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I grit my teeth. Every cell in my body demands I protect Cole, but I trust Jasper. He wouldn’t suggest I lower my weapon if he thought Cole was in any danger.
Becca seems to shatter at the rejection of her brother. Her hands shake where she reaches for him, suspended in the space between them. She makes a few sounds like she starts saying something, but then switches tracks, almost as if her brain is stuttering on what to tell him.
“Cole please! You know me. I’m your sister. I’d never do anything to hurt you.” She uses the back of her hand to wipe the snot from below her nose. Not everyone is a pretty crier. “I wasn’t always with the Tulip Broker. He bought me from someone else who thought he’d have fun raping me bent over his desk while he instructed me on the code to type in. If I clicked the wrong key, he’d beat me. I didn’t learn on purpose, but I picked it up naturally until my skills surpassed him.
“The Tulip Broker did business with him and killed him so he could have me for himself. And from then on, I’ve either been in that fucking prison or under strict watch while I was forced to do his bidding. I swear it, Cole. But we have to get into his safe house. There’s a tunnel leading out.”
She lunges for Cole, and this time he does nothing to stop her. She fists his shirt with both hands, drawing him close so she can stare into his eyes. “He can’t get away. He’s a monster.”
“Cole, she’s right,” I find myself saying, much to my surprise. I didn’t think I’d be sticking up for her so quickly. “We can’t let him get away. Especially if there’s an escape tunnel. We can figure out the family drama after.”
He doesn’t say anything else, he simply turns in the chair and scoots into the desk. Becca crowds into his side, murmuring things as he types.
“Is it weird they both ended up being hackers?” I whisper to Jasper.
He stares at them too, carefully watching for anything fishy to happen. Should we trust her? Is Cole thinking clearly? Can we count on him to make the right decisions right now? All he wanted was to find his sister. Now we have, but I’m not sure of any next steps.
“It’s not common, that’s for sure,” Jasper answers. “But they’re twins. Maybe there’s some kind of freaky connection thing.”
“Think we can trust her?” I narrow my eyes, giving the back of her head the death glare. They seem a little too chummy for my taste. Maybe I should stab her. Okay, that might be a little much. Maybe some light cutting, just enough to get the point across.
“I do.” Jasper’s finger lifts my chin, making me look at him instead. “You know we all love your possessiveness, right?”
“You’re mine,” I state, like it obviously explains my behavior.
“We are.” He smiles at me with that damn dimple, then brushes his lips against mine in a barely there kiss. “It’s his sister. You don’t need to mark your territory when it comes to her. She’s not competition, she’s not your enemy. Think of their relationship like you and your brother. You didn’t see us attacking him.”
I turn my attention back on Becca and tilt my head to the side. I’m not sure if I’m the type to get along with a sister—I grew up as an only child—but I can be protective of her, for Cole’s sake.
“We got it. I’m ready to open the door, but I think it would be better if you’re waiting outside it when I do,” Cole says, turning around to face us. His sister only has eyes for him, though. She watches him like he hung the moon for her.
Before we can say anything else, the screens blink with a red hue, an alarm of some kind. It catches Becca’s attention, and she shoves Cole out of the way, something that’s only possible because his chair is on wheels. Her fingers fly over the keys, making me nervous all over again. I’m not sure what it’ll take to win my trust, but until she does, I’ll doubt every single one of her intentions.
There’s a little comfort to be found in how Cole tracks everything she does. Within seconds, she has security footage filling every screen, different views of the basement. Or should I say dungeon with the looks of it.
Cages the size of large dog kennels line the walls. Women and girls who aren’t possibly of legal age—not that any of what’s happening is legal—fill the tight spaces. They don’t have room to stand, and can’t stretch all the way out when laying down. To add insult to injury, they even have dog bowls for water and food. I don’t even want to think about what happens when they have to go to the bathroom. I’m certain there isn’t someone there who will let them out to use the toilet.
“Someone sent out an alert and they are working on moving the girls. We have to save them.” She continues typing. “The doors down there aren’t electronic, there’s no way for me to lock them remotely.”
“Where is the exit?” I ask, trying to come out with a plan that accommodates saving the women while making sure TB doesn’t escape in the process.
She brings up a map and points to a spot on it, not far from where we’re at now. “Right here.”
“That’s really close.” I’m not sure if that plays in our favor or hurts us. On one side we can get to the exit quickly to cut them off, on the other it leads to the middle of a neighborhood which adds risk. If they think they’re caught, they could shoot the captives.
Our biggest hope is them being slowed down by opening each cage, but they might get away. I know this is a huge oxymoron. The serial killer working to save people instead.
“Digging tunnels isn’t an overnight project. He’s been working for years to expand the underground network, wanting a way to secretly smuggle the girls in for his auctions. He even wanted to hide the buyers coming in and out. Anything to keep suspicion down on what he was doing.” Becca runs her hands through her hair, tugging at the roots with clear despair at not being able to do anything right now.
“Hey Grayson.” It’s odd talking to him when he’s not here, like I’m a crazy person with an imaginary friend.
“What can I do?” he answers immediately.
“I need you to drive to the location Cole is sending you now.” I snap my fingers and point at the computer so my hacker boyfriend gets that I’m telling him to actually do it. “Tell us what is going on and make sure they don’t leave. Do anything you need to without risking your life.”
“I’m on it.” There’s some shuffling that comes through the mic, like he’s getting up from his seat. “Stay safe, Remi.”
“Vander is still waiting at the entrance to where the bastard went. I’ll run there and Cole can open the door. Then you two can take out the men wanting to move the women and protect them. Whoever finishes first helps the others?” Jasper proposes.
