Page 90 of Twice the Rivalry

“And the brothers are gone,” Glitch pointed out. “So they’re either out having a party, or they’re coming back soon.”

“They’ve got to be in the tunnels,” Copper suggested grimly. “Question is, how do we find them and access them?”

“We’ll get our man Abraham here to tell us,” Simba said menacingly. “Ursa, the women are heading up to you. You get them, and Amanda and the two boys, outside to Tiger and Warg. You guys know the drill. Once they’re free, we’ll send the other kids out.”

“Roger that,” Warg said.

Glitch silenced her mic and turned to look at Code. “If you don’t have a strong stomach, now is the time to mute or take off the headset. I’ll let you know when to turn it back on,” she warned him.

Code muted himself before turning to scowl at her. “What? You think I’m a pussy that can’t handle a little torture?”

Glitch and Karissa shared a look, and she barely resisted rolling her eyes. Men and their fragile egos. “Fine, but if you puke or bail, I’m going to hold it over you forever,” she told him flippantly. He just grunted, turning back to his computer, clearly insulted that she even dared suggest it.

Turning her comms back on, she listened as Simba got to work on Abraham, who was already crying and begging. She and Karissa shared a disappointed look. They were both hoping he would put up at least a little resistance. “I’ll tell you whatever you want,” Abraham sobbed. “You want money, it’s yours. You can have the girls and the kids. Just let me go.”

“You sick fuck,” Simba growled. “You’re willing to trade the lives of your women and children for your pathetic life? I don’t fucking think so.” There was a hard thud, and Abraham screamed. “Now, you’re going to tell me everything I want to know,” Simba hissed. “How do we access the tunnels? And don’t even think about lying to me.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Abraham gasped out.

“Apparently he didn’t hear you the first time,” Vulture remarked darkly.

The sound of fists pummeling flesh filled their ears, along with the screams and pleas of the man on the receiving end. She had to give it to him, he was holding on strong, not giving them the information. No matter though, because if anyone would be able to break him, it would be Simba. When he finally let up, Simba demanded again, “Where are the tunnels?”

Suddenly, Jag called out, “Think I found one.” Glitch and Karissa leaned forward, listening. “There’s something behind one of these shelves. The floor is dusty, but there’s a curved groove in it, which means this thing moves.” There was a sound of something scraping on the floor. “Bingo.”

“Looks like we don’t need you after all,” Simba said darkly.

“No, no, stop!” Abraham cried. “You can’t do this!”

“And why can’t we?” Simba taunted. “You took women and held them against their will. You kept children against their will. Don’t think I didn’t notice those kids are bruised and malnourished. You’ll pay for every single bruise or hurt you caused any of them. Jag, gag him. We don’t need him calling out and alerting the others. Copper, Taz, as soon as the children and women are secure, head through the trees to make sure no one is trying to make a run for it.”

“On our way in two minutes,” Taz told them. “These kids are just skin and bones, Simba. We need to make these assholes pay.”

“Damn, I wish I was there to help,” Karissa said tightly. “I’d make those bastards sorry.”

“You and me both,” Glitch agreed.

Thankfully, the Murphy siblings weren’t all that smart and didn’t bother trying to escape. Simba announced that they were found at the end of the tunnel in an underground bunker, waiting for their parents to send the women through. The oldest brother had gone to bring their buyer in, which meant the team had to wait for him to arrive, because no way in hell were they going to let that asshole leave.

Glitch glanced over at Code, who was still scanning the cameras, until finally he announced, “We’ve got a car approaching. Looks like the same one the brother left in.”

“That’s probably the buyer,” Karissa said.

“Alright, we’re standing by to greet them,” Jag said darkly.

Within minutes, the oldest son walked up the front porch, another man right behind him. Glitch held her breath, but she knew that her team would be ready for anything. As soon as the door shut behind them, they pounced. The young man let out a shout of alarm, while the other man cursed and tried to fight. She chuckled when she heard him give a high-pitched screech and then groan. “Well looky here,” Simba chortled darkly. “Looks like we nabbed ourselves another scumbag. This place is crawling with them.”

“Who the hell are you?” the unknown man demanded.

“We’re here to make you regret your life choices,” Simba told him simply. “But first, smile.” The sound of a snapshot and then a ping on her computer gave her his face, and she got to work.

After thirty seconds, she had her answer. “His name is Lewis Kroll. He’s got an affinity for breaking and entering, and some assaults. But he’s also a well known associate of a local thug and small-time gangster. A gangster who has a rap for pimping out women and smacking them around,” Glitch finished grimly.

“I’m getting tired of all these scumbags,” Simba grumbled. “Kill a couple and more come scurrying out. Like goddamn cockroaches. Well boys, time to start asking questions.”

Over the next hour, her team extracted all the information they could, sparing no one, not even the daughters or the wife. They couldn’t, not when they discovered the whole operation was their idea in the first place. Jane and her daughters were the twisted masterminds behind the abduction, rape, and sale of the women, and the enslavement of their children. It made Glitch’s mouth sour. Those women destroyed so many lives, and they didn’t care. They felt it was their calling. Abraham and the sons went along with it because they liked the money and power it gave them. They used the women however they saw fit.

“It’s worse when it’s women,” Karissa sighed as she disconnected her comms. “So much fucking worse.”

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