Chapter 1
ONE
BECCA
“Becca?” The man on my porch looks weirdly surprised to see me, which is…
Concerning.
“That’s right.” I literally invited him here. Who in the hell else did he think was going to open the door? I turn from him, since he’s obviously not the brains of this operation, and focus on the woman at his side. “You must be Audrey.” That’s how you greet the person you’re expecting to meet.
“That’s me.” Audrey looks just as cautious as I am as she looks me over. “Have we met before?”
“No.” I step back, motioning for them to come inside. “You should probably get in here just in case somebody’s got eyes on my house.”
I can’t imagine telling the chief of police to go fuck himself earned me any fans.
I don’t know that it would piss him off enough to put me under surveillance. But I can’t say it wouldn’t either.
The guy turns to give the street a suspicious sweep with his eyes then leads Audrey inside. As soon as they cross the threshold, he closes the door and turns to me.
“I’m gonna have to go through this place and make sure no one else is here.”
“I get it.” I step out of his way and motion for him to do what he needs to do to verify I’m not a threat. “Have at it.”
After whispering something to Audrey, the guy disappears to go poking around my home.
“Your house is pretty.” Audrey offers the compliment like I need it. I understand. Most people rely on formalities and expected behaviors in social situations.
It’s a tactic I’ve gotten better at over the years, but holy hell is it tedious.
“Thanks.” I try to think of something generic to offer her back. To put her at ease the way I know I should. But there’s only one question trying to gnaw its way out of my mouth, and no matter how hard I try, I can’t hold it in. “Can I ask why you’re wearing pajamas?”
“It’s a really long story.” Audrey sighs, looking tired in a way that’s not just physical.
“But I basically had to climb out the bedroom window of my apartment two nights ago before running through the neighborhood in the dark to escape men who were likely coming to make sure I didn’t say anything to anyone. ”
Sounds like maybe I was right to be concerned about someone watching me.
I’m not surprised. I knew there was a chance my constant badgering of the cops could come back to bite me, but I didn’t really consider it might bite someone else too.
I’m not sure that would have changed anything, but I’m disappointed I didn’t see all the angles. “That’s probably my fault.”
“I called the police too.” Audrey’s shoulders slump. “Anonymously.”
“They probably just assumed that was me.” And I don’t mind.
I’m frequently the squeaky wheel, because people not following the rules drives me nuts.
“You know, instead of investigating those fuckers who are trafficking young girls, they had the audacity to threaten to prosecute me for making false police reports.”
I’ve never considered myself capable of murder, but in that moment, I was ready to pile the bodies up.
But since I’m not confident in my ability to kill or physically pile bodies, I settled for a ‘go fuck yourself’. Not quite the same, but it was the best I could come up with under the circumstances.
Audrey’s skin pales. “How do you know about the human trafficking?”
The fire that’s been burning through me for weeks turns to an inferno as I give her the reason our stories are now tied. “Because those fuckers have my sister.”
Audrey gasps just as the guy with her reappears to give her the all-clear.
I’m suddenly so tired. Worn down in a way I’ve never been before.
Motioning to my living room, I ask, “You guys want to sit down?”
I lead them in and collapse into my favorite chair, wishing I could give in to the bone-deep weariness chasing me like a specter.
But I can’t. My sister needs me.
I sit a little straighter, bracing for the impact of the story I’m about to tell them. Turning to the man sitting next to Audrey, I begin. “I don’t know if you heard what I told Audrey, but Trevor and the men around him are responsible for my sister’s disappearance.”
He doesn’t look as shocked as I expect. “Are you sure?”
I nod. “She managed to call me once after her disappearance. That was over three weeks ago, and I haven’t heard from her since.”
The man reaches into one of the many pockets on his tactical pants and pulls out a small device. “Is it okay if I record this conversation and pass it on to my team?”
A tiny bit of hope blooms inside me. “I guess that depends on who your team is.”
He gives me his name—Maddox—and then offers, “I work for Alaskan Security.”
There’s no missing the pride in his voice as he explains the company he works for. What they do. What he does for them. Who exactly will be listening to the recording and what they’ll use it for.
I swallow hard, afraid I’m misunderstanding the reason he’s here and the abilities he has. “You guys will help me find my sister?”
“Absolutely, we will.” There’s no hesitation in his answer, and I nearly sag with relief.
But there’s no time to be relieved. Not when my sister’s out there suffering God knows what.
I lean forward and click the record button on the device before immediately starting my story.
“Trevor Hawthorne the fucking third owns a clothing store.” My eyes move to Audrey.
“I believe it’s the store you ran before the separation.
” Turning back to Maddox, I continue. “My sister went to work there about four months ago.
At first, he was never there, but then he started coming in more and more regularly.
“My sister wants to be an attorney when she gets older, so of course she was thrilled about getting to know that piece of shit.” I don’t try to hide my disdain.
“It all started out innocent enough that my parents didn’t see the red flags, but soon she was job-shadowing him and helping out at his office instead of the store. ”
Maddox reaches for Audrey’s hand, gripping it tight. The act bolsters me. My sister’s story is linked with Audrey’s, and if Maddox is committed to Audrey, he’ll likely be committed to helping me take Trevor down.
“I tried to tell her he was just a dirty old pervert trying to get attention from a young girl, but of course she didn’t believe me.
” I sit taller, needing them to know I did my best to stop this before it spiraled.
“I went to my parents. Explained what was happening and told them to get her the fuck away from him.” Pain twists my insides and my throat gets tight.
“They told me I was jealous. Said I’m just lonely and bored and have no life and accused me of trying to ruin my sister’s future so I would feel better about my own. ”
My parents have never understood me, but I thought they knew me at least a little bit. Obviously not.
Audrey’s jaw goes slack. “What the fuck?”
Her reaction makes me feel a little better. “Right? Not everyone wants to go party every night, and not everyone needs a giant group of friends to feel satisfied and fulfilled with their life.”
“When your sister called, did she give you any information about where she was or who she was with?” Maddox’s question gives me even more hope I did the right thing by reaching out to Audrey.
“Where?” I wish she had. I would have driven my car through the side of the building and taken her back.
“No, but I don’t think they took her far.
” I pull my phone from the pocket of my jeans.
“I still have the number, but I’m not sure it will be useful.
I tried to look it up, but it seems like it was probably a burner. ”
I give Maddox the number, along with my sister’s cell number, address, full name and date of birth, where she goes to school, and the names of a few of her friends. I’ve done my fucking homework, and I hope it shows. Hope Maddox sees how determined I am.
“How many times did you call the Memphis police about Trevor?” Maddox asks a question I’m not as keen to answer.
Because I’m sure my aggressive approach didn’t earn me any fans.
“Dozens. Not that it did me any fucking good.” I slump down.
“That department is a fucking joke.” I don’t see how they find their asshole to wipe.
They probably don’t. “It’s almost as useless as their missing persons unit.
” I scoff. “They pretended to look for Amanda for maybe a week, but then pretty much acted like she was just a runaway. I blew their fucking phones up trying to get them to take this seriously, but they just stopped answering my calls.”
Maddox’s eyes slide to Audrey.
She takes a deep breath. “I called a few times, but I was too scared to do more.” She hesitates, but when Maddox gives her an encouraging nod, she continues. “Trevor was abusive, so when I left, I walked away with virtually nothing.”
Audrey spills a story that only makes me want to hunt Trevor down more. It’s so similar to what he did with my sister—acting charming and kind and generous to get her to let her guard down, then turning into a monster.
By the time she’s done, I don’t just want to find Trevor Hawthorne the fucking third and kill him.
No. I want to make him suffer.
Then kill him.
I lean toward Maddox, knowing he’s the one I have to plead my case to. “We have to figure out a way to take these fuckers down.”
“I think I have what we need to make that happen.” Audrey’s admission is so quiet I’m almost afraid she didn’t really say anything.
I try to keep my own voice down so I don’t seem demanding or aggressive. “What do you have?”
“I knew leaving Trevor would be a risk. I felt the only way I could ensure my safety was to have leverage. A bargaining chip I could use to save my skin if it ever came down to that.
“Before I left, I copied everything on his computer to a flash drive and took it with me. It has proof of what he’s been doing.”
Holy shit. We’ve got him. No way will Trevor want all that shit out there. Not when it will hurt his precious political career.