Page 63 of Wicked and Ruthless

A few minutes later, they had verified that all the victims had a file folder with a document outlining her stats. Those who had been missing longer had other details, but interpreting their meaning wasn’t easy.

“What do you suppose the B stands for on this file?” Haisley pointed to the file they found on the first victim, Taylor. She worried like hell what the “yes” after it meant.

Both men shrugged. They might not know the answer, but their grim expressions told her it was probably bad.

“And what is this weird combination of stuff below? They both have decimal numbers, they’re separated by a comma, and the last number is negative. Is that…longitude and latitude?”

“It is.” Nash was already pounding away on his phone. Then he looked at Ethan with a shake of his head.

“An island. Am I right?” Ethan asked.

“Tiny. Private. In the middle of the Atlantic, sandwiched between the west of Cuba’s southern tip and the most westerly Cayman Island.”

“Fuck.”

“Is that where they’re taking those girls?” Haisley asked in dawning horror. It was terrible enough for these victims to be ripped from their homes, but to be transported out of the country to a foreign land with no government reach, no help in sight…

“This one at least,” Ethan answered. “But look, victim two, Collette, has all the same information after her abduction date and her initial. Except…wait. There’s another seven-digit code beneath the B we can’t figure out and the location.”

“What the fuck could that mean? Damn it,” Nash grumbled.

“I don’t know. Where does that leave us?” Haisley asked.

“Still searching,” Ethan admitted. “Sometimes cases are one step forward and two steps back. We just keep plugging away.”

“And hope for a break.” Nash sighed.

“What he said.” Ethan’s eyes were fixed on the computer screen as he clicked away. Suddenly, he sat up straighter. “Anyone ever heard of a business called Rugs Direct Unlimited?”

“Nope.” Nash shrugged. “Should I?”

Haisley shook her head. “I’ve never heard of it, either.”

Ethan scowled at the monitor. “I found an advertisement of sorts. There’s a picture of a pretty typical area rug stretched across a hardwood floor. The ad copy reads: Exclusive, one-of-a-kind decor. Lay them right the first time, and they’ll be yours forever. They’re based out of Cuba.”

Nash lifted a brow. “Want to bet their ‘headquarters’ is on a small island between the mainland and the Caymans?”

“Oh, god.” Haisley slapped her hand across her mouth. “They don’t mean rugs. They’re talking about…”

“Women,” Nash confirmed.

She was going to be sick. “Is this how they’re finding…buyers for these girls? Through a fake rug business?”

“That’s my guess. Let me see if I can find a website.” A few clicks later, Ethan swore. “It’s prompting me for a password.”

“So anyone with the right credentials can just…shop for a sex slave?” Haisley pressed a hand to her chest. “That’s…”

“Disgusting? Repulsive? Terrible?”

Even imagining the horror these women must be enduring was hard. “All of it. And nothing on the computer might help us get into that site and rescue those girls?”

“I need more time. Nothing is jumping out at me right now, but I’m going to head home and keep looking.” He raised a brow at Nash. “You staying?”

Nash looked between her and Ethan. Half of her hoped Nash remained. She missed him when he wasn’t around. And this investigation was taking a dark, creepy turn. On the other hand, despite their spontaneous New Year’s Eve kiss and her blossoming feelings, she and Nash were no longer an item. Being this close to him for too long would only land her in trouble.

“Nah, I’ll go with you. We’ll look through this together.” Nash gathered his things as Ethan did and stood. “I’ll catch up with you when I have something, Rowe. Text me if you stumble across any clues or talk to Benedict, okay?”

Everything on his face said he could take or leave her, that he didn’t need or want her anymore. It hurt like hell, but what had she expected, especially after she’d told him to back off? When tequila wasn’t doing his talking and he wasn’t flirting for the hell of it, she was just another of his former flings. She didn’t mean anything to him.

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