Page 4 of Wired Justice

Sophie tightened her lips in annoyance, returning her attention to Jake. “I have happened upon a situation.”

“When do you not? Jeez, woman, you’re a magnet for trouble in paradise! But as it happens, I called to get your help on a case over there.”

“A case?” Sophie walked a little further from Freitan. “What kind of case?”

“Missing person. Julie Weathersby, age twenty-four, tourist-hiker, has vanished from her camping trip around the island.”

Sophie glanced back toward the gruesome body dump. She couldn’t be totally sure, but none of the bodies seemed like a single young female. “Want me to come back on the payroll to help you here on the Big Island? My vacation trip isn’t exactly going as planned.”

“Just what I was hoping you’d say. I’m coming over. Can you meet me at the airport?”

Freitan turned to Sophie with a look in her eye.

“Not sure, Jake. I don’t have a car. Call you back later.” She pushed the END button on Jake’s loud protest, and slid the phone into the pocket of her pants.

“I ran a background check on you. Your story checks out,” Freitan said.

“It would be incongruous to lie about being an FBI agent. Very easy to verify the truth.”

“I’ve heard crazier things.” Freitan smiled. “Know anyone in the department over here?”

“In fact, I do. Dr. Wilson, your psychologist, is an acquaintance. I am close with Sergeant Leilani Texeira. She is stationed on Maui but started her career here, I understand, under Captain Ohale.”

“Yep, Ohale’s my commanding officer and I remember Lei. We graduated from the academy around the same time. She was a good cop.” Freitan’s attitude visibly thawed. “Weird that you found this body dump while just out hiking.”

“Indeed it is. But not when you consider Ginger.” The dog, seated beside Sophie, pricked her floppy triangle ears at the sound of her name. “Ginger’s got quite a nose for dead things. So, was this family reportedmissing?”

“That’s what’s interesting. Empty wallet with ID was on the adult male body, and we called it in. Not reported missing, but the family does have an address in Ocean View.” Freitan gestured inland. “Big area of unregulated development and small landowners. Lot of weird shit goes down there. But I shouldn’t be talking with you about it, really.”

“I understand.” Sophie looked away across the lava. Hot air shimmered over the black stone. Hiking across it in the afternoon did not appeal, and the heat would likely blister Ginger’s paws. “Will you want to interview me at your station or anything?”

Freitan’s lips tightened. “Not sure yet. Got to check in with Captain Ohale.”

Sophie nodded and sat back down under the now-familiar ohia tree as Freitan left. She took out her canteen and poured some liquid into a collapsible pet bowl for Ginger, then drank the rest. She peeled an energy bar and gave Ginger some kibble, then rested her back against the tree’s rugged bole. The area was like an island in the sea of the lava; that was the gist of what kipuka meant, and it was aptly named.

Sweet-singing native birds flitted among the red blossoms above her, and Sophie reached out to touch one of the scarlet, tufted flowers.

“The legend of why the lehua blossom lives on the ohia tree is a sad one.” Her friend Lei’s voice filled her mind, telling her the story as they sat by a fire in Lei’s backyard on Maui. “The legend says that one day the fire goddess Pele, fiercely jealous, met a handsome warrior named Ohia, and asked him to marry her. Ohia, however, had already pledged his love to Lehua. Pele was furious when Ohia turned down her marriage proposal,so she turned him into a twisted tree. Lehua was heartbroken, and the other gods took pity on her. They decided it was an injustice to have Ohia and Lehua separated, and they turned Lehua into a flower on the ohia tree, so that the two lovers would be forever joined together. That’s why, if you pluck a lehua flower, you are separating the lovers, and that day it will rain.”

A little rain might not be a bad thing—the lava was too hot to walk on. Sophie plucked the lehua blossom and tucked it behind her ear.

“That’s bad luck, you know.” Detective Wong came out of the forest. The mixed Hawaiian-Chinese man was pale and sweating under his sterile gear. He tore off his mask. “You never pick the lehua.”

Sophie removed the blossom from behind her ear. “I heard a legend that picking one meant rain. That didn’t seem so bad.”

Wong fisted his hands on his hips and tipped his head back, sucking in deep breaths of fresh air. “Rain would wreck our crime scene. I thought I’d seen some things, but that was bad back there. Those kids. What the hell motive could there be for that kind of slaughter in a place like this?”

“I know.” Sophie stroked Ginger’s head, gazing into the dog’s soulful eyes, wishing she could erase the memory of the little girl’s bloated, mutilated face. “Looked like a mob execution to me. I’ve heard there are a lot of witness protection folks hiding on the Big Island. Have you checked in with the U.S. Marshals?”

Wong’s eyes narrowed. “Who did you say you were?”

“Witness protection leak—not a bad theory. Fred, this is Sophie Ang. She’s ex-FBI.” Freitan addressed Sophie as she stripped off her gloves and joined them. “I called some friends and they gave the thumbs-up about you. Said you’re a whiz with tech.”

“I am a whiz with tech.” False modesty wasn’t useful. “I am happy to help in any way I can.” Sophie didn’t want to compound her bad luck by throwing away the lehua flower, so she slid it out of sight into her pocket, regretting crushing the delicate blossom.

“It’s weird that the victims aren’t reported missing anywhere—but they wouldn’t be if no one knew who they were, and some federal agent thought they were safely stashed.” Freitan gestured to Wong. “Let’s run this by the chief and then reach out to Witness Security.”

“Can I get a ride to town? My partner is flying into Hilo for a missing persons job we’re going to work together.” Sophie needed to detach from the case. They weren’t going to let her be a part of it—but having found the bodies, seen that little girl . . . she always would be.

“Sure, we can give you a lift. We were about to head back to the office anyway, now that the techs and the ME are processing. It’s going to be awhile before we have any more information than we gleaned on our pass through the crime scene.”

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