Chapter 21
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
SLOANE
When Hayes and I walked back into the cell, Nyx was standing over Toby with a sliver of wood in her hand.
"I thought I would have some fun while we waited for the two of you to sort your shit out."
I knew Nyx didn't mean it the way it came out, but I could feel Hayes tense, so I spoke before he could. "How many nails have you taken off so far?"
Slowly pushing a sliver underneath the nail bed was more painful than ripping the nail off with pliers. I fully supported Nyx’s version of fun.
"Only two. I was enjoying prolonging his suffering a little too much.
" Nyx beamed at Toby. "Plus, I was curious to hear how many different ways he could curse me out.
" This time, Nyx sighed. "Unfortunately, he's not very creative, and bitch or cunt seems to be his go-to.
" She looked dead serious when she said, "I was hoping for at least a rancid tart or a stale shrew. "
"Really?" I asked her dumbfounded. "That's what you came up with."
Nyx shrugged. "I was trying to be fast on my feet. Give me some time, and I'll have more creative ones for you."
"You're a crazy fucking bitch!" Toby screamed.
My teammate tossed her hands in the air. "See what I mean. I even gave him material to work with, and he still chose bitch. I told you he was dumb."
"Enough." Anita put a halt to Nyx's fun. "Tell us how The Givers picked the children."
"Why should I tell you?"
How Toby thought he had a leg to stand on was beyond me. He had to see how screwed he was. There was no getting out of this situation.
"Because you have two choices," Anita told him calmly. "Tell us, and we end your life quickly and with very little pain. Don't tell us, and we will spend however long we need to torturing it out of you."
"Oh!" Nyx jumped in. "And before you choose, you should know, two of the best interrogators are in this room. The torture techniques we've mastered over the years are both creative and effective. Not to mention would make most terrorists salivate."
She wasn't exaggerating. Anita and Nyx made torturing an art form. They’d researched medieval techniques simply because it entertained them. Well, it entertained Nyx. Anita simply wanted new ways that people weren't prepared for.
"Oh, and I forgot, we could make your death painful as well. My friend here"—she hiked a thumb at Anita—"once cut off a guy’s dick and shoved it up his ass with a fire poker. It was actually poetic justice, if I do say so myself. Kind of wish I’d thought of it first."
I tried not to laugh as every male in the room grimaced. It was a pain none of us women could fathom.
"So what will it be?" Anita raised her brow.
Toby appeared to be contemplating his options. I had no idea which part of that required him to think, considering he already got a precursor to the torture Nyx was capable of. But hey, maybe he was into that sort of thing.
It was crazy to think that, for years, the mere thought of this man made me spiral in ways I couldn't control, and yet, one vulnerable discussion with Hayes and I felt lighter than I had in a decade.
"The Givers’ reach is far and wide," Toby started.
"It's not just organ trafficking. They have connections with foster agencies, adoption agencies, hospitals.
If it has to do with a child, they have their hands in it.
Their motivation is money, and they work solely with the most elite families in the world.
Their goal is to eliminate the poor so only the rich survive. "
And I spoke too soon. Alarm bells started ringing in my head, and from the look Anita was giving me, the same thing was happening for her.
My chest ached, and I had a feeling I knew where this conversation was going.
My final secret was about to make an appearance, and there was nothing I could do about it.
There was a good chance I had some of the information all along, and I didn't even know it.
"And how exactly do we get a list of these agencies?" Anita carefully asked.
"Easy. They use the code word 'fairy godmother' for everything."
A kick to the stomach would've hurt less than Toby's admission.
"Hold that thought," Anita barked. Then she grabbed my arm and dragged me out of the room until we were out in the chilly night air with Hayes close on my heels.
"Fuck! Fuck! Fuck!" I bent over and screamed into the night. The little progress I made with Hayes was about to go poof.
"I take it the code word means something to you." Nyx pulled me out of my spiral.
"You could say that." I rubbed the back of my neck, but it did nothing to relieve some of the tension building by the second.
"Sloane." I looked up at Anita's gentle use of my name. The woman didn't know the meaning of gentle, so that alone was concerning. "I think it's time you tell them the rest."
Arguing would be pointless. My teammate was right. This last secret needed to see the light of day. Then maybe Hayes and I could move forward after we took down The Givers.
"I'm not sure how to say this other than to rip the Band-Aid right off.
" I took a deep breath and grabbed Hayes' hand to help ground me.
And it would have the added benefit of keeping him with me when I tore his heart out for the second time tonight.
"My incident with Toby didn't just end that night after I ran away.
Two months later, I found out I was pregnant. "
Just as I suspected, Hayes tried to pull away from me, but I refused to let go. "Don't. I need you." The words were nothing more than a whisper, but I knew he heard them when he stopped trying to escape. Hayes would always give me what I needed even if it hurt him in the process.
"Wait," Nyx seethed. "You're telling me that fuckwit raped you, and he wasn't even smart enough to wrap it up?"
I nodded. "Yup. All it would've taken was a rape kit, and he would've gone to jail.
But after my parents turned their back on me, claiming it was my fault for spending time with trash, I decided to run instead.
That's how I met Anita and Nova. I was alone in the world and wanted someone to teach me to defend myself.
Instead, they became my support system during the most horrific time in my life. "
"What happened to the baby?" Beckett was ready to commit murder. It was written all over his face.
"When I first found out I was pregnant, I didn't want to believe it.
I didn't know how the universe could be so cruel. My first reaction was to get an abortion, and up until my first appointment, that was exactly what I’d planned to do.
Then I heard the baby's heartbeat, and I couldn't imagine punishing the baby for something that was no fault of theirs.
With the help of Anita and Nova, I went through with the pregnancy but decided adoption was the choice for me.
I was young. Barely able to support myself let alone a baby.
I was worried every time I looked at the baby, I would see Toby, and I didn't want that reminder.
And truthfully, even if I wanted to, I couldn't seem to form a connection, which made giving the baby up that much easier. "
"No one is judging you for the decision you made," Lilith spoke up for the first time.
I appreciated her saying that even if there were days where I judged myself.
"You keep avoiding words like him or her," Beckett stated the obvious. "Is that intentional?"
"I didn't ask the gender of the baby, and maybe that should've been my first clue something was off.
The doctors and the adoption agency didn't push me on the request. My 'fairy godmother' as she called herself, made it seem like it was normal that I was insisting on the separation and was more than happy to whisk the baby away the second they were born. "
"So you don't know anything about your child?" Nyx clarified.
"I know the date of birth, the time, and the hospital. I never had a reason to look into it further."
"Maybe it's time you did." Nyx looked around at all of us. "I say we contact Hawk to see what they can find out."
Hayes gasped next to me. "How do you know that name?"
The better question was how did Hayes know Hawk?