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“No. One was Indonesian, but I highly suspect they were all victims of human trafficking. It’s imperative we find the person or persons who did this. Unfortunately, there are thousands of trafficking victims currently working in the underground sex trade here in Texas. Trying to escape often means death. Even if these girls don’t die, it’s nearly impossible for them to get their lives back on track after going through something like this. The men who are responsible need to be caught and locked away forever.”
The emotion in his voice convinced Ally that this Ranger was the one who could do it. “I couldn’t agree more. Since I don’t have a busy schedule right now, why don’t you tell me when and where you want to meet?”
“If morning is all right with you, how about we say nine o’clock at the Magnolia Café?”
“Morning is fine,” she said. “I realize you’re anxious to get going on this case. The Magnolia Café is in my neck of the woods. I suspect you love their chocolate-chip pancakes.”
One corner of his mouth lifted.
“So do I,” she said, smiling.
He gathered the photocopies and put them back in his folder. “If you’re ready, I’ll walk you out.”
Be still, my heart.
Ally locked her office door behind her and left the building for the faculty parking lot. Several students were milling about outside and one of the young women called out to her. Ally waved, but the other woman was staring so hard at the Ranger, Ally felt a ridiculous sense of pride over the fact that he was escorting her to her car.
She pressed the remote to unlock the door of her silver Audi. “Thank you. I’ll see you in the morning.”
“Let me get your cell phone number. That way, in case an emergency arises, I’ll be able to reach you.”
Ally told him her number. After he’d typed it into his phone, his eyes fused with hers, melting her insides. “I’m looking forward to tomorrow. Please remember that for the time being I must ask you to keep this to yourself. If you were to say anything to anyone, even your parents, they could give something away without meaning to that could jeopardize the case. It’s for their protection, too.”
“I understand.”
“I’m sure you do. What should I call you, by the way?”
“Just Ally.”
“Until tomorrow, then, Just Ally.”
She laughed and watched him head toward the public parking area, then got into her car and pressed her head against the steering wheel. She hated that she’d scanned his left hand for a wedding ring, and hated it even more that the fact that he wasn’t wearing one made her so happy.
Had she gone out of her mind? It didn’t mean he didn’t have a girlfriend. Ally felt shaky after colliding with him in the doorway of her office. Her world had suddenly changed. Fear and excitement waged a war inside her as she pulled out of the parking lot and drove off toward the ranch.
As soon as Luckey got home, he went straight to the kitchen for a cold cola and ended up in his den. The first thing he did was phone Stan at headquarters. Stan was one of the best forensics experts in the country.
“Luckey? What do you need?”
“What can you tell me about a cream called DMSO?”
“That old underground home remedy?”
“Is that what it is? Traces of it were found on the sleeves of the dress of a suspected murder victim, a sixteen-or seventeen-year-old Chinese girl.”
“Hmm. Dimethyl sulfoxide is a by-product of the wood industry, used as a solvent. It acts like a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory. In the 1970s, rumors spread that athletes were using it to cut down on joint pain. The controversy stemmed from the fact that some people believed it to be poisonous, but in reality, DMSO isn’t dangerous unless it’s injected in gross amounts. Most athletes have since moved on to other treatments.”
Luckey made notes. “So the person who dumped the deceased’s body in the street had to have been using it at the time. I’m faxing you a report from Dr. Wolff. I need your team to do a global search on DMSO and find a cream that matches the properties on the evidence he identified. Then I can track down where it’s sold.”
“Will do.”
“Thanks.”
Once he’d sent the fax, Luckey sat back in his comfortable leather chair and pulled out the six pages of secret writing. To think Ally Duncan had taken one look at these and made sense of them...
What were the odds of him quickly finding anyone else who had her incredible knowledge? All the years he’d been a Ranger, she’d been growing up in an entirely different culture. What an amazing woman.
A gorgeous woman with raven-black hair tumbling to her shoulders and eyes the color of Texas bluebonnets.
When she’d opened her office door, he’d been knocked sideways in more ways than one. The contact had awakened something inside him. She was well-endowed and probably about five foot seven. The scent of her skin and hair, the breathless way she’d responded to him had made Luckey conscious of her as a living, breathing woman.
It had been eight years since his divorce. Since then he’d had relationships with other women, but none had lasted long. He’d always made it clear to the woman he was dating at the time that he wasn’t interested in a permanent commitment. Too much damage had been done for him to feel the emotions necessary for a relationship to flourish. But all that changed today. Today he’d been caught totally off guard by a rush of desire so foreign to him he was stunned.
He knew his family worried that he might stay single for good. Luckey hadn’t given it a lot of thought until now. Damn if meeting Ms. Duncan hadn’t pierced through the armor he’d built up around him to the part that had either been asleep or in a deep freeze. What if he still felt this way tomorrow after meeting with her?
Luckey didn’t want to experience these feelings again. He couldn’t take it. He was just going to meet her for breakfast and record the translation, then he’d get on with the investigation, and that would be the end of it.
Needing to get his mind off Ally ASAP, he phoned Randy. His brother was still on patrol, however, so Luckey left a message that he’d get in touch tomorrow. He thought about calling one of his best friends, but all three were Rangers and he knew they’d be busy working other cases. Restless, he fixed himself a TV dinner, then walked out to the barn and saddled his horse, Persey, who needed the exercise. A good ride would help Luckey put his feelings in perspective.
When it was dark, he came back in and turned on the TV. But he was unable to concentrate on anything. In the end, he returned to the den and pored over the information he’d gathered at the coroner’s office. Luckey worked until he couldn’t keep his eyes open anymore and then he went to bed.
* * *
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