“Then think of a fucking plan.” I shout at him as I walk away from him, back to the table. Sitting next to Argos as he works on two laptops at the same time.
Argos looks over at me, “I will find him, I promise,” moving a little closer to me, “congratulations,” he whispers and gets back to the laptop.
***
I hear Cash and Argos talking. Slowly opening my eyes, I must have fallen asleep on the couch. Sitting up, I watch them both getting their guns together. They must have some plan together if Argos is also going along.
Walking over to them, they both look over at me, “You have a plan?”
“Raphael sent a message. He will kill your dad if we don’t meet him in an hour with you,” they both look at each other then back at me, “and we both know that we can’t take the risk.” Cash says, and I know that he's not happy about this at all and his whole body is tense and I’m worried about him. Will he focus on what’s happening in front of him, or will he have his eyes on me the whole time?
I watch Cash walk from the table and I look over at Argos, “I’m not going to lie, neither one of us is happy about this. The way he loves you, is a lot deeper than he loved my sister. He’s scared, and so am I.” Argos tells me, I never thought I would see these two like this.
“I’m scared too,” I say quietly.
“I want you to wear this,” Argos hands me a bangle, “just in case,” he whispers to me.
All I can think is, just in case of what? Will he take me again?
Cash walks back over to us, and gives Argos a nod. Grabbing the bag, he leaves the house, leaving Cash and I alone. Once we hear the door shut Cash places his hands on my face and gives me a kiss. I place my hand on his, as he leans back a little.
“You stay close, promise you won’t do anything stupid,” his voice is scaring me, and it’s only making me more nervous.
“Promise.”
“Once this is all over, we’re going underground for a few months. While Argos gets this together, so you better think of a new name,” Cash gives me a wink, “and I have a good one to put after Lucy.”
“I would love to take this new name you have for me,” wrapping my arms around him, and that’s when I think about it, I don’t even know what his last name is, I’ve never asked him.
“We have a plan, don’t worry about after this. But for now, I need to know…”
“Cash, I love you. I’m right there with you, no matter what happens, I will fight this to the end with you, and whatever else comes our way.” I reassure him, I know that he was worried about me before, but now it’s double the worry. The woman he loves and his unborn baby.
“Take this,” Cash hands me a gun, “keep your eyes open,” I give him a smile and a nod. This is it, time to end this once and for all.
Chapter 25
Cash
She’s silent as we drive to the location, I’m pissed that Argos won’t be able to have CCTV on us, but then I should have known that Raphael isn’t stupid. I just hope that we make it out alive, all of us. “Argos, tell me you have some fucking eyes around there?” I need to know who’ll be around, knowing how many I’ll be up against.
“So far, I only have eyes either side of the forest. What type of asshole picks a fucking clearing to have the meeting?” Argos bitches. “I’m trying to see if I can get a fucking drone or something around there.”
“He chose it for one reason, no eyes. That fucker is up to something and right now we’re just pawns in the fucking game.” I reach over and lay my hand on Lucy’s stomach, “It ends today.” Lucy covers my hand with hers, this is what I’m doing this for; them. Their safety and to make sure that there is no one to come after them when all is said and done.
“So far there’s no movement, no cars, nothing. It’s too fucking quiet. This asshole has been one step ahead of us the whole time.” Argos informs me and I shake my head. What the fuck is going on? I hate the unknown but right now I feel as though Raphael is about to play an ace. “I’ll keep you updated.”
I continue to drive, making sure that I’m not followed. “I feel as though something bad is about to happen. Why do I feel that?” Lucy asks quietly, her hand still on mine over her stomach.
“It’s your gut screaming. Listen to me now, you shoot everyone if you need to. If you have to go through me to get to them, you do so. Do you understand?” I speak harshly but she needs to understand that this isn’t a fucking game, lives are at stake and if she has to shoot me or her father then so fucking be it.
“Cash, I can’t shoot you.”
“You can and you will if need be, same with Raphael and your father.” She goes to protest but I silence her with a look, “To save you and our child, shoot everyone.”
“Okay Cash.” I don’t believe her, but I’m hoping if the time did arise, her survival instincts will cut in and she’ll take them out. She doesn’t speak for the rest of the journey. When I pull up, Argos tells me that there are six men here along with Raphael and Lucy’s father. Not as bad as I thought, I thought he’d have men at every entrance to make sure I don’t escape.
This fucker chose a good fucking meeting point. It’s in the middle of nowhere and the trees are overgrown, he’s making sure that I have no eyes in the vicinity. Which also means he won’t either. Whatever game Raphael is playing I sure hope that it’s about to end. I need that fucker out of our lives for good and I have no qualms whatsoever in making sure he dies a slow and painful death. That bastard makes his brother look like a damn saint.
Making our way into the clearance, Lucy’s hands holding my t-shirt is as tight as possible. Her fingers dig into the material, I can feel the material stretching as she does. Her head buried into my back, her breath hot and heavy against my skin. I see Lucy’s dad, on his knees but no one else in sight. My gut is screaming at me, there’s something wrong with this picture. It makes no damn sense. Where the hell is everyone? Why the hell is he alone?
I hear Lucy gasp and I know that she’s just spotted him, my t-shirt goes slack and I know that she’s let go of me. She darts towards her dad but I manage to grab a hold of her arm. I won’t let her near him, not now, not until I know for sure what the hell is going on. She struggles against my hold but I pull her closer to me.
“Cash, you’ve got to let me go to him.” She sounds pissed and right now I don’t give a fuck. My job is to make sure that she is okay and having her run toward her dad isn’t safe. “Please Cash, I need to go to him.” she starts to punch and scratch at my arm around her, trying to get me off of her.
“Lucy, stop struggling.” I whisper, “Let me check that it’s okay first.”
I hear laughter and I know that it’s Raphael, that bastard is around here somewhere.
“Show yourself you coward.” I call out to him.
“Cash, what the hell are you doing?” Lucy whispers madly at me.
“I need him to show himself so I know what we’re up against. Lucy, I need you to stay behind me and let me talk, please do not get involved. Keep quiet and make sure you hold onto my shirt at all times.” I bite out, I don’t mean to be an asshole right now but I need her to do as I ask.
She doesn’t say a word but curls her fingers into my shirt and leans her head against my back. Thankfully before the asshole himself comes out into the clearing, obviously, he was waiting to make his grand entrance.
“It’s good to see you looking so… Alive.” He sneers at me.
“Haven’t you heard that you can’t keep a good man down?” I wink at the fucker, his face turning a putrid shade of red.
“Where is my queen?” He asks looking around, “Where are your men? Surely you are not stupid enough to come alone?”
I let out a laugh; the fucker is getting more pissed off by the second. “Stupid? Your feeble attempts at trying to get rid of me are actually quite insulting. Are you that scared of me that you have to have your men try and kill me? It's pathetic Raphael. It shows who you truly are, nothing but a coward. Suppose it
runs in the family. Your brother was also a coward, but it’s your father that you learned it from.”
“My father is a great man.” He spits out, he’s mad as hell.
I bait him even further, this fucker has to slip up some time, and I’d rather he go crazy now while I’m in the position to end him. “Your father is the biggest coward of all. Kidnapping girls and selling them; it’s disgusting and vile just as he is.” His eyes narrow and I realize his dad isn’t going to be his trigger, “I bet your mom is proud of you and Luis, hmm? Her boys turning into the monsters she tried her best to put away...”
“Don’t talk about my mother.” He shouts interrupting me.
“Why? It’s true; you’re vile and disgusting just like your father. The very person your mom despised. She tried her hardest to make sure that he was put away for what he did and now you’ve taken over for him. She’d hate you.” Lucy screams at him and I pull her back behind me, pissed that she didn’t listen to me.
A sinister smile forms on Raphael’s face, “Ah, there’s my queen. Still don’t have any respect I see.”
“Respect? Respect is earned, something you’ll never have. Not from me, not ever!” She screams at him, Tears falling down her face as she stares at her father, who looks ashamed instead of hurt. What the hell is going on?
Raphael does his maniacal laugh, “What about your father? Does he have your respect?”
She looks at him with confusion, “Of course,”
“He shouldn’t, he’s everything you despise. But then again, now that your father is one of those you may change your mind.” Raphael says taunting her.
“I don’t despise my father; he’s one of the best men I know.” She says matter of fact.
Her father bows his head in disgrace and I just pray that what I’m thinking isn’t true, that my mind is running wild. If what I think is true, I’ll fucking gut him where he stands.
“Funny, that you think that.” The smirk on his face tells me that he’s enjoying fucking with us.
“Enough!” Her father cries, “Enough!”
Raphael walks up to him, “No, you tried to betray me. You don’t give me orders.”
“Betray him, what the hell?” Lucy whispers as dread fills my stomach.
“You see my Queen; your father is like me…” Raphael tells her and Lucy takes a step closer to them, my hand is on her tank top ready to pull her back if need be.
“No, I’m not, Lucy don’t listen to him.” Her father pleads with her.
“Why would he be? He’s nothing like you. My father is a good man.” She says again and the shame is shining brightly in her father’s eyes.
Raphael doesn’t help matters when he laughs at her, “So naive my Queen. Your father isn’t a good man. He works for me and has for a very long time.”
“No, he doesn’t, he’s a professor. Dad tell him.” Lucy looks at him as she pleads.
“Lucy…” Her dad says but stops almost lost for words.
“Please tell me that I didn’t hear what I think I just did?” Argos’ tone is hard, he loves Lucy like a sister and this is could push her over the edge.
“How, the fuck, are you hearing this?” I ask quietly as I watch Lucy, her face is a gray color and she looks in disbelief.
“I may have put a mic on Lucy when she was leaving. Look I needed to hear everything if I can’t fucking see. Right now, I’m doing a full fucking background check on Lucy’s dad.” The disgust in his voice sets me even further on edge; I can’t believe this fucking asshole is part of this.
“Dad, he’s lying.” She’s crying and I reach for her. I’ve had enough of this shit. I pull her into my arms trying to calm her down; she doesn’t need this fucking stress. If anything happens to her I’ll lose my damn mind. “Cash, what is going on?” She doesn’t believe it, no, she doesn’t want to believe it.
Raphael starts laughing, “Oh not so proud of him now are we my Queen? Your father is no better than I am.”
“Stop it,” she screams, “Stop the lies! My dad is a good man,”
“He helps bring us girls. All those school girls that he teaches, so many to choose from, who would think that their teacher is going to bring them harm?” Raphael laughs as Lucy tries to break out of my hold. “He’s worse than I am; he acts as though he’s innocent and good, when he’s the one that brings the girls to me.”
“Cash, he can’t have. Can he?” She asks quietly finally starting to acknowledge the truth.
“I know that you’ve been after all the men involved in the trafficking ring and I decided that I’d give you a present, I’d give you the man behind the scenes,” Raphael pulls Lucy’s father’s head up so that he’s looking at us.
“What do you get out of this?” I bite out, pissed that I brought Lucy here for this.
“I get this traitor killed, that is what you do isn’t it? Kill people who wrong the innocent?” He mocks me and I have to laugh, he thinks I kill people who wrong the innocent? I do in a way but I’ll kill anyone if the price is right, hell, sometimes I do it for the fucking thrill.
“Why do you want him dead?” Lucy asks her voice breaking as she does so.
“He betrayed me, he wouldn’t tell me where you were and for that he will die. He went into hiding for a while; he didn’t think we knew that he was in England. He should have known that we know everything. Once you work for me there is only one way out. Death.” He smirks as he reaches into his pocket and pulls out a knife, fuck. He better not kill him, I need to ask him fucking questions.
“You’re an asshole. You’re destined to be alone because you’re a piece of shit. Your mom would be disgusted with you, hell she’s probably turning in her grave right now!” Lucy stamps her foot as she yells at him and she’s gone too far, his eyes narrow dangerously. I throw her behind me and pull out my gun, aiming it at him as he starts to stalk towards us.
“Soon, you’ll be mine soon, my Queen.” As soon as he says it, there’s a hail of gunfire.
I turn and shield my body over Lucy’s. They’re not trying to kill us right now; they want to make sure Raphael escapes unharmed. I had to make a choice, shield Lucy from stray bullets or go after him. “Argos, follow him. He doesn’t leave your sight. I don’t care what you do; you make sure you know where he’s going.” I tell him as the gunfire stops.
“It’s time to leave,” I tell Lucy, “Stay beside me and whatever you do, don’t say anything to your father. We’re going somewhere Raphael doesn’t know about,” I pull her father to his feet my fingers digging into his arm; he winces but doesn’t say a word. I take Lucy’s hand and start walking back to our car; she looks back a few times to stare at the man she once thought of as her hero.
***
I’ve brought Lucy’s dad to a safe house, one that we haven’t used in months. It was compromised by killers who wanted Lucy for the price that Henry had put on her head. It’s the safe house that Lucy killed the woman in.There’s nowhere else to go, this place is in the hills, no one knows where we are and that’s why we’re here. There’s no way I’m letting Lucy’s dad go free once I’ve gotten the answers from him that I need.
“Tell me Dad, why, why would you do this?” Lucy pleads with him for an answer, she’s no longer crying but her face is pale and she has that gray look going on.
“I never intended on you finding out, I tried to get out of it,” He’s the one crying now, he’s a fucking asshole.
“You never intended on me finding out? That’s what you have to say for yourself? God Dad, they’re young girls. That’s why you went to London, it wasn’t because you were offered a job as a professor, and it was because you were hiding.”
“Lucy it's not like that. I didn't want to be a part of it anymore. I needed to leave the country so that they couldn't find me. Henry had promised to cover for me and to keep you safe,” Hearing him try and make excuses is pissing me off.
“Henry? I thought you hated Henry?” Lucy questions him, seems as though her dad is a great fucki
ng liar.
“No, I was the one to introduce your mother and Henry. Lucy, I never intended for you to get hurt. Not once did I think you'd wind up in this and for that I'm truly sorry,” Again, the asshole is sorry for being caught; not for doing it.
My cell rings and I answer it, “Tell me you know where he is?”
“I've followed him back to a house but I can't be certain he's going to stay here. I've eyes on him, so if he does leave I'll be following him. As for Lucy's dad, Cash, he was getting over 750 grand a fucking year. I should have vetted him.” Argos is blaming himself.
As am I, there's been something about this man that I've not trusted since the moment I've met him. Then something clicks and I pull the phone away from my ear, looking at the asshole in front of me, “You're the reason they knew she was still alive. You told them, didn't you?”
I hear Argos’ muttered curse through the phone along with Lucy's gasp. “Dad, you didn't.”
“I’m so sorry Lucy, I had no choice.” The fucker cries.
“No choice? You’re a fucking coward, why were you even involved in this shit anyway?” I demand looking at him; he’s pathetic, snot coming out of his nose as he cries like a damn baby. He shrugs, “I asked you a question, now fucking answer it.” I lift my gun and point it at him, showing him that if he doesn’t answer I’ll blow his fucking brains out.
“I made a mistake; I slept with one of my students.” He holds up his hands in surrender, “I went to Henry, he was an old friend. He put me in contact with Raphael and I had to send the girl to him on the next shipment. I was then blackmailed to continue.”
“How old?” I bark out and he looks at me in confusion, “The girl you slept with, how old?”
He swallows harshly, “Fourteen.”
Bang
The sound reverberates around the room, my ears ringing at the harshness. I look over at Lucy who’s standing with the smoking gun in her hands; she’s shaking like a leaf. I walk over to her and take the gun away from her. Looking over at her dad, I see that he’s dead or near enough, blood coming from his ears and mouth is all the indication that I need. “Luc…”
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