Trafficking (Powell Book 1)

by Bill Ward

  “Of course. We have just the two to meet today but if you like them I can have them in England for you in just a few days.”

  “Sounds good.”

  Powell decided the best way to protect these girls was to say he wanted them. When they arrived in England, he had no further money to complete the purchase of the girls so his rough plan was to have the police intervene during the sale. He could wear a wire and hoped to get enough evidence to have Stefan convicted. Fortunately, both Stefan and Dimitry seemed to trust him, which he was sure was in no small part to his having given them fifty thousand pounds as a deposit for the girls, money he never expected to see again no matter what happened.

  Powell was surprised to see they headed back to the café bar where they had met the previous evening. The downstairs was shut but upstairs was busy with people drinking coffee and eating cakes. There was no sign of the bouncers, who presumably weren’t on duty during the day. Dimitry joined Powell at a table in one corner while the other guys made themselves scarce.

  “Would you like a Tuica?” Dimitry asked with a hint of a smile.

  “No thanks, coffee will be fine for now.”

  Dimitry waved at the girl behind the counter who came and took their order.

  “I told the girls to come at twelve, which is about ten minutes. Tell me, what did you think of Nicola and Daniela last night? I hope you took full advantage.”

  “They are great girls,” Powell agreed.

  “So tell me more, what did you do with them?”

  “Dimitry, I’m English! We don’t kiss and tell. It isn’t polite”

  “Polite! You English are funny. Do you have to politely ask your girlfriend if you can fuck her in the arse? It is different here. We take what we want from our women.”

  “I think that approach stopped working about a hundred years ago. And maybe it’s a good thing. It means men are willing to pay for action they can’t get at home.”

  “True,” Dimitry agreed. “And what is it about you English and animals? You care as much for your dogs as your children.”

  “Well I have neither.”

  “I only use dogs to protect what is mine and I don’t have any children, at least not that I know of,” Dimitry laughed out loud, causing heads to turn in their direction.

  “So Dimitry, when are you coming to England?” Powell asked. “Can you come next week with the girls?”

  “England is a little difficult for me at the moment.”

  “Really? That is a nuisance because I am sure my investors would like to meet you and I would like the opportunity to return your hospitality. If we are to do more business it is necessary for my investors to meet with all key people. I can also promise you it would be a lot of fun. They know how to party. We would organise something very special for you with some of our English girls.”

  “It may be possible. You say your friends like to party? Well I like to party and actually a friend of mine has gone missing in Brighton recently so I should make a visit and try to find out what has happened to him.”

  “Perhaps I can be of service? I have many contacts.”

  “Thank you Danny. Your help would be much appreciated.”

  Afina called Emma and Becky to ask them if they would like to come for a drink as it was Saturday evening and for once she was free to meet with them on a Saturday. Powell had said she couldn’t leave the bar but inviting her friends over for a few cocktails would be fun.

  “We’ve never been here before,” Becky said when they arrived. “It’s a nice place. Is this where you work?”

  “Yes but I am not working tonight.”

  “Good, can we get cheap drinks?” Emma asked.

  Powell had said to Neil that anything Afina wanted should be put on his tab. “Drinks are on me all night,” she confirmed.

  “Brilliant, I hope they stay open late,” Emma joked.

  “Pity it’s a straight bar,” Becky laughed.

  “So, what shall we drink?” Afina asked. “White wine?”

  “Great,” both girls answered in unison.

  Afina went to the bar and the girls sat at a table. Afina went white when she turned back from the bar with the opened bottle of wine and glasses, to find Mara sat talking to the girls. She approached the table slowly, in a state of shock.

  “Hello Mara, what are you doing here?” Afina asked coldly.

  “Hi Afina. I just wanted to say hello.”

  Afina’s heart was pumping at a hundred miles an hour. Why was Mara here and how had she found her? Did this mean Stefan was nearby? “Excuse me, Becky and Emma, but I need to speak with Mara alone.” Afina walked away from the table and Mara followed.

  “How did you find me?” Afina asked, once out of earshot of the others.

  “Stefan had me follow you on your last night out. You went to a gay bar with your new friends. I guess you have gone off men since working in England.”

  “So what did you tell Stefan?”

  “Just that you went for drinks in a gay bar. He thought it was hilarious. I didn’t mention about your friends.”

  Afina relaxed a little. “Why are you here tonight?”

  “Because Stefan is trying to find you and he told me to visit the bar where I followed you before.”

  “I don’t understand. How did you come here?”

  “I spotted your friends at the bar and when they left I wondered if they might be meeting you so I followed them here.”

  “Why didn’t you tell me you followed me before?”

  “I didn’t want you to know. You are my friend and it wasn’t a nice thing to do, spying on you, but I had no choice.”

  “You promise Stefan doesn’t know I am here?”

  “I promise. Now let’s have some wine. I like the look of your friends. Perhaps they might like a threesum with me.”

  “Mara! They think I work in this bar. They don’t know what I do, did.”

  “Okay, Okay! I won’t tell them if you don’t say anything about me.”

  Afina led the way back to the table where the girls were already drinking the wine. She was worried about the presence of Mara. She was Stefan’s cousin and Afina wasn’t totally convinced she could be trusted. Then again, she couldn’t have told Stefan about Emma and Becky, and where they lived, or Victor would have gone there looking for the letter. Afina was pleased Powell was not around to further complicate matters.

  As the evening progressed, Mara proved to be a terrible flirt. Afina watched with a broad smile as Mara admitted she had never had a relationship with a girl but then added she had fucked a load of them, which made everyone laugh. More than once, some men tried to chat to them and offered to buy drinks but each time they were told clearly that everyone at the table was gay, which Afina didn’t bother to point out wasn’t entirely true.

  Afina could see that her friends were both drawn to Mara’s outgoing nature and good looks. Afina wondered if Mara had always been into girls or was it a direct result of her work. Afina enjoyed going out with girls but the thought of taking them home to bed at the end of the evening just didn’t appeal.

  They all consumed a large amount of wine and tequila shots before the discussion turned to where they were going next. Afina was adamant she was going to bed despite everyone else’s protestations. She would have quite liked to party a little longer but she had no intention of breaking her promise to Powell and what none of them knew was that her family was asleep upstairs. They were now her first priority and she was not going to leave them alone at the bar, sleeping or not.

  Eventually Mara left with the girls, heading for a gay club that stayed open all night. Afina was convinced they were all going to end up in bed together at some point during the night.

  CHAPTER TWENTY EIGHT

  Powell had told Dimitry he would take both girls they had met in the café. They were young, attractive and excited to work in England. Powell also thought they were amazingly naïve. They asked few detailed questions about the potential job although th
ey did want to know if Brighton was good for shopping and going out. Powell could see how easy it was for Dimitry to find girls. He wondered how many girls had passed through his and Stefan’s hands on the way to a life as a sex slave.

  Powell had never met anyone quite as callous as Dimitry and his friends. It was almost as if they had been born without feelings, the way they had such a total disregard for the wellbeing of girls and there was a deep rooted lack of respect, as if the girls were just commodities not human beings.

  In his past, Powell had dealt with the worst of terrorists from Northern Ireland and though he didn’t agree with their politics or methods, he could at least understand their motivation. Then again, he could understand Dimitry’s motivation, it was pure greed. Powell wondered what his upbringing had been like to turn him into the adult monster he had become. Some psychologist would probably claim he had been abused as a child and it wasn’t his fault. Well that was the sort of bullshit he heard far too often in a society that was too politically correct, always trying to find excuses for bad behaviour. In Powell’s experience, some people were just evil and he had unfortunately encountered too many of them in his life. He would put an end to Dimitry, Stefan and Victor’s business that preyed on innocent young girls, if it was the last thing he ever accomplished.

  Powell had told Dimitry, he wanted to explore the city a little before joining up with him again for dinner at the club. He needed to stretch his legs and breathe in fresh air as he found every minute spent with Dimitry very claustrophobic. The memory of what he had done to Bella was choking him. The thought of Dimitry stabbing his daughter kept forcing it’s way to the front of his mind. Powell wondered what Bella would be thinking if she could see him now, eating and drinking with Dimitry, as if they were friends. Powell had a compelling urge to put an end to the pretence and instead batter Dimitry into a pulp. He had to regularly remind himself to reign in those feelings. If he surrendered to the primeval urge for revenge it would be for his satisfaction, not the justice Bella would seek.

  Bella had an almost naïve belief in the law and that justice would always prevail. If she was watching from above, she would be learning a great deal of new information about her father as Powell had never shared anything about his past in MI5, or the reasons for Vanessa’s death. He had always dreaded her finding out about her mother’s death as he was sure she would never forgive him.

  Powell was doing everything possible to ensure Dimitry would come to England and so, despite hating his company, joined him for dinner.

  “I was speaking with my associates and they are looking forward to seeing you, Dimitry,” Powell said, after a couple of Tuicas to start the evening. “We are making a very special film next week and I think you would enjoy watching it being made.”

  “A film, Danny, sounds interesting. What sort of film exactly?”

  “My associates make all types of films but this is special. We take an innocent young white girl and lock her in a room for a few hours with about six large black men, who proceed to enjoy her every way possible. The men are not gentle with the girl but I’m not saying any more because it will spoil the event.”

  “I like the sound of your film. Which day is it being filmed?”

  “We were thinking of Tuesday or Wednesday. My associates also said they would like to talk business with you. They are always looking for more girls for their films and I told them I thought you might be able to help them?” Powell dangled the carrot and didn’t have long to wait for a bite!

  “Of course I can help them. I can find the right girls for everything.”

  “Exactly what I told them, Dimitry. This is additional business to what we have going on. I don’t get involved in the film making side of the business.” Powell could see Dimitry’s eyes light up at the thought of further large deals for girls.

  “I think I must come and meet your film friends,” Dimitry said, pouring further glasses of Tuica. “To films,” he toasted.

  “To films,” Powell raised his glass and downed the drink in one as was now the custom. “Will you be able to make it to England okay with the problems you mentioned?”

  “They are nothing but a misunderstanding. I will come on Tuesday. I will fly to Gatwick and visit Brighton to see Stefan. But on Wednesday I will keep the day free to spend with you watching a film being made.”

  Powell felt a great sense of relief. In just three days he would be able to claim justice for Bella. “More Tuica,” he urged. “And where are the girls? We should not drink alone. We have to celebrate.”

  CHAPTER TWENTY NINE

  Afina awoke on Sunday morning with only a small hangover. Her mouth was dry but she had no headache. What she did have was a very bad feeling of guilt, having dreamed about Lia. Three men had been using Lia for sex and she had been looking at Afina accusingly, asking her to make them stop. The worst part about the dream for Afina was she was filming the sex and directing the men, telling them what to do to Lia. She didn’t understand the dream as she wanted to help Lia not be part of her suffering.

  A more immediate worry pushed thoughts of Lia to the back of her mind. Mara had discovered where she was staying. At least Afina had been careful not to mention her family were also staying above the bar. She wanted to speak to her friends and find out how the rest of the evening had gone, not whether they all had sex but did Mara say anything of importance. It was too early to call but she sent a text to each of them asking them to call when they were up and about. Then she organised breakfast for her mama and Adriana.

  The apartment was full of memories of Bella. There were many pictures on the walls and furniture serving to remind Afina of how pretty she had been and so young to die. Afina wished Powell had removed the pictures but understood why he had not. He did not want to erase her memory but the pictures were a permanent reminder to Afina of the role she had played in Bella’s death.

  It had been difficult explaining to her mama about Bella’s murder. When she convinced her mama to come to England, she had told her the full story. It had been necessary because her mama had not wanted to leave Bucharest. She had wanted to simply call the police and put a new, stronger lock on the front door. That was when Afina had realised she needed to tell her mama the truth, to convince her to come to England. They were all in danger from men who trafficked girls for sex, men who destroyed lives and killed without any remorse. Adriana was in terrible danger if they stayed. Once that realisation set in, her mama had immediately agreed to leave her home.

  Afina had omitted the very worst parts about her rape and beating, saying she had escaped when she realised what was going to happen to her if she stayed. Then she had described how Bella sacrificed her life that Afina might run away and live. Her mama had wept on the phone and again when she arrived at the apartment and saw the pictures everywhere of Bella.

  Afina’s phone announced a message from Powell saying he would be back at the bar about lunchtime. She was happy with that news as she had been worried something might happen to him in her homeland and then she would have felt further guilt but even worse, at a complete loss what to do without him. Powell had been vague about why he was going to Bucharest but she assumed he was looking for Dimitry. She couldn’t wait for his return to find out whether he had found Dimitry.

  It was after eleven when Afina’s phone rang and she recognised the number as belonging to Stefan. She stood staring at the number wondering how he had found her. What had Mara told him? Then she recovered her senses and remembered Stefan always had her number and didn’t answer despite her curiosity as to why he was calling. A few seconds later she had a message telling her she had a voicemail. She nervously dialled her voicemail, almost afraid to hear Stefan’s voice, as if somehow just listening to his message was dangerous.

  The message was simple. “Afina, this is Stefan. Please call me urgently. If you don’t call you won’t like what happens to your family.”

  Afina smiled as she deleted the message. So Stefan doesn’t yet know that m
y family are in England and out of his reach. That is good. That is very good. Thirty minutes later her phone rang again and this time it was Mara calling.

  “I bet you’ve called me to tell me how you fucked my friends senseless,” Afina answered.

  There was a few seconds of silence at the other end and then she recognised Stefan’s voice. “I wondered if you would answer if I used Mara’s phone instead of mine to call you but what is this about her fucking your friends?”

  Afina was lost for words. She was annoyed with herself for being trapped so easily by Stefan. “I meant Danny and my other customers,” Afina answered. “I assume Mara is now getting to fuck them all?”

  “Where are you Afina? You need to come back. And where is Victor?”

  “Why do you ask me where is Victor? The last time I saw him he had my letter and I was running for my life, so why in hell’s name would I know where he is? And as for coming back, you must be joking. You let Victor frighten me to death and then he promised to give me a hundred strokes of his cane when we reached the house. I ran for my life and I’m not coming back!”

  She hoped she sounded convincing about Victor. It was at least the truth that she had no idea where he was. Powell had moved him somewhere and she couldn’t even be sure he was still alive. She didn’t believe Powell would just have killed Victor in cold blood but she wasn’t going to lose any sleep worrying about whether he had or not.

  “So where is he then?” Stefan asked.

  “I hope the pig is dead,” Afina responded angrily. “And you’re no better. You promised to protect me from him but you were willing to see him beat me to death.”

  “Look Afina, come back to work and I promise there will be no beatings. Danny is now my business partner and he really likes you. We can make good money together.”

  “And what about my family? Was it Dimitry who threatened to rape Adriana?”