He would keep both of the new girls at his house, under lock and key if need be. Then the thought occurred to him he could still get Jenny back too. He resolved to find that lady and Jenny. He would take back his, well Alex’s property.
He would do whatever he could to make this right with Alex. His life depended on it.
Lenny’s phone rang until Pride assumed he was still asleep. Hanging up the phone she felt the emptiness in her house after Jenny’s departure. She’d called Lenny for solace, but he’d not answered.
She walked to the front room and pondered the door. It was not secure. She was no carpenter and had few tools. Something would need to be done.
As she was considering who to call to help her repair the door, her phone rang. It was Lenny.
His familiar gravely voice felt comforting to Pride as it came through the line. Once their greetings were past, Pride said, “Jenny’s gone.”
“Gone?” Lenny was startled. “Gone where?”
“She got out. I helped her get into a program that will help her get an education and a job. They’re really nice people. It terrified her thinking Gus would kill her, and she was right, he would have. I think he’s the one who’s been killing all those girls.”
Lenny thought for a moment. “That don’t make sense Pride. Them’s his bread and butter. And he answers to Alex. No one in his right mind crosses Alex.”
Pride thought about that for a minute. Lenny was right. But Gus’ behavior seemed erratic lately. “I think he’s gone crazy Lenny. He busted in my door last night looking for Jenny.”
“He did!” Lenny’s voice held panic. He wanted to help Pride, but he was old and brittle. What could he do? “Come stay with me for a while.”
“No, there is a cop outside for now. But I need to get someone to come put me a new door in. I tried to fix it, but I’m no carpenter. I got a little money put back. You know anyone I can call?”
Lenny thought for a minute. “Yeah, I know someone. Let me get him on over there.”
“Thank you Lenny. I loved her you know.” With Jenny gone Pride broke down and sobbed. “I don’t think I can do this anymore Lenny.”
“Hey there, girl. It’ll be okay. I’ll come over with Bruce. We’ll sit while he fixes the door.”
“Ok, Lenny,” said Pride. “Thank you.”
Pride hung up and once again the silent, empty house suffocated her heart.
Randy and Carrie drove Jenny and Beth back to Penny’s Place where Beth had left her car.
Tears had gently rolled down Jenny’s cheeks during the entire ride. Beth allowed her the time to grieve and remained silent.
When they were back at Penny’s Place, Beth got Jenny in her car and walked back to say goodbye to Randy and Carrie.
“Thank you for your help this morning,” said Beth.
“We’re glad we were here to help,” said Carrie. “We still want to talk to Lisa. Let us know when and where and we will be there. We still have a killer to catch and even though a lot of signs point to Gus, it still makes little sense unless he has genuinely lost his mind.”
Beth nodded. She wanted the killer caught too. “Lisa is very fragile, like Jenny. Would it help if I brought her into my office in private and asked her a few questions? I would relay everything to you and also let her know she should talk to you as well. Sort of prepare her ahead of time.”
“It could work,” said Randy. “But you might miss something in her demeanor or tone of voice we would easily catch.”
“The first inquiry we initially make is usually very informative beyond the verbal answers,” said Carrie.
“Okay, I’ll plan a time and we’ll get together soon. Let me go back and get Jenny settled in.”
Beth opening the car door startled Jenny, who was lost in thought. She already missed Pride and was second guessing her decision to leave her.
The ride to Safe At Last was a circuitous route. Beth never drove straight anywhere anymore. The ride was also quiet. She didn’t want Jenny to feel that she was under interrogation.
Back at the house, Beth helped Jenny with her bag and gave her a big smile. “It’ll be okay, Jenny. I’ve done this for a long time and seen many success stories.”
Jenny looked up at her, “Are some stories not a success?” Her brows were pinched together with concern.
“Some stories are not a success, Jenny. But that will depend on you and how much you want your story to be one.”
Jenny thought about that for a moment. “I want my story to be a success for Pride.”
“You should want your story to be a success for you. Pride would want that.”
Jenny nodded. That was hard to think about now. She would just take it a moment at a time and do what Beth said.
Once back at Safe At Last, Beth showed Jenny to the room she would share with three other girls when fully occupied. Right now it would be just Jenny and Lisa together. She then showed Jenny the layout of the house winding up in Beth’s office. Beth shut the door behind them and gestured for Jenny to sit.
“This is my office Jenny. In here we can talk in private, so anytime you need to talk with no one else hearing, we can talk in here.” Beth waited for Jenny to respond. Jenny nodded and Beth continued.
“This home is meant to be a sanctuary to help you and others heal and develop skills to move forward in your lives. While you are now free from the bondage of being forced to sell yourself, there are still rules of order we must maintain for your safety and ours. But I don’t want you to see those rules as another form of bondage.”
Jenny once again nodded. “It may seem at first as if you are swapping out one freedom for another, but if you feel restricted, it is for you protection. Do you understand?”
Beth handed a sheet to Jenny. “This is a list of our routine and basic rules here at the house. We have a set time for our meals, and then group time. You do not have to take part in group time, but I urge you to do so. Even if you don’t want to talk, please be there to support the other girls.
“I’m assuming that you didn’t graduate high school. Is that correct?” Jenny nodded. “We have volunteers that can tutor you so you can take your GED. That will give you a certificate of high-school equivalency. During that process we will explore career options. What are you good at, what you enjoy, that kind of thing. We want you to gain skills to work at something you will enjoy.”
Jenny sat wide eyed. She had dreamed when she was younger of what she had wanted her life to be, but not in a long time. “I don’t know what I can do,” said Jenny.
“We’ll explore that. I think you’ll be surprised.” Beth smiled at Jenny, and Jenny smiled back for the first time that morning. Beth loved seeing these girls blossom from the pitiful life they had been forced into, and into something fresh and joyful, although it was usually a long and painful process.
“We have tight security here for obvious reasons. We want you to feel safe and able to sleep at night and live here in peace. With the current situation we are sending volunteers to go with the girls who leave for school and work. You are not in prison, but it may seem like it for a while until things settle down.”
Jenny’s eyes got big, and she huffed out, “Fine by me!”
Beth suspected that Jenny hadn’t felt safe in a long time.
“Jenny I also have to ask you about drug use. Many of our girls come in here addicted to one or several drugs. We need to know so we can help you come off of them safely.”
Jenny ducked her head. “I use meth from time to time. Pride got me clean, but sometimes I would get some when I couldn’t take it anymore.” Jenny looked up at Beth waiting for her reprimand.
“Are you on something now?” Beth asked.
Jenny shook her head. “No.”
“When was the last time you used?” asked Beth.
Jenny thought back. She wanted to answer truthfully. “About a week ago.”
“Ok. That’s good. You’ve not had anything for a week. That is good Jenny.”
<
br /> Jenny’s face beamed.
“Will you promise me something? If you get to feeling like you need to take something, will you come to me? You won’t be in trouble. We will talk about why you want to use and hopefully we can get you past the urge.”
Jenny nodded. She always had the urge, but Pride had helped in that way, too. She never wanted to let Pride down, and would resist the urge as long as she could.
“Do you have any questions?” asked Beth. Jenny shook her head no.
“Well, then let’s get you out there meeting more of the girls. Would you like to help in the kitchen this morning getting lunch ready?”
“I can’t cook.” Jenny was instantly concerned. No one had ever taught her to cook, and she was afraid she would disappoint Miss Beth.
“You don’t have to cook. But the cook’s need help cleaning and with other chores. You can chop things, right?”
Jenny smiled and nodded.
“My goodness what a morning,” said Carrie.
“I didn’t expect that, did you?” asked Randy.
“Not at all.”
Back at the office Carrie reworked the part of the board where Lisa was. She was now a known and was alive. Carrie erased the question mark above her square and wrote a note ‘Safe At Last’.
“I like that name,” said Carrie.
“What name, Lisa?” asked Randy.
“No, Safe At Last. I like that. Do you think these girls really are safe at last?”
“I hope so, but I suspect not all are,” replied Randy.
Carrie sat down at the computer going through piles of emails. “Forensics got skin underneath both girl's fingernails. No hit in CODIS, but it was the same for both vic’s. If we find the guy, we’ve got him.”
“That lets Gus off the hook. We have his DNA,” said Randy.
“He’s still a killer,” said Carrie. “I would like nothing better than to put him away too.”
“I would like to take down the entire string of human traffickers,” said Randy. “But that probably won’t happen in my lifetime.”
“So what if it was a client that both Cami and Mandy had? Something set him off, and he’s killing the girls he was with. Maybe he couldn’t perform. Killed Cami and then went with Mandy, and the same thing all over again.” Carrie paused to let that sink in with Randy.
“Sounds plausible. Both girls worked the downtown area. Could be a guy that works down there or goes to events down there.” Randy paused and leaned back in his chair. “Oh hell, there are thousands of men down there for thousands of reasons.” Randy sat forward again feeling the frustration sink in.
“If it is a client, then the other girls may know him. We should ask them about clients who stand out to them in an odd way or who had trouble getting the job done,” said Carrie.
Carrie turned back to look at the white board again. She’d written client on a list on the board. Gus was on that list but rather than erase his name she drew a line through it. The need to get him and see him rot in prison burned in her.
“Did Mike and Rick ever turn up anything further from Cami’s family? Did they find any sign of where her sister went? We need to make sure the other agencies have her picture.” Then almost to herself she said, “but it would be lost in a sea of others.”
She turned around and rested both her fists on the edge of her desk and leaned in towards Randy. “Law enforcement gets a bad rap for not solving these types of murders. They accuse us of not caring or not working them hard enough. But the truth is, we have so little to go on. The people who can help us with information won’t help us.”
Randy nodded. “These trafficking rings scatter the girls world-wide, and there are so many of them I don’t know what we are supposed to do. I have a daughter and it would kill me if she disappeared. I know the odds of finding her and getting her back.”
Carrie stood upright and turned to look at the board again. “Does Sandy talk about Safe At Last?” Carrie asked.
Randy’s face winced. “Yes, and no. I think she wants to gush about it, but is hesitant because she is so concerned about what I’ll say.”
“I thought you were finally on board with it?” Carrie asked.
“I am, or have tried to be.”
Carrie turned back to look at Randy and grinned. “You make an effort to appear on board, but she can see right through it.”
Randy sighed. “I know. But I just can’t. I know it is important to her, but even though she’s heard the stories and seen these girls this last week, I still don’t think she gets just how dangerous this is.”
“She has a good head on her shoulders. She’ll be okay.” Carrie smiled a reassuring smile at Randy.
“I hope so.”
Just then Randy’s phone rang. It was Beth. “Lisa has agreed to talk to you. She met Jenny this morning, and they talked. Jenny encouraged her to talk to you and she agreed.”
“We got DNA from under the girl's fingernails. It wasn’t Gus. Don’t tell the girls. He’s still a danger and we don’t want them to get a false sense of security. He’s not innocent and if we can get him on something, we will,” said Randy. “Where shall we meet?”
“We can meet back at Penny’s Place around one or one-thirty if that’s ok with you,” said Beth. “We’ll get past lunch here, and then Lisa and I will head over there.”
“We’ll see you at one-thirty,” said Randy as he hung up his phone.
Chapter 9
“Can Jenny go with me?” asked Lisa. It terrified her to do this. She was terrified to leave Safe At Last.
Beth pondered Lisa’s request for a moment trying to decide if it would help or hinder what Randy and Beth needed to ask Lisa. Would she be more open and forthright, or more hesitant to answer their questions.
“I need to check with the agents first,” replied Beth.
She dialed the phone and Randy answered on the first ring. “Lisa has asked me if Jenny can come along. She is terrified and hoped Jenny could come for moral support. I didn’t know if it would hinder or hurt. What do you think?” asked Beth.
Randy looked at Carrie. She had heard Beth’s question over the phone. Carrie nodded a silent yes and Randy responded to Beth, “We think that’ll be fine. We know Jenny, and who knows maybe it will help Jenny remember things as well.”
“Okay. I just want to follow what will help this process, not work against it. We’ll see you soon.” Beth hung up and went to find Jenny.
“Jenny, I am taking Lisa to visit with Randy and Carrie back at Penny’s Place. She’s scared and wondered if you would come with us. The agents said it was fine if you came. What do you think?”
Jenny liked the agents. They hadn’t seemed to judge her, and she felt comfortable with them. Maybe if she went, Lisa would feel comfortable. Jenny nodded and agreed to go.
Beth went to finish paperwork and take care of other things that needed her attention.
Jenny went to find Lisa. She was in their room. Beth had wisely put them together. Lisa sat on the edge of the bed hugging her pillow tightly to herself.
Jenny sat on the bed opposite of her. For a moment she said nothing. She understood the stress Lisa was feeling.
“They are good people, ya know?” Jenny’s question wasn’t really meant to be answered, but merely stated in order to comfort Lisa.
Lisa looked up at Jenny. “I’m so scared. I’m terrified Gus will find me.”
“I know, but I feel safer here, don’t you?” Jenny asked.
Lisa nodded and looked back at the floor. “We’re kind of in the same boat you know. We are both Gus’ girls and we both had our friend killed.”
Once again Lisa nodded. “I keep wondering why Mandy and not me,” said Lisa.
It was Jenny’s turn to nod. “I know,” was all Jenny could say. They sat for the next twenty minutes in silence before Beth came to get them.
The ride to the diner was quiet and somber. Beth reassured both girls that the agents only wanted to help them and to find the kill
er.
“You can help them do their job by telling them everything, no matter how small something seems. They have to have as much information as possible to do their jobs well.”
“If Gus killed Mandy and Cami, and we say something that gets him arrested, will we have to go to court and see him?” Lisa trembled as she spoke.
“I don’t know,” Beth was honest. She didn’t know how this would all turn out or what would be required of the girls in the future. “But if it gets him off the street and away from other girls he might hurt, won’t it be worth it?” Beth asked.
Both girls nodded as they pulled into the lot at Penny’s. Randy and Carrie were already there and were drinking coffee. Beth could see them laughing with Alice, the waitress who had served her parents for the last fifteen years.
The lunch hour rush was dwindling and several patrons were leaving the diner. Beth sat still in the car for a moment. She was always thoughtful of her surroundings and those around her. So as she sat she looked at those coming and going and at those she could see through the windows of the diner.
Everything looked normal and nothing seemed off, so she turned to look at the girls and smiled. “We’re here.”
As he adjusted the salt and pepper shakers on the table before him. he noticed that grains of salt had escaped their confines. His mind flitted about searching what to do.
He did not want his hands to touch the table. No doubt it contained bacteria. He could blow the salt to the floor, but then that would put the debris on the floor. There was no solution except having the waitress get a clean rag and wipe the table down fully.
A few booths away a tired waitress noticed his hand slightly in the air. It was as though he were a student not sure if he had the answer to a question the teacher had just asked, but who wanted to try it anyway. What on earth could he want now, she wondered.
She nodded his way as if to show she had seen him and would be there soon. She then finished pouring the black coffee into the old ceramic cup that sat in front of the handsome OSBI agent. It was the second time that day he had been in, both times with the with lady OSBI agent.
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