Page 62 of Gabe

He started laughing, and I almost smacked the man for making a joke out of something so serious, until I noticed the manic look in his eye.

“But I still have those memories in my brain. All the kids I didn’t help who now think I hurt them. Some of the things I’ve seen. Ha ha… I’m definitely going to need therapy after this.” His hands trembled as they formed fists in the fabric of Milo’s shirt.

Mental trauma often went hand in hand with physical trauma. I’d seen enough patients in my time who struggled with both to recognize a man who was barely keeping himself from falling apart. While I still wanted to push for more answers—his story was worryingly vague and I still didn’t fully trust him—I could also tell that talking about it any more would probably break the man.

Instead, I decided to let it go for now.

I still wasn’t sure what to think of everything. So much had happened in such a short amount of time, my brain was struggling to keep up. A part of me still felt like it was back at the fundraising carnival, looking for anything suspicious worth investigating. Or better yet, back at the safe house, waking up next to Gabe and planning out that day’s physical therapy session for Sebastian.

At least it was clear that Ozias wasn’t our enemy. We already had enough enemies. It was a relief to cross at least one name off the list.

My gaze trailed back to the dead bodies on the floor. We could actually cross several names off our list of enemies, including one very big name. The man who was in charge of the pedophile ring that was hunting us lay dead at our feet, no longer a danger to anyone.

With Senator McLeod dead, what did we do now?

I didn’t realize I’d asked the question out loud until Ozias tossed me something. In the few moments while I’d been lost in thought, he’d managed to regain his composure. If I didn’t know better, I’d think he was perfectly fine.

I caught the small object as it arched through the air toward me and held it up to the light for a better view.

It was one of the GPS camera pins Newt and I had been wearing.

“I reactivated it shortly after you were kidnapped,” Ozias said. “Sorry about that, by the way. I wish there had been another option, but they only reveal the location of this place to people who have earned it.”

I handed the GPS pin to Newt so he could see it for himself. “No, I get that. But why are you returning this pin to us now?”

Ozias heaved a sigh and sat on the couch, careful not to move the boy more than necessary.

“The Senator may be dead, but this place is still crawling with security. To put it bluntly, there’s no way we’re getting out of here on our own. We’re going to need help.”

In his arms, Milo looked like he was halfway asleep again. It was concerning. With all the excitement happening right now, the boy shouldn’t be so tired.

A little thought niggling in the back of my brain made me wonder if Milo had been drugged to keep him under control, just like Ozias had described earlier, but I didn’t ask.

What could we do even if the boy had been drugged?

He needed medical care either way.

Getting out of here as soon as possible was the best option for everyone.

Newt cupped the GPS pin in both hands like he was holding a small bird, and stared at it the same way he would stare at an interesting puzzle that needed solving.

“Senator McLeod said he sent someone to take care of Sebastian and Gabe.”

Technically, what Newt said was a statement, but the question was clear in his tone nonetheless.

“He did,” Ozias agreed. “But if your men are half as impressive as they seem, then I’m sure that they’ll be fine. They’re probably on their way here right now.”

I certainly hoped so, because what Ozias said was true. We were going to need help getting out of there. I had plenty of faith in Gabe and Sebastian’s abilities and had seen them survive more than one life-threatening situation before.

Yet, I still couldn’t help but worry, and from the look on Newt’s face, I could tell he felt the same way.

Newt slapped the corner of the desk, like a judge bringing down his gavel on a final decision. “We can’t just sit around and wait to be rescued. We may not be able to leave on our own, but there’s got to be something we can do in the meantime.”

For the first time, I took a good look around the room. “This was Senator McLeod’s personal office in the building, right?”

I looked to Ozias for confirmation, but the man just shrugged. “Maybe. It looks that way, but this is also my first time here, so I don’t know for sure.”

Newt seemed to catch on to my train of thought and started opening the drawers of the desk. “If this is his personal office, then there’s got to be something worth investigating. Information. Computer files. Something we can collect as evidence against this whole operation. We need to make sure that everyone involved pays for what they’ve done, and that this whole ring gets taken down.”

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