Bronnah jumps up to gather her things. She stuffs the saloon dress into a bag and sorts through the clothing she stole from the girls. Aimee gives her a carpet bag and helps outfit her with three-day dresses and an evening dress. For fun, she throws in some lingerie from her newest line, and when she's finished, Bronnah has two bags of clothing. While she helps Bronnah pack Aimee tells her the story of how she met Cassandra. Both are thinking about tomorrow, yet neither brings up the Chen warriors.
“Aimee, I don’t know how I’ll ever thank you,” Bronnah said softly.
"You will do for someone as I'm doing for you. That will be enough." Aimee smiles at the thought of Cassie. They place her bags near her bedroom door and fill a canvas bag with the clothes that didn't fit her from Mrs. Killian, including the saloon outfit. She places it inside the closet by the door leading downstairs and sighs.
“Let’s get some sleep if we can.”
Chapter 13
Dane stomps into the house and kisses his wife. “Where’s Dalton?”
“Round back with Cassie. Why?”
“I was in town, and he had some messages waiting for him.” Dane marches through the house and follows the sound of his grandson’s laughter. “That’s music to a grandfather’s ears.” He says as he steps onto the back porch.
A squeal of delight greets his ears, and he laughs as the child runs to him. He swings him up and laughs at his squeal of delight. "Got some mail for you." He tosses a pack of messages to Dalton.
"Cassandra, how are you feeling?" Dane asks.
“Hungry and tired,” she replies with a laugh. Her feet are up, and one hand is resting on her very pregnant belly.
“Sounds perfectly understandable. How about we sneak past Grammy and get a cookie?” Dane asked his grandson.
“Cookie?” he asks with hope in his silver eyes. They laugh as Dane tiptoes inside with his little accomplice and Dalton begins to open his messages and read them. “Cassie, this one has your name on it.”
“Really?” She takes the note and grows pale as she reads it. “It’s from Aimee! Dalton, I think you better read this.” He scans the note.
‘Rivers Railcars are being used to traffic young women against their will from New York to the West. Stop.’
‘One girl escaped. Stop. Need Help. Stop. Chen after her. Please advise. Stop. Aimee Lancour. Stop.’
“You have to help them, Aimee’s in trouble!” Cassie struggles to get up, but a vision strikes her. She gasps as the room goes completely black. A young woman with pale blonde hair is standing in the train station holding a carpet bag in one hand and a ticket in the other. Glancing at the ticket she reads, Chicago, Illinois. Excited she takes a step to find her train when a man grabs her arm and sticks a knife into her side.
"I will show you to your train, Miss." The girl is walked to the back of the twenty-car train until they stop at the car that reads, ‘River's Refrigeration.' Two men jump down and open the sliding door, and when she inhales to scream, she's knocked unconscious. When her eyes open, she's fighting to breathe inside a darkened space. Cassie feels the movement and clanking of the train beneath her feet. The railcar sways as it turns and finally comes to a stop. The dual-bay doors open, and she tries to scream as hands drag her into the light, but she is gagged. Her hands are bound behind her back, and she's tossed onto the ground as they rip at her clothing.
“Come back to me, angel.” Dalton supports her and breathes a sigh of relief when her eyes meet his. He guides her back to the couch on the porch when her eyes return to normal. “Deep breaths, that’s it, slow your heart down and tell me what you saw.”
"A girl with silver blonde hair, boarding a train for Chicago, but they grabbed her and shoved her into a rail car with our name on it. It said Rivers Refrigeration. Oh, God, you have to help her. She'll never make it out of New York. They knew she was going to the train station, Dalton. We have to warn her!"
"I will, but first calm down, Cassie. Think of the babies. I will send Pierce with a message to Chase. His first stop was Chicago. Perhaps he can get to her before they do."
“Okay, Dalton. How long is the train ride to New York from Chicago?”
“Less than a day. I don’t want you to worry. Chase will handle this. This is what he does.” Dalton hurries to find Pierce.
“Hopefully this will be the break in the case that Chase needs,” Cassie whispers as she watches Pierce leave for town. It takes a half a day just to ride into town. “Let us hope she can stay safe until Chase can get to her.”
Chapter 14
How hard is it to become a shadow in a city full of darkness? Not hard at all unless you stand out like a star in the velvety night sky. Bronnah wonders if she was always a shadow. In Ireland, the poor were invisible. To be seen made people uncomfortable. As a nurse for the Sisters, she was protected by the clothing. Anything that made her stand out was hidden, like her hair and her accent. They couldn’t hide her eyes and beauty, so she worked in the children’s ward. Tired of hiding from life and barely existing, her eyes grow hard.
"They will pay. No one should have ta go through what these girls are going through." Glancing at the tattoo on her wrist she rubs it with her thumb. A small flower, what does it mean? It's
