G: I’m okay. Javier is very smart and teaching me everything he knows about cars and fixing things. He said I can stay as long as I want. He’s teaching me Spanish. It’s very quiet here and he has a dog. I don’t have a family anymore and I can’t trust the police. Be careful. Never, ever, ever tell them you know where I am because they might hurt your family like they hurt mine. I miss you and Joe. But you can’t tell Joe anything because he can’t lie. R.

“Can I keep this?” Nate asked. “I’ll make a copy and give it back to you.”

“Is Javi going to get in trouble?”

“No,” Nate said. “He didn’t know Ricky was in his truck, right?”

Ginny shook her head. “Not until they got all the way to his house.”

“He might not be in trouble with you folks,” JJ said, “but he and I are going to have a word.”

“Dad—” Then Ginny looked down when JJ gave her a stern look.

“We just want Ricky home safe,” Lucy said. “He has an aunt and grandparents who are worried about him.”

“Can you even do that? Keep him safe?” Jill asked.

Lucy opened her folder and showed Ginny photos of Detectives Chavez and Douglas. “Which detective interviewed you?”

“They were both here,” Ginny said.

“Who was Ricky scared of?”

She frowned. “He didn’t say. He just said that one of them was at his house and shredded all his mother’s papers and found what he was looking for.”

“Found what?” Nate asked.

“I don’t know. Something. A folder or papers or something like that. Ricky didn’t know what it was, but it was in his mom’s office.”

“So both of these men could have been there.”

“I guess. I don’t know.”

“Okay,” Nate said. “This is a big help.” He turned to JJ. “Do you have Javi’s address?”

“Yes. I’ll take you.”

“Sir, I think you should let us handle this.”

“First, you have no jurisdiction down in Mexico. You might be able to handle yourself, but even I know you can’t be a federal agent down there. Second, Javi doesn’t have an address. I’ve been there, you would never find his place. And if Javi thought you were a threat to Ricky, he would never let you near him. I don’t want you or Javi dead.”

Lucy motioned for Nate to follow her to the living room. “Nate, what if you and Mr. Young go get Ricky. Ricky trusts him, he doesn’t know you. As far as Ricky knows, you’re a cop like the cop who killed his family. But Ricky trusts Javi and Mr. Young.”

“I’m not asking for permission,” Nate said.

“I’ll run interference with Rachel, but we have to tell her.”

He nodded. “I’ll deal with the fallout.”