CHAPTER 496: DON VINO (2)

Gasps rippled through all gathered officers and media. Heck, even Leon himself, who stood at the back, was stunned. He was still in his field plain clothes, making him look like a ’poor’ writer. He blinked once, then stepped forward slowly, as he was called on. All eyes turned toward him.

"We leave this case in your hands, Detective Leon. The island of T-Vino, thank you for your service!"

Some of the same colleagues who had mocked him now clapped. They knew how to move with the tides, but it only remained to be seen if the tides would move with them too. Others stayed silent, unable to believe the turn of events. This was a turn that none of them had ever anticipated. The fallen had risen, and they bit their lips for what was to come for them.

Evans was the one who clapped the hardest, beaming from all sides. Evans was team-Leon, and the fact that he had not received a promotion was beside the point for him. He was totally happy, and nothing could snap him out of that mood. Even the fact that the two of them had not slept for close to 72 hours did not bother him at all!

Leon took the new badge, a token of his new role, which the Commissioner had held out to him. The small thing suddenly felt heavy with new responsibility. He turned to face the team and media.

"I didn’t do this to be chief," he started, voice calm but firm.

A few sarcastic smirks could be seen from his colleagues, but none cared.

"But I will lead us in a direction where truth isn’t buried, where competence is not repressed, where cases - no matter how inconvenient - are solved, and where power protects the innocent... not the powerful."

Leon paused, feeling proud of his words. Then, a quiet applause started, swelling louder by the second. His face was lined with exhaustion, and a heavy burden of a sort.

"We are still in the process of sifting through the data that we have uncovered today. However, what we’ve uncovered is not just a farm as it initially appeared. It’s a factory of destruction.... a full-blown drug ring, masked under the cover of the remote island."

Leon let his words sink in as the camera shutters sounded all around,

"In there, under the cover of the hills and the forest and even unknown to the locals, and from what can only be described as a modern-day labour and trafficking camp, we rescued approximately two hundred workers, one hundred and twenty of them female, showing signs of untold abuse and malnutrition.

The rest male, in similar condition with injuries confirming the forced labour and confinement," he reported grimly, his voice tight with the weight of what they had seen.

"Some had to be carried out as their bodies were too broken to move on their own. The women, in particular, bore more than physical scars. Some were pregnant, others bleeding, and far too many stared into nothing, hollowed out from trauma that had clearly gone on for months if not years."

These words, though kinda expected, were still startling for the listening ears.

Obviously, the gender disparity had not gone unnoticed when the numbers were read out. As he let this sink in, Leon’s mind zoned back to the hideous encampment on the island known as the Abode. Even without the start of the investigation, the theory had been the same for all.

Women were also subjected to something that hinted at darker things. Whispers of trafficking, forced breeding, and "disciplinary service" in the name of control rippled among the team that had done the raid. One of the survivors, a girl of barely seventeen had a sob story that was too sinister to be repeated.

The stench of chemicals and other things had lingered even after the fires were lit. Acres upon acres of illegal crop fields had been razed. Leon estimated that it was close to 400 acres that was scorched to ash by his tactical order. The inferno still smouldered when they found hidden ... mass graves.

"Leon! Leon!"

Evans hush-whispered, drawing Leon out. Leon sighed with gratitude and continued

"The evidence gathered confirms that this is an even bigger drug ring than what James Windover was arrested for...."

"WHAT!"

"OMG!"

Explanations went around, but those who had seen the news earlier did not need to hear this to know. It was just too overwhelming!

"The cash that hasn’t been officially counted yet," he continued, "but tenatative estimates put it well north of several billions. Stacks upon stacks of both local and foreign currencies were found vacuum-sealed and hidden in underground vaults and in plain sight."

Murmurs rose among the gathered press, but Leon continued,

"In addition to the crops, the following items were seized:"

Then he started listing these off a file which Evans handed him. The two worked in perfect sync, which was beautiful to watch, except that it was not the right time.

"Over 300 semi-automatic rifles, many modified beyond legal specifications, were seized, including dozens of handguns, many untraceable as their serials were shaved off.

Sniper rifles were also in the mix with scopes and silencers—even a couple of grenades and more homemade explosives.

We found some tactical gear labelled with foreign mercenary insignias. Medical kits, stimulants and sedatives were included.

We not only took the physical, but the digital as well: digital logs, flash drives, memory cards, even a few surprises in floppy disks and tapes. Computers, ledgers detailing product movement, including exports and client details, personnel rotations, and most importantly, lists of buyers.

This had all the markings of a highly organised, drug operation.... Seemingly under the Lord known as Don Vino, as we have gathered."

"Have you ever heard of this name?"

"Don Vino?"

"I wonder who it is!"

"Could it be....."

All of their minds seemed to centre on one person, they thought was capable enough and had the resources.... But no one dared to mention the name. Oblivious to this, Leon continued,

"For the survivors and rescued, we will ensure that they are treated, evaluated, as well as questioned...."

A roar of dissatisfaction went around the media. Evans shook his head, wondering if they had lost their heads. How were they to do their jobs if they could not even question or interrogate the people from the island, whether rescued or not?

"We understand your sentiments, but they are the only witnesses we have in this case, and we will be compassionate, bearing in mind what they have gone through...."

Leon waited a bit for any questions. After a few moments, he continued,

"We are happy to say that we have significant leads on the island’s cold case, which had seen no new evidence for about a decade. We can comfortably say that the case has been solved! We will send out an official press release with the specifics. Though we are yet to confirm all, we have confirmed that at least three of the missing people were ones in captivity as well."

A loud round of applause sounded all around. It was so deafening, and it took minutes to calm everyone down.

Leon had yet to start his work in his new role, but the media were very impressed with him already.

"This is by far the biggest scandal, though it happened off-island, it does not mean that it is welcome. This kind of behaviour is heavily frowned upon. We, the police, will do everything in our power to get to the bottom of this!"

Meanwhile, in the Mush estate, things were not going as Abi had anticipated. She had placed calls to every single person in power that she knew to no avail. Despair increased with passing second. She turned to look at Abram, who wasn’t in any better shape.

Abram was staring blankly at his phone as the screen died, but not before Abi caught the caller ID: Alex Thornston!

Abi wanted to ask Abram why he had called any Thornston, but given their circumstance, Abi also knew that beggars could not be choosers.

The flicker of the television screen reflected in her eyes, and her hands trembled slightly as she clutched the phone.

Her mouth dropped in as she watched the police chief that she had been calling all morning being transported out in cuffs!

In her other hand, was the last picture she had taken just days before Brianna had disappeared.

Without the Police Chief, what was she to do? The media had been tight-lipped about where the rescued had been taken, so Abram and Abi had no way even if they wanted to see Brianna.

They had also called the hotline that had been setup for relatives, but even that did not provide them the answers that she so much wanted.

The news anchor’s voice droned on in the background, detailing the drug ring bust, but the words barely registered.

Then she saw it.

A clear video of her baby! Brianna looked disoriented, dirty, and emaciated. Her eyes looked haunted, yet unmistakably her own.

Abi had already seen it, but it still hurt badly.

Just when the Mush couple thought they had hit rock bottom, another shocking announcement was made at the press conference!

Abi... the ever-strong woman, collapsed. When she came to, she made another decision that changed the lives of the Mush’s as they know it .... Forever!

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