Page 44 of Savage Desires

"Gladys's house is like a halfway house. It's a safe place we bring people for medical attention and to figure out their next steps," he says.

Lucy scoffs. "It's just another prison with nicer captors."

That earns her icy glares from everyone and a ticking jaw from Kisten. I can tell he's losing his patience with her bullshit.

"Shut the fuck up, Lucy," Tabitha growls. "Do you have any idea what was going to happen to you that night?"

She rolls her eyes. "It doesn't change that we went from one prison we couldn't leave to another nicer prison. Or did you not notice the locks on all the doors and windows? Or that no one will let us use the internet or make a phone call?"

"That's for safety measures. You've been told that repeatedly," Tabitha says.

"When this conversation is over, you are free to do whatever you want. I will personally put you in a car and drive you to the bus station," Kisten says, barely holding back his annoyance.

"The bus?" she stutters.

He smirks. "Yep. There's a bus depot that will take you wherever you wish to go. You'll be free of this nice prison you hate so much."

Tabitha and I are both fighting back smiles at how horrified Lucy is to hear her own words thrown back at her and the fact that he would willingly just dump her at a bus station to figure shit out. I'm horrible because I find a certain amount of joy in that idea. After how she's treated everyone since I came downstairs, I don't feel any pity for her. I can imagine she's been horrible to poor Gladys and anyone else who's been helping us.

"Back to the options you have. The first one is pretty obvious… We can arrange for you to go home."

Reghan blanches and shakes her head no. Tabitha's face is entirely void of emotion, as is Lexis's. Lucy looks pleased. Stacia looks lost. Me? I have no idea how I look because I have no idea how to feel. Home seems like such a foreign concept. And it would make me have to face whatever direction my dad's life took after I was taken…

Totally not ready to deal with those emotions yet.

"Your second option is Hope House. We have several locations across the country that are dedicated to helping women like you. Hope House provides everything you need for a fresh start. You'll have a place to stay for as long as you need one. It's set up sort of like a hotel. Everyone has their own room and private bathroom. The bottom two floors are communal living areas, a game room, a library, a kitchen, a dining room, a laundry room, and an office space.

"Everyone that stays there helps out with chores. We don't hire outside workers to keep things safe for the residents. Everyone that works for Hope House is dedicated to the safety of its residents and helping those residents heal."

He lets his words sink in for a minute before he continues.

"Hope House provides several types of therapy and any medical care needed. If you didn't graduate from high school, they will help you get your diploma. If you want to go to college, that's also an option. If neither of those appeals and you want to go straight to work, they can help you find a job that will suit you.

"Money isn't a concern, though. Everyone is paid for doing chores. You also get an allowance for clothes and other essentials when you arrive, so you'll start with anything you might need."

"Wow… that seems too good to be true," Lexis says.

Tabitha nods in agreement. "How do they fund something like that? I've never heard of such a place."

Kisten smirks. "The money comes from the trafficking rings we take down. The money they covet so badly that they are willing to do atrocious things is used to help heal the same women they hurt. As far as anyone is concerned, Hope House doesn't exist. You will never hear of it, and if anyone tries to find any of the locations, they will fail."

"What if one of the women there tells someone about it?" she asks.

"They won't. Everyone who walks through the doors of one of our facilities is there because they need a fresh start. They are loyal to the cause. Many of them end up working for us in one capacity or another."

"What if we don't want to go home and don't want to go to Hope House? Do you just dump us somewhere with nothing?" Stacia asks, speaking up for the first time.

"We will help you get your legal documents sorted—ID, birth certificate, social security card, and whatever else you need to settle somewhere. We give you five thousand dollars and whatever clothes and extras you acquire here. Then we will drop you off wherever you want—bus station, airport, or train station."

"We're really free?" she asks in awe.

Kisten nods. "Yes, you are free. Everything we do in places like this is to keep you and everyone else involved safe. It has nothing to do with imprisoning you."

For the first time, I see the hold Lucy seems to have on Stacia crack. Maybe she isn't a lost cause. I have zero faith in Lucy being anything better than a snotty, ungrateful bitch, but there is hope for Stacia.

"Any questions?" he asks.

I sit quietly beside him as he answers dozens of questions from the other women, mainly about Hope House. Lucy asks how much money she can have if she decides to go home. I almost thought Kisten's head would explode, but he calmly told her none. She pouted and said how unfair it was until Tabitha shut her down with threats of violence that had me fighting back laughter.

---