Page 70 of Smooth Sailing

“Mace.”

“Hug.” Mace turned to him.

They shook and Hugger said, “This is Diana.”

“Know who she is,” Mace muttered and dipped his chin to her. “Diana.”

“You know me?” she asked. “How?”

“Try to know as much as I can in this town,” he replied without really giving her anything.

Of course, Diana didn’t let him get away with that.

“Precisely…me. How do you know me?” she pushed.

“Anything that Imran Babic touches, I know. Anything that he might touch in a way that will piss me off, I know better,” Mace returned.

That was acceptable to Diana, because she backed off.

“All right, I got a buttery chardonnay to buy, let’s get down to it,” Eight called it to order.

Mace got serious.

“Suzette Snyder doesn’t exist.”

Diana gasped.

Eight grunted.

Hugger growled.

“At least, the woman staying with you isn’t named Suzette Snyder,” Mace said to Diana.

“Oh my God,” Diana whispered.

“Cops don’t know who she is. She had no ID when she came in, and didn’t provide any before she went out. Address she gave, someone else lives there and they’ve never heard of her. Prints aren’t in the system. She reported to the cops she was twenty-three. Doctors who treated her said they can’t be certain, but they think she’s no more than seventeen,” Mace stated.

At that, Diana reeled, so Hugger threw an arm around her shoulders, pulled her back to his front, and locked her down by curling his arm around her chest and holding her against him.

In turn, she lifted both hands and latched onto his forearm.

“You’re fuckin’ shittin’ me,” Eight gritted.

But Hugger caught on.

“Trafficked,” he bit out.

“No,” Diana moaned.

“That’s what the cops, and FBI, are guessing,” Mace affirmed. He focused his attention on Eight. “Maybe we can talk alone.”

“Whatever it is, I should know,” Diana put in.

“I get you think you do, but I know you don’t,” Mace replied.

“If anyone’s going to talk her into a safe place and get her to the point she can keep it together and help, it’s me. I should know what I’m dealing with,” Diana pushed.

But Hugger was studying Mace’s expression.

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