I ride to her place. Domino and Jumper were already here and found nothing. I see a brother camped out across the street. It’s one of the prospects, and I give him a nod as I head to the neighbors’. It’s a long shot, but we’re going to keep a brother on her place till we know more.
No matter that it’s close to ten at night, the door opens after the first knock, and I’m greeted by Avery. I just look at him and watch his jaw work back and forth before he nods.
“Bailey? Is that Bailey?” Dionne comes down the hall and pulls the door open wider to see. “Oh, hi, Reese, honey. Have you seen my Bails? She hasn’t answered all day. I’m starting to get worried.”
“Mr. and Mrs. Haven.” I take a deep breath, never expecting to say this to anyone. Especially someone I’m hoping will become family one day. “We believe she’s been taken.”
“Oh my God.” Dionne covers her mouth with her hand as tears spring to her eyes, and her husband wraps his arm around her.
“Why don’t you come inside, and you can tell us from the beginning.” Avery leaves the door open as he helps his wife turn and leads her back down the hall.
Her cries almost send me over, but I ground myself with another deep breath. I refuse to give up and break down.
Shutting the door after I enter, I run my thumb over the RM tattoo on my opposite arm. I willnothave another death on my conscience. I refuse to mark my skin in that way. I’ll find my girl. I will bring her back to me and to her family.
Because anything less will be a death sentence for me.
Chapter 30—Bailey
I’m trying not to freak out. I really am. But I don’t know how much longer I can keep my shit together. Hunter and I were in the back of the van for what felt like hours before we were ushered into a house and then down into the basement. I barely had time to look around before we’re pushed into a room and locked in. It’s dark down here, but it’s obvious we aren’t alone.
When my eyes finally adjust, I see at least nine others. I can’t make out much of their features, but they’re all girls except for Hunter. And they’re all young—really young. I have to swallow the vomit that immediately comes up when I see them and my brain puts two and two together.
These kids are being trafficked. God only knows how long they’ve been down here.
“Ms. B,” Hunter says on a shaky breath as he takes in the room with me.
I nod, even though I doubt he sees.
I take a step closer to them, as they’re all crowded together by the back wall. They flinch after my first step, so I stop. “Hey, I’m not here to here to hurt you. My friend and I were taken too. Are you guys okay? Is anyone hurt?”
No one speaks up, but at least a few shake their heads, letting me know they hear me.
“I’m Bailey, and this is Hunter.”
“Um, hey.” He waves awkwardly, and I find myself smiling a little at it.
“Are you going to get us out of here?” one girl, who can’t be over ten years old, asks.
I shake my head. I can’t lie to her. “No, I don’t know how.” I watch her cuddle in on herself, drawing her knees closer to her chest and resting her head on them. A few shudders rack her tiny shoulders, and I know she’s crying.
Leaning down, getting on my knees, I reach out and touch her shoulder, just a quick one to get her attention, and then pull my hand away. God knows what they’ve already been through. “But I’ve got friends. Friends I know are looking for you, for all of you.” I look over the rest of them and see a flicker of hope in their eyes. “They aren’t the type to give up. So all we have to do is be strong till they get here. Do you think you can do that?”
This time I look back to the girl who spoke up first, and she nods repeatedly.
“Good. Now, before they come back, can anyone tell me what they know about this place? Do they let us out for bathroom breaks? How often do they bring in new people? Have any of you been moved from another location, or has anyone already left and not come back yet?”
I don’t know how this is all going to pan out, but I sure as hell am not going to just sit here with my thoughts and freak out. I need something to focus on. Maybe the Hounds will come, maybe they won’t. Whatever the case, I know I need to be strong for these kids. No one else has if they ended up here, and I refuse to be just another person who lets them down.
Even if it costs me my life.
We’ve only been here for a few hours, but what I’ve learned has killed some of my hope already. I should have figured the smell coming from the opposite corner from where the girls are huddled is considered our bathroom. All the five-star rating of a bucket that never gets changed. Which apparently isn’t that big of a problem since we only get fed once a day. Or so the girls think. This room is windowless, the only light coming from the bottom of the closed door, and I can’t tell if it’s sunlight or artificial. I hope we get fed at least once, even if it’s just a few bread rolls thrown at us like they say happens. Apparently, whoever is on food duty likes to make a game out of how many girls he can hit in the head and make cry. It wouldn’t be that much of a sport, but I guess the guy really sucks at throwing. Something one girl said before she was taken away, and no one has seen her since.
The guards evidently come down to feed us, and they sometimes take a girl or two away to take photos, then bring them back. Sometimes they do more than take photos. I told them they didn’t have to talk about it, so they don’t have to relive it, which is stupid since I bet all they’re doing is thinking about and reliving it every second they’re trapped down here. There’s no escaping what’s going on, and what’s going to happen to them if we don’t get rescued.
The jingle of keys has all the girl whimpering and huddling closer to the wall. I sit in front of them, Hunter beside me. He hasn’t said much, but he’s the second oldest. Probably the only one besides me who truly understands what this is all about.
I blink, the light pouring in from the other room hurting my eyes, but then I gasp.
