“Seems to me, keeping it from her did that.” We sit in silence because Jax knows I’m right, but apparently he had a good reason to do the wrong thing and isn’t willing to talk about it yet. About an hour later, the plane hits a large pocket of air dropping a few feet, and I hear a loud thump echo through the cabin.
“Shit!”
Jax jumps up to rush back to the cabin just as I see Tori crumple to the floor in an unconscious heap. Shit! That’s gonna leave a mark. “Is she okay?” I shout over the hum of the engine.
“Yeah, she’s knocked out, but I’m staying back here. Can you land by yourself?”
“Sure thing.” The rest of the flight is uneventful because Tori’s still unconscious and Jax is hovering over her like a mother hen. If I ever get this bad over a woman, I’m going to ask Case to put me out of my misery. Jax is the last one of us that I expected to be snared, but she is beautiful; I can see why he fell so hard. When we land in Limon, I help Jax load her into the jeep and we head for the river. From where the road ends, we have to travel the rest of the way by boat. As we near the village, the children run along the bank of the river when they hear the motor coming. I drop him off to shouts and waves by the locals who welcome him with open arms. Normally I would stay in the village to enjoy Ina’s cooking, but the small airport isn’t very secure, so I am sleeping on the plane and flying out in the morning. For once, I’m looking forward to going back to my lonely condo. Hopes of seeing that redhead again turn out to be a surprising motivator
~Maria~
For the first few weeks in captivity, I cried every day for David and the loss I felt. The last few weeks, I have been in survival mode, and nothing I do will bring David back, so I shove those emotions to the back of my mind. Being emotional would only drain my strength, and I needed every bit of it to survive that place or what comes next. Now that I am free from The House, all of the questions I’ve had come rushing back. What did they tell David’s parents about his death? Did Vrennikov dispose of his body so it was never found? My stepfather, Thomas, may not have even listed me as missing, or my father’s family would have turned over every rock until they found me. Did David’s parents question my disappearance after their son’s death? There are so many questions bouncing around in my head that I’m not quite sure which direction to go in to find answers. I think I will lie low until I have a better plan of action.
Protective custody is everything it’s cracked up to be, definitely not five-star living. The amenities are basic but clean and the guards keep to themselves. The only people we have contact with are Troy Savage and the therapists they’ve brought in to treat us, but Troy comes and goes throughout the day. Once we were settled in, he explained that he and Jax both work for the FBI and were undercover to take down The House. I guess that is what our prison was called to anyone in the business. It is hard to think about an organization like that existing in the U.S. without more information being reported on the news. The first I had ever heard that this was a problem in our country was from Amber Johnson’s family. I think people in general want to believe that they are safe and nothing like this would ever happen to them or their loved ones. At least that’s what I thought.
Every day they question Tina, Amber, and me about our kidnapping, wanting details about our experience in the house. I am the only one who was raped; apparently, The House has only been taking virgins, so I am the lucky exception thanks to Thomas and my money. The doctors and therapists come to see us individually and also as a group trying to gather as much information as possible to be able to indict Sully Vrennikov and his guards. It has proven difficult for them to gain access to The House because someone higher up in the Russian Syndicate is one of the owners. Apparently, they do not like being accused of human trafficking and have not been cooperative.
I have given them the name Maria Anna Smith and haven’t told them anything about Thomas. There are too many questions that I need to be answered before I can trust anyone. My stepfather has to have paid off many people to keep my disappearance and David’s death out of the news. I have heard stories of people getting access to other people in protective custody because someone has been bought off, so I will just stay anonymous for a while.
~Snake~
“Just give me her name, Dude. I’m not asking for her bra and panty size...yet.” I am trying to make Savage my new best friend so he will give me any information on the redhead. He has been tight lipped up until now when he came to get on the plane for a ride to Costa Rica.
“Snake, you’ve got to know she has been through some horrible shit; she’s terrified of dominating men. She just needs more time before you approach her.”
“Good hell, Sav. What do you think I’m going to
