Page 41 of Freeing Souls

“Well, he’s my daddy, silly.” She chuckles. “Okay, you need to shower and get your dress on so we can get you settled. It won’t be long before the goons come to rush us along, and I'm sure you won’t want to shower with them around.”

“And if I don’t want to?” I narrow my eyes, becoming more suspicious of her kind act. It has to be an act, right? Why would she be so kind to me as she helps me for whatever twisted shit I’m about to enter?

She freezes at my question, and her eyes dart to the camera in the corner of the room before she looks back at me. “Well, they won’t appreciate that very much. Please, just take your shower now while you can without other eyes on you.” Her eyes plead with me, so I go ahead and shower. I can only imagine she is being forced to do this and could get in trouble if I don’t behave. I have already watched one person get hurt and killed today. I don’t want to see another.

Blinking away the tears, I finish getting myself clean and then step out of the shower, where Zero helps me dry off and tugs a light pink slip dress over my head before she brushes out my hair and braids it. “Why are you braiding it?” I ask her, remembering how all the girls at the warehouse had braided hair because Oakley had done theirs.

She hums softly. “It keeps your hair from getting really tangled, especially if you get in trouble. You won’t be allowed to come shower in here, so it could be days before you get to brush your hair again. And it’s pretty.”

“Why do you seem so happy? Is it just a cover? Can you tell me what happens next?” I ask her.

Her eyes glaze over before she clears her throat and smiles at me through the mirror. “Being happy makes Daddy happy. I want to keep Daddy happy. We should get you out there and find out what your number is.”

“My number?” I question as she guides me back out, but through a different door than the first one. My stomach drops as we enter a room with cages only as tall as my waist lining the walls, girls in them. A man in a ski mask approaches us, his dark eyes narrowing on me before he speaks directly to Zero. “Put Six in her room and then go see your Daddy.”

She drops her chin with a nod. “Yes, sir.” Guiding me farther down the hall, she opens one of the cage doors with a small sign above it that readsSIX.She nudges my back, but I keep my feet planted, not moving.

She makes a sound of distress from the back of her throat before murmuring, “Please don’t fight. The others will explain after lights out. Just behave.Please.”The slight panic in her voice is the only reason I drop to my knees, willingly putting myself in this cage, even though every instinct inside me is screaming to fight and run.

It’s not that easy,I remind myself as tears well up in the corners of my eyes, but I blink them away, refusing to let myself cry right now. As soon as I’m in the cage all the way, Zero shuts and locks it and then walks away without one of the guards guiding her, as if she has free will.

Is she just a trick to make us behave? Her sweet side and than the vulnerable side she barely shows… Is it fake? A trap to make us behave enough to get here?

Who the fuck is she?

Pushing my anger down, I take the time to glance around the room, taking in everything. There are at least twenty cages total. About half of them have girls in them. Some are curled in such tiny balls, I can’t even see their faces. A few are watching me cautiously, but no one speaks. Glancing through the cage, I lock eyes with the girl next to me, who looks to be a few years older. When I open my mouth to speak, she shakes her head and holds a finger to her mouth and then points at the guards standing on each side of the room.

Scooting back against the far wall, I pull my knees to my chest and wrap my arms around them. Taking deep breaths, I try to keep myself from spiraling out of control. This is not the time or place to think about everything and break down. There’s this little but loud voice inside my head screaming at me to just give up, to accept my fate and stop trying. Let the darkness consume me and the first chance I get just end it all because what’s the point?

But then, they come to mind. My men. My family. The way I am not the only one who just lost the person we all love and depend on. They need me just like I need them. I have promised the guys over and over again that we would do this together. We are a team, and I have to remember that now more than ever.

I can get through this because I know they are fighting tooth and nail to find me right now, so how would it be fair if I just gave up?

After doing my best to stay disassociated from reality and focus on my men and the club, the door at the far end finally opens, and someone walks in. Well, actually,someones.

Unable to stand, I straighten my shoulders and glare up at the face I haven’t seen in over a year and hoped I wouldn’t see again.

“Hello, sweet daughter.”

I don’t speak.

“What, nothing to say to your mother?” She raises one of her drawn-on brows before she squats down in front of my cage. “You ruined a lot for me, but I think I can forgive you. You are finally going to where you belong. I knew once I found out you were in Killer’s hands I could come home again. You see, I had a deal with Killer and your buyer, but then you had to go and ruin that. When I found out Killer was back in Jacksonville, I knew I had to leave. I hadn’t finished my part of making sure you were ready. Luckily, you walked into his open arms.”

She smiles at me even as I don’t respond to her. Instead, I digest everything she is saying, attempting not to panic. “When your little friend called me in tears to let me know you were missing, I knew it was finally time to come out of the shadows. So I guess I should thank you for having such gullible friends and for giving me my life back. Now that your dear daddy is dead and you are going to be long gone soon, that club will be in shambles. It will be such an honor to bring them down piece by piece until there is nothing left.”

She slowly rises before looking down her nose at me, “You started this war, my dear, but I will finish it. You lose.” With a bright smile on her face, she turns and walks back out the door she came through. The second the door shuts behind her, my chest expands, and I gasp, not able to breathe. Hunching over, I lay my forehead on the cold, hard ground and crumble.

How could things get so fucked up all over again? When will it end?

“You are a force, little flame.”

“You’re unstoppable.”

“You’re courageous.”

Their voices from the day I went into the basement at Tammy’s float around in my mind. It’s not her taunts or torture anymore. They gave me something new down in that basement: strength. Strength because I have them and I have to trust in them.

The thoughts in my mind push and pull me in different directions, but there is one thing clear as day: I did not make it this far to give up now, even if everything feels hopeless.

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