Dave lay in bed with Carolyn snuggled up under his arm. He loved this new experience of these morning times when he could just relax and be with his family before the rush of the day began. Carolyn had so thoroughly stolen his heart that he could not have loved her more had she been his natural child. Caitlin had finished her shower and walked into the bedroom to dress; Dave watching her with admiration; thinking that there was no such thing as a mediocre redhead. They were either spectacular beauties or completely at the other end of the spectrum. She noticed him watching her and blushed slightly, causing him to chuckle at her again.
Half an hour later they were sitting at breakfast. "It’s just hard to believe that such a small town as Portsmouth could have a kiddie porn ring of any kind, much less a homosexual one," Cait commented.
"I know. When we started this project six months ago I would never have believed there were forty to fifty teenage hookers here either, and I grew up here. The idea that some of them would be boys was beyond comprehension. I guess this is only a logical extension of the other stuff."
"But how are they getting away with it? Surely the police have to know it’s going on! They can’t be that blind, can they?"
"I’m not so sure it’s blindness, Cait. I have faith in the judicial system, but the cops are something else entirely. It’s nothing to watch drug dealers standing on the corner selling their junk right on the street corners. They don’t even bother to go into an alley any more. I also know of a couple of cops who are dealing drugs right out of their cruisers.
Don’t misunderstand me, there are some good cops out there, but one or two bad ones can cause a lot of problems. A good cop doesn’t dare say anything, because the time might come when he needs backup and the man he caused the problem for is the only help available."
"Do you really think it will do any good for the boys to talk to John White, then?"
"I don’t know. I’m hoping. But I think he will take whatever steps he can if the boys will talk. That’ not guaranteed. They might be afraid to talk or they might simply decide they like the money too much. We’ll just have to wait and see."