Julio smirked. “Call him first, then, I’ll transfer. I assume you won’t object to my adding a tip to expedite this matter. I need to leave in the morning.”
Of course, on cue, Mr. Baskins pulled out his phone and called Gerard.Gotcha.Julio sent the money and walked back toward the women. Taking pity on the woman who urinated on herself, he pointed to her and the blonde with the bruises. “I’ll take these. It’s a pity you have no males. I sometimes like to watch.”
Mr. Baskins glanced up from checking the accounts. His eyes practically glowed with pleasure. “It happens I have two males. Do you want to inspect them?”
“Yes,” he said, taking his seat. Once the men appeared, the team planned to breach.
Ten minutes later, they hauled up the males. Julio fought for control as he recognized Jameson. His bloody, battered face made him hardly recognizable. “They’ll do. This makes the second damaged product I’m taking off your hands. I expect a discount.”
“Absolutely,” Mr. Baskins said as he scribbled the amount down and turned the computer, practically salivating as Julio reentered his code and transferred the funds.
“When will the child arrive?”
“He’s out of the country on an important matter. Gerard will bring her to you next week,” Mr. Baskins explained.
“I’m not happy with this arrangement,” Julio argued.
“It’s the best I can do with such short notice,” the man explained. “You didn’t mention the child in time for the order to be filled.”
The men unshackled the two women and pushed the males from the room.
“I want them cleaned up, and we’ll drop them off at one of my apartments,” Julio ordered. “I’ll give you the address.”
“You’re sick,” the blonde spat. “I hope you rot in hell.”
“She’ll be fun to break,” Mr. Baskins said, placating him.
Julio merely nodded, knowing any minute, the team planned to secure the victims.
A minute later, Leo entered the room, pointing his weapon. Mr. Garfield and Mr. Baskins jumped up, their mouths shot open in surprise, while Julio held up his hands. Two shots fired, and Leo spoke into his coms.
“Team 1, respond,” Leo ordered and listened as his men checked in.
“Team 2, respond,” Leo commanded. He threw zip ties to Saint as he entered the room. “Get them secured. I’m taking this asshole with me since he likes to buy human beings,” he said, jerking Julio up by the collar. He pretended to struggle, making the show seem realistic, knowing Leo must have vital intel to remove him from the room.
“The feisty one shot her captor, and the other took her hostage. He stuffed her into a car at gunpoint. We’ll have Bear and Matthew search the city cameras and find them. In the meantime, I apologize.” Leo reared back and punched Julio in the face. “It has to appear realistic,” he said, dragging him into the room and setting him beside Mr. Baskins.
“Take the women and find them clothes. These two won’t be going anywhere,” he said as Saint added zip ties to his wrists behind his back.
Julio waited until they left the room. “You’ll pay for this,” he threatened. “What kind of scam are you running?”
“I swear I don’t know how they found us. We sent decoy units. One of the men you purchased betrayed us with the other ring. It’s why we stayed put,” Mr. Garfield prattled, trying to save his ass while Mr. Baskins kept his mouth shut. “I don’t know these men.”
“It appears you have rivals,” Julio growled. “What about the kid?”
“She’s safe. Gerard will bring her as soon as he returns. He lost some merchandise. They’re tracking them as we speak.”
Julio froze. “How?”
“We turn the tracker off when someone escapes and goes to the authorities. It doesn’t emit any signals during body scanning, leaving it virtually undetectable. Once our merchandise believes they’re in the free and clear, we turn the app back on and voila,” Mr. Baskins explained gleefully. “Usually, we end up with a couple more prizes during the roundup.”
Julio’s gut clenched and his hair rose on the back of his neck. He couldn’t afford to play his hand until they found Ebony, Caroline, and Megan. He needed to get to Rebecca, Kara and the remaining children and women.
“It’s time to go for a little ride, my friends,” Leo said, hauling Baskins to his feet. Julio shook his head, gaining Leo’s attention. The leader shoved Baskins toward Shadow. “Take him to the dining room.”
Once they moved out of earshot, Leo turned toward Julio. “What’s wrong?”
“We need to get to Texas. They have trackers,” Julio said, turning around for Leo to cut his bindings.
