A License To Kill

“What do we got here?” Kayla asked, walking through the front door of the dilapidated home.

“Looks like your run-of-the-mill birthing house.” Lily said, examining the contents sprawled across the dining room table. “So far we’ve found faked licenses and falsified registration forms.” Lily picked up a stack of folders containing client details.

“I’ll take an inventory of their clientele and see who we can track down. Find out how many unregistered parents we’re working with.”

Kayla walked over to a far door at the other end of the dining room, “What’s back here?”

Lily glanced up, “That’s their surgical room. Patrol said it looked like they were removing contraceptive implants too.”

Kayla pushed open the thin, wooden door and was immediately hit with the smell of blood and sweat. She covered her nose with her arm, trying to shield herself from the stench.

The room itself looked to be equipped with all the standard medical equipment she’d expect to see, however, the condition was somewhat alarming. The delivery bed in the center of the room was covered in blood, and a half empty fluid bag was left hanging from a nearby IV pole.

Whoever was here left in a hurry, Kayla thought as she walked over to a metal table that was shoved against the wall. On it she found a logbook containing names, dates, and what appeared to be birth stats. She skimmed down to the last entry dated two days ago:

Baby boy, 6lbs 9oz, 20 in. Mother: Single/unlicensed, Father: Unknown

“Jesus, what’s that smell?” Lily asked from the doorway.

Kayla tossed the logbook back on the table. “Based on the logbook, the last birth took place a few days ago. I’m judging by the condition it’s been abandoned ever since.”

“Think something went wrong?” Lily asked, lifting a blood-soaked towel off the floor.

Kayla looked back at her, “Not enough blood for a bleed out. I’ll check local hospitals for any Jane Does just to be safe.”

“I don’t think I could ever be this desperate to have kids.” Lily said, dropping the blood-soaked towel back on the ground.

“Yea, me either,” Kayla replied listlessly, momentarily thinking of Rachel.

“How’d this morning go by the way?” Lily asked, noticing the change in Kayla’s voice.

Kayla winced. All day she had been moving between feelings of hope and agony.

“Still don’t know if it’s her. The body was burned beyond recognition, so they’re waiting on the DNA results to come back.”

“What about her necklace?” Lily asked.

“Apparently, forensics didn’t recover any jewelry at the scene.” Kayla began to feel tears well up inside her. It had been eight months since her sister went missing, and this was the first Jane Doe to surface that even slightly matched her description.

“Then maybe it’s not her. I mean, you said it yourself, she didn’t go anywhere without that locket.”

“Yea. Hey, you think you can finish up here while I head back to precinct and get started on the paperwork?”

“Sure thing.”

Kayla snapped off her latex gloves, shoving them in her pocket as she walked back to her car. The same heavy emotions from the morning overwhelming her once more. As much as she hoped the burned body in the morgue wasn’t Rachel, a part of her couldn’t help but believe it was true.

Ugh, get it together. Kayla shook her head to clear her thoughts. She needed to stay focused; this was the third raid this week. Birthing houses were popping up more and more frequently, and with each one meant there would be a new surge in unregistered children entering the Children’s Center.

Back at the precinct, Kayla was welcomed by the familiar aroma of burnt coffee as she headed for her desk.

“Kayla, I need to see you in my office.” Captain Roskell was standing outside his door, hands stuffed into the pockets of his navy-blue suit.

Kayla detoured from her original path and headed towards the open door. Once inside, she slouched down into one of the worn, cushioned chairs positioned in front of his desk.

“I heard you found another birthing house.” He said, folding his hands in front of him.

“Yes Sir. Our best guess right now is that it was abandoned a few days ago. Lily is bringing in a stack of files we found so we can start tracking down any illegal parents and hopefully get some more information out of them.”

Roskell sat back, interlacing his fingers and placing them on top of his shiny, bald head. “It’s a shame, sending all those children off. I know a lot of people don’t agree with the law, but parental licenses have played a crucial role in decreasing child abuse across the nation. Hunger, neglect, poverty, you name it, the law has reduced it all.”

Kayla eyed the Captain hesitantly, unsure of whether he was trying to convince himself of the law’s success or her.

Roskell closed his eyes for a moment before continuing, “Okay, same protocol. Until further notice we round up the unlicensed parents, confirm the registration paperwork for the children is fake, and then contact CPS. They’ll take care of the children while we file the appropriate charges for the parents.”

Kayla nodded getting up to leave when suddenly Roskell called out, “One more thing Detective. Do you ever plan on having kids?”

“Why?” Kayla asked suspiciously.

“Just curious where you stand. You’ve been doing illegal arrests for awhile now and I’ve never once heard you talk about your position on the matter.”

Kayla was silent for a moment, pondering the idea before replying, “I guess it doesn’t really matter whether or not I want them. It’s no longer up to me, is it?” She shrugged as she headed through the door.

“Hey, Detective!” She had barely made it to her desk when a patrol officer came bounding up from behind. “What can I do you for, Carl?”

“Actually, it’s what I can do for you. You know that restaurant waiter you’ve been trying to get ahold of?”

“The one that decided to take an extended hiatus after Rachel went missing. Yea, what about him?”

“Well, he’s finally back in town and he’s just left a detailed statement with what he saw that night. You’re never going to believe who Rachel was having dinner with.”

He handed her the statement sheet, “Good luck with this one Detective.”

Kayla’s eyes scanned the document as she glazed over the information she already knew, her sister arrived at 8:00 p.m., got a table near the window, ordered a glass of sparkling water… Then suddenly her eyes stopped on a name that hadn’t been mentioned in any of the other statements - Senator Dalton.

According to the waiter Senator Dalton arrived around 8:15 p.m. and abruptly left after what looked like a heated argument between the two.

Looks like the Senator left something out in our last conversation, Kayla thought as she grabbed her keys and headed back to her car.

She headed across town to the Capital, hoping she would be able to catch the Senator between meetings. When she arrived, she was greeted with the routine disdain from his new assistant, Claire. “Good morning, Detective. I’m assuming you have an appointment scheduled.” Claire said arrogantly from behind her desk.

“Actually, more like an impromptu meeting.”

“Then I’m sorry, Detective, but I can’t let you in. The Senator has a very busy day…”

“Do me a favor and just let him know I’m here. Tell him it’s about that dinner eight months ago he forgot to mention.”

Claire glared at Kayla as she picked up the phone. After a brief moment, she set the phone down and with an insincere smile motioned towards Dalton’s office, “The Senator will see you now.”

Kayla walked through the hand carved mahogany door, “Hello, Senator Dalton. I appreciate you taking the time to meet with me.”

“Well, Detective, you didn’t really leave me much choice now did you?” The Senator replied, looking up from his desk.

Senator Dalton was of average height and average looks. He was middle aged with greying hair, and the only distinguishing feature about him were his eyes.

The Senator had a rare genetic disorder that left him with two different colored irises, one brown and the other a deep blue. It was a feature that women seemed to swoon over and part of the reason he went through so many assistants before Rachel.

“So, what can I do for you, Detective?”

“I just wanted to stop by and ask why you failed to mention having dinner with Rachel the night she went missing?” Kayla said, sinking into the leather chair across from him.

Senator Dalton leaned back, crossing his arms. “You know, now that I think of it, we did have dinner that night. We were discussing a new proposal I was presenting on the Licensing Law.”

“And you didn’t think that information was pertinent enough to mention eight months ago?” Kayla asked annoyed at his placid demeanor.

“Dinner with my assistant is a routine matter. There’s no reason for me to think it had anything to do with her disappearance.”

“Well, according to the waiter it was more than a routine dinner. He says that the two of you argued that night.”

“I would call it more of a disagreement. Rachel didn’t like some of the proposed changes. She felt that it was difficult enough for the bulk of the population to get licensed and that these changes would only make it more arduous. I tried to explain to her the impact higher income requirements would have on society as a whole. I mean think about it Detective. Most crimes are committed by individuals who grew up in squalor. If we can eliminate children being born into these situations, we can all but eliminate majority of crimes over the next few decades. You of all people should be able to appreciate that.”

“So, you made it impossible for low-income couples to apply for a license?”

“Not impossible. If they increase their income, they increase their chances at a license.”

“Which is nearly impossible to do, wouldn’t you agree?”

“Look Detective, as much as I love our little chats I really must get going. Is there anything else you need from me?” Senator Dalton asked, buttoning his suit as he got to his feet.

“One last thing. Were these dinners ever anything more than business?”

“Detective, it was a pleasure as always.” Senator Dalton said, signaling the end of their conversation.

Lying prick, Kayla thought as she headed out of his office and back to her car. Suddenly her phone began to ring.

“Hey, Lily, what’s up?”

“So, I was just going over the files we found at the birthing house, and I found something strange. There’s a file here for a Susan Bowman who purchased a falsified license the same day they shut down.”

“Do we think that she was the one who gave birth to the baby boy?”

“See, that’s the strange thing. Her license is for birthing rights, however, according to her medical records she still has her implant.”

“Why would she need a license if she wasn’t planning on giving birth?”

“My thoughts, exactly.”

“Text me the address. I’ll head over now.”

Twenty minutes later, Kayla was standing outside a large home in the middle of an affluent neighborhood. She double checked the address. It didn’t look like the kind of place someone who falsified registration forms would live.

She knocked on the door and froze in disbelief as it opened. There in front of her was her sister’s custom, heart locket dangling around a stranger’s neck. Before Kayla could speak her attention was suddenly drawn to the small cries coming from the woman’s arms. She looked down and saw a newborn baby boy staring back at her, one eye brown and the other a deep blue.