Page 24 of Blake

"Jesus," Savannah whispered, her stomach twisting. If things had gone differently with DeLuca, she might not be standing here now.

"Looks like you dodged a bullet, Savvy," Blake murmured, his eyes dark with concern.

"Seems like it," she agreed, swallowing hard. "What now?"

"First, we keep you safe," Blake said firmly, squeezing her arm reassuringly. "Then, we use this information to take down the whole operation."

"Right," Jax added. “This new information is so helpful. How did you find out about the Lucifer Club?”

Savannah smiled. “I’ve been impersonating a few different girls online. Speaking on various forums. Took me months to make the link between trafficked girls and the Lucifer Club, but then I found this guy who asked me to meet him there ‘for a date in the back room.’ I was super suspicious, so I went to scope the place out first. Glad I did. I'm sure that something nasty is going on in that back room.”

“Good work,” said Blake, looking at her with an expression that for some reason made a jolt of electricity shoot straight to her core.

“Can you remember the names of the forums you were on?” asked Jax.

“Sure,” said Savannah, relaying the main ones to him, along with her username.

Jax's fingers flew over his keyboard, eyes scanning the screen intently. "I need to go home and run a few more web trawls," he said, pushing back from the table. "But before I go, Blake, don't forget about the gala operation in two days. Time's ticking."

"Right," Blake nodded, his expression serious. "Thanks for the reminder."

Savannah couldn't help but ask, "What's this gala operation?"

"Ah," Blake hesitated, then seemed to make a decision. "We're going after Alderman Anderson. He's been on our radar for a while now. I’ll be honest with you, Savvy. It’s entirely possible that our guy is connected to yours in some way."

"Really?" Savannah's eyes widened, excitement surging through her. "I always knew there was something off about that guy."

"Good instincts," Blake said, a hint of a smile touching his lips.

Jax packed his bag, and then put a plastic bag on the counter. “I brought that stuff you asked for, Blake.”

Blake nodded. “Thanks, bro.”

As Jax left the apartment, Savannah eyed the bag suspiciously. “What’s in there? Anything I need to know about?”

Blake laughed. “Actually, yes. I hope you don’t mind, but I gave Jax the money you paid me, and asked him to buy some stuff for you with it.”

“Stuff for me?”

Blake started taking stuff out of the bag. “I found a couple of mystery novels for you. Nothing scary, just kid’s ones, but hopefully they’ll help you feel more at home. I know you didn’t have time to grab any books from your apartment.”

Savannah grinned. “Famous Five! AndNancy Drew! These books will be so much fun. Thank you!”

Blake continued pulling things out of the bag. “There are a few more clothes here too, in case you need them. I asked Jax to get them from an age play boutique, so I hope you like them. They’re mostly pink because I know you love that color.”

Savannah grinned. “Oh, now you’ve made me blush the same color as all the clothes. Thank you! I love them!” There was a little pink sweetheart dress, some red hotpants with hearts on them, and a couple of t-shirts with cartoon designs on them. They were perfect. She didn’t say the word aloud, but Blake’s gesture almost felt . . . romantic. Was she reading that wrong? “So,” she said, “do you want a fashion show?”

Blake’s eyes widened. “Damn, I’d like that. But there's something we need to do first."

"Oh?”

"I’m going to teach you some self-defense moves." His blue eyes bore into her own green ones, and for a moment, she felt a pulse of attraction buzz between them.

"Is that necessary? I thought I was safe here," she challenged.

"Better safe than sorry," Blake replied, his tone firm but gentle. "I won't let anything happen to you, but it's important you know how to protect yourself. This guy we’re dealing with, DeLuca, has his claws in deep in this city. I want to know that if it ever came to it, you had some basic training for all eventualities."

"Alright," Savannah agreed, swallowing her apprehension. “Sounds good.”

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