Just like that, they reassigned me. I made my way over to the front entrance to connect with the other team and see where they needed me.
I didn’t even see Patrick and the rest of them exit the building. The team usher the last of the group onto the bus and hopped on, sitting up front with a little boy who was here alone.
“Did you just love it?” He wore a light blue, short-sleeve seersucker suit. A crisp white shirt, matching blue shorts, and a dark blue bow tie. His knee jumped as he spoke to the littlessitting across the aisle from him. “It was so cool. I want to see it again.”
The two guests in the seats spoke just as animatedly. They were dressed identically, which made me wonder if they were really related or two friends who were both little.
Even their excitement couldn’t quiet the butterflies in my stomach. As the Quadrangle Las Vegas came into view, the butterflies turned into one congealed solid mass.
I knew it wasn’t possible, but I felt like they heard every word I said. But if Rayna and Tinley were being held against their will, I would stand by my actions.
All I wanted to do was protect those girls. I couldn’t protect my sister. This was my way of making sure what I imagined my sister went through didn’t happen to anyone else. Not on my watch.
The evidence was insurmountable. Rayna and Tinley could only stay within the walls of this hotel and casino. Their every move was controlled by men with power and money who were skilled at spotting a mark and eliminating anyone who got in their path. I had seen it firsthand.
The rescued women kept surfacing. Raids on Quad hotels, anonymous tips funneled through the brothers—each one pulled from somewhere dark and deposited quietly into a new uniform, a new life, but connected to Grant Enterprises. Housekeeping. Sales. Interacting with guests. I wondered what they had traded for the privilege of still being here.
I couldn’t save them all, but I had to make sure these two girls would be okay. If someone in some far-off country had the opportunity to help my sister, they would have done the same for her.
The bus pulled into the private garage entrance of Quad IV. The group has some free time before the dinner and events atthe club tonight. A lot of caregivers mentioned naps, and a lot of littles were not happy about it.
I could use a nap myself.
We ushered everyone off the bus. We turned our communication equipment into an assistant who would take it back to the security office. I made my way across the parking garage toward the employee entrance when I spotted him.
Patrick standing in much the same manner he was at The Sphere. His face remained stoic, but it had softened a little.
I knew who he was waiting for. I might as well get it over with.
Seems I will not be testing my little anytime soon.
I was about to get fired or worse.
CHAPTER 20
PATRICK
The ride back to the hotel was oddly quiet. Randall somehow tapped into the Sphere CCTV. Maybe he was an Oz fan. Who knows? We didn’t ask those types of questions. When a camera with automatic facial recognition spotted Tinley, Rayna, and Kylie together, an alert beeped on his screen. Nothing suspicious occurred until the three disappeared into the bathroom. No cameras in there, but Kylie’s earpiece, even muffled, created a perfect CC report of their conversation that Randall happened to listen in on.
We already knew her suspicions, but hearing her use them to drive a wedge between Kyler, Josh, and their littles was still a blow. It broke my heart.
Kyler was furious because Kylie’s words had crushed Rayna. She didn’t say a word the whole ride home, and when Kyler suggested a nap, she didn’t argue—a silence so uncharacteristic I nearly called Doc for a CT scan. Rayna always talked, and naps were the bane of her existence.
Tinley either didn’t understand what Kylie was doing or chose blissful ignorance to protect her little side. Whenever Rayna was upset, Tinley mirrored her pain.
I left them to take care of their little girls. I went to find a little girl of my own who was in way over her head and about to find out exactly why.
“Kylie, will you follow me to my office?” My crossed arms weren't an attempt at intimidation; they were to keep myself from opening my arms and pulling the scared woman into me.
“Okay.” Her soft voice hit me in the gut.
“After you.”
She held her head high and walked through the back employee hallways. We rode up to the third floor in silence. She knew her way around now.
We stepped into the nearly empty hallway. Most employees had already left for the weekend. Kylie stepped to the side while I unlocked and entered my office. “Let’s have a seat.” I made my way over to the small sitting area near the window. The Sphere, the scene of the crime, flashed in the distance. The sight of it turned my stomach.
“Did something happen?” she asked.
