by Dena Christy
“Maybe we should forget it. With the compound destroyed, there is little chance Serena will continue to want any association with us. We’ve been compromised, and she won’t want to risk our getting anymore military attention. Perhaps the best way forward would be for us to figure out what we will do with the rest of our lives.”
“Rebecca, tell me what you found out.” She hadn’t considered that her association with Serena would end with the destruction of the compound, but there was truth in what Rebecca had said. They would make plans for the rest of their lives once Rebecca told her what she’d found out.
“The women that Serena’s organization has taken in get new lives, but not the kind we think. Serena is a human trafficker.” Rebecca’s face was pale as she looked into Evie’s eyes.
What she said didn’t compute. That was impossible. Serena was helping women escape the misery of their lives, and giving them the opportunity to achieve happiness by living the lives they wanted. The grip on her fingers grew tighter until pain shot through her flesh and she loosened her grip. Rebecca was wrong. She had to be mistaken.
“I think you’ve misinterpreted the data you’ve found. I’ve known Serena for years. She’s helping women, not hurting them.” It was all a misunderstanding. It had to be.
“Evie, I’m not wrong about this. Haven’t you noticed that for a halfway house, this place is loads more luxurious than it should be. If this was a way station for desperate women waiting for a new life, it would look a lot more like the compound.” A frown pulled at Rebecca’s mouth as she looked around the office.
“That means nothing. Perhaps it looks this way so that the women who come here are comfortable. Remember that the women we help are used to more material things.” It was a desperate attempt at denial, but the alternative was unthinkable.
“You know that’s not why it looks like this. This is a brothel, Evie. We are sitting in a brothel. The women who live here are not going anywhere, and the only life they have is servicing the rich cliental that Serena brings in. This isn’t the only one that’s like this. All the safe houses are like this. They aren’t safe houses at all, they are high price brothels. And as unbelievable as it sounds, it isn’t the worst of it. She auctions some of the women off to rich buyers.”
There was a roaring in Evie’s ears and she squeezed her eyes shut as she shook her head. It wasn’t true. Serena wasn’t like that. This was all a misunderstanding, and it would be cleared up with one phone call to Serena. Then she remembered how angry Serena got when she suggested sending the women to Latroth as colonists. At the time it made little sense, but it did now. Finding an alternate route for the women to go would cut into Serena’s profits.
“The real reason she doesn’t want to help women from the lower classes is not because she can’t find a place for them, it’s because she doesn’t think rich men would pay her prices for a woman from the lower castes.”
It all made sense now. Why Serena always said that there was no places for the lower caste women to go, why she handled all the decisions, and why Evie’s involvement in the organization had always been so limited, despite her asking for more of a role.
“I’m sorry. I wish I’d dug into this before, but I never thought to do it until she got mad about sending the women to Latroth. I guess I was so grateful that she helped me a few years ago that I turned a blind eye to the logistics of the situation. I can’t believe that I honestly thought that she had the power to let women start over on a planet where the government, the military and the elites control everything.”
That was one thing that made little sense about this whole thing. Serena hadn’t sold either her or Rebecca to the highest bidder. If that was truly her intent when taking in these women, why were she and Rebecca sitting here talking about this, instead of being a rich man’s concubine?
“Why are we sitting here instead of servicing a rich man?” Not that she didn’t believe Rebecca, she didn’t want to believe that Serena was capable of what Rebecca was telling her. Serena had been her savior when her life had been at it’s bleakest, and to have it turn out to be a lie was more than Evie could take right now.
“We are here because we are more useful to her on our feet than on our backs. My computer skills have more value to her than what she could get for me, and your trust fund was a lot of money, the bulk of which she’s siphoned off. It was easier for her to get it if she set you up as her helper. She could not have gotten me to access your account if she hadn’t made you think that you were a part of her organization and that you were helping the cause by investing in her opportunity.”
The roaring in her ears got louder and louder, and Evie stood up, sending the chair she’d been in crashing to the floor. Her stomach rolled, and she turned and bolted for the bathroom attached to the office. She shoved up the lid of the toilet as her knees hit the floor and she threw up all the food she’d eaten. Over and over her body heaved as if it was purging her of the illusions she’d been operating under for years and replacing them with a new reality.
On shaky legs she stood and went to the sink. She ran the water and rinsed the sour taste from her mouth. How could she have been so naïve, to blindly believe everything that Serena had told her. All of it had been a lie. She wasn’t helping anyone she was part of the destruction of so many lives. All those women who had come through her compound had not been sent toward new opportunities, they’d been sent toward lives far worse than the ones they were escaping.
She walked back into the office, and it was empty. She righted her chair and sank down on it. What was she going to do now? Everything she’d thought was true turned out to be a lie. The woman she’d thought of as her mentor was not who she thought she was. She was a leach who sucked people dry for everything that they had.
She gave a bitter laugh. She truly had nothing. No money, no home and all the good she thought she’d done turned out to be a lie too.
Chapter Twelve
Cynric was waiting somewhat impatiently for Synn to finish the diagnostic on Hylda. Why it was taking so long he didn’t know, but he refrained from saying anything. Added pressure wouldn’t help Synn get the job done any faster, and it wasn’t fair to him. The wait for the verdict on Hylda was not the source of his irritation, and Synn didn’t deserve to bear the brunt of it.
Why hadn’t he said more to Evie when she’d walked into his arms? Why hadn’t he spoken of what he was suspecting was in his heart? Despite the mark not appearing, he was suspecting that he was growing to love her. The thought of parting with her when they left this planet sent deep pain through him.
Would it be possible for her to come to Latroth with him? Dare he ask her?
He shook his head, trying to clear the thoughts crowding in away. Unless the mark appeared it wouldn’t be right to suggest to her that she go home with him. Evie was a smart and resourceful woman, and he knew that once they left, she would find her feet again. He owed her the chance to live the life she wanted, and she’d said nothing about wanting to go to Latroth.
“I don’t believe it.” Synn stared at the computer screen and tapped a few more buttons. “Cynric, you will not believe this.”
“What is it?” Cynric leaned forward and stared at the computer screen, but he couldn’t understand much of what was on it.
“It looks like Hylda can fly. At least according to these reports. I don’t know how powerful she is, and I don’t know if she’d make it all the way to Latroth, but these reports say she will get off this planet.” A look of elation crossed Synn’s face, and Cynric clapped him on the back. His friend was so pleased about Hylda, and Cynric suspected that it had more to do with Hylda herself and less to do with getting off the planet.
“Is there anything in the report that can tell you if she would make it through the gravitational pull if the military employed it?” It was good that Hylda could get in the air, but they needed her to get off the planet. Cynric wasn’t willing to take the chance that they’d get off the ground, only to be
pulled back in.
“I don’t need a report for that. If she couldn’t break through the gravitational pull the first time, the chances are not good that she could get through it a second time.” Synn pushed the computer away with a small noise of disgust. “She may have survive being battered by the asteroid field once, but I know she wouldn’t a second time. And we don’t have escape pods this time.”
“If Rebecca could create enough havoc with the military so that they don’t engage the gravitational pull, would you be able to fly her through the asteroid field unscathed?”
Synn looked at him as if he couldn’t believe that he was even asking him that question. “Of course I can. If I don’t have to fight the pull, I can maneuver her through the asteroids with no problem.”
“Good. I’ll find Rebecca and tell her that Hylda can fly, and that we need her to come up with a plan for buying us some time to slip past the military.” Cynric stood and strode to the door. They were making progress, and it finally appeared that they could go home. His feelings on it were bittersweet, since the safety they all depended on meant getting away from here, but he’d have to say goodbye to Evie when he left.
He shoved the notion aside. They would not leave this minute and they still needed to come up with a plan to get to Hylda. That would take some time. Perhaps the mark would appear and at least he could ask her to go with him. It wouldn’t guarantee that she would say yes, but it would give him a sign about what he was to do next.
He left the room, determined to focus on the matter at hand. It wouldn’t be an issue until either the mark appeared, or they were poised to get off this planet. As it stood Evie was avoiding him, so his time would be better spent focusing on saving his men and their women.
He walked down the corridor in search of Rebecca and saw her coming toward him with a distressed expression on her face. His heart picked up its pace, since there was only one reason she would look like that. From the moment he’d met Rebecca, nothing usually flustered her and the only other time he’d seen an expression like that on her face was when Evie insisted that she stay behind when the compound was going to be destroyed.
He stopped when she came up to him, craning her neck to look at him. “I thought I was doing something good by telling her, but now I don’t know. I haven’t seen her this distraught. I was looking for you because you two have some kind of connection and I thought maybe you would help her get past this.”
“Where is she?” He didn’t want to waste any more time finding out anything more. He’d know what he needed to once he was with Evie. Rebecca pointed at a close door just down the hall.
“Please tell her how sorry I am. I wouldn’t have told her if I’d known that she’d be this hurt.”
He didn’t know what Rebecca had told her, and it didn’t matter. All that mattered was getting to Evie and offering her comfort. He walked up to the door and hesitated for a moment. Should he knock?
She would turn him away if he asked for permission to go in. He grasped the doorknob and gave it a twist. He walked in the office and shut the door behind him. Evie sat behind the desk, a pale shell-shocked expression on her face.
“Evie, what is it?” He walked over to her, squatted down in front of her and took her hands. “Talk to me.”
“It’s all been a lie, Cynric. The years I’ve spent thinking I was helping, that I was doing something good, have all been a lie. Turns out instead of saving women I’ve helped to destroy their lives.” Her lower lip trembled, and Cynric squeezed her hands.
“Tell me what happened? What did Rebecca tell you?” Until he knew what had been said, he couldn’t offer her any words of comfort.
“Serena’s organization has not been giving women the opportunity to start over. It has been selling them into sexual slavery to the highest bidder. Why couldn’t I see it? Why was I so wrapped up in my self-pity over how my life had gone that I was willing to stick my head in the sand over this? How could I have taken her at her word like that?” Her eyes swam for a moment and she took a deep breath.
Shock went through Cynric and he didn’t know what he could say to her in the face of such devastating information about the woman she looked up to and admired. “If Serena wanted to hide this from you, there was no way you could have known. You thought you were doing a good thing. No one will fault you for that since you didn’t know what was happening.”
She shook her head, and he could see that what he was saying wasn’t making an impression on her. He didn’t know what he could say to offer her comfort, so he didn’t try. He stood, still holding her hands and pulled her out of the chair. He gathered her into his arms and held her close. Holding her was all he could do for her and he didn’t know if it was going to be enough. The blow she’d been dealt went deep and it would take time for her to come back from it. Her identity was wrapped up in the life she’d created for herself when her fiancé had died, and now that identity had been revealed to her to be a lie.
“Do you know what the horrible part is?” She laid her cheek against his chest and put her arms around his waist.
“Why don’t you tell me?” What could be more horrible than finding out you’d been party to human trafficking, however unknowingly?
“When Rebecca first told me, after I believed her, I was angry with her. I was pissed off that she’d ruined everything by telling me the truth. I wanted to continue on as before, patting myself on the back for being such a good person, for helping so many unfortunate women. Instead of thanking Rebecca for telling me how things really are, I was pissed off at her for ruining my illusions.”
“I think anger is a natural reaction to the shock you’ve received. I saw Rebecca, and she is only concerned about you. She said to tell you that she’s sorry that you’ve been hurt by what she said to you. I think you both are being too hard on yourselves. The truth has a way of getting out eventually. You both trusted the wrong person, there is nothing wrong in that. The truth of the matter is that you trusted someone who made all the appearances of being your friend, of caring about you, and she betrayed you. You didn’t knowingly destroy those women’s lives. You thought you were helping.”
She shook her head against his chest. He didn’t know what more he could say to get her to see that she wasn’t the evil person she thought she was.
“I used Serena’s offer as a way to escape. I’ve spent years buried in that compound with my head in the sand because it suited me. I selfishly didn’t want to face what my life had become, so I hid in that compound and was blissfully ignorant of what was happening around me. It was more important to me to pat myself on the back for the good I was doing. It took Rebecca only a few days to discover the truth. Why hadn’t I asked her to find out where the women were going years ago?” She took a step back and he let his arms drop to his side. She wouldn’t look at him and his heart ached for her. “I’m going to go up to my room for a while. I’d like to be alone.”
He wanted to tell her that being alone was not what she needed but he didn’t stop her when she stepped past him and out the door. There was so much hurt inside her that he was a loss as to what he could do to help her through it. Evie was an intelligent woman, and she would work out that the blame for what happened to those women rested squarely on Serena’s shoulders. Unfortunately she wasn’t prepared to listen to the truth, and until she was she wouldn’t hear it. It was a conclusion that she would have to reach on her own, so he let her go.
He would need to tell her soon that they’d discovered that Hylda could fly, and that he would be leaving. It would be another blow, and he didn’t want to do it. She would say goodbye to her friends when she needed to be surrounded by those who loved her. He looked down at his chest as if to will the mark to appear. Why couldn’t his body manifest physically what he was feeling inside?
Cynric sighed and walked out of the office. He couldn’t offer Evie comfort so he would go do what he could, which was plan how they were going to get their ship off the ground.
E
vie didn’t know how long she lay on the bed, but it must have been hours judging by the lack of light coming through the window. It must be evening now, and she knew she should go downstairs to eat, but she wasn’t hungry. She sat up and scrubbed her palms over her face. She had just about enough of feeling sorry for herself.
Cynric was right, the responsibility for what happened to those women was on Serena. She was the one who chose the path she walked down, and she dragged Evie along with her. If Evie had known what was happening, she would never have involved herself. Now she knew. She didn’t know what she was going to do with that knowledge, but she was done with Serena. She would talk to Rebecca and see if she could cut off the flow of funds from her inheritance to Serena’s organization. There was no getting back the money she’d already put in, but at least she could stop the flow.
While she was at it, she should put some thought into what the hell she was going to do with the rest of her life. Inspiration was slow in coming since all her brain wanted to suggest was to go to Latroth with Cynric. She didn’t know if she wanted to start a new life on a new planet with him, or if her mind had given up and it thought it was her only option. There was the small impediment of the fact that he hadn’t asked her to spend the rest of her life with him, and how would it look now if she brought it up. It would look like she was out of options, so she’d settle for a life with him.
So suggesting going to Latroth was out at least until he broached the subject. Perhaps she was over thinking all this. They still had to get off the planet, so there was time to focus on that before she had to decide what to do with the rest of her life.
The was a soft knock on the door, and it eased open. Cynric walked into the bedroom and looked over at her.
“How are you feeling?” He stood just inside the door and made no move to come further into the room. She couldn’t blame him since the last time he’d tried to talk to her she hadn’t been inclined to listen.
