A Delicate Flower

by Chelsea Girard

  “Wait,” I said, staring at Winnie. “That’s impossible.” Winnie raised her head out from the palm of her hands.

  “Stop lying!” she yelled. “My parents died right before my eyes when they tried to get Raven back!”

  “Why do you think they tried trading you as bait, huh? It’s because Raven was actually their child and you were easy to get rid of! They obviously never knew that they would lose their real daughter in the process of taking care of a stand in!”

  Winnie’s eyes filled with tears. She stared at Kate’s broken frown as the two connected through their eye contact.

  “Did your parents e ver ask you if you wanted to get Raven back? Did they ever ask you what you wanted? I can tell you right now sweetheart, you never felt like their favourite child.” Kate said, sympathetically.

  “My parents loved me!” Winnie cried out loud as she pounded her fists on the ground beside her.

  “Yes, I did! They weren’t your real parents!” Kate yelled back.

  “How do I know you’re telling the truth?” Winnie yelled.

  “What did your parents say about your middle name or your real name? She asked.

  “I-I don’t have a middle name.” Winnie said confusingly.

  “Exactly, because they didn’t name you. I did. Your real name isn’t Winnie either. It’s Whitney, Whitney Grace to be exact.” she said, smiling at Winnie.

  “Whitney Grace.” I said to myself under my breathe.

  “Winnie was the short form, Davis use to call you it all the time when you were first born.” Kate said smiling at Winnie.

  “But, why? Why would you give me up? Why did you wait so long to tell me?” Winnie cried out.

  “Because I was scared! I was scared you wouldn’t accept me as your mother, as your friend. I never meant to hurt you but I couldn’t bring you into that life, not now and not ever. You deserved better and they already had Raven so I knew you would have a friend and people to love you.” Kate said as she stood to her feet and made her way to Winnie.

  Winnie stood up against the wall with tears streaming down her face. Her face was slightly happy but she was also infused with rage. She continuously shook her head as she couldn’t wrap her head around what she just learned.

  Whitney Grace Jakes.

  CHAPTER 34

  JOYCE

  It has been a week since we left the Capri. The break in had been all over every news channel and our names were rubbed into the words of disgusting and vile. The television was plastered with our hand drawn pictures of what we were believed to look like. Surprisingly, they weren’t half bad. Obviously they girls who we left behind had very accurate illustrations of what we looked like so they could get a decent picture for our capture.

  Davis and I were in a safehouse about 23 miles away from the Capri. One bathroom, one bedroom and a tiny counter that he called the kitchen table. I grateful to be anywhere but jail but at least there, you get your own bed and a warm shower. He was constantly on a disposable phone that we picked up on the way with customers across the world, they still wanted their merchandise and would do anything to get it.

  Not once was Davis anxious when we arrived at the safehouse. He placed our bags on the bed, grabbed a notepad and pen and started making calls. Many of the clients knew about the break in and the exposure Davis had obtained from the drawings and wanted nothing to do with any of business anymore. Most of them still wanted the girls and were willing to pay Davis extra to meet their deadlines, even giving him more time to gather himself in order to get the best girls.

  I hadn’t had any contact with Rose since I sent the letter a couple days ago so I’m hoping, praying to God that she is safe. I missed her. I finally felt as if we were getting close but then she was stripped away from me once again.

  “You okay, sweetheart?” Davis tapped my shoulder as I stared blankly ahead.

  “Um, yeah. I’m okay.” I replied.

  “You seem to be in another world this morning. Is there anything I can do?” He asked genuinely. His eyes were full of sympathy but he saw right through my lies.

  “I just miss her.” I said with tears in my eyes. “She’s been alone all her life and I finally see her and well, now she’s already gone.”

  Davis bit his lip and snapped his fingers in the form of an idea. He exited the room abruptly and ran into the kitchen. I sat on the bed with my head in my hands, trying to keep my composure.

  Davis ran back into the room with a plate of strawberries and a glass of white wine in a mason jar and handed both to me with a smile.

  “I think mama bear deserves a relaxing night.” he said as he sat beside on the bed with his hand on my leg. “I’ll make a few more calls and then we can sit back and relax for the rest of the evening.”

  I was shocked at his generosity and compassion towards my sadness as he wrapped his arm around my back and hugged me tight. I wish we hadn’t sent her away. I miss her. I loved how he was so loving towards me but I wouldn’t be in this position if itwasn’t for him and neither would Rose.

  Davis kept his promise that night. After a few more calls and a half a bottle of wine later, he joined me in bed as we just talked for the first time in a very long time. We talked about life, not just the Capri but about our younger years, our childhoods and who we were before this life took over. I wanted to relive my childhood through my memories and be back in my pink castle bedroom just one last time.

  We woke up in the morning bright and early as we grabbed the toast and headed out the door for a patrol into the city. We had a cabin close by where we planned to keep the girls but now we didn’t have any guards to watch them so that was on us.

  We had to work towards meeting our quota of girls but we only had three days to gather them, train them and make sure they weren’t going to try and ruin us like the ones before. Davis was already up and making phone calls to arrange meetings in the city with certain companies while I showered and got myself prepared.

  I hated this part of the job. Kidnapping girls was never my ideal career but it’s what I needed to do in order to not only make Davis satisfied but to also remain safe. Without this life, I had nothing.

  With two bags full of rope, towels and tape, we hopped into the car and sped off onto the dirt trail that led towards the city. The car ride was quiet as we listened to the wind rustle through the trees and watch birds fly over the roof of the car. I stuck my hand outside of the window and tried to grab the leaves that flew by the side of the car.

  I waited for what seemed to be miles of sudden coughs and smiles exchanged between Davis and I until we arrived in the city. Since we were wanted practically everywhere, we wore sunglasses,hats and baggy clothes and attempt to blend in but realistically I felt as if we stuck out like a sore thumb.

  We arrived at a giant white building with two standing pillars on each side of the doorway. It gave the vibe of an old historic building but behind the large wooden doors, there were hundreds of young girls wanting nothing more than to be in the comfort of their own beds.

  Since Kate took the Rose and Winnie to a new home, hopefully far away from us, she no longer was providing Davis with most of the girls so we had to find most of them ourselves. I always questioned the madness behind the mind of Davis and how he actually trusted Kate to never tell the police, she never did but it always was a thought in the back of my mind.

  Davis ordered me to stay in the car while he talked to three bulky italian men in front of the building. Davis referred to it as the Breach as if no one could breach the

  confidentiality agreement you were to sign as soon as pulling up into the lot. These guys were no joke and took their business seriously. I wish Davis would have learned more from these guys long ago so possibly we wouldn’t have to start over.

  We had been on the road for hours and of course we hadn’t eaten since the morning. The search for a bottle of water started in the front compartments and after no luck, I moved towards where the floor bent from the tires. There was n
o water but I did find a brown bag that smelt of mold and used paper bags. I dug through the disgusting bag as the smell overpowered the air freshener that sat on the dashboard. I grabbed out a small notebook with lists of numbers and company names beside them and to my surprise, a note fell out of the pocket.

  It wasn’t only a note but it had a picture wrapped inside. It looked like Davis when him and I first met but he was with another girl. On the back of the photo it read “Kate and Davis, love you forever”. I was stunned. Is this why Davis had such a strong connection to Kate all these years? I would have never pictured her to his type, she was sweet and innocent. Maybe that’s why she’s in this business in the first place, nobody would suspect someone like her.

  Davis waved to me from outside the car and signaled me to come out. I stuffed the photo and note into my flannel pocket and went to join him outside the Breach. He introduced me to some men whose names I will never remember because they were extremely hard to pronounce but they did invite us to check out their facility and join their business.

  We walked into the building and were immediately overtaken by screams and cries that could be heard in the distance. The man leading us turned back to me and smiled as his revolting teeth showed a yellow shade I didn’t think could be possible for teeth to be. Nonetheless, we followed the men down a hallway and passed many rooms that were holding more than three girls in each room. They had a stainless steel door with a padlock that only had one key to each door, for safety precautions. Empty food dishes were outside the doors as the girls peaked their fingers through the bottom of the doors.

  “They do that to let us know that they need to use the restroom” one man replied as he unlocked one of the doors. “This will be your job Joyce.” he looked at me with a hand out, holding the keys. I hesitantly opened the door and saw three young girls staring up at me. They looked at me in confusion as if they had never seen a woman. Their tiny hands were covering their shoulders as they shivered with the tear marks stained on their cheeks. The man signalled them out of the room and the girls stayed between us and the men as we made our way down to the bathrooms. They were open toilets with a working faucet and showers that had little to no warm water. The girls pushed pass Davis and I as they ran to the toilets, they didn’t care who was watching but I think they were just grateful to have working toilets and be able to use them.

  “They are only allowed to go to the bathroom if all three need to go, it’s a rule.” the man said while still staring at the young girls taking their time while using the bathroom. “ It makes it so it’s less trips for whoever is on watch and so one can’t stay behind and do something stupid.”

  As the girls finished washing their hands, they stood in front of one of the men with their hands out as their palms faced the ceiling and mouths open.

  “They do this so we know they didn’t grab anything or eat anything. Again, safety for both us and them.” the man said as he finished checking inside of the girls mouth. “They only wear spandex shorts and tank tops, no shoes or undergarments. Those are to easy to hide things in.

  We made our way back to the girls room and I used the key to lock the padlock back up and shut the door. One man stayed by for his midnight watch shift as the other two showed Davis and I to our room.

  “It’s not much but it’s one of the nicest we’ve got, we will start in the morning” he said as he shut the door behind him as he left us alone. The room has a double bed, a nightstand with a lamp, a bathroom and a small t.v. on the dresser. We unpacked our bags and laid on the bed, facing the ceiling as we sighed.

  Davis turned over to grab the covers and turned off the light, before I jumped into bed, I took off my flannel and placed the letter and picture inside the nightstand next to my side of the bed and hid it under an old alarm clock.

  If he wanted to hide things from me, I could do it too. Two can play that game.

  CHAPTER 35

  ROSE

  Winnie spent most of the night crying into her pillow as Kate continuously banged on the door all night, trying to speak to Winnie. She did give us some space but Winnie didn’t join us for lunch or dinner and stayed in her room the entire day and night. I didn’t blame her but I also felt bad for Kate as she fell for Davis before he was at his worst.

  The next day, Winnie finally came out of her room for breakfast and joined us at the table with a tiny smirk. I didn’t want to harp on her as I know she’s been going through a lot since yesterday but I really wanted to take down Davis and Joyce. I still refused to call her mom, that woman is not my mother and never will be.

  “Kate, can I ask you a question?” I said while still looking into my bowl of cereal. Both Winnie and Kate’s head popped up in my direction.

  “Of course.” she replied. “Did my - did Joyce, know about youand Davis?” I asked her, my eyes now meeting hers.

  “No, she didn’t. Davis didn’t want her knowing about me so instead of just leaving me behind, we made a deal that he would get his girl from me instead so I could still be apart of his life.” Kate replied as she looked at me with her eyes full of tears. “I should have never loved that horrible man.”

  I nodded to her in sympathy as she sat down at the table with us. She put her head in her hands and breathed harshly.

  “I never wanted to hurt anyone.” she said as she began to cry. To my surprise, Winnie jumped up and hugged Kate tightly. She cried with her mom as they both couldn’t hold back their emotions any longer.

  “I’m sorry that I brought it up, Kate. I just don’t want them to hurt anyone anymore.” I said to her as I placed my hand on her arm in comfort. “I know this is a hard time for everyone but I honestly think we should talk about what we all want.”

  “What do you mean?” said Winnie.

  “Winnie, we just found out that you’re my half sister, we need to decide what we really want. I don’t even know what I want anymore.” I said as I shrugged my shoulders.

  “I think the best thing would be to have you with your mom, Rose.” she said suddenly.

  “Are you insane?” I snapped at Kate. “She abandoned me when I needed her the most, her own daughter is a product of a disgusting fling that clearly wasn’t meant to be!” I yelled.

  My anger stopped Winnie and Kate in their tracks as the both of them just stood across the table from me with their faces pale and shocked.

  “Maybe this is the way it was meant to work out.” said Kate. “I mean, your parents place you and Winnie here with me to be safe, they obviously still care about you. No matter where they are or what they’ve done, they still love you and they are still your parents.” she said suggesting.

  “It’s not about how they feel towards me but about how they treated me when I was with them. I loved them and they just threw me anyway and are still continuing to invest in the stupid sex trafficking business even though they have a daughter who is a product of it!” I yelled again.

  “Rose, calm down. Maybe we can do something about it? Give them a taste of their own medicine?” chimed in Winnie.

  “Like what?” I asked confused. Winnie hadn’t been one to speak up since we got here and ever more so because of what Kate told us yesterday. I don’t know why she would want revenge but the thought was bittersweet of attempting anything of the sorts.

  “It’s definitely not my place to say but as much as you don’t want to believe it, your mom came back for you. And I’m sorry to say Kate, Davis is the ultimate problem here.”

  “What are you suggesting?” I asked her.

  “We get rid of Davis, once and for all.” she said as she shrugged.

  “We can’t just go up and kill him!” Kate said shockingly.

  “We don’t need to but we can find someone who will.” Winnie replied. “We could go and save your mom from him too” she added.

  “She doesn’t want to be saved, she chose to be with him and you saw the news, she’s wanted. I’m not putting myself in danger for some psycho.” I crossed my arms in frustration.
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  “But, she’s your mom Rose. Whether you like to admit it or not, you know if your heart she came to rescue you and she did. I mean, the only difference is that it’s probably not how she planned it to work out in theend.” said Kate as she placed her hand on my back.

  “She didn’t need to stay. She could have came with Winnie and I and got away from that place.” I interrupted my own thoughts with the image of my mother’s smile as she looked down at me when Winnie and I left.

  “You have to remember that place is all she’s ever known. Your mother can’t live a normal life anymore and she’s chosen that now. She did save you Rose and you have to be able to let her go.” said Kate as she started to wash her dishes.

  “I just wish I could actually have a mom like everyone else.”

  “Can’t we just give Davis a taste of his own pain, he let fully grown men rape me constantly for god know how many years!” Winnie chimed in she saw me becoming an emotional wreck before her eyes. “He’s a horrible man and needs to see for himself, how much pain he’s caused.”

  “But how? He could be anywhere and besides, there’s not much we can do about it.” I said, being the voice of reason. I wanted to take him down, I really did but there was no logical way to do so. Especially coming from two little girls who nobody's supposed to even know exist.

  “That’s it!” I yelled as I jumped from the couch onto my feet.

  “Wherever Davis is, we go there!” I said

  enthusiastically.

  “Have you lost your mind?” Winnie said as she looked at my expression confusingly.

  “Obviously Davis can’t build up the Capri all over again, it probably took him decades to do so in the first place. So, he must have found people to work with, like a place to start over right?” I looked at their faces of disbelief and confusion.

  “Go on.” said Kate.

  “We get kidnapped by whoever he is working for and when we ask for him and he comes, he will have no choice to see what his choices have done to us! It’s the ultimate plan, fight fire with fire or what I would call it, child with heartache.” I said proudly.