“What do you do on that thing?” I asked, taking a seat on one of the chairs.
“Security, banking, emailing, and a few odds and ends. Right now, though, I’m in a chat room.”
“Uh, okay,” I hummed.
“I’m trying to tell as many girls as I can what exactly will happen if they decide to run off with some random guy who says they can give them the world. Human trafficking starts right here on the dark web. So many sick guys want an innocent girl, and what better way to do that than to find one who will land right in your lap.”
“Why is the world so sick?”
“I’m the wrong person to be asking that,” Collin said. “But someone needs to be the voice. Not enough people stand up against creeps. And it’s not something a lot of schools teach these days, either, as far as I know.”
“I remember someone saying Hannah was the best person to talk to. Why is that?” I asked.
“She’s a counselor. Well, not anymore, but she was at one point. She used to help foster kids.”
“So what does she do now?”
“She volunteers her time when she can to help whomever needs is. Sometimes it’s at a women’s shelter. Other times it’s at school. It just depends on where she feels she’s needed.”
“Do you think I could do that? Help people?”
“If that’s what you want, yes,” he said. “It’s up to you. You don’t seem like the type to be stuck at home, raising kids.”
“No. You know I want nothing to do with children,” I said, giving him a look.
I didn’t want to live a life that I had no control over.
“No one expects that from you,” Collin said gently. “No one will push you that way. You can live your life however you see fit. You are in control of it all. So, if you want to become someone to help others, then go for it. If you want to sell houses, do that, too. Only you have a say.”
“And what if I still want to die?”
“Then we aren’t doing a good enough job to show you how much you’re capable of,” Dominic said as he entered the kitchen.
“The way you handled Sage told us a lot.”
“Sage?” Dominic asked, digging out some cookies from the container that sat on the counter.
“Zevon’s auction win,” Collin said.
“Oh, that guy,” Dominic said, his face paling. “He’s still here.”
“Yes.”
“I…I didn’t—“
“He’s with Zevon, and he’s under his care. No worries,” Collin added on quickly. “Ace is trying to find a spot for him to go to.”
“He can stay,” Dominic said. He cleared his throat. “I’ll deal.”
“Ace still doesn’t want it to affect Scarlett,” Collin went on.
“And I’m fine. You just said I handled it well,” I said. “But I’m getting tired of hiding. Is there any word on Alan?”
Honestly, it was more that I was missing Peyton. Sending text messages just wasn’t the best way to talk to him. It worked, for the time being. But how much longer?
“None. He’s disappeared off the face of the earth. Okay, not that drastic, but he hasn’t been seen anywhere.”
“We’ll probably be here until the end of summer—or close to it,” Dominic said, dropping into the seat beside me. “I may go back sooner.”
