He stepped over the guy out cold on the floor and pushed the sheets aside to the next room. Another girl. Alone. He crept close and placed his hand to her neck. Warm. She was sleeping. Also not Darcy.
He went through two more rooms before he reached one where soft grunts told him he’d found the other john. This time he must not have been as stealthy, because the guy turned and barked, “Get the hell out, man.”
Travis slammed his hand into the guy’s nose. The guy howled in pain and dropped to the floor, holding his hands over the blood now pouring out, not about to put up a fight.
But it was too late, as there was a shout from upstairs and footsteps barreling back down the stairs just as a guy dived inside headfirst and caught Travis in the gut. They slammed into the wall behind him, and for a moment Travis saw stars as his head hit the cement wall.
Damn. There went his element of surprise.
…
Meredith struggled to remember the address where they were to relay to the 9-1-1 operator and then stayed on the line for what felt like forever as they confirmed her location. All the while, she stared at the still figure on the bed, her heart aching for the girl and whatever she’d been put through. What if it had been Darcy?
The shouting down below sent her heart racing and, despite the responder’s request that she stay on the line, Meredith hung up and went to the door, trying to hear what was happening.
She risked a peek, only to see Cal, the guy who had carried her, racing back up. She quickly hid behind the door, as he bounded into the room where he’d deposited her. Crap. He wasn’t going to stop until he found her. She looked around for somewhere to hide, but other than the bed, there was nothing but a closet. And that would be the first place he’d look.
She dropped to her knees. It would be tight, but she could probably slink under the bed. Slowly, feet first, she inched back until she was flat on her belly, looking out from under the bed. From here she had a clear view of the door.
She waited.
The seconds went by, and she heard the flurry down the hall as he ripped through the remaining rooms. Why didn’t she have a weapon? A knife at least? Something she could use. Her cell phone hardly seemed enough.
Then he was there. His boots were all she could see as he strode in, slamming his hand against a wall as he passed it. At the bed, he stopped, probably looking down at the dead girl. Meredith held her breath, hoping he couldn’t hear the beating of her heart—it felt so loud thrumming in her ears.
He walked a few steps away, pulling the closet door open with such force it careened into the wall and she flinched. He thrashed about inside until, satisfied she wasn’t there, he came back out and flew out of the room.
She breathed out a sigh of relief.
She was safe. The entire house felt silent now, and she wondered what Travis was doing, if he’d found Darcy, if she was safe—
The boots returned, and before she could blink, Cal had crossed the room and bent down. Meeting her gaze.
“Didn’t think you were going to get away, did you?”
Then he grabbed her by her hair and pulled her out.
…
The last conscious guy was determined to hold out. Travis eyed the restraints this scum had likely used on dozens of girls before and used them to wrap around the guy’s wrists.
The man chuckled. “What, you think you can make me talk? I got nothing to lose.”
“Wrong.” Travis shot the guy in the shoulder. But other than sucking air in a little tighter and grimacing, he didn’t say anything. “You’re going to tell me about this sale you and your buddy were talking about. Where it’s at. Who the guy in charge is.”
He didn’t respond, looking stubbornly away from Travis.
Travis put a bullet in the guy’s left knee. This time he howled in pain.
“You’ll be lucky if they manage to put that kneecap back together. So don’t screw with me again. Now…” Travis aimed the gun in the direction of the guy’s groin. “Tell me what you know or I’ll make sure you lose the physical capacity to screw anyone again.”
Man, the puns were rolling off his tongue now, like some bad B movie, but the guy didn’t seem to even appreciate them, as he actually shook. Whether from pain or fear, Travis didn’t know or care.
“I don’t know the guy. I don’t. Never met him.”
“Let’s start with what you do you know. And speak fast. I’m not feeling particularly patient.”
The guy was sweating now and tried his bonds one last time before speaking. “Every few months, we get a call. That we’re back in business again, you know, recruiting girls. They all come here first for…examination. Some stay, but most go. I don’t know where, I swear. At the end of the one- to two-week period, they’re sold. And we all get a take in the profits.”