Kaki thought she might throw up. She had to get out of this room. Maybe she could pretend to have a panic attack or something. Lots of kids did that to get out of tests and stuff.
Detective Jackson leaned forward, her fingers tapping on the table top just in front of Jaida’s hands. “How many kids you know that do this kind of thing? Send naked pictures of themselves to ‘get with’ the boys they’re interested in?”
Jaida shrugged, visibly surprised at Abbie’s question. “Everyone.”
“Everyone?” Abbie asked. “I’m sorry, Jaida, but I find that hard to believe.”
“Yeah, everyone sexts.” Jaida looked to Kaki as though expecting her to concur.
Kaki clenched her lips and her fists tight, dropping her gaze to her lap.
Detective Jackson’s mouth pursed, her eyebrows arched. “Everyone you know at this school sends out nude pictures of themselves?”
“Yeah. No one thinks of it as any big deal.”
Everyone? Kaki didn’t think it was everyone. Her friend Riley never did. Although sometimes it seemed like everyone. Thousands of followers on their social media accounts probably helped play into that delusion.
“All right, girls, let’s get down to business,” said the detective. “These pictures originated from Sydney Diaz’s social media account on December 10th. She’s missing now. We’re trying to locate her. I know you were both friends of hers, so this picture aside, I’m hoping you can help me out here. I know you were both at the party. Where did this party take place?”
Kaki would not say another word.
Jaida blurted out, “At a party. Back before Christmas.”
“Whose party?”
“Gio George’s party.”
Now she was going to faint as well as throw up. This was the worst thing that could happen. Damien would probably kill both of them now.
“Does he go to this school?”
“Yeah,” Jaida said in a tone that suggested surprise that Detective Jackson didn’t already know that. “He’s like the star football player, Gio George. You know.” She shot another glance at Kaki as if to say, can you believe this chick doesn’t know Gio George?
Detective Jackson turned her computer back around and typed information into it. “OK. Do you remember if Sydney took this photo?” she asked.
“Nah, that was a guy named Damien.”
“What?” Kaki shrieked. Defending Damien was instinctive. “No, he didn’t!” As soon as the protest rolled off of her tongue, Kaki slapped her hand over her mouth. Damien hadn’t taken that picture.
“Do you know this Damien?” Detective Jackson now turned her attention to Kaki. “Does he go to this school?”
Jaida sat back in her chair, a smug expression on her face. “Damien? No, he’s like, old.”
Kaki wanted to scream at her, you don’t know what you’ve done!
“How old?”
Jaida crossed her arms over her body. “I don’t know. Twenty-five or something.”
“What’s his last name?”
“I don’t know his last name.”
“How do you know him?”
“He’s a friend of Gio’s. He had a bunch of girls with him,” Jaida glanced over at Kaki as if to say, you know you were one of them.
Chills ran over Kaki’s arms even as sweat formulated at her brow.
“But…you know, like everybody be takin’ photos that night.”
“Who else was taking photos?” The detective asked.
Jaida threw up her hands again. “How am I supposed to know that? There were like, a thousand people there that night.”
“Really. A thousand people?”
“Yeah. You seen Gio’s house? He lives in a mansion.”
Detective Jackson turned her gaze back to Kaki.
Kaki looked away.
“And how about you? You know this Damien guy?
Kaki shook her head. “No. No, I don’t.”
~*~
When Kaki got home to her dad’s house that afternoon, she pulled all the blinds and double-checked the locks on all the doors. Her dad had taken Brandon out to dinner, and then they were supposed to go to some men’s group meeting at the church, and she was supposed to keep Micah and Celia. He had texted her earlier in the day. Don’t go anywhere tonight. We need to talk.
He probably wanted to talk about what had happened at school that day. But she couldn’t talk about that. She’d already spent thirty minutes on the phone with her mother evading questions and trying to make it sound as if this was all a big misunderstanding.
Every few minutes she checked her phone—waiting for a text from Damien, but other than her mom and dad sending her text messages and leaving voice mails, her phone had been silent. That was not a good sign.
Every time a car drove down her street, she rushed to the windows to make sure it wasn’t Damien’s electric-blue Mustang or Hubby’s black pick-up. And she was out of her little blue pills. She could already feel the beginning of the sweats starting. She didn’t know how long she could hold off before she sent a text—too desperate for a fix to worry about her safety. The only thing that was keeping her from doing it was Micah and Celia.
Kaki moved into the bathroom and looked out the window to see if Josh’s car was in the driveway. She was thinking about taking Micah and Celia next door, but not if she had to face Josh. Not after what happened today.
Molly’s car was the only one in the driveway. If Molly would let them hang out there, they’d all be safer for a little while. None of the members of MOS would come looking for them there. “Come on guys,” she said to Micah and Celia, trying to sound excited. “We’re going next door to see the puppies.”
“Yay!” Celia jumped up. “I want to see the puppies!”
“OK, but you can’t touch them or hold them or anything,” Micah warned her. “They’re too little.”
Celia pouted. “But I want to hold them.”
“You can’t right now.” Kaki pulled Celia’s arms into her coat. “In another week or so. When they get a little bigger.”
“Kaki, when is Mommy coming home?” Celia asked as Kaki zipped up her coat.
Kaki felt sorry for them. Even though her mother was crazy, she’d still had her around while she was growing up. “I don’t know. Soon, hopefully.”
Celia’s blue eyes filled with tears. “But I want her to come back.”
As though he sensed an emotional explosion coming, Micah rushed forward and took his sister’s hand. “Come on, Celia. Let’s go look at the puppies.”
Less than ten minutes later, Kaki was standing in the kitchen watching Molly spill Oreo cookies onto a platter.
Celia buried her head in Kaki’s shoulder, screaming. “I want my mommy!” She was so distraught her breath was catching, and her mouth yawned open in the shape of an O as she shook out a silent wail. Finally gasping in air, she let out a shriek that rattled Kaki’s ear drums.
“Look, Celia,” Kaki said, wrenching Celia from her neck and forcibly turning her so she could see Trixie sitting in her gated area surrounded by squirming puppies. The dog’s brown, soulful eyes rolled from Kaki to Celia and finally to Micah, who sat down on the other side of the gate and looked in at her. “Look, Celia, look. See the doggie there? That’s Trixie.”
As the dog came into focus for the little girl, her face changed, softening from the red, bunched-up mask. Hiccupping and sniffing, her face blotchy and slick with tears, Celia climbed off of Kaki and joined Micah in watching the dogs.
Kaki slumped with exhaustion.
Molly rushed over and pulled her into a side hug.
How much did she know?
“How are you doing?”
“I’m fine,” Kaki said quietly. She wished she could tell her the truth. Her chest ached. The pressure of holding in all of these secrets…
Molly nodded and returned to the counter.
Celia’s crying quieted, and she and Micah talked about each of the puppies—their coloring, the names Celi
a thought they should have, which ones she wanted.
Kaki sighed. “I saw her, you know.” The words were out of her mouth before she even had a chance to contemplate them.
“Who?”
“Lana. I saw her out on the stoop that night—with her suitcase. She was just sitting there.”
“Did you say anything to her?”
“No.”
“Did she say anything to you?”
“No.”
“What time was that?”
“Like, around one in the morning or something. I don’t really know.”
“What were you doing out there?”
Kaki was risking everything. She was in so much trouble. Damien would probably kill her anyway. At least this way, if she did end up dead, someone would know something. “I was…I was uh…sneaking out to meet Damien.”
Molly shot her a disapproving glare. “Katherine.”
“I know. I shouldn’t do that.”
“No, you shouldn’t. And please don’t do it anymore. I don’t think your dad can take another thing. He looks like he’s going to collapse.”
“Yeah, I know.”
“Promise me you won’t sneak out any more. It would really, really upset him.”
“I don’t know if it really would.” Kaki looked down at her feet. “I don’t know if Dad really cares about me that much, you know?”
Molly’s eyebrows raised. “Why do you feel that way? I know your dad loves you and cares deeply, but you’re obviously feeling that he doesn’t. Why?”
Kaki looked up at the ceiling, trying not to cry. “I don’t know. I’ve felt like that for years.”
“Since when?”
“Since I was like, thirteen. My dad used to talk to me all the time. We played games and had dates together and stuff. He used to call me Kaki. It was his pet name for me.” Pain radiated through her at the memory.
Molly smiled. “I’ve heard some people call you that.”
“Yeah. I always liked it. Some of my good friends still call me that. Some of my aunts and uncles, too. But not my dad.”
“Why do you think he stopped?”
“I don’t know,” she said. “He just stopped. I haven’t heard him call me that in years.”
“What about your boyfriend? Does he call you Kaki?”
Damien called her baby…but she didn’t think he’d ever used her name. The realization drove a cold, panicky feeling through her. “No, he doesn’t call me Kaki either.”
Micah and Celia suddenly laughed loudly at something the dogs did.
Kaki turned, momentarily distracted, but Molly continued her questions.
“So what is that you like so much about Damien?”
Kaki gritted her teeth. Today it was hard to remember. “I don’t know. He’s nice to me sometimes. I don’t know.”
“How is he nice to you?”
“He’s just like…he gives me a lot of gifts and stuff. He tells me I’m pretty. He takes care of me.”
“You’ve told me that stuff before. I want to know what Damien is really like. Does he ever hit you?”
Incidents flashed through Kaki’s mind—images of bruises and cuts—sensations of searing pain in her cheek from the back of his hand. “Not really.”
“Not really? I don’t like that answer. Does he hit you in any way? Because, Katherine, if he does, that’s abuse—”
“No, he doesn’t. He doesn’t,” she said quickly.
“And why does he make you wait outside for him in the freezing cold? And why does he make you sneak out? And why can’t your parents know about him? I’m sorry, but this just doesn’t sound like a healthy relationship to me.” She pulled her toward the table in the kitchen and motioned for her to sit. Molly sat in the chair beside her. Her voice was low as she spoke. “I have to be honest with you, too. Josh has told me about the photos…and about the party.”
A wave of emotion swept over Kaki. Like a rag doll, her head flopped onto the table. Her shoulders heaved with sobs.
Molly’s arm draped over her shoulders. “It’s OK. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to upset you.”
All the fear and terror and sorrow erupted inside Kaki like a volcanic blast. But she still didn’t think she could confide her deepest concerns—that Damien was coming for her whole family. She straightened and looked into Molly’s face.
Molly reached out and smoothed the hair from Kaki’s face. “Is there anything you want to tell me?”
Oh, yes, how she wanted to. But she couldn’t endanger Molly, too. Despair overwhelmed her again. She couldn’t share her secrets with anyone. “There are just some things I can’t talk about.” Her phone vibrated and she looked down at the screen.
Damien.
Her heart jerked.
Be ready at 11. Im picking u up.
23
Tyler
Saturday, January 7
Tyler still needed to have the talk with Katherine. But when he and Brandon had arrived home last night, the house had been quiet. The kids were in bed and Katherine’s bedroom door was closed, the lights off, so he’d figured she was sleeping, too. It could wait until morning.
After feeding the younger ones bowls of cereal and packing them off to watch cartoons, Tyler planned to wake Katherine and get to the bottom of this. He glanced at his phone sitting on the kitchen counter. There were messages on his voice mail.
Christina, Christina, Christina. He scrolled past them to the next message. His heart jolted. Lana. According to his call log, she had called around 4:00 AM, which meant it would have been 1:00 AM her time. “Hi, Tyler, it’s me. I know I haven’t called all week. I’ve just been…I don’t know…trying to get set up here—starting the new job and all. I was busy and…well, I just needed to think without talking to you or the kids. Anyway, I’m here. I’m safe. All is well. I don’t know if you’ll want to talk to me or not, but if you do, you can call me at this number. I’m staying with Erin until I find a place. OK…I guess I’ll talk to you later…maybe?”
No questions about him or the kids. All about her. As usual.
Clenching his teeth together, Tyler slammed his phone down on the counter. He still couldn’t believe she had done this. Grasping at his hair, a sound of anger and frustration bubbled up and out of his throat.
“What’s wrong, Dad?” Micah called from the family room.
Tyler repressed more outbursts. “Nothing. Everything’s fine.”
He would have to look into some kind of child care for the kids. He couldn’t keep relying on his parents, the neighbors, or his older kids. What a mess. He was suddenly furious with Lana.
A knock at the door roused him from his angry musings. Dread raised its ugly head as he approached it. Through the beveled glass of the door, he could see a female form. Abbie Jackson.
He opened the door. Her thin smile was eclipsed by the lines on her forehead.
“Hi, Tyler. I’m sorry to bother you on a Saturday morning.”
“That’s OK. What’s up?”
“Can I come in for a sec?”
Tyler stood back from the door. He sensed a different vibe from her than their polite coffee shop chit-chat. She was here for something serious. His heart caught in his throat. God, help me. Whatever it is, give me the strength to bear it.
“I spoke with your ex-wife this morning, and she told me that Katherine was at your house. Is she here? I need to speak to her as well.”
“She’s sleeping, but I’ll go get her.” Tyler moved upstairs, his chest heavy. Katherine was in trouble now. It was as though a vortex of misfortune swirled over his house.
Opening the door, Tyler couldn’t remember the last time he had been in his daughter’s room. The first thought that swept through his mind was how clean and neat everything looked—almost as if no one lived there. Or like a room used for sleeping and nothing else—a temporary crash pad. The second thought was that the bed was made. He stared at Katherine’s empty bed.
Tyler went back downstairs and peered out
the front door. Katherine’s car was still there. “Her car’s here but she’s not. One of her friends may have picked her up, or she may be over with the neighbors.”
He quickly called Molly. Katherine was not over there. Scratching his head, he sat down across from Abbie. “She may have had some school thing this morning or shopping with her mom or something. Who knows? Teenagers, you know.”
He hadn’t even known she’d had a boyfriend—and he didn’t know what she was involved in nowadays. There had simply been too many other things going on.
Abbie looked at him, her gaze somber and all business. “I really need to speak with her. I already talked to your ex-wife. Katherine’s not with her. And I need to speak with you, too.”
The messages from Christina on his phone. A familiar falling sensation assaulted him. Brandon’s words about Katherine’s boyfriend simultaneously returned to him. His mouth felt dry. “What’s going on?”
“We think your daughter may be involved with a guy named Damien Rosas-Diego. Know him?”
Tyler shook his head.
Abbie removed a photograph from her bag and held it up for Tyler to see. “This is him.”
Tyler’s skin pimpled with chills. He stared directly into the face of evil. Black hair and black eyes—like those of a viper. A black T-shirt with the emblem of a dragon matched the tattoo on his neck.
“Ever seen him before?”
“No.” Tyler was barely able to breathe the word. “I don’t think so.”
Abbie put the photo back in the folder. “He’s not someone you want your daughter entangled with. He has quite an impressive rap sheet. Drugs, assault, a list of gang-related crimes.”
“He’s in a gang?”
“Yes. He’s a ring-leader in the Masters of Sin.”
Tyler nodded his head. Was he having a heart attack? He couldn’t breathe. Something pressed in on his chest.
“They’re local. Wreaking havoc all over this area and in the area schools as well.”
“I didn’t even know she had a boyfriend.”
“Tyler, he’s not her boyfriend. He’s her pimp. This is all about teen sex trafficking. That’s their game.”
Suburban Dangers Page 21