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“It’s a failsafe. They’ll keep it just different enough to know exactly who it is without naming full names. I had to dig deep to find even this,” I explained. “This is their keep-your-mouth-shut file. The one that if you spoke a word of it, you’d be dead, with ten hitmen after you in seconds.”
I wasn’t sure if I should give Bailey everything I’d found. This was bordering into our world, not just hers. She’d trusted me to search for these, but could I risk pulling her deeper into this chaos? For all I knew, she was already there.
I knew one thing for certain; I couldn’t keep this from my father or the Family. He was personally invested in this group, and so were they. We had known that the trafficking ring existed, but I had never managed to get this deep. Having a specific name of a victim was a game changer.
The omega trade had always been unsettling for us and the Family. For alphas that had no desire to search out a pack, the ones who just wanted to breed omegas in heat, it was their solution. They were provided with a list of omegas of any age, type, or flavor for them to partake in. I wasn’t sure where the ringleaders were keeping them all, but I doubted it was anywhere safe or comfortable.
Then I saw his name, Henry Burke, and it was connected right to the name she’d handed me. Not only was he involved, he had fathered a child.
My father had dedicated his entire criminal career to finding this web, and we’d just found the biggest lead of our lives.
And we owed it to our mate.That name and hotel had given us far more than any leads Dorian had thrown our way.
“Hayes, why do you look like you’ve seen a ghost?” Bailey questioned. I didn’t know what to tell her, so I simply shut my laptop and looked her in the eyes.
“I can’t tell you anything more yet. It’s bigger than me,” I told her bluntly.
“What?” she ground out. “You don’t know what’s at stake here. You have to tell me what you found! Hayes,please.” It wasn’t really a plea but a demand. The fire inside Bailey was back, and she was more than a little pissed off that I was holding back on her. I warned her it could end this way.
“All I can say is that this involves your precious senator,” I said evenly. The comment wasn’t meant to come off as sarcastic as it did, but there was no going back now.
“My precious senator,” she mocked and shook her head. “You know, I thought you were different than your brother. Don’t assume you understand me or what I’m dealing with, Hayes. It’s clear that you don’t trust me, which is fine. Apparently, I don’t trust any of you either. Should have kept this shit to myself,” she muttered under her breath as she stood up, then she walked away and slammed her door behind her.
We’d pushed the omega far enough that she was hiding in her room in her own apartment. I felt like a dick, but it couldn't be helped. What I’d just found was bigger than either of us. Still, the beta part of me longed to go after her and offer whatever comfort I could. Having my omega angry and hurt was not something I wanted. Even the lingering scent of my mate was soured by the anger that still hung in the air.
But it was unavoidable.
“What happened?” my father barked as soon as he answered the phone. I’d stepped into the bathroom to make this call, keeping my voice low so she couldn’t overhear.
“Bailey gave me two things she wanted help finding. I think it was what she got in that envelope. There was a location, then a birthday and name for a child.”
The sigh that resounded was followed by a thump as if he were sitting down to give me his full attention.
“I can already see where this one’s going,” my father said heavily.
“The address popped up with a hotel, and eventually we found out a local nickname for the place—the Garrison.”
My father’s cursed response meant he knew that place well.
“That’s the old hotel down on South Grand Street. Is it…”
“It’s a hotspot,” I admitted. “The name that she gave me took me to a list, one that wasn’t meant to be found. Birth records that named the mothers and their connections to prominent men. The particular name she had was a child of the senator. A bastard child he worked hard to keep under wraps.”
The dark web was precise. Your searches had to be completely narrowed to get anywhere, and when you did get where you wanted, the urge to turn back would overwhelm you. I pushed past it every time, but this time I was shaken.
The images… I couldn’t unsee them, couldn’t even describe them, nor did I want to. They were solid evidence of these alphas’ involvement, meant to keep them in line. I was never meant to find them, and part of me wished I hadn’t.
“Weknewhe was involved,” my father growled. Something shattered in the background, and I hoped that he was alone. I’d hate to face the brunt of Cyrus’ anger.
He fell into silence, and I gave him the time to process. A moment later, my brother’s voice echoed through the line.
“What’s happening?” Sterling asked.
My father ignored him. “You’ll show me that when I get there. Did you tell her what you found?”
“No, and she’s ten shades of livid. I told her the only thing I could, that we thought the senator was connected and this ties to a trafficking ring. She’ll put it together, but she’ll never get the details that we have. That might just keep her alive,” I said quickly.
“That might be just enough for her to not dig deeper. She doesn’t know what she’s getting into.”
