Page 138 of Break Out the Girl

The architects of so much misery.

“Why did you want Sky so badly?” I demand. “Tell me.”

Both their mouths open and shut but nothing comes out.

“Stellar work, Drakeward,” François snarks.

Cos frowns. “They’re spelled to only speak the truth. They must not have an answer to your question.”

Suddenly it hits me. Right. They know her by a different name. “Why did you want Candy so badly?”

“Leverage,” the younger one, Regan, croaks immediately. “A passport to a new life.”

That makes no sense. “Why would Candy give you leverage?”

“She’s the daughter of Dennis Kaelen. He’d want her back. Help us.”

Kaelen? I guess Sky really was Candy K.

“Who is this Kaelen?”

Regan groans, blood dribbling from the corner of his mouth. “Mob boss in America. We were gonna flee to the states.”

Interesting.

I stare at the older man. “How did you have Candy in the first place?”

Doyle's face twists, like he’s trying to beat the spell—but he can’t. “Snatched her on a visit,” he gasps. “Retribution for Kaelen doing us wrong. Make his daughter pay the debt.”

I stiffen, and François takes my hand.

“Fucking disgusting,” Tally snarls. “Lowlife scum.”

I think Cosmo isn’t listening, but he’s been looking on his fancy phone. “Dennis Kaelen,” he says, reading some information. “Boss of a Pacific Northwest Crime syndicate. He’s also known for human trafficking, but he specializes in selling body parts. Livers and kidneys for rich alcoholics.”

Poor Sky. That’s her dad?

I suppress a shudder. “At least we know the ‘why’ now.”

“It’s one piece of the puzzle,” Cosmo grunts. “But I've plenty more questions yet.”

Suddenly I feel absolutely exhausted, and I just don’t have it in me to listen to any more horrors. “You go ahead, Cos. I’ll leave you to it.”

Tally and François move in synchronicity, surrounding me. “Rory? You OK?”

“Aurora. What do you need?”

I sigh, gesturing around the orchard. It’s scattered with torn-off limbs, discarded weapons, and dead people. “What I need is for this to get dealt with. Basil and Sky don’t need to see this.”

They nod in perfect synchronization. “Leave it to us.”

“Thanks.” I’m about to go back to the trailer, when I remember something. “Don’t kill the Grieves yet. The people they hurt most will take care of that.”

Cosmo grins at me. His expression is warm, full of an alive mischief that I don’t think I’ve ever seen on him before. “Thanks for the reminder, sis. I'd have been in large amounts of trouble if I’d stepped on Ludo’s toes. That minotaur knows how to hold a grudge.”

His eyes soften when he talks of Ludo.

It’s absolutely wild.