Page 108 of Girl Lost
Tinch continued, outlining the official findings, but Corbin’s mind drifted. To Summer, the daughter he’d held once in the hospital, only to never see again until their shocking reunion. To Trinity, the girl who’d stumbled into their lives and found a place in their hearts. To Luna, the woman who’d brought it all crashing down around him and somehow built something beautiful from the rubble.
If she hadn’t come home ...
A lump lodged in his throat. Where would he be if she hadn’t? Still chasing ghosts and trying to prove he wasn’t his father? Still trying to control everything and afraid to let anyone close?
“King? You with us?”
Blade’s voice snapped him back to the present. He sat in the chair beside Corbin with his brow furrowed. Corbin cleared his throat. “Yeah, sorry. Just ... processing.”
Tinch leaned back, his eyes narrowing as he measured Corbin from across the desk, but he pressed on. “As I was saying, the scope of this thing is bigger than we initially thought. The Nexus Initiative has its tentacles in everything—politics, finance, research. It’s not going to be easy to take down.”
“But we will,” Blade added, his jaw set. “The FBI’s given me clearance to join the task force. We’re going to follow every lead, no matter how high up the organ harvesting and illegal research goes.”
“I expect you to keep me informed every step of the way, St.James. I know you’ve got this under control, but don’t forget—this isn’t just another case for me. My daughter was one of their victims.” His voice cracked on the last word, and for a moment, the stoic commissioner looked painfully human.
Blade nodded. “You have my word.”
Corbin understood the tension Tinch carried. He wanted to be out there too, chasing these monsters down and dragging them into the light. But as a material witness, he didn’t have that option. Not anymore. The US Marshals had made that clear when they’d turned his home into a safe house. They’d been assigned to protect him, Luna, Trinity, and Summer—a safeguard against the powerful people who’d orchestrated this nightmare and were desperate to cover their tracks.
It grated, being forced to sit on the sidelines. But the flicker in Tinch’s eye as he said the wordvictimshit home. Corbin had other priorities now. Two girls who needed him and a woman he couldn’t lose again.
“What about Everett and Patricia Reeves?” Luna asked.
Tinch sighed, the lines around his eyes deepening. “The Reeves are singing like canaries, trying to save their own skin. But their information is limited. They were more concerned with the profit than the details.”
“And what about Dr. Forest?” Corbin wanted to know how he’d pay for his crimes.
“We’ve hit a wall with him. He’s not talking. Claims he was just following orders, trying to save lives,” Blade said.
“And his daughter?” Corbin asked, thinking of Elizabeth Forest and her failing heart.
“Also tight-lipped,” Blade said. “But the feds are impressed with her work. Might let her continue from prison. They’re thinking she can still help with research for other legitimate medical projects.”
Corbin’s mind flashed to Trinity, to the unnatural heart beating in her chest. A miracle of science, or a ticking time bomb? Theystill didn’t know. “She doesn’t deserve it after what they did.” To Trinity and to Stryker, who was still in a coma.
“Which brings me to the boat graveyard,” Tinch said. “We’ve identified more victims, going back years. This thing ... it’s been going on longer than we thought.”
Corbin’s stomach churned. How many lives had been lost? How many families torn apart? And they’d never even known.
“But we’re finding others,” Blade added. “Thanks to the data you pulled from the vault, we’re locating patients the police thought to be runaways. Some of them ... some of them are in the boat graveyard.”
“How many?”
“Dozens,” Blade said.
He felt Luna’s hand slip into his, a gentle squeeze of support. His heart swelled.
“We did manage to trace some of Chiron’s financial transactions.” Blade pulled out a series of documents, spreading them across the desk. Bank statements, property records, offshore account details. Corbin’s eyes widened as he took in the figures.
“This is ... a lot of money,” he said.
Blade nodded. “More than we initially thought. And it’s not just the Reeves. We’re seeing similar patterns with other high-level members of the Nexus Initiative. They’ve got accounts all over the world, shell companies, the works.”
Luna leaned in, her eyes scanning the documents. “This is organized crime on a massive scale.”
“Exactly,” Blade agreed. “We’re talking human trafficking, money laundering, probably weapons deals too. The Nexus Initiative? We’ve just hit the tip of the iceberg.”
They’d known it was big, but this ... this was beyond anything they’d imagined.
