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Grim flinches, but she doesn’t rise to the bait. “Whether you choose to believe it or not, I’m not helping Hud and your boys just on the off chance they fail, Pen. Though I completely understand why you would assume that. You’re right, Iamsmart, smart enough to keep those who’ve shown me loyalty and friendship close. Unlike some of the criminals I mix with, I happen to have a conscience, a moral fucking compass. Last year I helped Hudson get Asia, Eastern, Ford—my half-brother, by the way—Camden and Sonny out of a tricky situation with the King because it was therightthing to do.
“That guy who picked up the phone when you called Asia was your brother?”
“Half, and yes.”
“Wow.”
“Anyway, Hud filled me in on his history with Santiago and told me about that sick bastard's new business venture. Given my past experience and what could’ve happened to me, I wanted to help.”
“What new venture?” I ask.
“Sex trafficking, Pen. Women, girls mainly. Santiago sells them into the sex trade. Most of the girls are under the age of eighteen. A high proportion under the age of fifteen. His operation was stopped in its tracks when the King was killed but now he’s taking up business again,” Grim explains.
“Jesus fucking Christ!” I exclaim. “And Jeb’s involved in that? The sick fuck!”
“Actually, no. Jeb deals purely with the drug side of the business here in the UK. Though I don’t think it’d take much to push him in that direction,” Xeno clarifies. “We do have reason to believe that David, however, is more than happy to step up.”
“David?” I retort sharply. “What are you saying?”
“We found out very recently that your brother is heavily involved in the sex trade. He is the go-to man in Mexico,” Hudson informs me, a dark look flitting across his face. “Santiago is already doing business with him. As far as we can tell, Jeb isn’t involved, and if he’s aware of their relationship, he doesn’t give two fucks.”
“I feel sick.” Nausea rises up my throat, but I swallow it down. “Why is David so evil? Sex trafficking… Fuck!”
“I know this is a lot to deal with. Take a deep breath, okay?” Grim says gently, reaching for my free hand that’s curled up into a fist on the table. They give me a moment to absorb all the information, and it’s the first time all evening that I wished I was still out cold.
“I still don’t understand why you’re at Stardom Academy. What has being there got to do with anything?” I ask.
Xeno sighs. “Jeb sent us to Stardom Academy to work with D-Neath.”
“D-Neath?” My mouth drops open. I don’t know why I’m so shocked given his history, but I am.
“Yes. Santiago has developed a very dangerous drug that he wants to bring to the UK club scene. He needed an opportunity to test it out. Duncan was the perfect person for Jeb to choose to help make that happen because of his past experience, his club, and his access to a readily available market. You’ve heard of Molly, right?” Hudson asks.
“Yes,” I nod, glancing at Xeno.
“Molly is essentially the powder form of ecstasy,” Xeno continues, “A drug that was at its height in the late eighties and early nineties in the rave scene. Add in speed, a dash of cocaine— and a secret ingredient that even we don’t know about, to the mix—and you have a very powerful narcotic.”
“And potentially, a very deadly one,” Grim adds.
“So, D-Neath hasn’t turned over a new leaf then? He’s at the Academy to supply the dancers and distribute through The Pink Albatross, is that what you’re saying?”
“Precisely,” Hudson agrees.
“But he’s Madame Tuillard’s boyfriend and she has a zero drugs policy at the Academy…” I say, in disbelief. “Wait. Please don’t tell me she’s in on this too?” Then I remember the conversation I’d overheard that day Sebastian sent me to her office, and I share it with them. “A couple of weeks ago I overheard D-Neath assuring Madame Tuillard that he had a solid plan. She was pissed off, she said that she hadn’t built the Academy for some arsehole she didn’t know to destroy it. She’d said she didn’t need the police on her doorstep either. Fuck, this is what she meant!”
Grim’s head snaps around as she pins her gaze on Hudson. “Do you think she’s losing her nerve?”
“Wait, what?” I exclaim, looking between them both. I feel like the stupidest person in the room. Nothing’s making sense. “I don’t understand.”
“Tuillard’s aware of what’s going on, to a certain extent at least. D-Neath isn’t working for Jeb. He’s working withus. He’s an informant, just like we are. Jeb and D-Neath go way back,” Xeno explains. “When D-Neath was released from prison, Jeb contacted him, bringing him into the crew, having no idea about the deal he secured a few months before with Interpol to lessen his sentence.”
My mouth drops open as I try to process everything. “And you trust him? This is insane.” I rub my fingers against my forehead, trying to subdue a headache I can feel coming on.
“In answer to your first question, I trust him now. I didn’t at first, but he’s proved himself loyal, and in answer to your earlier question, Jeb began to get suspicious of D-Neath,” Xeno explains. “He started to think that D-Neath had gone rogue and was trying to cut a better deal with Santiago. That’s why Jeb sent us in. He wanted to make sure D-Neath wasn’t fucking him over. Little does he knowwe’rethe ones who are doing that. We’ve managed to convince Jeb that D-Neath is still trustworthy when really none of us are. At least not to him.”
“Fucking hell. I literally can’t wrap my head around any of this.”
“Jeb’s instincts were on point,” Xeno explains tiredly. Exhaustion pulls at his features as he swipes at his face. “We believe your brother’s suspicions were roused because we were back in your orbit. He knows we’re still part of the Skins so he knew we wouldn’t be at the Academy to pursue a career in dance. What better way for him to find out why we’re at the Academy than use you.”
