by Jaden Wilkes
“So were you when Sergei found you. And what choice did you have? You needed to get off the streets. You needed to stop selling yourself to survive. We’ve both done terrible things, made terrible decisions based on what we knew at the time. When that kind of life is all you know, it’s impossible to imagine another way of doing things.”
“You are wise,” he said and kissed her forehead. “I’m lucky to have you.”
“Yes, you really are,” she said and smiled.
“There’s something else I should tell you,” he said and touched her face. “Promise me you won’t be angry.”
“When people say that, they know what they’re about to say will piss you off,” she said with trepidation.
He ran his hand over his head and propped himself up one elbow. “I’ve been making amends.”
“Amends for what?”
“For the people I hurt, any of the ones I could track down. Nico has been doing research, a side project. I’ve been trying to find them to help them now. Financially. It’s all I can do.”
“We need to do more, throwing money at them doesn’t help. We need to set up a charity, offer services. You need to do this, to make it right.”
“I know. I will do anything you suggest. I just need your forgiveness, little dove; you’re the only person that matters to me. If you weren’t able to help me make it right, I would never live with myself.”
She frowned, even though she knew she looked too much like her mother when she did so, she had to think. Of course she forgave him, after the initial shock had passed, it wasn’t any worse than anything she’d done. If she thought about the things Eden had seen, she knew she had no right to judge Dimitri.
What bothered her was how empty it all sounded, making it right with money, settling an old score without doing anything about the people responsible.
She had a thought, a terrible thought but one that made her shiver with excitement. “I do forgive you,” she said, “but we need to do more. More than money, more than charity. We need to take down the men behind this, the men like Marco and all the way to the top.”
“It’s impossible,” he replied and settled down next to her again, “this is worldwide, far reaching. Every country, every level of society, human trafficking is bigger now than it ever was.”
“Then let’s start small, we’ll go after the ones like Marco first. Once we’ve gotten their attention, we’ll start rooting them out and picking them off one by one.”
“I’m not going to be able to convince you that this is a terrible idea, am I?”
She knew he was defeated, he would protest and argue against her, but once she got her mind made up on something like this, she was bloody persistent. And, Dimitri loved the hunt and the kill as much as she did. There was no hotter foreplay in the world than fighting alongside one another, as sick as it sounded.
“We need to help, and I need to kill…it’s the best possible solution for both of us,” she said and he closed his eyes and smiled.
“God, what a woman I’ve found,” he said and ran his hand through the thick knots of her hair. His hand caught and he stayed there like that, his fist wound in her tangled locks, his eyes closed and a smile on his face.
She thought he might have fallen asleep, he was so still.
“Dimitri?” she asked.
“Yes, love?” he replied.
“What are you thinking?”
“I’m thinking about how magnificent you will look when you fight,” he told her, “and how I wish I had met you years ago.”
“We wouldn’t have been the same people,” she said as a matter of fact, “I’m happy for everything I went through, or else we might not have been so perfectly aligned. I never knew how twisted my beauty was until I met you.”
“Your beauty is not twisted,” he said and opened his eyes. He stared into hers and continued, “You are not twisted. The world is twisted and your strength stood against it, remained straight as it tried to bend you to its will. You are true, and good, and you have survived in spite of the twisted nature of the universe.”
She laughed and tilted her head to kiss him. He always knew what to say to her, to make her feel completely and utterly normal…in the best way possible.
*****
“Eden?” Columbia asked as she tapped on her sister’s door. Eden hadn’t come out all day, and it was now dinnertime. Columbia hadn’t had a chance to talk to her about what she saw, and had no idea how her sister was processing the fact that Columbia had once again killed in front of her.
“You’re going to have to come out some time,” she said, listening for a response. Almost two years had passed since she’d killed Eden’s father, and they’d never had a discussion about the events that had lead up to that night. Columbia still wasn’t sure how much Eden knew.
“I’m coming in,” she said and tried the door handle; it wasn’t locked.
She went inside and didn’t see Eden straight off. It appeared as though somebody had broken in and tossed her belongings searching for something.
Columbia knew that was just typical Eden mess though, she’d never been the tidiest girl, and now with housekeeping staff to clean up for her it was even worse.
“This place is a pigsty,” she said and tried to organize the pile of clothes on the end of the bed. Several of the shopping bags from Rome were dumped out and thrown on the floor, the expensive clothing thrown on the sofa without a care.
Columbia was starting to realize the problem with throwing money at a situation. She’d been right about handling Dimitri’s mission; she was beginning to formulate a plan of her own.
Eden needed to learn responsibility, and she would have to find a way to teach it to her. It was so difficult, being so far away.
“Oh, hey,” Eden said coming out of the bathroom. She had a towel wrapped around her head and was wearing a plush bathrobe.
“Hey, kiddo,” Columbia replied, “aren’t you getting hungry?”
“Nico brought me some stuff. Besides, I only woke up a couple of hours ago.”
“Can we talk about what happened?”
“It’s not necessary.”
“I think it is. You need to understand what happened, what could have happened.”
“I get it, okay? You fucking like stabbing people, men in particular. Whatever, I’m over it.”
“That’s not it at all. This is why we need to talk. We’ve never talked after…” Columbia’s voice trailed off and she realized she didn’t know exactly what to say to her sister after all.
“After you murdered my dad?” Eden said, her face set in a mask of defiance, her lips twisted in anger.
“I did, yes, I murdered your father. It wasn’t that black and white though, I had my reasons.” Columbia swallowed hard and went on, “I was raped, but you knew that didn’t you?”
“I’ve heard things, but mom said you were making it up. I don’t know who to believe Col, I really don’t.”
Columbia motioned for Eden to sit on the chair across from her, so they could talk face to face.
“The thing is, I’m not lying. I think you’re old enough to know the truth, but it’s hard for me to say it. He was your dad, and all your memories are good ones.”
“Not all of them,” Eden said and sat. She looked Columbia in the eyes and said, “He never did…that…to me, but he wasn’t exactly the best dad to have around. You know that.”
“He did it to me, I wish I was lying, but that’s why I snapped,” Columbia admitted. She had to look down, concentrate on her knees, her hands, anything but her sister’s face. “He started when I was really young, you were just a baby. I wanted to kill myself, but I couldn’t leave you alone with him. I knew I had to protect you.”
Eden was quiet, Columbia looked up half expecting to see anger and denial, but what she saw shocked her.
Tears were streaming down Eden’s face, she was sobbing silently.
“What’s wrong?” Columbia asked and leaned across to touch h
er sister’s knee. “Hey, why are you crying?”
“I knew he was doing it, Col,” she said, her voice thick with tears, “I knew what was happening and I never told anyone. I could have helped you, but I was just so happy he left me alone. I’m so fucking selfish and I hate myself for it.” She started crying in earnest, gulping sobs that wracked her body and folded her over, face in her hands.
“Oh my god, Eden,” Columbia said. “Don’t ever think that. Please, it had nothing to do with you. If anything, I should thank you for giving me a reason to live. Dimitri should thank you. Everything turned out, okay? I was so worried you were angry with me for killing him, that you wouldn’t believe me.”
“I miss him,” Eden said, tears still flowing, “And I feel so fucking guilty for that too. I miss the good him, the one who would tease me or watch Aladdin with me on Saturday morning. I miss the good dad.”
“You don’t hate me?” Columbia asked.
“I could never hate you, I know why you did it. You ran out of room on your own body for the pain, you couldn’t hold it in any longer. You had to do it, Col, or you would have done it to yourself. And to be honest, I would rather have you instead of dad. I hate that I have to choose, and I feel guilty because of it, but I love you so much and I know how much you’ve sacrificed for me. I do appreciate it, but sometimes I’m just so angry.”
“I get that,” Columbia replied, “I know how it feels. You need to talk to me about your anger, don’t let it get as bad as I did. You have options, use them, okay?”
“Why did you kill Marco?” Eden blurted.
Columbia pulled back and said, “You know he was a bad man, right?”
“I know that now. But he seemed nice. He just wanted to show me the sights,” Eden replied, “And he said I was beautiful.”
“You are beautiful, and not just because some guy in Rome says so. And he was going to take you, did you figure that out?”
“Uh, yeah, the two guys jumping out of the van kinda clued me in, sis.” Eden shot her a little grin.
“Yeah, I guess it was obvious, but I want you to know if I didn’t believe he was going to take you and force you into prostitution, I never would have stabbed him like that. I was doing what I felt I needed to protect you.”
“I don’t need that much protection, seriously. Most sisters buy condoms, you shank any guy who says hello.”
“Don’t be dramatic, Eden, I’m serious. He was going to take you and you would disappear. Girls don’t come back from places like that, not often.”
“You mean like sex slavery? We read about it in my Socials class. Did you know there are more slaves around today than any other time in history? And there was a couple arrested in West Vancouver for keeping a freakin slave in their house. Some poor girl they brought from China.”
“That’s exactly what I’m talking about. He wanted to sell you to settle his debt. It’s more common than you’d think. Dimitri and I are–” She stopped herself before she said any more, she didn’t want Eden to know the extent of her planning to murder those responsible for such brutal acts.
“What? Dimitri and you are what?”
“We’re going to set up a charity to help girls who have gotten out. A transitional fund and support services. It’s the least we could do.” She hoped that covered what she was going to say. It wasn’t exactly a lie, they were going to set up charities, but they were also going to do more than that. She almost shuddered in excitement, thinking of the men she would lure and kill…the lives she would save.
“That’s cool,” Eden replied, sounding bored already. Only a fourteen-year-old girl would be bored of something like murder and kidnapping. She truly didn’t understand how close she’d been to becoming one of those girls. The lost ones. “And I lied,” Eden added.
Columbia raised her eyebrows.
“I am hungry. I’m fucking starving.”
They laughed and Columbia was satisfied that she had gotten somewhere with her strange and unreadable little sister.
Eden stood and removed the towel. Her hair was dyed, this time a rich, dark black.
“You like it?” she asked. “I wanted to make it more natural, it’s kinda the same colour as yours, isn’t it? Now we look like sisters.”
“It’s an improvement over the orange, I’m not gonna lie,” Columbia said. She reached out and touched it; it was soft and silky, not as coarse as her own. “I like it though, and yeah, we do look more like sisters.”
She gave Eden’s shoulders a squeeze and added, “Get dressed and meet me in the kitchen. We can go through the cupboards and make ourselves something to eat. Maybe grilled cheese and Sunny D like the good old days.”
“Sounds good,” Eden replied, “and thanks for talking to me. But please, be careful when you guys start your…charity.”
Columbia smiled and left, surprised that her sister had caught on. She might be craftier than Columbia gave her credit for. This made her feel a little more relaxed about Eden’s place in the world. The smarter she was, the less Columbia would worry.
She strolled to the kitchen and started to prepare their old favourite. Soon Dimitri and Nico joined her, followed by a dark haired Eden. The four of them enjoyed such a lovely evening of comfort food, funny stories and laughter that Columbia felt a lump in her throat when it was time for bed. She was even moved to tears when Eden flew home. It would seem too long until her next visit.
She also couldn’t shake a weird feeling life wasn’t going to be that simple for them for a very long time.
CHAPTER TEN
DIMITRI
He didn’t like her plan, but he loved her. Columbia was determined to hunt sex traffickers for sport, and there wasn’t much he could do to stop her. It always knocked him back, how much power she held over him, such a fragile little creature.
He could take out two men on the streets of Rome and barely break a sweat.
Taking on Columbia was a different story, she was a force of nature, and he knew she carried his cock around in the palm of her hand. He simply could not say no.
So now that she had this planned, his job would be to protect her the best he knew how, with brute force.
They were in Prague, attempting their first hunt. He was a ball of nerves, feeling exposed and vulnerable allowing Columbia to put herself out there.
He and Nico sat at the low bar in a cramped little pub in the city’s tourist district, Prague 1, just blocks from the Charles Bridge. Dimitri would have rather had Columbia pinned up against the bridge rail, fingering her pussy under the bright spray of stars than sitting here waiting for something to happen.
He drew another drink of his piss temperature draft beer and turned to check on Columbia.
She was seated in the corner with two other girls. She was radiant, he was sure she didn’t look downtrodden enough to attract the types of men who usually sought out girls in places like this. She simply looked too excited.
Nico placed a hand on his shoulder and said, “Boss, if you don’t stop looking at her like you’re going to devour her in one bite, she’ll never get picked up.”
Dimitri turned back to face the bar and took another swig. Just a small one, he wanted his wits about him. “You’re right, I can’t help myself. This is a ridiculous plan, how do I get talked into things like this?”
“You know exactly how. I would make the sound of a whip, but it would draw too much attention.”
“I would argue with you, but I know you’re right. What has she done to me? Nico, never fall in love, it will drive you mad.”
Nico was quiet, then said, “I was in love once, married even. With a child, remember?”
“Fuck, I’m sorry old friend. Sometimes I’m the biggest ass on the planet. I forget about the pain you’re harbouring when I get caught up in my own shit.”
“Don’t think about it again, I barely do these days. It was so long ago, and another lifetime entirely. I was a much different person then.”
“You were a better man than
I, and I am truly sorry for my careless comments. She was a kind and generous woman, she deserves to be remembered.”
“Yes, that she was. Beautiful too. I know how it is to be whipped, which is why I don’t make more fun of you for it now.”
“Here’s to being whipped, may it happen for you again, my friend,” Dimitri said and held up his glass. Nico tapped it with his own and took a long drink, but not before Dimitri noticed the pain in his friend’s eyes and his sidelong glance in Columbia’s direction.
“Look at her,” Nico said, “but don’t make it too obvious.”
There was a man sitting next to Columbia, he oozed bad intentions and made Dimitri’s skin crawl.
The man reached out and touched Columbia’s arm and it took everything he had to not stand up and pummel him into a pulp. He was one of the bad guys they were after, Dimitri was sure of it.
He even looked vaguely familiar, but it could just be that he was a generic bad guy in appearance. Low set brow, deep-set eyes, a black leather jacket and dirty jeans. He was tattooed, Dimitri could see them on his chest, and he was wearing a tank top in the cool weather, obviously advertising his gang affiliations.
When the man turned to survey the room, Dimitri caught sight of a series of teardrop tattoos down the side of the man’s cheek. In this lifestyle, each teardrop represented a victim, somebody who had lost their life at this man’s hands. Most often they were done in prison, so it was clear this man had done time.
Dimitri couldn’t recall who had run Prague in Sergei’s day, but it didn’t matter now, they were here to send a message.
Columbia fell into her part so well Dimitri almost got up to rescue her. Nico placed a hand on his arm and held him back. “Let our girl do her job, she’s an excellent actress. She knows what to do.”
It was true; they’d been over the area several times already today. They chose Prague because of some information they’d received recently, the men who’d attacked them in Rome were apparently working with the organization in the Czech Republic, sending girls from Italy to be housed here and redistributed around the rest of Europe.
