Page 7 of The Aftermath

“We still have a few kids here. You want to help me with them?” I look over at him and nod. It’s been a while since I’ve helped with the kids who get brought it. We shove out of our chairs and head for the other room while Hoax walks over and kicks the dead guy.

“What’s with Hoax and a princess?” I ask, looking over at Hunter.

“I don’t know, man. He has it in his head that’s the best idea in the fucking world. I’ve told him that’s only going to bring more problems our way,” he says as I nod.

“No doubt it would. He’s kind of out there, isn’t he?” Now Hunter laughs.

“You have no idea.” He shoves through the door, and that’s when I see the small sets of fearful eyes. They look up at us, but when I offer them a warm smile, they seem to calm down.

“How many did you have?” I ask Hunter as we walk through the room.

“We had twenty. Now we have these five. They’ll be on the next shipment out, though.”

“What do we need to do?”

“They need showers and clean clothes. I have some guys making their meals.” I nod my head as I look at one little girl. I guess her size and dig through the pile of clothes Hunter has and find something for her to wear. Then I walk over and motion for her to follow me. She looks hesitant at first but then stands and follows me to the bathroom.

“You need to wash up. Can you do that?” She looks up at me as if I’m crazy before finally nodding her head. I step out of the room and give her some space, but after a few minutes, I hear her scream. I rush back into the bathroom and quickly turn off the water. Grabbing a towel, I wrap it around her and lift her in my arms.

“What were you doing?” I ask, a little angrier than I should.

“I wanted it all to go away,” she begins to cry. Fuck! This is the part that rips me apart and part of the reason I don’t help with this stuff. I can’t handle this. Hunter rushes into the bathroom to see what happened.

“She had the fucking water scalding hot,” I tell him. His eyes move to her little face, and I watch as his eyes turn somber.

“They do that a lot.”

“Fuck, Hunter. I hate this shit,” I curse under my breath.

“Me too, Silas. But you have to remember this is what’s best for them. We’re getting them back to their families and back where they belong.”

“But at what cost to them? Aren’t they all fucked up now?” I nod toward the little girl curled up in my arms now.

“A lot of them are, but some aren’t. I don’t know, Silas, I make sure they have what they need and the help for the future.”

“But is it enough?” I ask. He shrugs his shoulders as he leaves the room, and I look down at the little girl in my arms. She couldn’t be more than five, and it breaks me inside. It fucking breaks me down and makes me question everything in life.

I set the little girl on the edge of the tub and reach for the washrag. I wet it and add a little soap. I reach up and wipe her face gently before drying her off. I figure she’s had enough of this shit and help her into the clothes I found for her. When she’s dressed, I hold out my hand for her to take. It takes her a long minute before she reaches out and grabs my hand. I smile at her and lead her out of the bathroom, grabbing a baby doll off the shelf as we go. I pass it to her and she smiles up at me.

“Here’s her food,” Hunter says, nodding toward the table. I walk her over and sit her at the table.

“Eat your food. You’re safe here,” I tell her. She nods her head and hugs the doll to her chest. I watch her hold the baby doll in one arm while she eats with the other. I sigh and run my hand over my face before I turn and head into the main room.

“You good?” Hoax asks me when I step into the room.

“I don’t fucking know, Hoax. How do we keep doing this shit? How do we keep looking at their poor little faces?” I ask him.

“Because we’re getting them away from the assholes who are abusing them. Who stole them,” he tells me anger evident in his tone.

“It’s just so fucking hard to see them like that.”

“I know it is. But you get used to it. You almost become immune to it after a while because you know at the end is them being home with their families.” I guess he’s right. It could be worse. They could be out there still or dead.

“Tell Hunter I’ll see him later,” I say. Hoax nods his head as I walk out the front door. I need the air. I need to breathe. I take a long, deep breath as I head to my car. I climb in and wish I could wash this whole fucking day away, but I can’t. Her eyes, her little eyes, are burning into my mind. There’s no erasing them. I’ll never be able to unsee them.

I start the car, and I pull out, needing to get out of my head. It’s late. It’s after midnight, so I know Angel should be at home in bed. I shouldn’t involve her in this shit. I shouldn’t go over there but I need to. I need to be near her so I can clear my head.

I pull into her driveway and kill the engine, knowing her parents are out of town. I climb out and walk up the front steps, using the key I had made to let myself in.

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