Ava had been talked into attending class, because it was a class she shared with Jett. Quinn had gone to her class, but Quinn’s classes were all in the sports sciences building, and she didn’t need to come out of the building at all today. Gray had argued, but Quinn had put her foot down and run through, in specific detail, her classes for the day. By the time she would be finished, he would have finished practice.
Which left me and Brute. I wasn’t permitted — no, that was harsh — I wasadvisedagainst going to the theater, and Gray was eager to test my ear, which is how he, Ash, and I were in the football house.
Ash had closed and locked his bedroom door, and I was sitting on his couch nervously while Gray sat on the edge of the bed.
“Is this something weird?” I asked again for the hundredth time.
“No,” Gray answered easily.
“Okay . . . is it legal?” I’d wanted to ask this question many times and had finally worked up the courage.
“Wouldn’t have thought so.” Gray smiled at me.
“You’re very intimidating.”
His grin stretched wider.
Ash huffed out a laugh as he sat beside me. “Okay, Red. Are you squeamish?”
“No.” I thought about it. “Maybe? I don’t want to see bad things with animals or anything.”
Both of them stared at me before Gray turned his head away to hide his laugh, but Ash didn’t care about subtlety as he laughed out loud. “No animals.” He squinted at me. “Has Quinn told you everything?”
I tried not to look at Gray, but I failed and nodded. “Yes.”
“Okay, did she tell you that we have acquired some footage of the fuckers in action?”
Nodding, I rubbed my hand on my jeans. “Yes, she said that’s how you found out that they were shady.” Looking between the two of them, I thought about it. “How did you get it?”
“Also illegal,” Gray replied tersely. “Best not to know.”
“Okay.”
“I need to show you some footage,” Ash said carefully. “It’s the births. Some are worse than others. Can you handle that?”
“Why do I need to see?”
“Because they wear masks in some, and in others, they keep their backs to the camera. We would like to match them, and if you can detect who’s speaking, that would help. The quality of the sound is poor. I’ve cleaned it, but my ear isn’t sharp enough.”
“But you can see them,” I asked slowly. “So, if you can see them, you would know who they are. Someone’s appearance doesn’t change just because they’re wearing a mask. You put you in a football helmet, you’re still six-four of muscle.”
“Which is true, but in some, they’re sitting down or crouched. We have a fair idea, but we would like you to confirm.” Ash moved the laptop and assessed me before he opened it. “You sure?”
“I can do this,” I told him quietly. As he went to open the laptop, my hand gripped his. “Is it bad?”
Ash hesitated, but Gray didn’t. “They’re taking their kids off them to sell at an online auction. The principle is horrific.”
“I’m sorry.” My voice was barely a whisper. “She didn’t know.”
“I know.” Rubbing his hand over his forehead, he sighed. “One of the girls dies.”
“Oh.” My eyes fell to the laptop. “Well, warn me which one it is so I can be prepared.”
With that, Ash opened the laptop, and within a very short time, my heart broke all over again for Quinn and these girls.
I wasn’t sure how much time had passed, but when we were finished, I was drained, and I had shed tears, which I knew had only made Gray tense.
“You did really well,” Ash said when Gray left the room to get ready for practice.
