“All right, so it’s settled. Make sure you go back to that place and get whatever shit you have, then come back here. In the meantime, here’s the key. It’s on the third floor, and it’s the second door on the left.” Boss hands Drifter the key, and he takes it, sliding it into a pocket of his jeans.
“Sounds good. Thank you.” Drifter rises from his seat and walks out of Boss’ office, leaving just me and her in the room together as the door shuts.
“Okay, now you and I need to talk,” Boss starts off, and I have a feeling I know what she’s going to say. This is the cult, and it has to be. They must be getting ballsy with getting back at us now and trying to take us out one by one. I wonder if they hired an assassin service to try to do this. The possibilities are endless.
“I know. I can’t believe the cult is going this route now. You’d think they would’ve done it ages ago, but nope.” I shake my head in a bit of disbelief at how far they’re willing to go now. It’s asinine, and if they’re willing to do this, it only means they have no problem doing what they need to, to hurt any of us. I fear it could be children included.
“Reno, this wasn’t the cult. It doesn’t fit their MO.”
“What are you trying to say?” I’m baffled.
“Reno, I think this was personal. From what you and Valencia have both told me, it sure seems like these people were coming after you two. Now, the cult doesn’t operate this way.”
“What do you mean they don’t operate this way? They were trying to take Valencia.” The more Boss is speaking, the more I get upset. These people were shooting at us and then tried to take her while I was preoccupied.
“That right there is exactly my point. We don’t know a whole lot about Valencia, and I think that she was being targeted here, not you. Has she started being more forthcoming with you about her past before the cult took her?”
I stare Boss dead in the eyes. “No, she hasn’t been.”
Boss licks her lips, and there’s a brief moment of silence. “There’s something in my gut telling me that whoever was behind this was looking for Valencia. I want to know why, Reno. I’m prepared to not only have you—” A loud knocking interrupts Boss, and she clears her throat. “Come on in,” she calls loudly, and her office door opens.
Beretta comes waltzing into her office and takes the seat Drifter was just sitting in a few minutes ago. “Hey, guys.”
“You have impeccable timing. I was just telling Reno that I’m prepared to not only have him look into Valencia’s past but you as well. She was targeted, and I know it.” All I can think about is the man at the car dealership when he saw her neck tattoo. It meant something to him, and I’m wondering if this means that there’s something bigger at play here.
“Valencia was almost taken off the street, right?” Beretta asks, trying to get caught up to speed.
“Yeah, and I was shot at.”
Beretta’s lips form into a straight line. “Okay, I know traffickers are getting a lot more desperate these days. We can’t act like they’re not a possibility, given where we’re located. Women and teenage girls are swiped off the streets all the time.”
“Yes, they are . . . but I don’t think this is a typical trafficking situation. I feel like this is personal, and I want you to find out how and why it could be personal.”
“Why do you feel like it’s personal?” Beretta’s asking a good question, and I find myself glancing between both women as one speaks.
“Well, Valencia hasn’t been entirely forthcoming when it comes to speaking about her past. And, if this was a trafficker, they would’ve likely waited until Valencia was alone to take her. Think about it, they don’t want to do anything too risky. Their main goal is getting women and leaving. These people didn’t seem phased by the fact Reno was with her, and they were shooting at them.”
“I don’t think you’re wrong in the least bit. There could be some personal ties here, and we’re going to find out what they are,” Beretta comments.
I’m caught inside my own head, wondering why the hell Valencia would keep any secrets like this when Boss looks right at me. “Exactly, that’s exactly my point, Reno.”
“Sorry, what?” Shit. Did I just speak out loud?
“You said, ‘why the hell would Valencia keep secrets like this?’. That’s my point. Now, I don’t think Valencia is a bad person, but I do think she’s keeping some important information back from us, and we need to know what we’re dealing with before something else happens. I’ll reach back out to you soon, but if you find anything out, come to me immediately,” Boss instructs Beretta and me.
I nod, as does Beretta, and we both leave her office. I head down the stairs, not sure I can see Valencia right now with all of this in my head. This shit is too heavy. The second I walk through the door, Chuckles clears his throat. I look over at him, and he begins speaking. “Just the man I was looking for.”
“What’s up?”
“Feel like goin’ out on a run with me? I have some shit I need to handle, and I don’t wanna go by myself. These fuckers could be playin’ dirty, and I’m not about to go on a suicide mission.”
“Yeah, but what are the details?” Chuckles really likes to seem more important than he is some days, thus why he kept flapping his jaws after I tried asking what was going on.
“There’s this fuckin’ gangbanger a couple blocks away. He’s been selling drugs to teenagers. The dude, fuck, he’s in his thirties. He knows damn well he shouldn’t be selling drugs to fourteen-year-old kids.”
“Men like him make me sick,” I seethe, knowing damn well Chuckles better let me teach this fucker a lesson by the time we get to him.
“Come on then, let’s go have some fun.” Chuckles shoots me a sinister smile, and the two of us head into the garage. We’re about to spill some blood tonight, and we both damn well know it.
