Page 6 of Defending Van

Those people meant nothing to him. No one meant anything to him.

Having chosen the room right opposite the first of what was to be five holding rooms, to set up as the guards’ room, he found the others all in the hall waiting. They were all armed, although he doubted any of the women inside were going to put up much of a fight. Even the ones who were angry at first, who screamed obscenities and threats at them, sooner or later realized they were fighting a losing battle.

What was it Nathan used to tell the women when he deposited them in their cells?

Don’t fight. It will make it easier if you just give in, just do as they tell you, don’t make this harder on yourself than it has to be.

Van had heard the man say that dozens of times. It never usually worked. The ones who were going to fight would fight even with the warning, and the ones who weren't going to fight didn't need a warning.

“All right, let’s hurry up, I have stuff to do,” he urged.

“Movies to watch.” Marvin snorted under his breath, making a couple of the guys chuckle.

Since Griffin wasn't here to run things, and Van certainly wasn't going to be goaded into responding because you had to actually care enough about someone trying to work you up to get worked up, he merely offered another of his creepy smiles, and instead, unlocked the door by punching in the code.

It beeped and then swung open, and instead of finding six cowering women waiting in terror to learn their fate, he found that four of them were standing together in the center of the room. One was standing in a corner sobbing, and the sixth was in another corner, curled in on herself as though she could somehow disappear if she tried hard enough.

The second the door opened, the other four women charged them.

Since none of them were expecting that, two of the women actually managed to dart past them and out into the hall. Shouts echoed from both sides as Hank, Josh, and Deacon went after the women who were running, and Henry, Marvin, William, and Adrian handled the women who hadn't made it to the hall.

Van, on the other hand, stood and chuckled. Very amusing. He hadn't expected them to have coordinated so quickly, and he did enjoy being pleasantly surprised. Women with fight were the ones who were going to be able to recover from this ordeal. If he had it in him to worry, he would worry about the ones with no fight. They’d be crushed by their trauma, and even though Prey would eventually get them all out, they’d never be able to live normal lives again.

A moment later, Josh dragged a blonde back into the room, while Hank and Deacon struggled to control the brunette who had apparently kicked Adrian twice while he was trying to abduct her. That one had spunk, and if looks could kill, they’d all be dead right now.

“That was stupid, and will only get you punished,” he said when all six women were lined up before him. Josh had the crier, no wonder there, since the youngest and most inexperienced member of Azure still had a whole lot to learn. Adrian had the other woman who hadn't run, guess he was still sore and didn't want to risk getting hurt again. Marvin, William, and Henry each had one of the other women, and the spunky one was still being held by Hank and Deacon.

Varying degrees of fear and anger stared back at him. Some had more fear than anger, but no one had more anger than the spunky little brunette. She glared at him with a fearlessness that told him this wasn't the first time she’d faced down a monster, and he had a begrudging glimmer of respect that she was able to hold her head up high even though he knew beneath the exterior she did in fact have to be scared.

“Strip,” he ordered. “Clothes are a privilege you’ll have to earn here. And once you’ve handed over your clothing, those of you who thought running was a good idea, face the wall and bend over.”

Delivering punishment wasn't something he enjoyed, but it was part of the job. While he wouldn't get off on their tears the way some of the others did, he wasn't going to be swayed by them either. Jobs required sacrifices, and unfortunately for these women, they would be making the biggest ones. He doubted they cared that their sacrifices would help to dismantle a dangerous trafficking ring. He certainly wouldn't if he were them.

The crier—who was of course still crying—quickly began to undress, and the other woman who hadn't run, hesitated for a moment before she, too, began to remove her clothing. The others stared at him with defiance.

“Josh, please go and get me a cane,” he ordered, and the young man grinned at him before hurrying out of the room.

The knowledge of what was coming spurred two of the others into removing their clothing. The third hesitated for a moment, glancing at the spunky brunette, before she sighed and started unbuttoning her blouse.

But the spunky one just stood still and watched him, arching a brow when their gazes met. “If you want me naked, you're going to have to undress me yourself,” she warned.

Stepping close into her personal space, forcing her to crane her head up to maintain their gaze, he gave her one of his infamous smiles. Then he said something he wasn't expecting, something he’d never said, and went against his entire philosophy of remaining unengaged. “I'd love nothing more.”

Chapter

Three

August 25th

8:10 A.M.

Challenging them wasn't a good idea, Makayla knew that, and yet she didn't back down.

She was the only one who didn't. The two women whose names she didn't yet know had complied immediately with the orders to remove their clothing. Bethany and Crystal, the one who had told them about Azure, had held out a little longer, but were now quickly stripping out of their clothes. Even Cecilia, who she had already judged to be the most helpful in enduring this hellish ordeal they’d been thrown into, was now unbuttoning her blouse.

The smarter move would be to just go along with it. Take her punishment, regroup, and try to work out a better plan for next time. Because there was one thing she was certain of, and that was she was getting herself out of here. She hadn't survived her childhood and built a life for herself just to be the victim of a human trafficking organization.

That hadn't really sunk in yet, and she didn't intend to let it.