“This isn’t my house.”
“Then who does it belong to?”
His smile was sly. “A friend of mine, but on paper, I recently purchased this house after my move from New York. You see, I’m opening a branch of my land development business in Miami. According to public records, my driver’s license and passport, documentation in this house, and the many bank and investment accounts I gave, my name is Drake Cavanaugh.Divorced, no kids. Father still in New York. Mother dead. No siblings.”
I stared at him, still finding it next to impossible to believe what I was hearing. “Why? I have no idea how you could do such a thing in the first place. The money. The location. The watch you are still wearing. Why would you put yourself in such a dangerous position?”
“The reason is simple. To bring justice. What you see right now, minus the freaking stiff shirt is what I prefer to wear. The watch. The car. None of it belongs to me.” I was surprised when he removed the expensive Breitling, carefully placing it on the coffee table and rubbing his arm.
He was enjoying unveiling who he was while I was reeling, the nausea threatening to take over. “Then maybe at some point you can tell me how you managed to fake not just a life but a wealthy life. As far as justice. Why not allow the courts to rule? I don’t know how much you saw, but the men who obviously work for the owner of this club are savages. You’re one man against how many? And how are you going to find out who they are? Did they introduce themselves? Do you know who they are or where this club is located in the city?”
“Whoa. Breathe for me, Reese. Seriously. As you’ve experienced, often the wheels of justice are slow and brittle. I’m tired of watching criminals walk free because of a technicality or a lenient judge who believes the bastards deserve a second chance. Or detectives botching their jobs, destroying evidence. I’ve seen it all. Rapists, murderers, arsonists going free, beating the goddamn system and one look at Denise and I couldn’t take it any longer. As far as how all this was done, I’m not doing this alone, but that is all I can tell you. The group is highly trained,skilled, and influential themselves with connections that the CIA would die for. In addition, I can and do trust them with my life.”
His words hit me so hard that my breathlessness was entirely different than before. “Why save me?”
“You can thank Denise for that. She remembered your first name and enough about you that after a police artist did a sketch, the detective was able to make some inquiries using face recognition software. One thing led to another and the report you made with Jacksonville was pieced together with the one you made here in Miami.”
As he finished, I could see his tension mount, his expression including his strong jaw hardening. “The police refused to listen to me. I had to save my sister. No one else gave a damn.”
“I know and I completely understand, yet what you did was still reckless. But admirable. Goddamn it, woman, do you understand what could have occurred had I not been able to place a bid? I might not know the identities of these monsters, but I know of their type. When they finish getting their kicks and giggles, they toss the woman away. If they are allowed to live and that’s a big if, the women are never the same.”
“Don’t you think I know that? Don’t you?” I was close to shouting from desperation and how exasperated and exhausted I felt. “Don’t you? My sister is a baby. She’s seventeen years old. Just a baby.”
“And I will find her with the help of my associates. I swear to God we will, but I need you to tell me everything you know. Every person you met, any names you overheard. Anything. I can arrange to have an artist who can’t be traced to the department.”
Swallowing, I tried to piece together what he was saying and the level of sincerity. “I’m an artist. I’ve drawn sketches for years.”
He took a deep breath. “I’m not placing you in any additional danger.”
“You brought me into this when you rescued me. I am going to help you, Kendrick. If you are who you say you are, then you can understand why I will do whatever it takes to rescue my sister.”
With his eyes narrowed, he cocked his head. “Did you see her when you were there?”
“Yes.”
He closed his eyes, rubbing his jaw and I was drawn to just how strong his features were. Just like before, my thoughts drifted away from the horror, captivated by the handsome man sitting in front of me. That was ridiculous.
“Fine. As I said, I have no doubt we will be tested again, but you’re going to follow my rules, albeit different ones than you expected. Given my photographic memory, maybe we can try and ascertain the identities of the other girls in your group. I assume there were more.”
“Yes, but I don’t know how many.”
He jerked his head to the side. “That’s fine. Given I was a guest tonight, we’ll need to hope that I receive another invitation. My guess is they won’t appreciate my resistance to following their rules.”
“Because of me.” I sensed his frustration.
“Yes, Reese. I had to do what was necessary to get us both of there and I calculated the rest given the amount of money Ispent. No matter what you think, I’m not one of them. I’m a guy willing to risk his career to try and bring justice to the victims. Who knows how many there are. Men like that can’t be allowed to use their money and influence to grab a get out of jail free card and I will do whatever it takes to bring them down. And I do mean whatever. We will find Briana no matter what rock I need to turn over in this fucking city or how many feathers I have to ruffle. Or pluck.”
His conviction floored me. So did the emotional level that was entirely different than before.
As strange as it sounded even to me, it was as if it was the two of us against the big bad wolf. At least for now, I believed I could trust him. “You should have seen my sister. There was no light in her eyes. Nothing. It was as if all the life had been taken from her.”
“They resell women. Maybe that’s what happened. I am very sorry, Reese. We need to play this carefully.”
“Carefully. What in the hell has she been through? Why are people like these bastards allowed to walk free?”
“I have my thoughts on how and even why.” The irritation in his voice was palpable.
I jerked to my feet, the emotions too much to handle. “Then how? I don’t understand. You’re a goddamn attorney. Tell me how any of this bullshit is allowed. Please.”
