No wonder my flight instinct has been spiking — every one of these stories gave me chills when I heard about them, except, I was afraid for my life. I worried I’d be considered a “criminal” for giving killers the punishment they “deserved.” They scared me, and rightly so. I’d like to think it was because inside I knew what I was doing was wrong, but maybe I was just being selfish.
Either way, I can only be ashamed of the past, I can’t change it. Now it’s time to deal with the present and the future.
Here goes.
“Have you heard of Congressman Darren Prescott?” I ask.
“Of course,” says Helena as she takes out her laptop. “Prison industry magnate out of Pennsylvania, which is where you’re from, isn’t it? He’s running for re-election right now, isn’t he?”
I nod. “That’s correct.”
“Are you working for his opponent… Tamara Miller?”
My eyes widen in shock. “No, not at all!” I hadn’t even thought about that, though now I get Helena’s suspicion. A scandal of this magnitude is the only way Miller could win at this point. “I swear, this has nothing to do with the election. Let me start from the beginning.”
—
The three of them listen for more than an hour as I tell them everything: Lance, Darren, the Walker Center — Quinn. “I’m here because of her,” I say.
Throughout my story, the women don’t give any reaction, other than to ask questions — especially names. I give them so many — all the inmates I can think of, any sponsor who I could identify. I give them directions to Walker and draw a basic floor plan of the entire facility.
“What else can I do?” I ask when I finish. “I want to take them down and free all the prisoners. Whatever it takes, I’m in.”
As I say this, I notice two men quickly approaching our table. Before I can react, they split apart and take seats on either side of me. They both wear matching outfits — black jeans and tight, white, short-sleeved T-shirts that show off their developed physiques. Both have tattoos on their muscular arms, and as soon as they sit I feel one of them slip something hard into my gut — the barrel of a pistol.
NowI feel intimidated.
“Is there a problem?” I ask.
“We don’t like your story,” says Marla.
“Sounds like bait,” Carson adds.
I don’t understand. Do they really not believe me? “What do you mean, bait?”
“We deal with some of the most dangerous criminal organizations in the country, Mr. Nolan,” says Carson. “We’ve made plenty of powerful enemies. You’re a stranger to us, and you come here with bold accusations leveled at men at the highest levels of government. It’s the makings of an irresistible target for us to pursue.”
“Which means it could just be a story, meant to draw us out into the open,” Marla adds.
“Our enemies have set traps for us before,” notes Helena. “And smarter men than you have been bait, Reed.”
I shake my head, trying not to move too suddenly with a gun against my ribs. “I swear, everything I told you was true.”
“That’s good,” Carson replies. “Because we don’t take chances. Our network of associates watches out for us wherever we go. Right now there are about fifty women out on the street watching for signs of an ambush and recording everything.”
“I promise,” I growl, starting to feel my heart pound. “I’m not lying, and nobody knows I’m here. Quinn knows I’m trying to get help, but not where I went or who any of you are.”
Their suspicion and doubt is pissing me off — which is exactly how Quinn felt when I didn’t believe her. I suppose I kinda deserve this.
“If that’s true, we won’t have a problem today,” says Carson. “If there really is a secret prison in Pennsylvania run by a corrupt congressman, we intend to shut it down, Reed. You can be sure of that. We just have to know what we’re getting into. We can’t afford to spook Prescott or any of his partners in crime.”
“Good.” That works for me.
“It was very risky of you to do this,” Marla says. “We need to know, why now? Why not come forward years ago?”
I sigh, angry at myself. “Because I didn’t know any better. Quinn got me to see the truth about it all. I have a lot to atone for — I’d like to topple Prescott and his entire empire, but I’ll settle for getting Quinn to safety.”
“Even if that means suffering the consequences of your actions?” asks one of the men, speaking up for the first time. “Prison isn’t exactly fun.”