I grab my phone, dial. One of my guys picks up on the first ring.
"Get your asses over to Grove Street," I say. "There's a club there. I'm sending you the address. Stay close by and report back to me. Now."
I hang up. Grab my jacket again.
Jace steps in front of me. "Boss. Stop. Let me get eyes inside from here first."
"Jace—"
"Let me do my job."
I pause. Force myself to breathe. "Fine. But I'm heading over there. I have to make sure she's there."
Ten minutes later, my phone rings.
"Boss, there's foot traffic. Three guards outside in black suits. People going in dressed in masquerade clothes. Masks."
I freeze. "What?"
Pictures start coming through. Escalades. Porsches. Men and women, hand in hand with guards, all wearing elaborate masquerade outfits. Masks covering their faces.
"What the fuck?" I mutter.
"Jace," I say, turning to him. "Clean it up. Get me eyesinside."
He's already moving. His fingers fly across the keyboard, lines of code scrolling across the screen faster than I can follow. Jace is the best hacker I've ever seen—possibly the best in the world. He can crack into any system without leaving a trace. But even he's struggling.
"Stay put," I tell the guys on the ground.
Minutes pass. Each one feels like an hour.
Then: "Boss. I'm in."
The screens light up.
And what I see makes my blood run cold.
It's an underground auction.
A spinning stage in the center of the room. Behind it, separate two-way windows. Behind each window, a private buyer. They're all wearing masks. Each one has a button on their chair.
And on the stage—
Women. Children.
A man's voice comes through the speakers in each room, announcing them one by one. Describing them like they're livestock.
I feel sick.
I've seen a lot of shit in my life. I've taken down trafficking rings, busted operations, pulled people out of hell. Butthis—
This is worse.
"Behind one of the rooms, there's no camera," Jace says quietly. "That must be where Lionetti is. Taking offers."
I want to give the order. I want to tell my guys to bust through the door, burn the whole place down, save everyone inside.
But I can't.
