CHAPTER 17
GRACE
I waved goodbye to Ryder as Eli pulled the SUV from the parking space. With another suitcase full of money at my feet, this transaction was so far going as smoothly as the last. Snake was eager to take my money again and when I told him I wanted five more women, he seemed pleased.
But something felt different this time.
I couldn’t quite put my finger on it, but maybe it was just me. Perhaps I was just off myself. I’d spent two days hanging out in the hotel room with Ryder and the other guys, waiting for Snake to get back to me. He’d taken his time to call back and I was beginning to think he wouldn’t call back at all, when the phone finally rang and he eagerly agreed to see me the next day.
In the meantime, I couldn’t get those women out of my head. Every hour that passed without me getting them out was one more hour of hell that they were forced to endure. Now that I was aware of them, they’d become my responsibility.
“Can I ask you a question?” Eli asked, as he drove to Snake’s clubhouse.
“Of course.”
“Maybe this is stupid, but why don’t you just call the cops? Turn Snake’s club in and get those girls out all at once?”
“Do you know what would happen if the cops bust in there?”
“No,” he replied.
“They’d take Snake and his club members to jail. If there were john’s there at the time, they’d let them go with a citation and a court date. Then they’d arrest all the women over eighteen for solicitation. If they’re younger than that, maybe they’ll get put in a foster home that they may or not continue being abused in. Or, if they have a home to return to, they’ll go back. That’s one scenario.”
“What’s the other?”
“The other is the cops will be real happy to be informed of the new amusement park that they can go play in.”
“Jesus.”
“Yeah.”
Silence fell over us and I glanced over at him.
“It’s bleak, Eli, I know it is. I started out as a cop. Wide-eyed, innocent, naive as hell — I believed in the justice system. But as time went on, as I saw the corruption and just how deep it goes, I began to see things clearly. The reality is that the victims get caught up in the system just as much, if not more, in cases of domestic violence and sex trafficking, than the criminals do. It’s not fair.”
“I know what you mean,” he said, his voice sad. “My dad killed a man. His brother. His twin brother. But he was trying to save his girlfriend. It should have been clear-cut self-defense, but instead, he’s serving life behind bars. Life isn’t fair.”
“Not, it’s not,” I said, looking out the window. It was another dark and rainy night, just another shiny wet evening in a string of endless identical nights in the Pacific Northwest. After a while, with rain like this, you just stop noticing it. Kind of like life. You can easily forget how horrible it is, even when it’s pouring down on you. I guess anyone can get used to anything.
“What do you think of Sophia?” Eli asked.
“Sophia? Snake’s old lady?”
“Yeah,” he replied. “Why do you think she’s there? She seems so out-of-place to me.”
I shrugged, thinking about the woman with the big hair and fake smile.
“I don’t know,” I said. “She looks like she has the freedom to come and go as she pleases, but you never know in a situation like that. I’d imagine Snake keeps her on a pretty short leash, for the most part. Men like that usually like to be in control.”
“So you think she’s a victim, too?”
“I didn’t say that,” I said. “But I guess she could be. She’s well aware of what’s going on, though. If she’s a victim of Snake’s, it doesn’t mean she’s not complicit, too.”
“Yeah, I guess,” Eli said. “I just wonder if maybe she needs help, too.”
“If Sophia asked me for help, I wouldn’t hesitate to help get her out of there.”
Eli nodded, his expression thoughtful and somber as we pulled up to the compound. The dogs ran to the gate, barking a vicious, familiar chorus that echoed off the tall concrete buildings behind them while we parked.
We stepped up to the fence, hit the button and waited for Snake to appear.
****
Picking the women was even harder this time. Some pleaded with me to take them. Others just stared me down, almost daring me to choose them. I hated that I had to go slow. I wasn’t sure how long I could keep up this charade or buying a only a few at a time, but I knew Snake wouldn’t give them all to me at once because that would wipe out his entire business. Sure, up front cash was easy money but a dependable, ongoing income stream was important, too.
If I took all of the girls, he would have nothing to offer his clients.
Which sounded fucking fantastic to me, and I couldn’t wait to shut him down completely. If I went too fast, however, anything could happen.
He could get suspicious and stop doing business with me.
He could relocate the girls…or worse. Eliminate them completely.
There were certainly enough guns in this place to do just that…
So, I was balancing a thin line here. I couldn’t move too slowly or too quickly. I had to make him think he was in charge, that he was the one benefiting the most from this scenario.
Tonight, I chose five girls who looked the youngest, hoping the other victims could survive a few more days. They’d come this far. It was the younger ones that were more vulnerable, the easier to break. I needed to save them first.
The five I chose stared me down defiantly, but I didn’t miss the hint of curiosity in their eyes, either. I couldn’t wait to get them alone in the car and tell them who I really was, to see the look of relief wash over their faces. But for now, I was just another monster in a long line of monsters looking to make a profit off of their bodies and pain.
Of course they looked at me like that.
“Let’s go,” I said, doing my best to retain my hard demeanor. This time, Sophia led the way out and Snake came with us. They walked us out as if it was the most natural thing in the world, as if we were leaving a party and they were the gracious hosts sending us off into the night.
I glanced over at Eli as we walked towards the exit gate together silently. His eyes were darting back and forth over to Sophia, who I noticed was watching him from the corner of her eye as she walked next to him. I had no idea what was going on there, but this was no time to think about it. These girls were literally steps away from freedom.
I’d already given the suitcase full of cash to Snake and there was nothing left to do but walk out of the gate. Rain poured down around us, falling in puddles at our feet.
A commotion to my right caught my eye and I watched as Sophia stumbled in her heels, landing painfully on her knees. Eli was right next to her and he leaned down immediately, his arms going around her to steady her.
“Are you okay?” he asked, his voice thick with concern.
“Yes, these damned heels,” she murmured, struggling to get to her feet. Eli pulled her up by her hand and she stood on shaky feet, staring up into his eyes. A second passed. And then another. Eli’s eyes were glued to Sophia’s and her hand was still in his.
I cleared my throat just as Snake stepped in.
“What the fuck, dude?” Snake growled, as Eli took a step back, his hands falling to his sides. I cringed, holding my breath, waiting for Snake’s reaction.
“S-s-sorry,” Eli stuttered, shaking his head. His eyes were clouded in confusion.
“Keep your starry fucking eyes to yourself, boy! And if you lay another hand on my old lady, you’ll be picking your severed fingers off the ground, you hear me?”
“Sorry, Snake,” Eli muttered, looking away. “I didn’t mean…”
“It’s fine, Snake!” Sophia cried. “For fuck’s sake, he was just helping me up, don’t be such a fucking Neanderthal, babe.”
Snake grunted, his eyes flashing in anger that he was thankfully controlling.
“Eli, get the girls out of the rain and in the vehicle, please.”
“Of course,” he said, running out of the gate and opening the doors. The girls got in and I turned back to Snake.
“Great doing business with you, Snake,” I said. “So far, so good. I’ll be back for more in a few days, if that’s okay?”
He looked at me stoically, his eyes raking over me as he slowly began to shake his head.
“I don’t know, Grace,” he said. “I think we’re done here.”
“Done?” I asked, my heart sinking.
“Yeah,” he replied, turning and walking away.
“Why, Snake?”
He stopped and looked over his shoulder.
“I can’t afford to give up any more of my girls. I got what I wanted out of the deal. Nice to meet you, Grace. Thanks for the cash. See ya around sometime, maybe. Sophia? Come on.”
“Um, I just gotta get something out of my car, babe, I’ll be right there.” She turned to me and shrugged. “See ya, Grace. Take care.”
“You, too,” I said, turning back to watch Snake walk away with dread. I wasn’t ready yet. I needed so much more time. And it was so much easier this way. If Snake wouldn’t let me take the girls the easy way, then we’d have to do it the hard way and that only put everyone involved in danger.
I knew one thing.
I was going to get every single one of those girls out of there if it was the last thing I did.
I hopped in the front seat and turned to face five pairs of expectant eyes.
“My name’s Grace and I work for an organization called Solid Ground. You’re safe now…”