45. Human Traffickers?

forty-five

Human Traffickers?

*ELDEN*

V incent hasn’t even parked the car yet, and Jace already jumping out of it, dashes to the small hut. “She really is there,” Vince mutters, completely stunned.

“Yes,” I say, looking at him with what I hope is an insistent gaze. “I will see if Jace and Janice need help.”

Vincent smiles at me. “Sure, meanwhile, I will do stuff here, like… arrange the seats of the car. Erm… check the area? I have picked up some tricks from Calvin, so maybe I can find something. Is that okay with you?”

“Sure, that’s fine.” Relieved that Vincent catches on so fast, I hurry to the hut. Inside are Jace and Janice. Jace has freed her from her restraints and her collar and is hugging her tightly. They both startle away from each other when they hear me entering the building, then look relieved the moment they see it’s just me.

“I am so relieved,” I say quietly. “Please don’t mind my presence. Vincent is staying outside to look for possible traces.”

Jace touches her face gently. “I am so glad you are unharmed, dear.”

“Thanks for finding me,” she says with an almost bashful smile.

“You aren’t hurt, are you?”

“No,” she says. “They did nothing. Just knocked me out with something and when I awoke, I had that collar around my neck.”

“Can you remember anything?”

“They were humans,” she says. “But they clearly knew what Flora and I were. On our way here, I woke briefly, and heard them discussing what to do with me. Then, I lost consciousness again. I can’t remember the options they discussed, but they said the order was NOT to bodily harm anyone.”

Jace and I stay quiet, neither of us sure what to say.

“It’s okay,” Janice says. “I thought the same. It’s weird. So weird. Nothing about it makes sense.”

“They were after Flora,” I say. “That’s what we figured out already. But why humans? No one usually gets involved with them like that. They are usually unaware of our existence, and all shifters know it’s dangerous to draw attention to us.”

“I don’t have an answer to any of these questions,” Jace admits.

“If this weren’t so serious and Flora wasn’t still missing, I would believe it’s a prank,” I say.

“It almost feels like it,” Janice admits. “A prank that went way too far, though. I see where you are coming from.”

“Could it be?” Jace asks. “I know, you just said it because it came to your mind, Elden. A spontaneous thought. But could it be a nasty prank to mess with us?”

“We need to discuss this with Vincent and Calvin,” I say. “I think their input here would be valuable.”

All three of us take it as a cue to leave the hut. It’s clearly uninhabited, as there is nothing here and no sign of anyone living at this place. Dust covers the little furniture that was left behind. “Vincent,” I say when I spot my beta looking at something on the ground. “Check who this hut belongs to, once you are done with whatever you are doing now.”

“Got you,” he says. “And I am taking prints of a car wheel. I saw how Calvin did it and thought it might be a good idea.”

“Right, Calvin.” I take out the clunky mobile phone, fumbling a little with it until I find the contact list. It still feels unintuitive for me to handle such a phone. It’s a weird technology, but seeing how I can connect with someone who isn’t around, makes it a truly useful gadget. I am not the reigning alpha yet. Once I am, I will be able to reach out to all my pack members even through longer distances. Now, I could only do it with Flora… if she only answered.

Calvin picks up on the second ring, telling me he has finished his work, and will meet us back at the pack house.

It’s now night, and I doubt we will be able to achieve anything by running around mindlessly. Finding Janice and seeing she wasn’t harmed puts my mind a bit at ease. If it’s true that there is the order not to harm Flora, then at least I know she is safe. As safe as she can be.

I just hope she isn’t scared.

At that, Regis snorts. Mate isn’t scared of anything.

I am sure she is, I say softly.

Some mean humans won’t scare her. I would bet my left paw on it.

You have a point. Flora wasn’t even scared to deal with our father, and he was the alpha. She wasn’t scared of the bullies at school and played everyone around her like a violin. She knows how to manipulate those around her.

See? He says before his eyes turn even darker. But I still want to kill someone! No one steals my mate away from me, even when it’s supposed to be a stupid joke!

I am fully with you on that.

“Would you come with us?” I ask Jace and Janice. “I know you’d probably like to return to your pack and get some rest, but I really need your help.”

“Of course, I will come with you,” Janice says promptly. “Flora is still out there. And I want to help find her!”

“I agree,” Jace says, much to my surprise. I thought he would push Janice more to go home and rest, but he wouldn’t be her mate if he didn’t know the type of person she was.

With that, we drive back to the packhouse, where not only Calvin but also Geneva, Emilia and Samuel are awaiting us. All of them are looking equally worried. I feel a small sting at not seeing my father anywhere, not even in such a moment, but I probably shouldn’t be surprised.

Geneva’s eyes light up when she sees Janice. “You found one of the girls,” she exclaims and hurries to her. “Come dear. Let’s go inside. Then, you can have some warm tea and something to eat.”

“Thank you,” Janice says. “But I promise, I am really okay.”

“She didn’t get hurt at all?” Calvin asks promptly. “Nothing? They didn’t hit her?”

I can feel Jace tensing at his words, his expression getting annoyed. “No, fortunately, they didn’t!”

“No sexual harassment?” He continues and faces Janice. “They didn’t touch you? Or at least try to rape you?”

Jace scoffs. “Listen, you-“

Before he can continue, Janice interrupts him. “It’s okay,” she says. “I understand where Calvin is coming from. Let’s not pretend none of us was wondering the same.” She looks at Calvin. “Nothing like that happened.”

“Janice heard them say that there was an order not to hurt anyone,” I add.

Calvin looks flabbergasted. “How does that make sense?”

“It doesn’t,” Emilia adds quietly. “But Geneva is right. Come inside first. Let’s go to Caelum’s office and have some tea there. You can fill us all in once we are there.”

“Talking about, where is he?” I ask, annoyed.

“Beats me,” Samuel says, equally annoyed.

“I don’t know where he is,” Emilia says calmly, “but I certainly know what he is doing.”

None of us has the heart to reply to her words. She is a good-hearted and prideful woman. I don’t want to pity her openly – I know it would just embarrass her further, and add to how my father hurts and embarrasses her.

Once in the office and with tea and sandwiches in front of us, we exchange information. Calvin tells us he got some video material. Not the best quality, but apparently, he was able to spot a car with darkened windows, big enough to hold two or three kidnappers and two victims. They also drove in the direction of the cottage where we found Janice. “There is one more tape from another camera,” Calvin says. “It’s from a gas station further down the road. They seem to be driving west, but it’s impossible to tell where to.”

“Could you see the license plate?” Vincent asks.

“Yes, I am already on it.”

Once he is done, we tell everyone about our findings. We even share the possibility of it being a mean-spirited prank that went too far, although I don’t really believe that theory. “Does Flora have enemies?” Samuel asks. “She is such an innocent, sweet soul.”

At that, I laugh. “Only last year, she put seven bullies in their place and even took it up with one guy who continuously sexually harassed younger schoolmates.”

“Do you think one of them could retaliate?” Emilia asks when Samuel is too stunned to even speak.

“The last guy was really upset,” I say. “Actually, that’s the one I intervened with. I held my position over him and his father, who completely enabled him and wanted to swipe everything under the rug.”

“So, he has something against you too?” Vincent concludes.

“But do we really believe that?” Samuel asks. “A stupid kid and his stupid father?”

“Stupid people could do incredibly shady things,” Calvin points out. “And seeing how terribly they have been working, I doubt it’s someone intelligent behind this. Not trying to boast, but if it were me who kidnapped the luna and her friend, no one would have found them that fast!”

Usually, Calvin’s callous way of addressing things upsets others, but in this case, we can only agree. “Yeah,” Vincent says. “Even I could have pulled it off better.”

“Me too,” I admit.

“Same,” Jace says.

Janice nods. “Me too, and I don’t even have much criminal energy in me to begin with. But I wouldn’t be that dumb, and I certainly wouldn’t have involved humans. Even if these are people who are aware of us, I am sure they aren’t truly aware of what we are capable of. Also, involving humans always is a risk for many, many reasons.”

“I agree,” Calvin says. “A couple of humans might know about us, there might even be some in shady organizations that work with some equally shady shifters, but none of them knows much. During one of my jobs a while back, I was dealing with such a group and I can vouch that although they might think they know a lot, they truly don’t.”

“Maybe that’s why the humans were picked,” I say. “They don’t have any clue who they are fucking with. And they might be easily disposable to whoever is behind this.”

“Yes, but they will also easily break once questioned,” Geneva says. She turns to look at me. “Elden, can you use your gift to find clues?”

“It’s still tricky for me to use it, as I need to look into the future, and we are actually looking for something that already happened. Plus, I will need to work around Flora, because she is my mate,” I admit. “But of course, I will do everything to find Flora!”

“I am sure this is not your only gift,” Samuel says.

I look at him, surprised. “But nothing else seems to be out of the ordinary with me.”

“It’s just a feeling,” he adds.

“Well,” Calvin says. “I want to do some research. Vincent, mind joining me?”

“Sure, man, I am glad to.”

“And you two should return home,” Geneva tells Jace and Janice. “You need some rest, and you have told us everything you know so far. When something else comes to your mind, Janice, give us a call. One of us will be on the phone.”

“Of course,” Janice promises.

I watch everyone either go home or do some more research, then decide to fulfill my own promise and explore my gift further. I already know it’s going to be a long evening trying to touch on so many different futures and outcomes, but I need to try. It’s not like I would get a minute of rest anyway, not without Flora being back with me!

*FLORA*

I am playing my role as the cute and innocent dunce perfectly. Now, I have stopped the act of the teary-eyed, scaredy-cat and switched strategies- very successfully. I am trying to find out more by getting closer to them and understanding why they are doing what they are doing. None of the three seems to be a terrible person. The men always make sure to keep a respectful distance; they haven’t brushed past me or looked when I was in a vulnerable state. And Cindy seems to do everything to make me comfortable. They even let me out of my room.

Even without having any comparison, I know they are the worst kidnappers to wander the planet.

“I am so sorry for this,” Cindy says, while I shuffle through the kitchen to help with dinner.

She points at my collar, but I make sure to smile at her. “It’s okay,” I say. “I understand. Are you also from a pack?”

“No, we are not… I mean, we are not from a pack,” she says evasively.

Of course not, because you aren’t wolves. I don’t tell her that I know they are humans and instead keep playing my role.

Since I am out of my room for the first time, I make sure to look at everything in detail. The house is small, but surprisingly cozy. It almost feels warm and as if a family lives here. Everything is well attended to, the furniture is tasteful, and there are pictures on the wall and some standing on shelves. One in particular stands out to me. Cindy is on it, and one of the men; I think Gary was his name. Between them, there is a young boy.

I take it in my hands, eyeing it curiously. “I hope you don’t mind asking,” I look at Cindy with innocent curiosity. “Who is this?”

“It’s my boy,” she says with a smile.

“He is so cute,” I squeal. “How old is he?”

“Five,” she looks at the picture fondly. It’s that moment that I realize what’s in it for her. “You need the money for him, don’t you? He is the reason you got pulled into this?”

Cindy looks away.

“You are doing it for him,” I repeat quietly. “They didn’t abduct him, did they?”

She shakes her head.

“Then you need the money…because he is sick?”

Cindy looks at me, shocked. “How did you know?”

“I think, when decent people do something terrible, there has to be a reason.” I take her hands. “The men who abducted me, they weren’t any of you three, were they?”

“No,” she whispers. She looks sincerely terrified at hearing me mention them. “They are… they are not nice,” she adds quietly. “When they drop by, you have to stay in your room and keep quiet.”

“Cindy,” I say. “What did they promise you? Just money?”

“No, they promised a brand-new treatment for River. He has leukemia, and they have contacts.”

My heart sinks to new depths. Maybe I am stupid for feeling bad for her; initially, she is my captor; but I know she is just being tricked. I am taking a wild guess that the men behind this don’t give a shit about her or her child, and that they would lie to her just to get what they want. I doubt there is any new treatment.

“How did you get to know them?” I ask carefully.

“One of them is my cousin.” She rubs over her head. “I know it’s bad, Flora. I know I am bad. And you are so nice and sweet, which makes it even worse. I am hurting someone to save my child. But Robert promised me, he promised-“ she pauses. “He has always done shady and questionable business.”

“So, that’s how you began working together with him,” I sigh sadly. “And Gary?”

“Gary is my husband,” she says. “And Hank, that’s the other man you saw, my brother. They would do everything for River and for me.”

This woman has so little criminal energy that she willingly tells me everything. Someone truly shady would have made sure not to share any information at all.

I continue with helping Cindy clean the kitchen when Hank suddenly rushes in. “Cindy!” he calls out. “Make sure to hide the girl-“ he pauses when he sees me, his expression softening. “I am sorry,” he mutters. “I didn’t know you were here.”

I smile brightly at him. “That’s okay.”

“Maybe you should go to your room,” he says.

I make sure to look at him with deep sorrow. “You want to lock me in there again?”

“No, no,” he hurries to reassure me. “Just for an hour or so. We are getting visitors.”

“Oh, and I am going to be in the way? It’s too crowded here with so many people!”

Hank looks relieved. “Exactly.”

Cindy puts a hand on my shoulder, takes a plate of delicious smelling pancakes and steers me toward ‘my’ room. “Robert is coming,” she whispers to me. “Like I told you, he is a difficult man. Just stay here for a while. Please, promise me you will stay here.”

“I will,” I promise as I watch her close the door behind me.

And now? What am I going to do now?