Page 59 of Preying Heart
“I also have multiple crypto wallets. They only know one of them, but on the flip side, this is why it’s hard to track Big Dude. I know his wallet address too, and by going through the blockchain I can find all the addresses he dealt with. It just takes one of those addresses to be linked to someone physical, and we can begin to unravel the links and figure out who he is. I have a friend who works in one of the investigative agencies who’s working on it.”
“So far, Big Dude has dealings with Operation Persephone,” Lucy adds. “But so do we, since Operation Persephone pays us to rescue trafficking victims.”
“Why would someone who rescues trafficking victims offer so much money to keep me hidden and then take my baby?”
“The million-dollar question,” Heath says. “Don’t worry about it. If he wanted to attack you, he would have sent someone already. My guess is he doesn’t want to get his hands dirty. Wants to keep you pregnant and then buy the baby from you.”
“Which I won’t sell.”
“He doesn’t know that,” Heath says. “By then, you should be rich enough from selling NFTs to fund your own disappearing act. I’m sorry, but you’re never going to go back to your Remi Bruckner existence. You might as well become Blair Green or choose another name.”
I hate losing all of those online credits and all my social media friends. My freelance clients will be left high and dry, and I’ll never be able to touch the money I made. As far as Gavin is concerned, I’ve dropped off the face of the planet. The only person I care about is my brother, but I can somehow contact him and let him have the money I squirreled away.
An idea pops into my mind. “What if we faked my death? Then Big Dude will leave us alone. Gavin will move on to another victim. I won’t be stuck hiding here the rest of my life.”
Lucy gives Heath a resigned expression, as if saying, she’d told him his idea of keeping me locked in the Fortress was a bad idea. I can see the wheels turning in her mind. She’s torn between getting rid of me from Heath’s life and the greed of sharing the reward for keeping me safe and pregnant.
“I feel like I’m intruding on you two.” I grasp at straws. “Wouldn’t it be better for me to leave with the baby after he or she is born? I’ll pay you the million dollars from my NFT sales and we can call it even.”
“We don’t want your money,” Heath says.
“I call bull.” I push myself away from the desk and get up from the office chair. “I’m hemming you two lovebirds in. I’ll make you an even better deal. If I make a million from the NFTs before nine months is up, I’ll pay you off, and you’ll help me change my identity. You’ll get your reward and you’ll never see me again. You two can carry on, and there’s no need to pretend you’re my friends or that you care.”
Lucy raises her eyebrows at Heath like it’s another thing she told him already.
Heath turns his back on me and types into his computer. “If that’s what you want, then by all means, let’s get your NFTs posted and let the selling begin.”
“Everyone has a price.” I saunter toward the door to get some fresh air. I have no doubt the two of them will do exactly what I want. After all, I’m a bird in their hands, and selling my baby to Big Dude is two in the bush.
Heath
I don’t stop Remi from walking out the door. Not even when she takes Glock out the front door. She won’t get far. The gate is locked and she doesn’t have car keys. She’s just letting off steam and jealous of Lucy.
“When are you going to tell her I’m your sister?” Lucy asks. “I know you want to sleep with her.”
“I want her to trust me.” I open up a VPN tunnel to get onto the internet. “She’s been lied to and betrayed her entire life. It’s not surprising she thinks we’ll betray her and turn her baby over to this creep.”
“Why don’t you tell her the truth? That you’re trying to unmask the guy and figure out why he wants to buy her baby.”
“I’ve already said as much, but she doesn’t believe me. If someone doesn’t trust you, pounding her with the truth isn’t going to help. Even if I told her you’re my sister, she won’t believe me or you.”
“I see your point,” Lucy says. “Well then, let’s help her make money, and if she really gives us a share, then I’m not turning it down. In fact, I’ll consider it payment for my medical services and you should be paid for being her bodyguard.”
“I keep thinking there’s something going on with Operation Persephone and the human traffickers. They’re a front, but I can’t prove it.” I tap keys and create an account for Remi at one of the top NFT trading platforms.
“Why do you think Remi’s foster father was killed?”
“He probably knows something he’s not supposed to know. It’s probably related to Remi’s pregnancy.”
“I’m wondering about DNA,” Lucy says. “Who out there wants a particular baby other than it’s biological parents or biological grandparents? Do we know who they are?”
“Gavin’s parents are Stan and Deana Greasley.” I’m only half paying attention to her as I set up Remi’s hardware wallet. Obviously, I know the PIN and the key phrases, but it has to be this way since I’m running the show for her.
“Are we sure about that? What if Stan is not Gavin’s biological father and the killer got him out of the way?”
“That’s a real stretch and can easily be tested, although now that they buried Stan, I guess you have a point.”
“What do you know about Remi’s parents?” Lucy opens her laptop and starts searching. “Do we know who her father is?”
