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"What was it he said?" My brows lift, seeing the worried expression on her face.
"Well, he called you a fucking whore at first and then said,‘You won't get away with this, bitch! I will find you!’ The last part is what worries me, though."
I swallow hard. "Why is that?"
"Because he's threatening you, and if he gets out, I think he will make good on it. He said it really fast, but I'm pretty sure he said,‘You killed my friend, and now you will suffer way worse. Watch your back, Whore.’ Even if he doesn't get out, who's to say he won't send someone else after you?" Heather pulls me to her side as we walk through the doors together.
"He won't have the chance to make good on it," Castor states without looking back at us. "Because he will be joining his two friends within the next twenty-four hours. We are not tolerating these rings anymore. Once the motherfuckers are caught, they will never be seen again."
The agent's words both soothe and sadden me. I don't know why, but I hate thinking about Sergio being locked away with all those others.Stop it, Ryan! He's there with the others because he's one of them!I always have to remind myself that Sergio is not a good man.
"Jesus!" Laney exclaims as we look at the rows of cages in the basement.
"There's got to be more than fifty down here!" I look at Castor incredulously, "Are Julien's women down here also?"
"These are the ones being auctioned off. The ones Julien was keeping for himself are over here." He walks back the way we came but passes the stairs before stopping in front of a door with a window. "The son of a bitch kept them chained up the whole time, and before you go inside, you should know, it isn't pretty. We've been in there once to unchain them, but we left them until we got everyone out."
Castor hands Laney, Heather, and I a facemask and puts one on himself. "What are these for?" My brows knit together.
"The stench."
My stomach churns from just hearing him say this. I shake my head and put the mask back on the table by its box. "No. I will not go in there and embarrass them more than they already are by wearing a fucking mask." I glance at Heather and Laney and see that they put theirs back as well, then turn and peek through the door before returning my gaze to the agent. "Stay out here if you can't take the smell, but you're not wearing that thing inside."
He removes the mask and looks at me. "I didn't even think of it that way. Damn…do you know how many victims I've pulled out of places like this where I wore one for this exact reason? I feel like an ass now."
"Now you know, Cast. Just don't make that mistake again. Is there any Vick's around? Maybe rub a little of that under your nose, but don't make it obvious that you have it on," I tell him just before I open the door and walk into the hell these women have been living in.
All the women shrink back, trying to flatten themselves against the walls. It takes everything I have not to break down and cry for these women. I hold my head up instead and walk to the center of the room. In a loud but caring voice, I address them all at once.
"I am Ryan, and my friends are Laney and Heather. Like you, they were also taken to be sold. We are here to take you all home or wherever you want to go. You are no longer prisoners—"
"You're a fucking liar! You're one of them!" A croaky voice reaches me from one of the shadowed corners.
"No, I'm not…"
Suddenly, I see movement as one of the women rush me, but Castor is there to catch her. I recognize her immediately, only she's lost a lot of weight. I gaze into her eyes and soften my features as I approach her.
"I remember you, Callie. However, you were number fourteen when I trained you. You saw the treatment the D'Angelos gave me, and yet you think I'm one of them?" I shake my head. "I did what I needed to do in order to bide my time. I trained you all so you could survive this hell until I could bring help."
I feel the first tear hit my cheek, but I don't bother wiping it away. Laney and Heather both come forward. "Ryan trained us as well, but she freed us as soon as she was able to free herself, and that would never have happened if she didn't pretend to be one of them." Heather grabs my hand and smiles at me. "Now, she is one of my best friends."
"Mine too," Laney states, grabbing my other hand.
I look back at Callie. "I'm sorry I couldn't tell you, but if I wanted to get free, nobody could know my secret."
The woman stops struggling in Castor's arms. "Are you serious? Are we really—free?"
My heart breaks at how her voice cracks at the end like she can't believe it. I nod. "Yes, Callie. You're free… you all are." I hold my arms out, and Castor lets her go, letting her stumble over to me and fall into my waiting arms.
I hold her tight and hear her whisper, "Thank you…"
We were gone for three days, helping to settle all the victims in, whether they wanted to go home right away or they wanted to stay at the shelter that Bain and I opened, so they could get the counseling they needed. We saved seventy-five people from Julien's home, including the"harem" who thought Julien loved them.
I spent a day with those eight women alone, trying to get through to them because I didn't want to see them go to jail. By the end of the day, I could only get through to six of them. The other two are awaiting trial, as we speak, for being accomplices in the ring. Thankfully, they aren't being sent where Julien himself went, so maybe they will realize they had it all wrong in time. Unfortunately, it will be too late.
Laney and Heather have been Godsends during this time. Because they stay at the shelter house, they will be helping the newcomers settle in and be there for them when I can't. I will have to talk to Bain about possibly adding to the building since all, but one room is now taken. This last mission was a huge win for us, bringing home so many men and women. Castor had said there were three minors, but he wasn't planning on the four other children Julien fathered with a few of his"harem."
I search for Bain as soon as I get home, but can't find him, so I head to my room and jump into the shower. Standing with my back to the hot jets, my hand braces me as I lean against the tiled wall, letting the hot water melt away all the built-up stress from the last few days. Images begin to slip into my head. Images of a time before I went with the brothers, images during my time there, and images of how my life is now.
