Chapter Twenty-Nine
Before
Amirah
I stare back at my reflection in the mirror with bright LED lights around the edges.
My green eyes glisten, and I run my fingers through my fake straight-blonde wig that sits above my shoulders, watching the room go by around me.
Girls come in and out the side door as if they’re lost, that faraway look in their gaze.
Some girls speak in another language. Spanish, I think.
It’s been three days since I last came to Magick, looking for Jewel, and now I’m back again, determined to find her and bring her home to her mom. This time, I slipped right in the back door, another hundred-dollar bill greasing the way for me.
Aubrey, the girl I met the other night, sits in the chair next to mine and grabs some hair spray.
“Go to room eight. Jewel is there,” Aubrey says so quietly, I almost don’t hear her.
I look toward her, and she slides a key card across the counter. I grab it and shove it inside my lace bra.
“Is she okay?” I ask, and Aubrey sprays her hair without looking my way. “How old are you?” I ask the one question that’s been on my mind since Tuesday, when I was here last.
“I’m fourteen,” she says, and I suck in a breath. “Does your mother know you’re here?”
Aubrey shrugs, studying her nails. “What mother?”
“Did she pass away?” I ask, softening my tone.
“She couldn’t wait to get rid of me. She left me on the streets, chose drugs over me, and the guys at the club took me in, gave me a home,” she says, and my heart breaks for her.
“I’m sorry,” I say earnestly.
“Don’t be. I’ve got it good because I’m loyal—unlike some of the others who don’t want to be here.
They hate it. I feel sorry for the ones who want to get out .
. . and that’s the only reason I’m talking to you.
” She places the bottle back down and turns to look at me, then grabs my wrist. “Don’t get caught by the enforcer.
People who disobey him are never seen again. ”
She turns back around, and tears spring into the backs of my eyes.
She’s fourteen? And this is her only way off the streets?
What the fuck? This isn’t right. None of this is right.
I have to release them all. How many others are underage here?
Do they know what they are doing? Do they have a choice?
There’s so much I want to ask her, so much I want to know.
“He’s coming,” Aubrey says, and all the girls move, rushing around the room. Aubrey grabs my wrist and squeezes. “You have to go now in case he realizes you’re not one of us!” she says urgently, and I move quickly toward the door opposite the closet.
I grab the handle and turn back around. All the girls are kneeling on the carpet, eyes cast downward and hands resting on their knees.
Anger builds up inside me, and I want to stay.
To help. To find out what’s going on. What sort of sick person would make other human beings wait for him like that? As if he’s some kind of god?
Memories of Aubrey’s scar flash through my mind.
The kind of person who thinks he is above everyone else.
Aubrey catches my gaze and points toward the door, urging me to leave.
Fuck, I wish there was something I could do, but I have to get to Jewel first. She’s my priority. I leave through the door Aubrey pointed to and head into another dimly lit hallway. Each door I pass has a number on it. Five, six, seven. Eight—I stop outside of that one and press my ear to it.
Voices carry from inside the room. Groans too. My hands shake. I carefully open the door, and chaos erupts.
Jewel screams. She rolls off the bed, her wild red hair flying around, and covers her naked body. She doesn’t look like the vibrant young girl I remember. Her body is thin. Eyes hollow. Goddamn it.
“What the fuck?” an old guy grunts, sitting up on the bed. His erect cock is on full display.
“You need to leave now,” I say in a calm voice, in complete contrast to how I’m feeling inside. Angry. Confused. Worried.
“Fuck off, slut. I paid for this. You get lost,” he says, and I take another step inside.
I pull off my wig, stepping closer as my dark hair falls down my back. “Do you know who I am?”
He frowns. It takes him a couple of seconds before his eyes widen and he rolls off the bed. He gathers up his clothes and runs from the room.
“Fuck. Sorry,” he says, before slamming the door shut behind him.
Jewel stays hidden beside the bed, and I move around and kneel in front of her naked form. Bruises line her arms and ring her throat. Shit. Her eyes lock with mine, and she bursts into tears, throwing her arms around my neck.
“Amirah,” she breathes.
I wrap my arms around her slim, naked back, holding her as trembles rack her body. Her tears soak my skin, and I hold her tighter. She needs me and I’m here for her.
She pulls back and watches the door closely, her brows drawing together.
“You need to leave. The enforcer, he always does the rounds at midnight, and if anything’s out of place .
. .” She shudders and rubs the bruises on her arm.
Whoever this enforcer is, he needs to die.
The fear he puts in these girls kills me.
Jewel stands and grabs her clothes from the floor. She puts on her lacy nightgown, tying it around her waist.
“What’s the best way for us to get out of here?” I ask.
Jewel’s face pales. “I can’t leave.” Her bottom lip wobbles, and I squeeze my eyes shut, taking a deep breath.
I grab Jewel’s shoulders gently, not wanting to scare her more than she already is. “Yes, you can. Your mom is worried sick. Come on.” I step back, grab her arm, and start moving toward the door.
She pulls out of my grip and shakes her head. “I’m not allowed to leave.”
“Yes, you are. You’re coming home,” I reply, reaching the door. My hand rests on the handle.
“This is my home. They own me,” Jewel’s voice is so low, I almost think that I’ve misheard her.
Fuck. We don’t have time for this. I thought the difficult part of the rescue would be finding Jewel—not convincing her to come home. This place has brainwashed her and it kills me. How many others are just like her, not understanding what’s right or wrong anymore?
I release a heavy exhale and turn back around, moving in front of Jewel to grab her hands in mine. She doesn’t pull away, but her gaze is at our feet.
“Nobody owns you except you. You can be free if you want to,” I say, gently resting my fingers under her chin, and I raise her gaze to mine. “Do you want to be free?”
Tears pool behind her brown eyes. She nods, and that’s all I need.
I intertwine our fingers and move back toward the door.
After twisting the knob, I look out into the corridor.
Loud voices carry from farther around the corner, getting closer and closer.
Damn it. I close the door behind me and Jewel stands there.
Her eyes are full of tears. Black smudges run down her cheek.
“Is there another way out of here?” I ask and Jewel shrugs, pointing toward the adjoining bathroom. The door is wide open. I step inside, flicking on the light. There’s a clawfoot-style bathtub sitting opposite the door and a small window above it.
Jewel shuts the bathroom door behind her, and I kick off my heels, then climb into the bath, reaching for the window. It’s too high.
“Come here,” I say to Jewel, and she joins me in the bath.
“I’m going to hoist you up. Open the window and get out. Got it?” I ask, and Jewel bites into her bottom lip, nodding.
I push her up by her ass, and she reaches the window. A loud bang comes from inside the bedroom and we both freeze, watching the bathroom door. Fuck. We have to move. Now.
“Hurry,” I whisper to Jewel, and she opens the window, lifting the pane up. She pushes out the screen, and it falls to the ground outside. I boost her up higher, and she climbs through the window headfirst. Then she’s out.
The door handle twists and my heart skyrockets.
I jump up onto the edge of the bathtub and grip the window ledge, pulling myself up.
I push my chest out the window. Jewel is standing against the brick wall, her body shaking.
She reaches up for me as I push myself farther through the window, kicking my legs.
The bathroom door opens and someone curses.
A hand grabs my leg, and I scream. Jewel grips my arms, pulling me out, but the person holding my legs is too strong.
I’m pulled backward through the window, the pane digging into my stomach feeling like it’s ripping my insides apart.
No! I kick hard, hitting whoever has their grip on me, and Jewel pulls, bringing me farther outside.
Hands latch on to me again, but I keep kicking until I’m falling right on top of Jewel. We tumble to the ground with a heavy thud, and she groans from beneath me.
“Sorry,” I say, before a deep voice yells through the window.
“Hey!”
I jump up, reaching out for Jewel. She grabs my arm, I pull her up, and we sprint down the alleyway.
We don’t stop until the club is far in the distance and my lungs give out.
My conversation with Aubrey has left a weight on my shoulders.
This is bigger than just one stolen girl.
I’m not stopping until I save every single girl in that room who wants to be saved.
I’ll work to find them places to stay, and jobs they can rely on that don’t mean prostitution—especially at the age of fourteen.
I wanted something meaningful to do with my life, and this is so much more than that.
Those girls didn’t have anyone looking out for them before—but now they do.
That enforcer better lock his doors at night because I’m coming for him, and I won’t stop until he’s dead and those girls are free.