Free The Evasion by Adrienne Giordano

and a schlep across two huge counties brought them to the Charleston Port Authority where Bev, the make-things-happen queen, had found them a Customs and Border Patrol inspector to speak to.
    Gabe parked the car and turned to Jo. “All we have is TBR Industries? No other name?”
    “Not unless we can somehow tie Martinson or his list of family members to something.”
    “Doubtful. After we busted his New York operation, he’s probably not shipping this stuff in under TBR. He’s flying under the radar.”
    Jo thought about it a second. Think like him . How would Martinson do this? He’d use a new company name for sure. Something not flagged in the system. And what about the sender? He’d need a new one. But he’d still be using the same supplier for the counterfeit merchandise. They’d most likely have a different name to avoid discovery.
    “Jo?”
    She squinted at Gabe. Reviewed the angles in her mind.
    He sighed. “I hate that look. That look is always trouble.”
    “Not this time. We need to have the Port Authority look at any shipments coming from the same general region as Martinson’s other shipments. Also which shipping companies he uses. He may not have changed suppliers, but he wouldn’t risk them using the same name as last time. If I were a betting woman, I’d say same supplier, different name and same shipping companies.”
    Gabe whistled. “Good work, Counselor. They’d have to crosscheck any cargo from shipping companies Martinson has used in the past. If he uses big companies—that could be a lot of shipments.”
    “But it’s worth a try, right?”
    He pushed open the car door and slid out. “It’s all we’ve got. Let’s hope he’s using a shipping company that’s not so popular.”

 
    Chapter Six
     
    Forty-five minutes later, after leaving all pertinent—and some not so pertinent—information about Donald Martinson’s prior activities with the CBP inspector, Jo and Gabe were back at their rental car. Gabe glanced up at a clear blue sky and decided he’d like to find a place along the harbor where he and Jo could be still. Have a drink—him a beer, she a dirty martini—and just be a regular couple. Which they weren’t. Not in the sense he wanted them to be.
    The short of it? He didn’t like sneaking around at home.
    Next to him, Jo tugged on his shirt to get his attention. “With all the information I gave them, I should have just left my laptop.”
    “Please. That poor schmo was already crapping his pants with the info dump you left him. The laptop would have meant psychiatric care.”
    After said crapping, the inspector assured them he’d have answers in the next couple of hours. He’d also warned them that if Martinson had a shipment coming in using alternate names and shipping companies, they’d be trying to find a needle in a haystack.
    Gabe didn’t give a shit. He’d risk it. Hell, he’d search those containers himself if he had to.
    “Where to now?” she asked. “Sooner or later, the sheriff is bound to hear about our excursion to the Port Authority. Well, I did tell him we had an appointment there.”
    Gabe’s stomach pinched. If this went bust, Tom would chew him up. Sanctions would be sure to follow.
    If it went bust.
    Which meant he couldn’t let their investigation go bust.
    “We’re back to Ellie. She needs to help us figure out where Martinson is storing his stuff.”
    From Jo’s jacket pocket, her phone rang. She dug it out, glanced at the number. “Ooh. This might be the lab.” She hit the button. “Hello?” She nodded at Gabe. “Right…Really? Can you email it to me? Thank you.”
    She punched off and tapped the phone against her lips.
    “That was a fascinating conversation.”
    “Sorry. Should have put him on speaker. It’s partial good news. The only print that came up in AFIS is that of one Hillary Hodges.”
    “And she’s who?”
    Jo flopped out her bottom lip. “Beats me. She has a rap sheet. Mostly petty crimes. Basically,