘missing link’ in cockroach evolution.

Current mounting includes custom-built display case with UV protection and specialized preservation techniques. Specimen shows excellent detail of key taxonomic features including: Specialized jumping legs; Distinctive wing structure; Original coloration preserved; Complete antennae.

Specimen has been professionally appraised by the Curated Value Group (Documentation available upon request).

‘Shit, Ell. We got it. We need to get this to tech and dig into this guy’s private messages. We find out who Finch was talking to, we find our killer.’

Ella barely heard him over the rush of blood in her ears. Her hand shook as she scrolled down, taking in every damning detail.

Alfred Finch. Selling his precious specimen to the highest bidder. And someone had taken the bait.

But Ella's eyes had snagged on something else. A single line of text, buried in Finch's item description.

‘Wait.’ She grabbed Luca's wrist then tapped one of the paragraphs on the screen. ‘Look at this.’

Specimen has been professionally appraised by the Curated Value Group (Documentation available upon request).

Luca frowned. ‘Curated Value Group? What's that?’

His pulse was steady under her fingers. Sometimes she envied his ability to stay calm in moments like this, when her own mind was burning through neural pathways.

‘I've seen that name before.’ She attacked the mess of files and printouts scattered across her desk. Case notes, witness statements, financial records.

---