by Tia Siren
Brandon walked over, looking between Laurie and me as he approached me. “Is that starting back up, Allen?”
I glanced at her, and then stared at him. “No, Bran. I have some willpower.”
“Holy shit. You’re really going through with this? You’re going to marry her?” Brandon asked me as I glanced around and shot him a warning look. He held up his hands and thanked Laurie when she brought him a beer. We waited until she was gone before I leaned forward and gratefully sipped the beer. “So, what’s the plan?”
“I need to find a way to make that money fast so I can get her out of there,” I replied while Brandon pulled out his phone and pulled something up. He read it and looked at me, sizing me up as I raised an eyebrow at him.
“I got a lead on some weekly poker games in the basement of a restaurant. High rollers.” He looked me over, shaking his head. “I don’t even know you right now, man.”
“I don’t fucking know myself,” I said.
“So, the games are a twenty thousand buy in.”
I whistled, but I could swing that, and I was good at poker. Living in Sin City had its benefits. I licked my lips as I nodded.
Brandon continued. “You can get up to seventy-five grand a game. It’s the real deal, but we can’t get caught there. We’d be done because these are illegal. I should take the steps to shut it down, but it isn’t hurting anyone.” He looked guilty.
“I think I can win pretty quickly and get out of there. Hell, maybe I’ll get some extra out of it.” I leaned back and watched as Laurie approached us to take our order. We both got burgers, and I focused on the Sevenfold song that was playing over the speakers. I knew that I was fucking up as a cop, and I sighed heavily as the guilt washed over me. “Fuck. What’s happening to me?”
“You’re transitioning. You’re a good guy, Allen. You’re not going bad cop or anything, but this is different for you.” Brandon looked at me for a moment. “I don’t think it’s anything to condemn yourself for, but it just came out of nowhere.” He surveyed me. “I never thought I’d see this happen over a woman.”
“Neither did I.” I thought back to seeing her on that stage as my cock twitched in my pants. The guilt washed over me again. “I can’t wait to take that mother fucker down regardless of her.”
“Me, too. I don’t care if they agreed to it or not. That asshole pressured them somehow or bribed them. Women deserve the chance to choose.” Brandon frowned.
He was probably thinking about the woman in his botched case who was more than willing.
“Hey, she’s okay. She got out of it,” I assured him.
He nodded and looked up at me. Brandon didn’t see her anymore since that was a condition of keeping his job, but I knew he still thought about her.
“I know. I just couldn’t see her again and keep the job. What if the same happens to you?” Brandon looked at me as I looked back at him. He was nowhere near marrying Tiffany when they slept together, and feelings had still been hurt.
“I am not giving my name to anyone. Just give them the cash, and she’s out of there. I don’t want her involved in any of this, Bran. I want to save her from it.” I stared at my partner as he frowned in understanding. “I want the guys to go down for this stinking business they’re running out of the club. Does it matter if she’s involved or not?”
“Technically? No. She can just be a woman that got lost in the shuffle. I expect that there are plenty more involved in this and enough to arrest the owner and everyone else involved. We can likely keep her out of it,” Brandon assured me.
I sipped my beer and pinched the bridge of my nose.
“I don’t even know her goddamn name. I am saving a woman that I don’t even know, Brandon. Am I losing my mind?” I opened my eyes to look at him.
“She touched you somewhere deep down. I’ve never seen you like this before. What are your intentions with her? Do you want to marry her?” Brandon repeated the question.
“I guess. That’s what I told him so I should see it through to keep her away from that club. I don’t know what else he would do if I just left her there. We can annul it later down the road,” I said carelessly as I rested my head in my hands. “I have to keep my word.” I never went back once I decided on something, and though this had been impulsive, I meant it.
“So, we figure out a way to get into that poker game without anyone figuring out who we are. If they do, they’ll think we’re there to bust it and cause a lot of trouble. I think these guys have some sort of deal with the Vegas underground.” Brandon said. “Hell, we could go in some type of disguise or something.”
I knew that they were dangerous but neither of us had ever messed with them in the past.
“There will be no record of us ever being there,” I said. “No names, right?”
“Absolutely not. They keep everything on the down-low themselves. I just need to get the word from my buddy, and we’re good. You can play poker with the best of them. Win and get out of there, and we can save your girl.” Brandon teased me, and Laurie brought over our plates and looked sharply at me.
Brandon smirked as she walked away. “You probably should have never slept with her.”
“I know,” I said glumly as I shook my head and reached for a fry. I didn’t think before I acted when I was picking up women. I just used them as I saw fit to get a release out of it. But I wanted more with the woman I saw on the stage that night. She deserved more and whether she was anxious about my proposition worried me. Did she want me as well? Did she hate me for making her a piece of property?
I needed to explain to her that I just wanted to save her. I wanted to get her out of there safely, but I did want something more than to go separate ways. I’ve never felt this way before about any woman. I needed that money. Two more nights seemed like forever when I didn’t know what conditions she was living in. If that asshole so much as laid a hand on her, I’d kill him.
She was mine.
We finished lunch and talked further about our plans, getting them laid out completely as we always did. I was thankful for Brandon’s support in all this. I gave it to him when he needed it most, and he was doing the same for me. I still remembered how close I’d come to losing my own job in the process of standing up for him, and now he might be doing the same for me.
We were more than partners and friends. We were brothers. I grinned at him as we ordered another beer and hung out to watch the basketball game on the TV as we drank and laughed at something on a commercial. We were easing out of the serious conversation, and I relaxed as I let out a long breath. This was going to work out just fine. I’d keep my job and have her safe in my care as well.
We left the pub and went to drive by the club to see if there was any activity. I saw a few cars in front of it but there was nobody outside, and I looked around slowly as we stopped at the light. “Where do you think she is?” I asked. “I told him to keep her safe.”
Brandon shrugged. “He practically pissed himself when you told him what you’d pay for her. I could see that from our table. He doesn’t want her, but he does want the money. I don’t think he’s touched her or any of the girls for that matter. That’s not his thing,” Brandon said.
“You think he’s into guys?” I asked.
Brandon laughed and shook his head.
“I don’t know. Maybe. I just think he sees these girls as his payday and he found something to keep the customers coming back. In his mind, it’s just prostitution. But for the girls, it’s trauma.” Brandon paused before continuing. “It’s trafficking. We don’t know what happens to them after the fact except for the redhead. She was clearly there for at least her second visit.”
The light turned green, and I pulled forward as we both fell silent. We knew there was sex trafficking all over the world. Every cop did. It was something so many of us worked hard to stop and prevent. The idea crossed my mind of my girl being sold off to someone while I was waiting to get the cash to save her. I wanted the money in my hands no
w, and I looked over at Brandon as I drove past the restaurant where the poker games were held on Tuesdays.
Tuesdays were a low-key night. There would be little suspicion as to why people were walking into an eatery, even though a few cops probably knew about it. I looked around the area and hoped this would go down without any problems.
It was my job on the line otherwise. Hell, Brandon could go down as well after I worked so hard to save him. All of that might end up being for nothing, but I forced myself to think positively as we headed back to the pub so he could get to his car and head home.
After dropping Brandon off, I drove back by the club to see the same cars but no activity. Then I went home to try to focus on my plan.
Chapter 8
Nicole
It turns out the girl was named Bennett. She was nice and stayed with me for a while. On Monday, she stopped by to bring me lunch and let me use my phone to call my sister.
She stood by the door as I dialed the number. It seemed like they trusted Bennett to visit me, and I paced as the phone rang. On the third ring, I heard a breathless voice on the other end and felt a sob come out of my throat. “Noelle,” I whispered.
“Nicole, start talking. Where the fuck are you?” she snapped. “Are you all right?”
“I’m fine,” I assured her as I took a deep breath and sat on the bed. "I am in a hotel on the other side of Vegas by the pub. The date was just a ruse, and I ended up being dragged into a club next door.” I breathed in as I remembered everything. “Rick was the club owner, and he took me there for an auction last weekend.”
Bennett raised her eyebrows at me and brought a finger to her lips, signaling me to keep my voice down.
“What kind of auction?” Noelle demanded.
“One for my virginity. Me and a few other girls,” I said quietly, feeling shame wash over me. “It was horrible, Noelle. They dressed us up in these bras and chastity belts and dragged us onstage in front of all these men. I was so scared.” Tears slid down my cheeks as I felt the fear again, and I wrapped my arm around myself, even though the room was hot.
“How are you calling me? What happened?” Noelle asked.
I remembered blue eyes and a rugged face at the front of the crowd.
“There was a man there. He came up to talk to the man that took me, and before I knew it, I was pulled from the stage and locked in the same room we had gotten ready in. I saw one girl’s auction and missed the other two, but I heard everything. I never saw them again. I don’t know what happened to them.” I took a deep breath as my heart started racing and worry filled me. “The man that talked to him said that he wanted to marry me. He was going to get the money and come back for me. It was more than the regular auction amount. He stopped my auction, and they brought me to this hotel room.”
“Where? I’ll come and get you,” she said.
My eyes widened. I knew that was dangerous.
“I don’t know, Noelle. They covered my eyes when they brought me here, and there aren’t any clues in the room. It’s a cheap motel. I know the guy has a week to collect me. After that, maybe I can come home. Maybe he’ll set me free.” I had so much hope in my voice as I spoke to her.
“What the hell were you thinking getting involved in an auction?” Noelle asked.
I flushed hotly at her question. “I didn’t really have a choice. He made it sound like I did but these men were holding me down, and I was terrified. I thought that Rick was a nice guy, but he just played me.” I sniffed back another sob. “I was so foolish for believing him.”
“We both wanted it to work out. Seriously, Nic. Why the auction?” she asked again gently.
“I am getting five thousand dollars, Noelle. We’re barely working, and that money could help us. We could get a better place, look for good jobs. We could really make it.” I heard her start to cry on the other end of the phone. “I wasn’t auctioned off, not yet. I don’t know that he’ll do anything to me, but I’ll talk to him when I meet him. He looked okay to me, not like the others that were looking at me like I was a piece of steak.”
Bennett frowned as she looked over at me, casting me a sympathetic smile.
“He seemed to want to help me somehow,” I said.
“I hope he does. I hope you come home,” Noelle said softly before asking how I got hold of a phone.
“It’s a friend’s. They took mine over the weekend and cut the line in the hotel room. She helped me that first night and has been allowed to visit me, though it’s too risky to try to leave.” I replied as I smiled gratefully at Bennett. I hoped she wouldn’t get caught for this since she seemed genuinely happy with her life.
She smiled back, and I talked to Noelle for a few more minutes.
“He might be a good guy, Nic. He might want to help you.”
“If he’s a good guy, why was he at an auction for virgins?” I responded.
“You might be right. Come home as soon as you can. Stay safe,” she begged me.
I told her that I loved her more than anything and hung up. I handed the phone to Bennett and wiped my eyes
“Thank you,” I said. “That helped me a lot.”
“No problem. I’m pretty sure they trust me and don’t tap the phone. Ricky likes me visiting you. He said it might make you relax since he hasn’t heard from your buyer." She brushed her dark hair behind her ears and frowned. “What if he doesn’t come?”
“How much is it for a normal auction?” I asked.
“Upwards of twenty grand,” she responded as I shook my head.
“Asshole. He’s only giving me five which was what he promised before the marriage offer,” I muttered.
“Ricky is a greedy asshole. He barely pays me for what I do. I just want to help the girls as much as I can,” Bennett said.
“Have you ever considered turning him in?”
“I hated him for what he did to me. I hated that he made me do it even with the money I was getting, but I met Bill. He was my buyer and as wrong as that is, we fell in love. We worked through how we met and made it work.” Bennett glanced down at her wedding ring. If I turn Ricky in, Bill and I both might go to jail. I have been thinking about quitting and finding another job, though. I want out.”
“You do?”
“I was lucky. I met a nice man that cared for me in an otherwise awful situation. I know a lot of these girls don’t get the same thing, and I can’t watch it anymore. Maybe I’ll turn him in anonymously in a bit. I don’t know.” She looked around, listening carefully as we spoke in whispers.
“Maybe I will,” I said. “Once I’m gone out of here. Once we’re all safe.”
“What if he does want to marry you like Bill married me?” Bennett asked.
“How could I want that on first sight?” I asked.
She shrugged. “He might be a good man.”
“He was at an auction,” I repeated as I narrowed my eyes. “I don’t want to be owned.”
“Maybe it won’t be like that. I would get you out of here, but we both know that’s stupid. We’d get killed, and you have a sister to get home to, and I have Bill. Just see what happens, and if he doesn’t show, I’ll try to talk Ricky into letting you leave with me or something. We’ll figure it out.” There was a tap at the door, and she looked over.
“Time for her to rest, Bennett.” The words were curt.
She rolled her eyes. “I’ll try to come and see you tomorrow.” She gathered her purse and gave me a hug as she told me that everything would be okay. I watched her open the door once she knocked to get out and then the door was closed and locked. I don’t know what kind of hotel this was that did that to the doors, but it didn’t surprise me one bit. I dropped onto the bed and nibbled on the cookie that she brought me and stared at the television, missing the world beyond this room.
I missed my sister. I missed Vegas with all the bright lights and people. I missed writing more than I ever thought I would but it would be no time at all before I was out of here and back to it. I just
didn’t know where that would be.
I thought about the blurry stranger again. Did he really want to marry me? Would I move in with him? What was this all about?
I had trust issues from my childhood as well as the way Ricky lied to me. I was so eager in this new place for something to work out that I had gone along with Noelle’s idea to join a dating site. It felt fun at first, and we giggled over the pictures and messages that I got back. It just had to be Ricky that ended up being the one that I chatted with most, losing interest in all the others.
I sighed as I thought back to all the late-night chats. I bared my soul to him once I felt I could trust him. He was just priming me for his club and finding out if I was the right girl. I felt so stupid.
I glanced at the TV and saw a vampire show on that I’d gotten to liking and propped up one more pillow to watch it. I knew that Noelle would like it as well and wondered if there was a way we could have some cable package that offered this.
One thing I’d be doing with my money was getting a massage after sleeping on this motel bed. The mattress that Noelle and I shared was more comfortable, and it came with the apartment. We were so happy to be in a new city in our own place that we didn’t care. I missed it so much right now. I looked back at the TV as one of the female vampires complained about ruining a pair of shoes though she called them pumps. Who said that anymore?
It was a bit of a marathon, and I kept watching, trying to get caught up in the insane plot. What else did I have to do? I took showers every day, quickly in case someone came into the room. I wanted to have some semblance of normal since I didn’t know what was next for me. Nobody came in to talk to me apart from Bennett, and they kicked her out at night.
I drifted off to sleep while watching TV, dreaming of the past when I was younger and comforting Noelle as our grandparents on our mom’s side fought in the living room of their trailer that we were staying in. I heard about kids who had caring, involved grandmas and grandpas who wanted to spend time with them, but we struck out with both sets. I just stroked her hair and sang softly to her as I did every night when things were unsettled around us. Now I wished that she was here to sing to me, and I woke up with tears in my eyes.