Page 51 of Jericho

Nolan earns another unimpressed look from the man. "We've been going to all the places linked to your husband's organization, and so far we've found two bodies of young people. The first one was a boy about fourteen or fifteen and this last one was of a little girl."

"Oh God," I mutter, bile racing up my throat. "He's killing children?"

I snap my eyes in Nolan's direction, terrified of what this could mean for Eli.

"I don't want you to think about shit like that," Nolan growls.

"Are you?" I snap back. "Did you consider this shit before you grabbed me off the fucking street?"

Nolan glares at me, pulling in a deep intake of breath, but he stays silent. I can see from the look in his eyes that he didn'tconsider this. He was fully committed to his plan, a hundred percent sure that the team they had in Hartford was going to get Eli to safety. He never thought that wasn't going to work out the way he wanted it to and look where it has landed us.

I stand from the table so quickly that the chair rolls away, slamming into the wall, but I'm too upset to care whether or not it caused any damage.

"I will never forgive you if something happens to my son," I snarl at him, tears streaming down my face.

"Ourson," he growls back.

"I know you're in a very emotional state right now, Aspen," Kincaid says, his voice low and calm. "But we need your help."

I look toward the man because staring at Nolan and seeing the pain and regret in his eyes is enough to fully break me.

"Have you heard mention of anyone talking about sex trafficking in either your father's or your husband's organization?"

"Thank you," I tell Hemlock when he rolls the chair back toward me. "Sorry about the wall."

He doesn't even bother to look over his shoulder at the damage the chair caused to the drywall.

I take a seat once again, letting memories filter through my head about the times I've borne witness to my father working and the handful of times things have gone on in the house that I've observed.

"We have it on good authority that your father had made plans to get involved with that type of business but he pulled out at the last minute," Kincaid continues. "We believe it's why Damien had him killed."

"Had him killed?" I ask. "He didn't do it himself?"

Kincaid shakes his head. "We have evidence that shows he hired out the job."

I don't see that going well with the other families. If Damien isn't man enough to take my father's throne with his own hands, then they're less likely to respect him and his authority.

I shake my head. "I can't recall any talk of sex trafficking. I'm not saying my father was innocent by any means, but I don't think he'd hurt children the way Samuel says he did. He never laid a hand on me growing up. I never got a vibe that he would assault anyone in that way."

"People aren't always who they want you to think they are," Nolan says, and the tone of it makes my hackles go up once again.

"You would know, huh?" I snap at him.

"Damn," Hemlock mutters, and I can tell by the way the word comes out that he didn't mean to actually vocalize it.

A chuckle comes from the other side of the room, making me remember the guy who was there on the computer, but I don't bother to look in his direction.

"The original house we found had twelve beds for children, but we haven't found proof of more than three or four kids. We can't track them if we have no idea who they are or who their parents are," Kincaid explains further.

"I can't help you," I whisper, feeling useless. "I really wish I could. What does this mean for Eli?"

"I can't put it past a man like Damien Gaines to do anything nefarious, but Eli is his only connection to you. It's how he has controlled you all these years, and it's unlikely he'll do something to sever that ability. He's narcissistic enough to thinkthat he will have you crawling back to him in order to protect your son."

"I would. In a heartbeat."

"The fuck you will," Nolan growls.

"Jericho, that's not helpful," Kincaid chastises. "I know exactly where your head is," Kincaid says. "I have two daughters and six grandchildren. I'd crawl over broken glass and give my last breath to ensure their safety. All that being said, we're doing our very best to bring Eli home. Please know that every man on my team and the ones on Hemlock's team treats every child we work to save as our own."

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