p…”
The ugly word died in his throat when the blond man grabbed him. Twisting his shirt front in a tight fist, he dragged Moses up close to him. Moses’ face was purple, his eyes bugging out as he struggled helplessly to free the big man’s grip.
The blond man’s eyes were like ice, his expression savage. “What do I think? I think you’d hire a fourteen year old girl if she was desperate enough, hungry enough to shed her clothes for a bunch of perverted assholes who get off seeing vulnerable kids naked.”
Shoving Moses back against Panches, the man broadened his angry gaze to include the customers close to the stage.
“To be clear, I’m also the man who will kill anyone who stands in my way.”
Turning back to Moses, he glowered, “And, you, you disgusting piece of pigshit. Don’t bother to call the police. They’re on their way. A better idea is to call your lawyer. You better have a good one. There isn’t a court in this state that won’t shut down a skin joint that forces sixteen year old girls to strip.”
The big man half dragged, half carried Lexie off the stage. He looked over his shoulder, piercing the stunned bar owner with a fierce glare.
“In case, you’re wondering who is responsible for shutting you down, the name’s Beloi, Sergeant Anthony Beloi, Special Forces, U.S. Army.”
~~~
Anthony grimaced at her ragged jeans and dirty t-shirt. It was all he could find behind the makeshift stage. When he asked her where the rest of her things were, she just shrugged and refused to answer.
She hunched in the passenger seat, putting as much distance as she could between them. Looking at her out of the corner of his eye, Anthony almost grinned at her defiant glare.
His voice was soft. “Ah, Lexie, you’re as stubborn as you ever were, aren’t you, girl?”
She snapped. “Don’t call me that. My name is Alexis.”
He shook his head. “Sorry, honey. You’ve always been Lexie to me and you always will be.”
She tossed her head and said through clenched teeth, “Ha! I’m surprised you even remember my name.”
Anthony sighed. “Lexie, a day hasn’t gone by in the last six years that I haven’t thought of you. You’ve been at the heart of every prayer I’ve said.”
He glanced at her when she didn’t answer. He thought he saw tears in her eyes.
“God, Lexie, don’t cry. You’ll break my heart.”
She spit out an angry retort, “I don’t cry. I never cry!”
Anthony shook his head in disbelief.
“You used to cry when you were a little girl.”
She glared at him, defiance glittering in her eyes.
“I’m not a little girl anymore. And, I don’t cry. Ever!”
She turned away, her lips stuck out in an angry pout.
Anthony smiled. If it wasn’t so sad, he’d laugh. It was the way she looked when she was eight--furious when he took her bike or wouldn’t let her tag after him.
He sighed, trying to connect with her, to break through the hard shell that she’d built around herself.
“Lexie, you gotta know something. I’ve done some bad things in my life.”
For a split second, she looked interested then dismissed him. “Who hasn’t?”
He agreed. “You are right about that, Lexie. We both have. But, honey, the path you’re on is a steep one and it goes straight down. It doesn’t get any better.”
She tossed her head. “You’re wrong. I’m a good dancer. Moses says I am. If you hadn’t barged in and ruined it for me.”
Her voice rose and she glared at him.
“You spoiled everything. They thought I was eighteen. Some people even think I’m twenty. But, oh, no. You had to ruin it, didn’t you?”
Anthony’s voice was firm.
“You’re not eighteen or twenty or thirty-five, Lexie. You are barely sixteen. And, honey, those assholes didn’t give a rat’s ass how old you are. They’d have kept you until the drugs and the pimps took you down. Then they’d throw you back out on the streets and find another gullible fifteen or sixteen year old with big tits.”
He frowned, trying to squelch the anger rising in him.
“Do you think I don’t know all the stuff that’s happened since I left you? That I don’t have nightmares about it every damn day of the week? Do you think I’m that stupid, Lexie? That I don’t know what happens to girls and boys who run away from home, who live on the streets?”
When she looked at him surprised, he continued. “Yeah, Lexie, it happens to boys, too.”
She peered out the window and wouldn’t meet his eyes. Her face glowed pale in the flashing neon lights of the shops they passed. His heart clenched. The garish makeup smeared on her face couldn’t hide the vulnerable girl beneath.
“Lexie, let me tell you something, honey. And you better listen to me. If I do one goddamn thing right in my life, I’m going to make sure that from this minute on you’re safe. Do you understand?”
She sneered. “Kind of like you told me when you let the cops take you away. That you’d be back? That you wouldn’t let anyone hurt me?”
“Lexie, I meant those words. It’s taken me six years to find you. Ever since the army helped me get my head out of my ass, I’ve been tracking you. I’ve ploughed through child protective services in four states and finally got a bead on you.”
He continued, his voice stern, intense. “You understand, Lexie? I never stopped looking for you. But I’ve found you now and I will never let you go.”
They rode in silence.
Lexie glanced over at him. He was staring straight ahead. He looked upset.
“Where are we going?”
“To your new home.”
When they turned the corner, Anthony pulled into the driveway of a small house. It looked like it was connected to a low building that had a sign in Chinese.
Lexie sneered. “Oh great. Now, you’re gonna sic me on a bunch of Chinks?”
“Chinese, honey. The word is Chinese.”
She sniffed and looked away. She bit her lips to keep them from trembling.
“Are you…are you leaving me here?”
Anthony’s voice was resigned. “I’ve already overstayed my leave. I gotta head back to Afghanistan first thing in the morning.”
Lexie crouched against the door, trying to shove down her fear.
Anthony’s voice was gentle. “Listen to me, Lexie. Wan Li is a master martial artist. He is proficient in seven different forms of hand to hand fighting. He saved my life. He and his wife have offered to let you stay here until you are old enough to be on your own. All you have to do is help clean the dojo and not run away. Will you do that?”
He opened her car door and helped her out. She tried to pull away, but his grip was firm.
The front door of the house opened. An older Chinese man stood in the doorway. He bowed to her. “Good evening. You are Alexis?”
She sneered, “Maybe, maybe not. What’s it to you?”
Anthony scowled. “Lexie, please.”
Lexie gave a scornful snort. She pulled out a cigarette, lit it, and blew smoke at the older man.
The Chinese man frowned.
“We do not like smoking in our home.”
Lexie gave him an insolent smirk, “What are you going to do about it?”
To her surprise, a smile crinkled his stern face. Ignoring her, he grinned at Anthony.
“She will be a strong fighter, yes?” With a knowing smile he added, “When she starts training, she will stop smoking.”
