“It’s not personal,” I said softly, covering his hand with mine.

He stared out the small rectangle at the world below us, although I knew he wasn’t seeing it.

I didn’t think he was going to respond. Several minutes passed before he finally looked over at me. “How can it not be personal? He talks about her like she’s nothing more than a slab of meat, right in front of her, and she just takes it.” I growled. “Then she talks to me like I’m nothing to her, and I’m the one who’s supposed to get her out of the mess she’s in?”

“No.” I leaned in as much as I could. We’d booked a flight back to Philadelphia, although I’d had to convince Kaleb there wasn’t much he could do here that he couldn’t do back east. Finally, I told him he might be able to do more for her if Stefano didn’t know what he was up to.

I’d been reaching, but it had gotten him away from the people who were manipulating him so badly. I brushed his hair back. “Maybe you’re not supposed to dig her out of this mess. It’s not easy to save someone, who doesn’t want to be saved.”

“So I shouldn’t pay?” His jaw went tight.

“I can’t answer that.” I didn’t think he should, but I wasn’t going to tell him that. “That’s got to be your decision, but I can tell you that he’s jerking you around. As long as he thinks he has you on a leash, he’s going to use it. And Camry is…well, she’s your leash.”

He stared at me hard and tension pulsed, beating in cadence with my heart. Finally, he looked away and swore. “Fuck. You’re right. What else am I going to do though? Leave her to deal with that prick on her own? She hasn’t been able to do it so far.”

“Maybe she hasn’t been trying.”

Pale, icy eyes cut to me. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“It’s just…” I sighed and looked away. I hated this. “Kaleb, did she seem like she was scared of him? Frightened? Desperate to get away?”

“She…that’s bullshit, Piety. She’s the one who called me.”

“I know.” The airline attendant approached, and I lapsed into silence until she’d gone by. Biting my lower lip, I struggled for the right way to explain this and hated that I felt so uncertain. “Kaleb, he’s got her so suckered in right now, if he asked her to dance the hula naked on the front lawn of the White House, she’d get herself shot trying. That’s how johns and dealers work. She’d do anything to keep him happy, because by keeping him happy, he keeps her happy.”

“So…” He blew out a harsh breath and tugged his hands free. Reaching up to scrub his hands up and down his face, he groaned. “Are you telling me you don’t think he’s been threatening her at all?”

“Hard to say. But…” I lifted a shoulder. “She looked like she was maintaining pretty well. She wasn’t high. If she was in such bad shape that she ended up in debt to the tune of ten grand, I think she would have been looking worse than she was. Which would leave her in not great shape for his…um…other business. That makes her valuable to him. Johns love a girl they can string along and still profit from.”

His eyes flew to mine and blood stained my cheeks.

“How do you know all of this stuff?” he asked, voice rough.

“I do some, ah, counseling of sorts.”

“Of sorts how?”

“I’ve been working with a shelter off and on since I graduated. I was finally taken on full time last year. Most of my work is with at-risk young adults and high school aged girls.” Nervous for reasons I couldn’t explain, I rubbed my hands together and resisted the urge to bite my nails. I’d quit that habit years ago, but now found myself practically smacking my hands to keep from nibbling.

“What sort of counseling?” Kaleb’s suspicion had only grown.

Huffing out a breath, I crossed my arms over my chest and glared at him. “The kind of counseling you give girls who are trying to get away from a life of drugs and prostitution, you idiot. For some reason, I seem to have a knack for it. And I can tell you this – your sister is playing you.”

Something hot and furious lit his eyes, and I watched as his chin went up, and he prepared to battle. Then, slowly, he lowered it, and the tension drained out of his body.

“Shit,” he muttered.

“Tell me about it.”

* * *

“So what do we do now?”

The rest of the flight passed in silence, and I ended up drifting off. Now that the plane had landed and taxied in, I was brooding over what lay ahead.

As we moved through the Philadelphia airport, I glanced over at him, debating on what to tell him. I didn’t like it, but I think I was going to have to…hedge.

If I was upfront, he’d want to come with me, and some of these things would just be easier to investigate if he wasn’t there.

I wasn’t trying to hide anything, but I could move quicker if I wasn’t answering questions, and I already knew he’d have a hundred. Or more. I didn’t blame him.

I would too. But I also knew we didn’t have time for a hundred questions, or even one. I could answer questions after I told him what I’d accomplished. And if I failed…?

Shit.

Then I’d give him the money, and we’d go back out there, and I’d offer Stefano more money if he’d just kick Camry to the curb right then and there. I could offer him enough that he’d do it too. Camry would be pissed, but he was her one anchor and maybe if she was cut off from him, she’d realize how much trouble she was in.

But that was my last option, not my first.

“I’ve got some things I need to do for work,” I said finally, looking over at him.

His mouth compressed into a tight frown.

“We’ll take care of her. I’ll make sure you get the money, and we’ll work on it tonight and tomorrow.” I didn’t like lying. In a way, I was telling him the truth, or a shade of it. I’d given my heart and soul to helping girls like Camry out. It didn’t matter to me that she hadn’t come into the shelter asking for it. She’d come across my path, and she needed it, so that was good enough for me.