Page 77 of Verses and Blooms
Then a memory hit. My father screaming at me tosign the papers.The memory of the way the pen trembled in my hand that night had me curling my fingers.
“Wait,” I said suddenly. “They tried twice. The first was this huge fight right before I was taken the first time. I was mad because I wanted to go to something, I can’t even remember now but they never let me go. This was just another thing I’d have to miss and I was furious, so I refused to give in. I didn’t sign. Then the last was when I got out. They tried to say it was so they could make sure I was taken care of. The concept was so fucked up after all that I’d endured, I couldn’t believe them.”
“What pieces of shit,” Kane muttered. “She was barely holding on and they wanted money?”
“I think they sent her here on purpose,” Ares said. “Malik was interested in her, and he tried everything he could to prove she was incompetent.”
“Then she bonded, gained a pack and her sanity back, and her alpha broke a counselor’s leg for touching her,” Ledger pointed out proudly. “That backfired beautifully.”
I let out a humorless laugh. “Guess that’s why they took me the second time. Didn’t want to deal with your reaction.”
“Probably,” Sanchez said. “But they didn’t expect the chief’s daughter to be involved, or for the Alliance to get wind of it.”
“Malik hated me from the moment I protected them,” Ares agreed. “It was wild how much he hated this group.”
“Have her parents tried to contact ARC?” Kane asked.
“They have. For weeks, actually,” he said grimly. “Alice discovered the calls when she started working on Audrey’s new treatment plans.”
“Why didn’t anyone else know?” Caspian demanded. “Cross just didn’t share this with us?”
“Not defending him, but he was fielding the calls because she went no contact. They gave up any rights to her when she enrolled here,” Ares said. “He just assumed it was jilted parents. At least he made notes in the files.”
“They probably expected you to still be incoherent when they came to visit last time. What would your response have been if they’d asked you to sign a trust back then?” Ledger said.
“To get bent,” I laughed darkly.
“Exactly,” Ledger said. “They knew Malik. They knew why you were here. They likely tried to have you taken again.”
“Did they really send me here? I thought that pack I stalked paid.”
“They did,” Caspian said. “They just got someone else to pay for it. They were on TV, crying for sympathy. Nobody suspected a thing. They perfected their smokescreen.”
“They still don’t know we have eyes on them,” Ares said. “We’ve caught more than a few sketchy activities and are on standby, hoping they’ll lead us to these assholes.”
The wheels were already turning in my head.“What if we put out a press release of our own?” I suggested. “Someone speaks on my behalf, says you’re working hard to make things right, searching for the missing, and to please respect the victims’ privacy. Add a comment about me not doing well.They’ll eat that up and call in themselves. They’ll think it’s the perfect opportunity. Plus, with new management, why not try one last time, right?”
Ledger grinned. “That’s genius, wilding.”
“Does that mean Audrey has to face her parents again?” Ansel asked.
“No,” Sanchez said. “The moment they show up, we’ll take them in for questioning.”
“Then do it,” I said. “I’m leaving this place behind anyway. If they’re involved in trafficking, they shouldn’t be free.”
“I’ve been tracking everyone else involved,” Ares admitted. “We’re close to finding the facility you came from.”
“Have you been skipping missions because of me?” I asked quietly, realizing he knew everything but had barely left our sides.
He sighed. “I figured I should be near my pack.”
“Or youtrustyour pack and go do your damn job,” Ledger growled. “We need everyone out there helping and you’re one of the best.”
“He’s right,” Rydell agreed. “The sooner they’re locked up, the sooner we’re free.”
“Will saying Audrey isn’t doing well hurt our chances with the Alliance?” Caspian asked.
“No,” Ares said. “The network’s out of the loop now. The chief’s making sure of it.They’rethe ones under fire.”
