Page 11 of Risk
As we sit at the kitchen table, Isla looks up at me, her eyes swimming with unshed tears. “Why did he do this to me?”
“Because he’s an evil man,” I answer. It’s the only thing I can think of to say in response, because how else do you break it down into words so you can describe someone who’s as sinister as he is? It’s an impossible question to answer.
“Where did he get you, Isla?” I ask, changing the course of the conversation.
“A group home. It’s a transition house for teenagers who’ve graduated from the foster care system but are still in school and being supported by the state.”
I’m both shocked and disgusted by her explanation. “They took you from your house before you graduated. They can do that?”
“They had to make room for a new kid,” she excuses. “I was the oldest and closest to graduating so I was the lucky winner.”
Harrumphing, I say, “Doesn’t sound much like a win to me.” I’m going to have to take her under my wing and keep her as safe as I can. This is a dog eat world she’s been thrust into. I’m sad on her behalf because there’s nobody out there to miss her and look for her, wanting to know her whereabouts. I open up and tell her what I was thinking earlier, “This is going to be a shock to your system.”
“Already is,” she whispers. “How do things like this happen anyway? How do they get away with it? Isn’t there anyone wecan report them to? Surely, there’s a program out there for people like us who are in this situation.”
“Those are good questions, ones I can’t answer because I have no idea, Isla. If I’d figured that out, I would’ve already reported this to the right channels so they could shut this operation down. I don’t know who they have in their pockets so I haven’t taken that leap and reached out to anyone.”
She drops her fork to her plate and leans back, cradling herself by wrapping her arms around her waist. “You think they are connected to someone higher up, don’t you?”
“I do,” I confirm. “They need someone to cover their asses. The things they’ve gotten away with are too convenient. Like you for example. How did they know how easy it would’ve been to take you without a paper trail following you?”
She leans forward, her eyes widening. “Are all of the kids they’ve taken from the system?”
“I wasn’t,” I tell her. “I came from a broken home with a single mom who’d all but given up on me. Marshall wined and dined her until she stopped listening to her gut and gave into the loneliness. I’m one hundred percent convinced she didn’t marry him because she loved him, but because she needed a companion. They were never loving to each other; they were more like friends.”
“You say ‘were’, does that mean they aren’t together anymore?”
“No, they aren’t,” I say with a shake of my head. “The first time he took me, he had what he wanted and stopped going home, abandoning her. He had to be with me at all times so he could break me in. I was a bit of a wildcard back then.”
“The first time?” The horror on her face at that realization has my shoulders slumping. I accidentally said more than I intended to. It’s been a long time since I’ve had someone I could talk to in this manner and had a slip of the tongue.
“The first time,” I clarify. “I bided my time, gained their trust and once I had that, I ran.”
“How long were you gone for?” Isla asks, zoning in on me with interest. I can’t let her take the same road as I did, she doesn’t have the same skills as I do, she’s too innocent.
“Four long, glorious years,” I admit. “I’m also the reason why we now have tags. If we were to run, we’d only have a two day head start on them and we’ll be easily recaptured. It’s not worth taking the chance.”
“It is for me, McKenna. I don’t want this to be my life.”
“I don’t either, Isla.”
“But you’ve given up, haven’t you?” she asks.
“I wouldn’t say I’ve given up, Isla. I just have to find another way.”
“Are you even looking for that?” Isla probes, seeing me better than I want her to.
“It’s not safe, not yet. I have someone important to me that counts on me. I need to stay breathing so I can be there for him.”
“Him? Do you have a man, McKenna?”
“That’s a lot of questions for someone just now meeting me. Are you a spy, Isla?”
She lets out a grave, humorless chuckle before shaking her head. “For them, never!”
She can deny it all she wants, but now that the thought has crossed my mind that theymayrealize I’m not being the good girl they expect me to be, I’m wary. How do I know they haven’t sent in a spy to report back my unauthorized activities? Great, now I’m going to be walking on eggshells in my own home and am going to have to be more careful than I already am when I venture out on the weekends.
“The couch pulls out. I’d offer you my spare room but I use that for my videos. I’ll grab you a blanket and pillow. My advice to you would be to not try and leave, the first couple of weeks they watch you like a hawk. You may not see them, Isla, but they’re there.”
