Page 10 of Wed
"I'm going to make some calls. We can't stay here tonight. We need to clear out and find a safe house. I've got a few options. Let me see what I can figure out. For now, we need to be on guard. We're unarmed and sitting ducks if anyone figures out what room Faith and Becca are in." Bryon glanced at Faith. "I'm pissed at both of you, but also so proud of you both for stepping up and doing something. As big of a clusterfuck as this is, you did the right thing." He pulled out his phone and started searching his contacts.
"Thanks for that." Faith sighed. "I'm going to let you guys figure out the logistics. I just want to make sure Lenora is okay. I'm worried she was raped. I need her to trust either me or Becca so we can make sure she isn't injured."
"Give her some time. If it was serious, she'd be fidgeting more. She's not showing signs of pain. Her saving grace might be that most men who buy girls like her expect virgins. She might still be untouched. Let's hope Becca gets the whole story, then we can go from there." Xander gripped his long beard in his fist.
"I hope you're right." Faith leaned against the wall.
Bryon glanced up from his phone. "How old were the men with her downstairs?"
"Maybe in their forties, both dressed in suits. To the unaware eye, it might have looked like a father and daughter out for dinner with a friend. The one beside Lenora got very angry when she asked for the bathroom, and she had to fake sick to get him to let her go. I have to give the girl credit. She was really brave. She had no reason to trust us. I guess we were the lesser of two evils."
"She's still on edge, but that's expected. She has to be worried she went from one captive to another." Bryon glanced at the closed door. "I wish I could hear what's being said out there." His protective instincts were high, and he wanted to stay beside Becca and keep her safe.
"Becca will give us a rundown as soon as she can. I know what Lenora is feeling. I was there. Only I didn't have any control over what happened after I was rescued. They rushed me to the hospital, and I was forced to deal with an exam and everything. I get it had to be done, but it's going to be easier on her if we let her trust us a bit before we push too hard." Faith gripped Xander's arm. "Stop pacing. You're making me nervous."
"Sorry. I'm just trying to work things out in my head. I don't like the fact we're all unarmed and have no way of protecting ourselves." Xander sat down on the edge of the bed.
"I'm working on that too." Bryon typed out a text to a friend he knew that had a home in the area. First, he needed a safe place to move everyone, then he needed to get them weapons. If he couldn't protect his team, he'd move them all back to California and work the case from there. He wasn't putting anyone at risk.
The door opened and Becca stepped into the room. "Foods here. Do you two want to come out and eat with Lenora while I talk to Bry?"
Bryon set his phone down and stood. He looked at Xander and Faith. "Go. Enjoy the food and let Lenora relax a little. We'll join you in a few." He opened his arms as Becca came to him. Wrapping his arms around her, he kissed the top of her head, swearing he might never let her out of his sight again.
CHAPTER FOUR
Becca leaned against Bryon's chest, needing the security of his arms around her. "Don't be mad at me."
Bryon laughed. "Hard not to be. You put yourself in danger."
"You guys do it all the time. Now you know how I feel every time you guys go out." She looked up at him. "I had to save her."
He kissed her forehead. "I know you did. You saved her."
"From the worst of it, but not from everything." Becca pulled back, hating that she'd have to tell him everything that Lenora had told her. While she'd heard horrible details in court cases over the years, it was different when the young child was confiding in her personally with what had been done to her.
"Come sit with me." He led her to the bed and sat down. "Does she need medical care?"
"No, I don't think so. Not right now anyway. They gave her a tattoo on the back of her neck that I want Beau to look at, and she has some bruising on her arms from where they held her down to give it to her, but other than that, I think she's okay. They didn't rape her. After the shower, they made her get on the bed naked and pose for them while they photographed her. They threatened to kill her brother if she didn't do what they wanted. The poses were graphic. Legs spread, bent over, shit like that. You know the vile stuff we find online. She's really embarrassed by it all." Becca sighed, her heart breaking for what the girl had gone through.
"How long ago was this?"
"She said maybe four days ago. There weren't windows in the basement so she didn't always know what time it was. The women would come down and tell them to go to bed each night and wake them up in the morning." Becca sighed. "The day after the photos were taken, she again was taken upstairs and told to get undressed. They did her hair and makeup again and had her stand in the living room. She thinks it was for a video this time. They said she was number fourteen. The guy speaking off-camera talked about her height, weight, and age. Mentioned that she was a virgin and wasn't menstruating yet."
Bryon nodded. "That's how they run the auctions. They collect pictures for the presale so buyers can get an idea of the…" He paused before continuing. "The inventory. A few days later they hold the auction, and each girl is forced to stand naked in front of a video camera while a live feed of her is sent to potential buyers. She's made to turn around and get in different positions so buyers can inspect the girl before bidding on her." He ran his fingers through his hair. "Once payment is received, the buyer arranges to pick up the girl at some location. I'm not sure where is popular here, but in California, they often take the child to Disneyland. They'll simply do a handover by sitting down at the same table as a buyer and making it look as if they are all friends. The girl goes in with one family and walks out with another. Disney is a very popular place for trafficking. With so many people, especially children, it goes completely unnoticed."
"That's horrible," Becca gasped.
"I agree. Sadly, some of the places you think are the safest for children are the most dangerous. I'm guessing that's what you and Faith were witnessing. Lenora walked in with one man and would have left with the other. No one would think anything of it since they had sat together for dinner." Bryon sighed. "I hate that I even have to talk about this with you."
"I'm hardly naive about things. I sit through cases at the courthouse which makes my stomach turn. I've been part of this team long enough that I don't need you protecting me from the bad things. It might not be pleasant, but at least now I know better what to look for." Becca leaned against Bryon's shoulder. "What about the tattoo? Will you be able to track it?"
"That might actually be the best evidence we could get. Each trafficking organization has its own brand. They put it on the girls to show ownership. Even after being sold, the tattoo will remain and that way if the girl escapes or is returned, they know who the original owner was. Most of the young prostitutes in this area are branded by their pimps to show ownership." He hugged her, then stood. "Our database has a record of most the known tattoos. I'll give Jeremy a call in Denver, and we'll see if he minds doing some digging for us since we can't do much from here without our security systems." He figured Matt had already contacted the Denver STK team and informed them what was going on. "My priority is to get us a safe place to stay. Until we leave here, you and Faith are not to leave this hotel room. Not even to walk across the hall to one of the other rooms. I need you both to stay clear of any cameras in the building."
Becca sighed.
"It's just until I find us a new place to stay. I'm working on that now. I want Lenora, Faith, and you to put your hair up, and wear a scarf or something over your head if you can. A hat. Anything that will change your appearance when we leave here. Don't doubt for a second that they are searching for you. A girl like Lenora can bring in tens of thousands of dollars. They'll want her back, and they'll want you to pay for interfering."
"I understand."
