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“Um.. uh, I’m… I th-thought.”
“You th-thought? What did you th-think?” I mock her and Odette laughs, cruelly beside me.
She gives me a look that screams of the pain streaking through her body and mind right now.
And then she turns and runs away, taking every little inch of my self-respect with her.
Kiara
Kiara
Present Day
Shi Lei is rushing out the door when I arrive at The House, and I catch her in my arms just as I step off the elevator.
"Shi Lei! It's okay... it’s okay,” I say, holding tightly onto to her shaking body. Ananya had texted me as I was in a cab on my way here and told me that Jimmy, the janitor from the club had dropped by with Shi Lei’s purse and told Ananya that the club owner was furious that she’d disappeared. He’d vowed to find her and make her pay. Unfortunately, Shi Lei had overheard and she was apoplectic with fear.
Holding her tightly is for her own good as I try to keep her from shaking in my arms. I hold her, gently whispering comforting noises until her body slackens and her sobs fade to the occasional hiccup and sniffle.
Her fear is still palpable; my whole heart breaks for her and those in her position. No one should have to feel this scared at the mere mention of an employer’s name.
My hand strokes the side of her head, patting her hair.
"Better?" I say, once she's breathing normally, and she looks up at me, giving me a small nod. "You are going to be safe here. We will keep you safe and will not let anyone hurt you again."
The way her eyes flick side to side tell me she's not so sure, but maybe she'd be willing to give it a try.
"Come on, come inside and we'll talk."
I take her hand and lead her inside, as the other women empty one of the three bedrooms to give us some privacy.
After spending an hour answering all of Shi Lei's questions, I help her into her bed, pulling the curtains shut, blocking out the harsh morning light. I sit by the bed, holding her hand until it grows limp as her exhausted body falls into sleep. I don't leave immediately, not wanting her to wake up to see me gone. Finally, her breathing steady, I gently tiptoe out of the room and see Ananya sitting in the living room with tea waiting for me.
"How did it go?" she asks.
"Okay, I think she's going to be all right, she's really scared though. She says the club owner knows where she lives, so she's scared to even go there to grab her stuff."
"We won't let her go alone."
I nod. "Apparently, when he hired her he'd promised her all sorts of things. How much money they would make, how much they would have to… do, with the patrons, what their hours would be. But it was all lies. As far as she knows, there are new girls coming every day."
Ananya swallows. No matter how many you help, you can't help them all. "Jimmy will be busy."
"I don't know if we can keep putting him in this position. Sooner or later they're going to find out he's helping."
She shrugs. "He wants to help."
"Maybe we can find him a job doing something else.'
Ananya says out loud the words I don’t want her to say. "But we need someone to help there."
"But that doesn't mean we can put our friend in danger."
We both have the same thought at the same time and blurt out, "We need more security."
I add, "And we need a bigger place, somewhere we can house the girls in one place, it's easier for us to keep them safe."
"What did you have in mind?
