Page 11 of The Traitor

“Not a lot. I was hoping you would tell me the details yourself. Why on earth would you take three jobs and live in the middle of the forest like a hobo?”

When she looked at him again, her stare was cold and dim, filled with resignation. “There’s nothing to say. I made my bed, now I must lie in it. If you’re worried I’ll be late for work, don’t. I’ll make sure I’m always on time, Knox.”

He knew she would be, and it would be her downfall. A quick check of his watch told him she would get less than four hours of sleep. He stood and Josie did the same. It was clear she was about a minute from falling asleep on her feet. Something had to be done before she killed herself. “You’re fired.”

Time stopped in the tiny cabin. Knox had never experienced that before, and it was the weirdest feeling. His eyes on Josie, he saw something fleeting cross her face, but couldn’t tell what it was before she swallowed hard and exploded.

“How dare you! How dare you fire me because of where I live or what I do. This is my life and my decision. You have no right to dismiss me because of that!”

“I can do whatever I damn well please. It’s my business, and even if it doesn’t seem so, I care about the welfare of the people I employ. I didn’t ask questions to pry, but because it’s clear you’re about to collapse. I don’t want to be part of you landing in the hospital.”

As if on a spring, Josie jumped to her feet and started walking the empty space between the couch and the bed. “Why? Why do you even care? Nobody else does!”

That made him angry, but he dismissed the feeling. It wasn’t useful to be frustrated with other’s behavior toward the woman.

“I need this job, Mr. Knox. It’s the best paying one I have.”

“And I need you too, but not at the cost of seeing you waste away day after day in front of my eyes. Certain circles may see me as a soulless bastard, but I still have some humanity in me.”

His words made her twist around and he recognized questions in her eyes, but she avoided asking them. “If you have humanity like you say, you’ll see I have no choice and need all the money I can get.”

He knew she was in debt from what Georgia has said, he just hadn’t realized how bad it was. “How much money do you need to stop killing yourself like this?” He realized the question was a mistake when she clammed up. He pushed himself to his feet and stretched. “Okay, let’s try again. Why do you need money so badly?”

Again, she looked disgruntled by the question. Knox knew he had to push some more, just a little more so he could push her to breaking point.

He sighed and went for the door.

“I need the money to gain my freedom.”

Of all the reasons he’d expected to hear, that one was the most unexpected of all, and one that made his blood surge inside him. While Georgia had told him she was paying off her husband’s debts, he hadn’t realized she was being forced. He knew all about slavery and being trafficked. He’d helped bring a syndicate down a year ago. It had been his own descent into the belly of hell. It couldn’t be the same thing, so he schooled his features before he slowly turned to face Josie once more.

“What do you mean?”

She sighed, appeared defeated and so alone in her little cabin, it was heartbreaking. “I’m married. My soon to be ex-husband won’t sign the divorce papers unless I pay off his debts. The only thing he promised was to stay away as long as I make regular payments to him.”

That confirmed what Georgia had said, but the way she seemed to get smaller and smaller as she talked made Knox suspect something uglier. “Did he...?”

Words of that nature made him want to surge in anger, but as he didn’t know Josie that well, he couldn’t risk frightening her with an outburst now.

It took a moment, but she finally shook her head. “It wasn’t physical. Let’s leave it at that. Now you see why every single penny is so important. Please.”

How he hated to hear her beg. Her story sickened him. The solution should be easy. Reinstate her as an employee and let her deal with her mess as she was doing now. The problem was, he wasn’t the kind of man to step back and not take control.

“I will reinstate you as my employee, on two conditions.”

The hope that shone in her eyes confirmed how desperate she was.

“You come back to work for me, and I’ll double your pay, but you need to stop working three jobs. You’ll work at my shop and that’s all.”

Josie hesitated, but before she could say no or ask questions, he added, “And you’re leaving this shack and will sleep in my guest bedroom. Well, more like my half-attic as Gage is already in the guest bedroom.”

He wasn’t surprised to see her shake her head. “I can’t. I won’t impose on you. And if you had ideas of…”

Knox lifted both his hands. “I said I wouldn’t touch you. Well, unless you want me to. You have my word. That’s not what my offer is about. That kiss was a mistake. You’re way too young, and it was way too inappropriate.”

He stopped himself when he started rambling. Josie looked at him with curiosity. “I’m twenty-two.”

“And I’m more than double that. As I said, it was inappropriate.”

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