Taryn didn’t owe her an explanation, so she just nodded.
Had everyone forgotten that the Jacks before Taryn had been utterly ruthless bastards?
Taryn gestured for Rhonda to stand. She did reluctantly.
“Take her to the cells,” she repeated.
“Let’s go.” Daryl gripped Rhonda’s shoulder and steered her through the door.
The door closed behind them. Taryn dropped her head into her hands. She hadn’t solved that problem, only delayed it.
How was she going to deal with this mess on top of her other problems?
Hope’s rescue was delayed until they located her. Ash was doing whatever it was hackers did. And she couldn’t deal with the pimp until she saw him again.
How had things gotten so off track? She wanted to weep but couldn’t spare the time.
Chapter43
Taryn tooka seat at the far end of the bar. It was almost closing time and things were slowing down. Good. She wanted to sleep for at least a week but would be lucky to get a few hours with all the shit going on. If she could fall asleep at all.
“How’d it go with Rhonda?” Dani asked when she approached.
That was the last fucking thing Taryn wanted to talk about right now. “Give me a beer. Please.”
Dani stopped what she was doing and focused on Taryn. “Everything okay?”
“Not even close.” She would tell Dani everything, just not at this exact moment.
“You wanna talk about it?”
“Not right now.” Taryn smiled her thanks when her friend set the beer in front of her. “What kept you here, Dani? Working at Razor Jack’s?”
The other woman took half a step back, confusion on her face. “Why? What’s going on?”
“I’m trying to understand...” Taryn took a sip of the beer. Normally she’d take the time to enjoy the layers of flavor, but today had been nowhere near normal. “When I brought you here, why did you stay? Why didn’t you run off? It’s not a prison.”
“You’re freaking me out. Why are you asking me this?” Dani was pale and she’d lost her smile.
“It’s not a trick or a trap. I really want to know. I need to know. To understand.”
“I was a mess when I got here. The bar was warm.” Dani shivered and wrapped her arms around her middle. “It was winter. It was so cold outside. And then I was warm.”
“So, you stayed for the heat?” Taryn didn’t judge. Whatever it took to keep her girls off the streets, she was for it.
“What?” Dani looked up, startled. Her gaze was far away.
“You stayed because it was warm. And you had food.”
She gave Taryn a half smile. “Yeah, at first. Then it felt safe. Like you really meant it when you said I would be safe here. Over time, when you left me alone and didn’t demand anything... Well, that’s when I knew that it was better than life on the streets.”
“Did you ever think about using?”
This time she hesitated. “Yes.” Dani spoke slowly, drawing out the word. “More when I was on the streets, but a bit when I first got here. And when you put me in charge of the bar.”
Whoa. Taryn hadn’t expected that. “You never touched the alcohol.”
Dani smiled. “No, by then it was only a thought. Not to mention, you keep really close track of the inventory.” She pinned Taryn with a piercing gaze. “Why are you asking about this now?”
