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“You want to use our meeting time to chat?” He frowns. “I thought you wanted to be debriefed on—”
“That can wait,” she interrupts. “I’ve been told that you three are the best at what you do. Considering who my best friend is, that’s very impressive. So if you have a family problem, it means I have a problem, and other business can wait.”
She must mean Branson, though I’m surprised the lone wolf has any friends – let alone a bestie. She can’t mean anyone else though.
“It’s our girl—” I begin but I’m cut off by Devon kicking me under the table. I grit my teeth at the pain, ignoring his warning, and keep talking. “She got into some trouble and it left her…vulnerable. She can’t be left alone for long periods of time and obviously we couldn’t bring her here tonight.”
“I see.” She sighs before adding, “You know we’re looking to recruit women into The Order now.”
I give her a tight smile, wondering how to politely decline what she’s implying – that Callie could join – but Devon’s anger explodes.
“Absolutely not!”
I cringe, wondering if he’s going to get us killed. “What Callie went through…it changed her. She doesn’t have what it takes.”
I mean, he’s not wrong, but I would never speak to anyone more senior than us within The Order that way. Let alone the boss.
“What happened to her?” Her question surprises me. This feels like more than idle chit-chat or curiosity. She seems to genuinely care, but why?
“She was groomed, kidnapped, trafficked and sold. Tortured and abused,” Devon says matter of factly. It still makes me feel sick to hear the words said out loud
“How did she survive?” The boss asks. I want to reply that she didn’t, that the girl we once knew and loved is long gone, but I don’t say anything because that’s not what she means.
“We called in every favour we had to get her location, and were able to intercept her en route to her newest buyer,” I reply, unable to mask the bitterness in my voice.
“And the ones responsible?” She demands sharply.
“We’re working on it,” Devon mutters darkly.
“Let us help you.”
I blink. What?
“We asked The Order for help, and were told that unless we could pay for the resources, we were on our own.” Devon sounds as bitter and angry as I feel. Years of loyal service and what did we get in return? Absolutely nothing. “We were tapped out just from getting her location. Twice. We missed her the first time by hours.”
I watch her carefully as she tries not to react to our words. Anger flashes across her face before she can school her expression. No. Not anger. Rage.
“Well, that was before,” she tells us calmly, though I can tell she’s feeling anything but calm. “You may have noticed that we’re under new management now and things are being done differently. You have our entire resources at your disposal to bring down the monsters who did this to your girl.”
Devon scoffs.
“What?” she fires at him in challenge.
“And what if it turns out that she was taken by our skin rings?” He pauses, and she doesn’t move a muscle, frozen like a deer in the headlights. “You didn’t know? What kind of leader doesn’t even know what filthy fucking pies she’s got her pretty little fingers in?”
“Devon, that’s enough,” I warn him, worried he’s overstepping the mark.
If rumours are to be believed, this woman not only commands the most powerful organisation in the world and is best friends with a notorious psychopath, but she also has not one, but four, loyal boyfriends who would lay down their lives and kill for her.
She’s not someone we want to piss off, even with our honesty.
There’s a knock at the door and I clear my throat. She calls out for the intruder to enter and a young guy with dark hair pops his head around the corner. He fixes his gaze on us and frowns.
“Everything okay here?” I can tell from his tone that this must be one of the boyfriends. He’s on edge, suspicious and distrusting of us, in a way that only a lover can be.
“Yes.”
“Okay. Just to say we have to start in a few minutes.”
