by L. L. Akers
“Now, I know it doesn’t matter where it’s happening. Human trafficking is a monstrous and devastating crime anywhere. It steals lives. Women’s and children’s. But now it’s real personal. This is your town, guys and gals. Work faster. Work smarter. Work harder. Let’s get these assholes. And because we may have a trafficker right here, we’ll be working closer with the FBI and all state and local partners. If anyone asks you a question, answer it. We’re all on the same team here. Team Get Those Bastards.”
He paused and looked throughout the room, meeting everyone’s eyes at least once. “And if we get lucky and make a bust, we may get asked to join Operation Cross Country. It’d be awesome to coordinate with their team to try to bring down these assholes. So, look alive. Get out there and find them. Bring ‘em to their knees, so we can give these victims a chance to spit in their eye.”
Chapter Three
Gabby rang the doorbell again. She knew Olivia was in there. Her car was in the parking lot.
Okay, fine. I’ll just use my key.
She unlocked the door and stepped in. “Olivia, where are you? Dusty’s brother is on his way… and he’s s-i-n-g-l-e…” she said in a sing-song voice. “Your presence is required with the rest of the fam, Sista!”
She pulled her keys from the lock and turned around to find the place a mess; magazines strewn about, a chair knocked over near the table, a broken lamp… and Olivia lying on the couch, nearly buried under the body of a stinking, snoring…Ozzie.
Gabby rolled her eyes at the sight.
Her eyebrows furrowed as she placed her hands on her hips. “Which was it this time? Fists of fury or feet of ferocity?”
Ozzie’s snoring was obnoxiously loud—loud enough to wake the dead. She wrinkled her nose. Damn, I can smell him all the way over here, she thought.
Even though one of his meaty legs was dangling off the side of the couch, he was still taking up more room than Olivia, squashing her behind him. That cannot be comfortable.
Tell-tale signs of crying showed on Olivia’s normally cheerful face. The faded trail of dried tears marked a path; her eyes still red.
Olivia shushed Gabby with a finger to her lips.
“Don’t raise your voice.” She pointed at Ozzie, reminding Gabby he could get agitated very quickly, especially at raised voices—and things could turn ugly fast.
Gabby rolled her eyes again. “I’m not afraid of him.” But she paused and scrutinized Ozzie again, then quickly looked away, not wanting to make eye contact in case he did open his eyes.
In a quieter voice, she said, “Well, which was it?”
Olivia shrugged one shoulder in answer, looking miserably toward the ceiling, purposely avoiding her twin sister’s eyes.
“Speak up. What’s the damage? I mean, other than what I see here in the room?” Gabby persisted.
Olivia shuddered and sniffled. “A broken rib. Some bruises. I think that’s all,” she mumbled.
Gabby ran her hands over her face. “That’s all? Isn’t that enough? You say that like it’s not a big deal. Didn’t you see enough of that with Billy to last you a lifetime? I just don’t understand how you can let yourself be pulled into this again. You need to call the cops. It’s illegal to toss someone’s place like this. It’s… it’s vandalism…or something. I bet you haven’t even called the police, have you?”
Olivia was lying on one arm, but the other clutched the tattered remains of a Kleenex. She threw it at Gabby.
“Dang it! Just stop telling me everything I’m doing is wrong, Gabby! Haven’t I always been there for you when you needed me? Wasn’t I the one that held you together after your car accident a year ago until you came to your senses?” she yelled. “Can’t I have one morning to be sad and lazy? Just. One. Damn. Morning!”
Ozzie stopped snoring. He raised his head, opening one eye to see what Olivia was yelling about.
Gabby side-stepped the snotty tissue. Uh oh, she thought. Olivia didn’t cuss often: she disapproved of cursing, and constantly battled Gabby’s potty mouth.
I better back off. I’d rather deal with an unpredictable Ozzie than a pissed-off Olivia.
Gabby blew out a deep breath, trying to calm herself before speaking again. It wrecked her to see her sister this way. And even scared her a little, too. Olivia had come such a long way and was always the strongest of the three sisters. The nurturer. And after she’d fought for her freedom from her asshat ex-husband, she’d rarely seen Olivia cry. Gabby could admit that it scared her more than a little. They’d all fought so hard to get where they were. She didn’t want to see Olivia pulled back down into the cycle.
Ozzie dropped his head again, and resumed snoring. Gabby squatted close to the couch and dropped her voice to a whisper. “I’m sorry. I can’t stand to see you hurting. You were there for me… you’re always there; for everybody. But you’re tiptoeing around the outer edge of the cycle again, and you don’t see it. This shit affects you. I think you need to stop trying to fix other people and work on yourself some more. At least for a while.”
In answer, Olivia silently stared off into space, deliberately ignoring her. Gabby knew Olivia didn’t feel like she needed any more work on herself or her life. She’d told Gabby repeatedly her life was fulfilled. She had her job. And as if that wasn’t enough, she had her family: sisters, her dad, her nephew and Jake and Dusty. She also sometimes cooked for a local women’s shelter, and volunteered as an advocate for abused children.
She was very busy. She’d said a hundred times she didn’t need more than that.
But only a sister truly knows another sister’s heart. Especially a twin sister. And Gabby knew Olivia’s heart was still not healed. She’d spend the rest of her life trying to save everyone but herself if Gabby let her. But that was a discussion for another day. They needed to get moving.
Gabby sighed. “I am here for you. Come on… if you can get out from under him, I’ll drive you to the hospital, but we’ve got to be quick. Dusty’s single brother will be here in three hours and we haven’t started cooking yet. If he looks anything like Dusty, I might have to hook you up. So we need to show this man your skills.” She winked.
Olivia rolled her eyes and shook her head before she whispered back, “Don’t even start with that. You know I’m not interested. I’ll help you cook…but not to impress some middle-aged dumpy big brother, but because that’s what I always do. Besides, I’ve been making progress with a certain online friend. I think he may be ready to meet up face to face,” she whispered.
Gabby shrugged into a fake smile. “Oh! The man has a face? Who knew? Might I get a peek at the infamous face behind the screen, too?”
Oliva glared at her. “No. But I’ll be happy to let you stare at my dictionary awhile. Obviously, you don’t know what the word ‘infamous’ means,” she finished with a fake smile of her own.
Words and the English language were a constant competition between the twins, and Olivia thought she’d just won a round. She licked her finger and tapped the air, giving herself an imaginary point. Gabby appreciated Olivia’s attempt to lighten the conversation with her jab at her, but she was wrong. Gabby had intentionally chosen that word.
“Oh, but I know exactly what it means,” Gabby mumbled with her hand over her mouth, following it with a fake cough. She was done poking the bear…for now…but she could never resist getting the last word.
Chapter Four
Olivia nudged Ozzie. “Move!” she said.
He resisted, pushing himself further into her, squishing her back against the couch.
Stupid dog. He’s gotta weigh at least fifty pounds.
She limply fell back onto the couch, giving up, too tired to fight him.
Gabby laughed, breaking the tension between them. “At least you get to keep the dog again. Looks like he likes you.”
Her eyes narrowed at Gabby. “Seriously. Do not tease me right now. I am not keeping this dog.”
“Geesh! Sorry. I don’t know what else to say. I just wa
nt you away from all this drama. I knew the second I walked in what had happened. Let’s see if I have it right this time… Your latest girl got homesick for her old man, so she stupidly called him, and let it slip where she was. He came after her, trashing your pad, and taught her a lesson for leaving in the first place,” Gabby finished with a firm nod of her head and raised her eyebrows.
“How did you know he taught her a lesson when you walked in? It could’ve been Ozzie that made this mess. You asked if it was feet or fists right off.”
“Duh… it’s not like you to cry over a broken lamp and a mess, Olivia. That’s the easy part. Oh, and don’t let me forget to mention the grand finale—she dumped her dog on you, too. Same story, different girl. Am I right so far?”
Olivia sighed and Ozzie whined, nudging her hand. Yeah, it’s like Ground Hog day…my life repeated, she thought to herself.
Gabby crossed her arms again. “I know I’ve beaten this subject to death, and no pun intended, but what if you’d been here when he came to get her? You’re going to end up hurt or dead if you don’t stop this shit. But I know you won’t, so at least learn you can't save the world. If you’re going to insist on using your own apartment as a shelter—which you know I highly disapprove of, you can't take it so personal when one of them goes back.”
Olivia tried to cross her arms, but there was fifty pounds of dog in the way, so she settled for a scowl. “I think you’ve forgotten, I was one of them at one time. I’m not giving up. I know what it’s like.”
“I haven't forgotten anything. But when you were there, at least you didn't dump on other people. This is the third time in three months that one of these creeps has been to your home, and the fourth dumped dog.”
Gabby squeezed in to sit at Olivia’s feet, moving very slowly. Ozzie growled and Gabby froze.
“Show no fear,” Olivia reminded her.
So Gabby stared straight ahead, while she rooted out a spot on the couch. “At least stop taking in the ones that have animals. We're running out of friends. I for one am tired of the old beg, barter or blow. I’m all begged and bartered out, so I suggest unless you want to offer the third service, you’d better drop this one off at the animal shelter.”
“Gabby, I swear. Your language is truly offensive to me. Why can’t you learn to filter that mouth?”
She rolled her eyes at Olivia’s preaching and smiled. “Sorry. But really, can you blame these women for dumping their dogs on you? You’re too good to them. They wouldn’t be dragging around a dog if it was safe for the dog at home. Just because they’re going back, doesn’t mean it’s safer for the dog now. It only makes sense to leave the dog here, while they test the waters. They know you'll take good care of it. You’re an easy mark. I'm beginning to think word on the street is it’s the best place to dump a dog.”
Olivia finally wrangled herself out from between the dog and the back cushion and sat up, keeping her hand on Ozzie to hold him still. Any movement from her usually resulted in Ozzie thinking it was time to eat, attack or poop.
“It's not even about the dog. Ember was different—”
“Ember?”
“Yeah, beautiful name, huh? Just a kid really…and she still had her spirit. I brought her home, and after only one week, she let me fix her up. She was on fire to get out and start a new life. And she did. With her new look, she landed a job—first try.”
Olivia breathed a deep sigh. “She's smart, Gabby. She could've made it. I don’t know what happened. I can’t believe she would’ve called him. She really wanted a new start, and I gave her one. Somehow, he must’ve found out where she was and forced her to go with him. I mean, look at this mess. Does it look like she went willingly to you? I don’t think she’d have done that.” Olivia bent her head down and rubbed her hands over her face.
“You did.”
She whipped her eyes back to Gabby. “Yeah, but I—”
“No, Olivia. No buts. You know from experience how hard it is not to believe their ‘I love you so much,’ and their ‘I promise I'll never hit you again if you'll just come home,’ and you know, no amount of advice, begging or pleading will keep them away from these losers until they've finally had enough.”
“If I only had a bigger place, where they felt welcome to stay longer, with more privacy—”
“—No! Your home is not a homeless shelter. You already give enough of yourself to these women. I think it's outright rude to take advantage and even bring an animal to begin with. A child... I can understand that, but not a dog.”
“That's the part you don't get. The homeless shelters won't let them bring their animals in. Sometimes these dogs are the only bit of real love these girls have in their lives. What are they supposed to do?”
Gabby ignored Olivia’s question, intent on making friends with Ozzie. She slowly reached over, stroking his long dark fur and cooed to him. Ozzie tensed, but let her. Soon, she was digging her fingers into the thick coat around his neck.
He startled Gabby when he suddenly plopped off the couch, only to turn himself around and hop back up facing her. He laid his large head onto her knee and looked up at her with big, sad brown eyes. He looked for all the world like an over-sized teddy-bear with that dark brown hair. Irresistible.
Gabby smiled and dug in around his ears, scratching and rubbing until he melted against her, finally completely ignoring Olivia.
“You’re just a big ‘ole baby, aren’t you?” Gabby said, sticking her face down close to Ozzie’s now. “You just try to act all bad, dontcha? You’s just a wittle marshmawwow.”
She glanced over to Olivia, and stopped talking the baby talk to answer her, “I do get it. And they probably have that rule for the same reason I'm looking at right now. Too many people would just leave them. Now what are you going do with this big guy?” she said, trailing back into baby/doggie-talk and hugging Ozzie close with her arms while her fingers continued to dig deep and scratch him.
Ozzie’s leg started vibrating, and soon Olivia and Gabby were both laughing as his leg strummed up and down, as though he was trying to start a motorcycle.
“I don't know.” Olivia shrugged. “He is probably the cutest one that’s been dumped on me yet. Look at his hair. Looks like he got a perm put in it. Women pay for that kind of hair.” She laughed. “But it must be a mess to keep untangled. If he was mine, I’d just shave it down,” Olivia answered.
Gabby picked up one big paw and examined it. “Yeah…no. Don’t you dare shave him! He’s a Labradoodle. They have long, crazy hair like this. I’m really surprised she’d leave him behind. These dogs are expensive. And look at the size of this mitt. He’s big enough to be scary—until you get to know him. He might be good for you to keep around. Maybe he’ll protect you from pissed off husbands and boyfriends.”
Olivia rolled her eyes. “No… but he really is scary. To men. Ember said he hates most men, and even some women. But he likes you.”
“That’s because he’s confused. I look like you and I smell like you. I swiped an almost-empty bottle of your perfume the last time I was here. Sorry.” Gabby hung her head. She knew Olivia would smell it on her and bust her anyway. It wasn’t a big deal, though. They were constantly swapping stuff; with and without asking.
Olivia gave her a half-hearted kick.
“But seriously, you should keep this one. Even if he’s not really mean, people won’t know that. And he might really protect you here. If you keep doing what you’re doing, you need protection.”
Olivia shook her head. “Um… am I on mute? Ember said he is mean. I don’t want to be responsible if he hurts someone, and this place is too small. He needs a yard to run in. You take him. I’ll bet he’ll love Jake. Everybody loves Jake.”
“Oh no. Not happening. We don’t want a dog either. Especially one that can be mean.”
Olivia stood up and stretched, causing Ozzie’s ears to stand at attention, lifting them off his head in an inquisitive look.
“No, Ozzie. Stay. I’ve got to get my
self put together.”
Ozzie whined.
“Is your girl in the hospital? You want me to drive you there to see her?” Gabby asked.
“No. She’s already gone. I called April, my friend…the nurse. She told me about Ember’s injuries and said Ember’s man was pacing the halls waiting on her to be released. There’s nothing else I can do unless she calls me again. And we can’t be late for a gathering at your own house anyway. Emma would be upset, not to mention us looking bad to Dusty’s family. First impressions and all that.”
“That’s why I stopped over. I wasn’t going to let you out of this, even if you are having a bad day. I’m not doing it alone. I need your help. I bought the food, but we need to hurry. I’ll walk Ozzie while you’re getting ready, and you can ride with me.”
Olivia tossed her the red leash from the table near the door. “Go ahead, but be careful. He’ll jerk that leash right out of your hand—and seriously, don’t let him get away from you. He might really bite someone,” she warned.
Ozzie jumped off the couch and ran to the door, twirled around in an excited circle and then sat down. He knew the word ‘walk’ and knew what that leash meant. His big eyes were popping out of his head, rolling left to right, watching Gabby’s every move as she handled the leash.
Gabby laughed. “I think I can handle this big guy. He won’t give me any trouble, will you baby?” she cooed at him. Ozzie sat as still as he could, eyeing the leash in her hand as she approached him, but he couldn’t stop his nubby—where a tail had at some time had been lopped off—from quivering back and forth. His entire body vibrated with anticipation and he panted in excitement. He looked like a big, dopey goof with the long drips of dog spit quickly appearing on either side of his jaws, hanging in thick lines.
“Eww! Get him outta here!” Olivia yelled. “He’s going to drool on my floor!”
Gabby snapped the leash and opened the door. “Okay. We’re gone. Calm—”
Ozzie jerked her out the door so fast she couldn’t finish her sentence. She was running to keep up, leaving the door hanging open behind her.
