Page 32 of Rage & Paradise
“Oro, you straight?” he questions.
“Yeah. Vado up?” I ask, ready to get this information out.
“Yeah, we’re all set up in church. Come on.” He waves me forward and I can see the concern in his eyes.
He’s not judging me or wondering what kind of crazy shit I’m involved in right now. He’s concerned. All this time I was pining for a family I thought I missed out on, when I’ve had my brothers right here for as long as I can remember.
I’m the lucky one.
I follow Lobo down to the room where all our decisions are made. Vado is sitting at the head of the table. There are dark circles under his eyes, as if he spent most of the night awake. AZ told me earlier that he was already making calls to figure out what was going on with the Canos and how many of them were still around.
“AZ said you had some business for us to discuss. Is it about the Canos?” Vado starts before I can even get seated comfortably. Straight to business. That’s always been my president’s MO.
“Unfortunately, no. It’s not about the Canos.”
“Then what business is it of ours? Right now, we need to be focused on the bastards that thought they could come in here and test us.” Digger spits out. He is clearly still pissed that I stepped to him earlier.
I try my hardest not to let him get under my skin. I remind myself once again that he’s not really the person I’m pissed at.
“It’s our business because it has to do with our community. The people that we are here to protect. That’s what we came back to the island for, right?” I cut a look to Digger before I focus back on Vado.
Vado tilts his head once, allowing me to continue.
“You all remember Mr. Nieves, the carpenter who used to have a shop down in the marketplace?” I look around and everyone nods their heads.
“Yeah, he got pinched for smuggling something like thirty pounds of coke. Something crazy like that,” Lobo says.
“Yup, exactly. Fucked-up shit though, he wasn’t smuggling shit but end tables and bed frames. He was set up.”
Vado’s eyebrows furrow. “¿Sabes eso? How?”
“Turns out this woman that Estrella kept trying to tell me about, Sina, is running some big drug and sex ring. She is a fucking bully and is spilling over into the town. Anyone who doesn’t get down with what she wants gets rolled up in the system. Her way of getting them out of the way. Turns out Mr. Nieves wasn’t with her plan, so she worked with the cops to get him framed. That old man is sitting in a prison cell right now for some shit he didn’t do. Right here in our town, under our noses.”
Vado leans forward in his chair. Now I know I have his attention. This isn’t some shit he’s just going to let fly. If she can do it to that sweet old man, she could do it to any one of us.
“¿Qué más?” Vado growls. He knows there’s more, and there is.
“Besides trying to get everyone to follow her tune, she’s grooming kids. Teenagers to work in the sex trade. Offering them up to clients who have those particular tastes.”
“The fuck.” AZ slams his hand on the table.
Several of the guys in here have children now. AZ has a little girl he’s very protective of. This is probably one of his worst nightmares.
“Sina was trying to get Estrella to help groom the kids. For some reason, Sina believes Estrella is a good resource for this part of her plans.” I do my best to keep Estrella as clean as I can.
“Did she?” AZ questions, fire sparking in his eyes. If he even thinks that Estrella is part of a sex-trafficking ring he’ll have her put out.
“No, that’s why she’s here trying to find work. Sina is trying to force her to come back and work or have nothing. Keep her in the gutter until she has no choice but to do what Sina wants.”
“Fuck that. Los Niños. We can’t let this shit happen,” Digger adds, and it’s probably the smartest thing I’ve heard him say all day.
“That’s what I’m thinking. It’s one thing for adult women to get into the trade. They can make the decisions they want to make, but the kids shouldn’t be exposed to this shit. They need someone to protect them. I know this shit didn’t start as our fight and it’s probably going to get messy, especially with still having to worry about the Canos, but there’s no way I couldn’t table this.”
Vado nods his head. “You did good, Oro. And you’re right. This Sina bitch has to go. Get Pooh on it. I’ll make some more calls to see if we can find out where she’s holed up. Time to put her out of business, once and for all.”
I lean back in my chair, finally feeling like I’ve done some good. I know it’s only just starting, but Sina is about to realize that she’s fucked with the wrong damn town.
***
