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Fair enough. I’d react the same way if it were me in his position.
“What do you want?” he asked after a small pause.
“I’m here to pledge my allegiance to the Ravagers.”
He studied me a long moment, angrily gnawing at his lip rings. “And why wouldyouof all people want to do that?”
I kept my hands raised, ensuring not to break eye contact. “I get it. I’m an Outlaw and you don’t trust me. But the truth is, I don’t want to be an Outlaw. I never did. I was born into this cursed life with no say so. I want my father dead.”
Phantom gripped his weapon tighter. “I’m listening.”
“My father is trafficking his own dancers. There’s this thing called the Harvest. The next one is less than two weeks away and my best friend, Ginger, is being auctioned off. I’m trying to save her. I-I’m trying to save all of them, but I can’t do that without the Ravagers help.”
“What do you know about the recent attack on the academy?” he asked.
I blinked, stumbling back. What the hell is he talking about?
“What attack?”
“Don’t pretend like you don’t know,” he hissed.
“I-I don’t. I swear. Father doesn’t trust me enough to tell me anything. What attack are you talking about?”
“Two days ago, an Outlaw breeched our security on campus. He tranquilized our guards and attempted to kidnap a student. My brother intercepted the attack and killed the guy before a girl was snatched.”
“What?” My heart thudded hard at the news. Gritting my teeth, I said, “I swear on my fucking life I didn’t know about that.”
And I didn’t. This was a huge fucking bombshell I never expected to get dropped on me at a time like this. If Father really did orchestrate an attack on Storm Ridge Academy to snatch a student, then it had to be for the upcoming Harvest. Which means…
Fuck. God, please tell me Samara doesn’t know about this too.
“You know what…” Phantom scrutinized me a long moment before he finally lowered his weapon. “I believe you. I don’t fucking know why, but something in my gut is telling me you’re being truthful.”
He put his gun away. I lowered my arms, relieved he didn’t shoot me.
“Tell me more about this Harvest.”
“Every month, my father auctions off a small group of women. He has an age limit here. If you surpass 30, you’re gone, auctioned off to become a permanent sex slave on the streets. I know you weren’t there, but do you remember the meeting your father had here with mine a few weeks back?”
“What about it?”
“All I know is that my father tried to get yours to partner with him, to help traffic the women here. He refused. Finn, one of my father’s men, told me about what went down that night and how he stole all your father’s partners. He was there with me at the last Harvest. My best friend, Ginger, she’s only 28. My father has been constantly raping her against her will. He’s been beating her too. She’s been fighting back and in result of her defiance, he wants to get rid of her. She’ll die if I can’t find a way to stop it.” I swallowed hard, licking my lips. “But there’s more.”
“And I’m still listening,” he chided.
“At the last Harvest, there were three young girls, seventeen, maybe eighteen years old, I’m not sure really. I don’t know where they came from, but they were there. Sinclair, Alesi, and Crane had their pick out of the three. They had their way with them, and Finn and I was forced to stand there aiming a gun at their heads as it happened. I don’t know what my father is planning, but if he really did launch an attack on the academy to kidnap an innocent girl, then the next Harvest had to be the reason why.”
“What’s in it for us?”
“Intel. If you agree to help me stop the next Harvest, I’ll pledge my full loyalty to the Ravagers. I’ll provide you with whatever intel you want.”
“How would that be possible if your own father doesn’t trust you?” he asked.
“I’ll make him trust me,” I promised, my voice tight. “He’s taken more than enough away from me, and I refuse to continue to stand back and lose the people I love. I can’t do this alone, which is why I’m asking for help. I want to burn his entire empire to the ground and take Crane, Alesi, and Sinclair down right along with him.”
Phantom nodded as he considered it, thinking silently to himself. I prayed to fucking God this plan worked.
Because I’d be signing my own death certificate if it didn’t.
