They Called Them ‘Merch’

Paula’s undercover assignment had started with a pointless briefing by the State Police Division head honcho. The file told her more than he did, and the only useful thing was the check-in schedule and her contact outside the Vinton police department.

Vinton was a small town in southeast Missouri. The department had five officers other than the chief, who had only been there about eight months. The crime rate was low, with only the occasional break-in, shoplifting, and drunk and disorderly on the weekends. They had had some problems with opioids, but the State Police had recently broken up a multi-county ring, and so far no one had moved into the territory to replace them.

After almost two months on the job, she couldn’t fucking believe she’d gotten nowhere. Paula sighed in exasperation. Captain Wilson had warned her, the State Police had warned her, and Chief George Schultz of Vinton had warned her that this type of undercover work would take time. Chief Schultz had called in the State Police when two undocumented Honduran women had disappeared from police custody after being arrested for shoplifting.

The local officers had been taking them to Immigration and Customs Enforcement for deportation. Both were in their late teens and spoke little English. When he’d discovered that ICE had no record of them, he knew something was wrong. He didn’t know if it was his department or ICE, so he’d gone to the State Police. The FBI would deal with ICE, but he wanted to handle his department himself.

Paula was posing as a patrol officer and had dropped hints about money problems and how little the job paid. The chief had helped her start rumors that she had left her previous job under a cloud and had been forced to take an entry-level position in Vinton.

All she had proof of thus far was that half the force was operating a protection racket on the local businesses. Although illegal and despicable, it wasn’t what Paula had come for. She expected it was likely the same crew, and the extortion scheme would be rolled up with the trafficking operation if it was happening at the Vinton end.

“Hey, Jameson. Jameson! Fuck, woman, are you asleep?”

Damn it, she’d almost missed that. She had to be on top of the game if she didn’t want to blow her cover. “Sorry, Reilly, dreaming of someplace better to be. Want some coffee?” Paula held up the coffee pot in an inviting gesture to the police sergeant.

“No thanks, I’m good.” Reilly pulled up his department-issued trousers. Between his belly and the heavy-duty belt, gravity won, and he would be repeating the gesture in about five seconds. “You want to make some extra cash?” Sure enough, he hiked up his pants again and looked at her expectantly.

A rush of adrenaline flooded her system, and it took an effort to stay calm. “Sure! Protection job?”

“Sort of.” Reilly shrugged. “Hendricks and Kruger have come down with the flu or something, so I’m short-handed. You make five grand if all goes to plan, but I have to be sure you can keep your mouth shut.”

“Five grand?” Paula gave him the widest grin and tried to show the greed Reilly probably expected. This must be it! “What do I have to do to earn that kind of cash?”

Reilly stepped closer. His breath was laced with stale coffee and something greasy. “Got some girls from the street. Hand-off’s tonight. I need someone to watch the merch until the pickup crew shows.”

Merch? Paula fought to keep her expression casual. Her stomach rolled, but she nodded like it was no big deal. “That’s it? Just babysit?”

“I don’t trust the guys handling the transfer.” He struggled with his pants again. “They’ve got a reputation. I need to keep my focus on them, not the girls. Usually, I have someone else, but I’m a man short.”

She gave a quick laugh like it was just another dirty hustle. “I mean, if all I have to do is stand around and keep some scared girls from running, that’s easy money.”

Reilly gave her a look that was half doubt, half calculation. “Then don’t fuck it up.”

She gave him a salute but was already thinking about what she needed to do to set up for the bust. She longed to be back in Kansas City.

The image of a certain blond Adonis flashed before her mind’s eye, but she forced it down.

She left the room as soon as she could without looking suspicious and used her secure cell phone to call Chief Schultz and Captain Reynolds, her State Police contact.

***

Four hours later, she was in the back of a dark-colored van with her shirt off, being fitted with a wire for the evening’s activities. “Get him to repeat as many of the details as possible. We want all the evidence we can gather to make the case,” Reynolds reiterated.

Paula forced herself to stay quiet as the captain told her things about the wire she had learned her first year on the force. Soon, they had everything arranged and Chief Schultz wished her luck. “Don’t try to be a hero if things go south. We’ll be listening and will move in as soon as we have everything in place.”

With her wire secured and backup in position, all that remained was for her to play her part. The moment she stepped out of the van and back into her patrol car, the weight of the operation settled on her shoulders. Every movement, every breath had to seem natural, but the tiny wire taped to her skin felt like a live current buzzing beneath her clothes.

She showed up right on time, like a good little foot soldier. Popping a piece of gum into her mouth, she worked her jaw, feigning an air of boredom. Dumb as fuck but eager to please—that was the angle. Someone too desperate for easy cash to ask too many questions. Someone who didn’t understand the bigger picture, just saw dollar signs.

The whole thing wouldn’t take hours, but the minutes dragged like wet cement, stretching out until her nerves felt pulled too tight. Every second was a countdown to the moment she either got the proof she needed or tipped her hand too soon.

She leaned casually against the patrol car, forcing herself to keep her posture loose, her tone easy—just another cop looking for a payday.

Paula exhaled slowly and looked at Reilly. “Okay, so to be clear, and I don’t make mistakes, please tell me again what you expect me to do and where you’ll be.”

Reilly sighed. “I explained it this afternoon, didn’t I?” He was silent for a moment. “Okay, your job is to watch over the girls until their ride gets here.”

“Where did the girls come from?”

“I picked them up this afternoon walking into town. Told them it was a random immigration check.”

“What happens to them from here?

“I don’t know, and I don’t care. The money’s the important part.”

“You know I’m grateful for the cash, but why don’t you watch them yourself? You wouldn’t have to split the profit.”

“Because I don’t trust the fuckers, and I want my attention on them and not the girls. It’s bad enough I’m a man short.”

“So it’s normally the three of you?”

“Yes, I told you so before, woman! Don’t make me regret giving the job to you.” His patience seemed to be running thin so it was wiser to off.

“Okay, okay!”

Reilly’s phone chimed, and he read the text message and grinned at her. “Let’s go.” They stepped out of the patrol car as a black SUV with tinted windows pulled up at the curb. Two men dressed in black with ski masks over their faces got out and rounded the car to the rear doors. “We have three this time, as you ordered,” Reilly said.

The taller of the two figures glanced in the back of the patrol car and barked “Out!”

Three young women, hands restrained with zip ties struggled out of the vehicle and huddled together on the street.

The leader of the pair pulled an envelope from his back pocket, but before he could hand it over, sirens blared. Red and blue lights flooded the street, bouncing off the SUV’s tinted windows.

Chaos erupted.

Reilly cursed. The masked men turned and reached for weapons they’d never get a chance to use.

Officers shouted commands.

Tires screeched as more patrol cars boxed them in.

Paula stayed in character, throwing up her hands and stepping back as if she had no part in what was happening. It bought her the seconds she needed to move toward the girls. One of them flinched at the noise, her shoulders curling inward, while the others stared at the scene unfolding in wide-eyed terror.

“Hey, hey,” Paula murmured. “You’re safe now.”

It wasn’t entirely true, but for now, it was all she could offer.

The bust was over in minutes—officers dragging Reilly to the ground, securing the masked men, rounding up every piece of evidence they could find.

By the time they got back to the station, the adrenaline had faded, leaving only exhaustion in its place.

“Are they going to be okay?” Paula watched the three young women sitting together in the waiting room. They were mere teenagers, still girls.

Schwartz shrugged. “You and I both know the government policy on illegal immigrants. We might be able to get them U Visas if they can provide enough help to the investigation, but that call is above my pay grade. If they don’t get the visas, they’ll be deported.” He shook his head, reminding Paula of Droopy Dog with his sad expression.

“So we save them from a life of prostitution here and send them back to Honduras where they could easily meet the same fate.” Paula kicked against an office chair in helpless rage and watched it roll away over the scratched and cracked linoleum floor.

Schultz placed his hand on her shoulder. “We can’t save them all. We need to focus on the good things. We’ve neutralized at least part of a ring of human trafficking and modern slavery, and you’ve unmasked a group of dirty cops. With the State Police in on the bust and our short staff, I had to let them take custody. Last I heard, Reilly was spilling his guts but claimed not to know anything about who he was dealing with. One of the masked guys is ICE; the other seems to be muscle. The ICE agent is the one they have to break.”

Paula wasn’t happy about the situation but the police chief was right.

“I don’t suppose you’d like to stay and help me rebuild my department?” Schultz said. “You can have Reilly’s job.”

“No, thank you, Sir. It was a pleasure working with you, but I miss Kansas City, and I can’t wait to get home.” She’d missed Halloween. It was time to return home and celebrate Thanksgiving with her friends. “You have my number if something comes up?” Paula looked the older man in the eye. She’d come to respect him. Vinton might have a low crime rate, but with the immigration issues, this was a tough assignment, and now he had to replace his team. “I’ll be back for the depositions and anything else you need. Let’s hope the ICE agent rolls, and a trial can be avoided.”

Schultz nodded and shocked the hell out of her as he stood to attention and saluted her. “Take care, Paula. You’re a good woman and an outstanding detective.”