Yesterday’s Miracle
In episode 5 of FBI: International season 2, Kellet briefs Forrester on her findings on Zsólt’s dad. As it turns out, Peter is being blackmailed by the Balkan mafia who are using his auto shop to run illegal businesses. Forester visits the shop and tries to ask if there is anything he can do to help. Peter is not happy about the visit and rudely dismisses him.
The team is called to investigate a case after an American couple is detained in Bucharest as their surrogate goes MIA. The surrogate, Cosmina, has gone into hiding before delivering the baby to the biological parents, Dennis and Amy. The couple is worried about the safety of their surrogate as well as their unborn child.
The couple has been trying to have a kid for years and this was their only option. They found an agency and set the ball in motion because they thought surrogacy in Bucharest was more affordable but they were unaware of the hidden costs and now they are $ 200,000 in debt and they don’t know what happened to their child.
Deputy Chief Hofer thinks that the Americans are taking advantage of young girls in Bucharest by tricking them into being surrogates. He is not particularly inclined to help them as much, but he allows Forrester and Vo to talk to Dennis who is currently being held in a cell after he went berserk at the clinic. Lucky for him, the man he accidentally hit, Howard Greyson, decides not to press charges and he is released.
Raines and Kellet head over to the surrogacy agency, meet the director, Felicia, and are suspicious of her running of the clinic without doing a thorough background check. She listed no emergency contact or physical address of the girls working for her, and her excuse is that things “slip through the crack.” Well, that’s a pretty big crack, Felicia! ..
After Kellet pushes further, Cosmina finally gives up her current address. The team breaches the apartment, but the surrogate is nowhere to be found. Hofer gives them only five minutes to go through the house, much to Forrester’s frustration. Their investigation points to Cosmina being on the run and might be on her way to the train station. They rush to the train station and stop Cosmina from fleeing, but there is a problem: Cosmina is no longer pregnant. Where is the baby? ..
The detectives question her and she claims she had a stillbirth a week before. They find it hard to believe her story as there is no evidence supporting her claim. Raines goes through her phone and learns she received five strange calls from an unknown burner phone. Further investigation leads them to Cosmina’s friend and based on her statement they believe the baby is still alive. ..
Hofer thinks Cosmina is a victim and tries to get the case closed but Forrester is adamant that she is lying. Meanwhile, Raines manages to find the owner of the burner phone that has been making suspicious calls to Cosmina. They are surprised to learn that Howard Greyson is the man behind the calls.
Howard and his wife have been trying to get a family for years, but they have been unable to find anyone who will adopt them. They are also in the process of trying to get a fertility treatment that they hope will help them get a baby.
The couple learns that his wife is currently in Bucharest and they immediately visit her hotel. However, they are too late. The couple is already on the move and it is evident that they have the child with them. They are later able to find them as they try to flee the country in a private jet. ..
Raines and Smitty head back to confront Felicia about her part in the baby’s kidnapping. Felicia tries to flee but they successfully arrest her. As matters stand they only have circumstantial evidence and none of the suspects in their custody is willing to talk. Forrester decides to add pressure on Cosmina and she finally caves and confesses that they planned to sell the child to the Greysons.
The Greysons are wealthy and have the best lawyers on their payroll. They also claim they were victims of Felicia’s lies and were just helping a young teenage mother give a better life to her child. Sadly, the team is unable to bring them up on any charges. Another day, another case where the rich get away with crimes. ..
At least the child is returned to her parents. The episode ends with Forrester watching the Balkan mafia secretly from his car.
The Episode Review
I was frustrated when the team couldn’t file charges against the Greysons who knew they were stealing a kid from their biological parents. Many couples suffer from surrogacy and it is scary that this happens in some countries because they don’t have strict laws protecting the parties involved.
Neighbors should be careful when working together to monitor their neighborhoods. Forrester should ask for help from his neighbors if he needs it. ..
