Page 36 of Justus
“Yourealize these are very internet savvy people, right? They won’t be fooled byfalse documents.”
“Wehave hackers, too,” Agent Michaels speaks up. “They can search all they want.Everything will back up this information. Until this operation is over, you areJackson Crowe, a spoiled trust fund kid looking to buy a woman.” He looks me inthe eye. “Are you sure you’re ready?”
Grabbingthe documents, I nod. “I’ve got this.”
“Youneed to check in with us once a day using the burner phone. Always keep it onyou. These guys don’t fuck around. They’ll be watching you. You need to stayaway from anywhere you normally would have gone. Different grocery store, gym,everything. There can be no contact with friends or family. If you’re made, theassholes won’t hesitate to use them against you.”
“Iunderstand.” Turning to Dare, I tell him, “Tell Sadie…” The realization strikesme. I can’t tell her anything without putting her at risk too. “Tell her I hadto work, and I’ll be in touch as soon as I can.”
Ihate the thought of being away from her, and I can’t even tell her why. I won’teven have a chance to say goodbye.
“I’lltake care of it,” Dare assures me.
AgentMurphy regards me. “Your car is out front. The address to your apartment is inthe paperwork I just gave you. Go, get settled in, and make it look like you’velived there forever. Keep in touch and let us know what’s going on. I’m surethey’ll want to test you, give you hoops to jump through.”
AgentMichaels produces a flash drive. “Which brings us to this. These are fabricatedphotos that appear to be young girls in sexual situations.”
“I’mnot touching any kiddie porn! Are you out of your fucking mind?”
“Theyaren’t real. We’ve taken photos of toddlers, changed the hair color and eyecolor, and age progressed them to teenagers. These kids don’t exist. You aren’thurting anyone. And you know as well as I do they’re going to want you to incriminateyourself. Possessing and sending child porn is a common way to test you.”
Fuck,this whole thing makes me sick to my stomach.
“Anythingelse?”
“Don’tfuck up and get yourself killed.”
* * * *
It’sbeen a week and I’m already sick of being Jackson Crowe. I’ve continued toparticipate in the forums, talking to men who make me want to puke, then gougeout their eyeballs.
Asthe agent predicted, I receive a request to send kiddie porn to an emailaddress, and after I do, they seem a lot more willing to talk to me. The sickfucks who really are there to abuse kids often share photos and videos on theforum, so I also post the faked photos there.
Iassume I’ve become a trusted member of their little community when I get aprivate message from a Mr. Bishop, the man auctioning off the women, includingmy sister. He states he’d be willing to sell to me, but insists I try out a fewothers first, to make sure Hannah is the one I want.
Iargue that I’m not into little girls, that I’m looking for a young woman in herearly twenties, hence my interest in Hannah, but all that gets me is a promiseto send a woman in that age group.
Fuck.I know what this is about. The agents told me it was a possibility. Incriminatingmyself with photos isn’t enough. They want to see I’m willing to pay for sex,to use the women. There is no way in hell I’m fucking one of them, whetherthey’re over eighteen or not, but I have to do something.
I’llfind a way to get the woman alone, fake sex sounds, whatever. With a knot in mystomach, I arrange a “date” for this evening.
“Jackson,what is it?” Agent Michaels answers when I call him from the burner phone.
Ittakes me a second to realize I’m Jackson. I can’t get used to the name.“Seriously? That’s how you answer a phone? NoHello, how are you?”
“I’mnot your damn girlfriend. Now, what’s going on?”
Mygirlfriend. Sadie flashes through my mind for the thousandth time since Ibecame Jackson. I might not have a girlfriend when this is over. I can’t thinkabout that right now.
“They’vearranged a date for me tonight. Promised she’d be of age. Eight o’clock at theJimson Hotel.”
“We’llbe monitoring.”
“Yeah,just like that? I’m supposed to fuck her?”
Sighing,Agent Michaels replies, “Do what you have to do. She’ll be willing. Hopefully,this will be the last obstacle.”
“She’llbe willing because she doesn’t have a fucking choice,” I snap. “I’ll find a wayaround it.”
