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“For a second, I was afraid you wouldn’t go along with it. I thought you’d refuse to leave.”
“Let me make one thing clear. I was impressed with your actions, but the only reason I left that room was because I knew Tony wasn’t going to hurt either one of us.” He reached a hand across the table toward her. “But if things go badly with Antonio, I want you to understand that there is no way I’d let him hurt you. I would not leave you. Not while I had breath in my body. He’d have to drag me out of there dead before I’d let him lay a finger on you.”
Charlotte’s lips parted slightly, and a tremble was on her breath. “Thank you.” She cleared her throat and lifted her napkin to her mouth, focusing back on her breakfast. “That’s nice to hear.”
He’d been surprised by the intensity of his own words. But he’d meant every one. It was time to change the subject.
“So…the trafficking. You haven’t finished telling what happened.”
“It’s kind of embarrassing, actually. I got lost. Separated from the group.”
“That sounds careless. A place like that where you don’t speak the language? How’d that even happen?”
“I have no idea. Technically, it shouldn’t have. We talked about what to do if we were separated, and when we went to the markets, we were supposed to stay together. I really don’t know how it happened. A few of us were looking through this one shop full of different trinkets. I was bartering with the store owner, and when I turned around, the two other people I was with weren’t there anymore. I went outside and couldn’t find any of our group. It wasn’t long before I got so turned around, I didn’t know where I was. I stopped and prayed, asking God to help me find my way back to the group or, at the very least, a police officer or someone like that.”
“But you didn’t.”
“No. The first few minutes, I was confident waiting for God to answer, but He didn’t. An hour went by, and the sun was setting, and just before a full-on panic attack hit me, this woman, probably a year or so older than me, stopped and asked if I was lost.”
“In English?”
“Yeah. I was so relieved. As I followed her to the police station she was supposed to be taking me to, I thanked God for his answer and chided myself that I hadn’t trusted Him when I should have known better. He never lets me down, and He came through in the end.”
“But you didn’t end up at the police station?”
“No. I don’t know where we ended up. We left the markets and turned down a bunch of streets, so I had no idea where I was. I wouldn’t have made it back to the markets if I’d tried. She brought me to this building and handed me over to a bunch of rough-looking guys.”
“You must have been terrified. What did you think of God’s answer to your prayer?”
“I was too terrified to get mad at God for the situation I found myself in. All I could think was that I needed Him now more than ever. It wasn’t until I looked back on everything that I understood what He used me to do. If He had asked my permission, I would have said no, but once it was all over and I was safe, I felt it was worth it. That’s why I can’t tell Maddy about it. God is so wrapped up in the whole event, there’s no way to leave Him out, and Maddy doesn’t want to hear that stuff.”
“But what happened? How’d you get free?”
“It wasn’t anythingIdid. I don’t deserve any praise for what happened. God used me as a vessel for His work, that was all. I was just there for the ride.”
“That must have been some ride.”
“It was the weirdest thing. They locked me in a room with this other girl who must have been younger than ten.”
Will closed his eyes to steady himself. He’d seen a lot in his years in law enforcement. It never ceased to surprise him, the depth of human depravity. “Those guys are monsters.”
“Yeah, I know. When I saw her, I thought I wanted to be brave for her, but I couldn’t. I was so scared. She was sleeping when I was locked inside. Or I thought she was. She was leaning against the wall with her eyes closed, looking so peaceful, so I huddled in the corner and tried not to think about what would become of me. After a few hours, she opened her eyes and smiled at me. I was reassured by her warmth, and then I felt guilty that she was the one calming me when I thought I should be doing that for her. She was so young.”
“A smile is an unusual occurrence in a place like that.”
“I can imagine. I asked her what her name was, and all she said was, ‘Remember where you are. Remember the path you take, and follow the sun.’ I thought she was high on something. I know they give the girls drugs a lot of the time, but her eyes were so clear and vibrant. Then she stood, walked to the door, and opened it.”
“The locked door?”
“Yeah.”
“Maybe they forgot to lock it?”
“No. I tried the handle right after they put me in the room.”
“That’s crazy.”
“Yeah. Well, when the door was opened, I looked into the hall, and it was empty. I couldn’t help but think it was a trap, but what kind of trap? What would be the point? I looked back at the girl, and she nodded at me to go. Everything was so silent, I decided to risk stepping out into the hall, expecting the girl to follow.”
