Page 39 of Submission

“Well?”

I feel like I’m juggling multiple volatile scenarios in my life, and I need clarity on how to handle them all. I’ve got Vaughn and Christian looking for any leads on my sister, keeping the peace with the local gangs, and keeping their ears close to theground about this so-called Executioner, but there’s still another question I need answered. Who else (other than those spoiled college kids and maybe myself) do I need to protect Megan from so that I can finally get a good night’s sleep?

The only way to answer that is to find out everything I can about my new lady love, especially the things she’s reluctant to share.

Lars hands me a thin paper file because I prefer to do things old school and not leave a digital trail. “I looked into the half-sister like you requested.”

I open the folder and look down at the face of the girl I met a few weeks ago. Her full name is Rachel Taylor and while they look nothing alike, she is indeed Megan’s younger half-sister.

“Is she still around?”

“She is.”

“Megan hasn’t mentioned seeing her again.”

“I don’t think Megan has seen her. The girl is just lurking.” Lars accepts the cup of coffee I handed him. “And unless Megan told her where she lives, the sister has managed to track her down here. I saw her waiting outside across the street the other day, staring up at the top floor of the building as if she’s imagining what floor Megan lives on.”

“So she was just outside, staring at the building?”

“Yes.”

“But she never tried to come inside?”

“The front desk said they never saw anyone matching her description come in.”

“Where is a kid like that staying?”

“Local motel near the club.”

I skim through the rest of the flimsy file, which is just basic information I could have found with a basic Google search.

“The information in this file doesn’t tell me anything new, Lars,” I huff as I now use the folder as a coaster for my coffee mug.

“There are a few things that didn’t make the report.” Lars gives me an uncertain look.

“You’ve been holding back?” I meet his gaze. “Do tell.”

“I had to be certain before I shared this information,” he says, letting out a deep breath. “I think I am. The story is that Megan’s birth mother ran off and left her with her father when she was just a kid.”

“And is that not the case?”

“Not exactly; I actually think her mother lived about five miles from her the entire time.”

“That’s a shitty thing for her to do.”

“Yeah, but she didn’t run off and just leave her. No one from the old neighborhood seems to know the exact details anymore, but they say she was a beautiful woman who got mixed up with some bad people and fell victim to a local human trafficking ring.”

“A trafficking ring? Can we find her and pull her out?”

“No, boss, she died a few years later.”

I go still and look up at him. “Does Megan know?”

“I doubt she knows any of it.” Lars shakes his head.

“So the father had to raise her.”

“Yeah, and apparently hated every minute of it. He believed the mother stepped out on him, so he was angry and took out a lot of that shit on Megan. He raised her along with his girlfriend, Veronica, who was a registered nurse practitioner. She is who Rachel’s mother is. The two are still together.”

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