Page 83 of Barrett

On the way there, I kept my gaze out the window, even as Reghan asked me if I was sure. I told them I wanted to be the first into where we were going. Jordan had surprisingly agreed. Maybe it had to do with this being a police matter. Who the fuck knew? Either way, this somehow was my show to run now that the chief could be involved.

It took us a bit to get from where we were to the other side of the city. Jordan had men on scene, but not out in the open. They confirmed the chief was at a large house that wasn’t in the best shape, but it had electricity since there were lights on. Lawson had pulled the record from the last time it was sold and saw it was in the chief’s name.

“Bear?” Reghan tried to get my attention again.

“Yeah?”

“You don’t have to do this. I can go in there and handle it. You don’t need to be a part of it.” I loved him even more for trying to take the weight off me.

Turning, I couldn’t see his eyes in the darkness of the SUV, but they were etched into my mind. “I know, baby, but I need to for me, for Marshall, and for every other person we can hopefully rescue.” Hell, even Noah back at the safe house was a wreck. He didn’t want me to leave but understood why I had to.

“I’ll be there as backup for anything you need.”

“Just stay behind me.” I worried if the chief saw them, he’d lose his fucking mind and start shooting.

“We can handle ourselves.”

I sighed. Nothing I said would get them to stay safely out of the way.

We finally pulled down the street the house was on. Half of our party went into the alleyway in the back, in case he tried to make a run for it.

The homes here weren’t all occupied. It was easy to find a place to park. We got out, guns drawn like we did not too long ago. I saw Raiden took his phone out, pointing it ahead of us. If I had to guess, he was going to film this just in case we needed it for evidence. I wanted this motherfucker dead for playing a part in it. I’d thought jail would have been good enough, but not anymore.

Day after day there was shit going on in this city. I was so fucking tired of it. Of the deaths and the drugs. Of the careless way some dealt with human life. I wasn’t an angel by any means, but if I could help someone who didn’t deserve the shitty hand they’d been dealt or were in the wrong place at the wrong time, I would. It was the innocent people who kept me going. The ones who were just going about their day when tragedy struck.

I understood why Jordan was so protective of East Dremest. I was too. The more I learned what Jordan did and what went on behind the scenes, the more I realized aligning myself with him wasn’t a bad thing. Well, it was if I thought about the drug and gun trafficking he did, but I wasn’t adding that into the equation right now. After all, my boyfriend helped him do those things. So really, I couldn’t judge when Reghan owned my fucking heart.

Crossing the street, I kept my gun close as I went up the stairs to the front door and tested to see if it was unlocked. It was. There could be an alarm on the place, but given how hastily he left the precinct, I doubted he thought to arm it if there was one.

Gently opening the door, I held my breath, waiting to see if an alarm sounded. When it didn’t, I entered the house, Reghan and Raiden right behind me. I was surprised Jordan hadn’t pushed his way to the front. This could have been another one of his tests for me before he let me into his inner sanctum to live with one of his best guards.

Shouting came from below. I knew that voice. It was the one that made my blood boil and gave me dreams where I tried to strangle him because he wouldn’t shut the fuck up. I guessed I was never that good to begin with. Did regular law-abiding detectives dream about killing people they worked for? Probably not.

Reghan and Raiden fanned out, as did Jordan, who I finally saw in my peripheral. Sheldon was there, Rory too. More men I didn’t know the names of. Maybe they’d give me a roster when I moved in so I could remember who was who.

Sheldon went upstairs with Rory. After the rest of us canvassed the first floor, we started down the basement stairs. I was surprised they didn’t collapse under our weight, given how rickety they were. There was no way this place was up to code. There wasn’t even a handrail. Why I was thinking about that I didn’t know.

Raiden was directly behind me with his phone still out. Reghan must have been seething at not having my back. He trusted his brother to protect me.

The first thing I saw were naked bodies, some shaking, some too scared to move at all. There were men lined up on the cement floor. The ones who were conscious sat up while the others had fallen forward or were lying down. And there was the chief, filming them with a phone, asking their ages and if they were virgins. He was cataloging them for inventory.

When one of the men saw us, his eyes widened. I immediately put my finger to my mouth and shook my head. His eyes darted back to the chief as he kept talking, going down the line.

I needed Raiden to get enough evidence before I said anything. The longer we went undetected, the more we’d have.

Our silence only lasted so long when one of the steps creaked loudly.

The chief’s gaze swung our way, as did his camera and gun, which had been concealed.

I aimed my gun at him. “Put it down,” I said as I descended the steps, a line of men behind me. “I’m not going to tell you again.”

“How did I fucking know?” he sneered. “Of course you’d get in bed with the mafia. I knew there was something going on when he was spotted at your building. I should have brought you in for questioning.”

“Really? You want to play that card while you’re taking inventory of human beings?”

“I… I was documenting this so we could prosecute the person responsible.”

“Then why haven’t you called it in? Why aren’t there ambulances outside ready to assist? Why are these men all scared and shaking? You weren’t helping. You were covering up for your son.” There. I’d said it. Fuck this guy.

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