Total pages in book: 62
Estimated words: 60447 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 302(@200wpm)___ 242(@250wpm)___ 201(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 60447 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 302(@200wpm)___ 242(@250wpm)___ 201(@300wpm)
“I waited this long because I refuse to let you go and get involved. Marshall is dangerous and his connections go far outside this country. I know for certain the FBI have been trying to take him down for years but he’s so fucking high up nobody can touch him. If Clara and Darth were working for him, the chances are they are no longer alive.”
My heart skips a beat. “I can’t just assume that, Charlie. You have to understand that.”
“You can’t just get involved with Marhsall, either. Trust me, you don’t want to go looking in places that are that dark, you won’t come out alive.”
I take another sip of my drink, trying to calm my pounding heart. “You’re not going to tell me, are you?”
“No, I’m not. It’s not because I don’t want to help you, I’m going to keep looking for Clara, but I can’t let you go chasing these people down. It’s bad enough they still run shipments out of this place, let alone the fact that nobody can touch them.”
“They’re still operating and nobody has brought them down?” I question, concerned.
“They’ve probably got half the police force working for them. They’re the kind of people who manage to get away with everything.”
“Can’t the FBI just bust them mid shipment? If they know they’re doing it, why can’t they stop it?”
“It ain’t that easy. They’re clever, nobody knows where they are stashing their goods, or how they get them out. We’ve suspected shipping containers, but every wharf in the area has been watched and nobody has found them. Which means they have half the fucking town working for them. Probably half the FBI.”
God.
How terrifying that a group of people can be so powerful.
I just need something, anything to help me get closer. Charlie isn’t willing to tell me too much, but if I can get a little something to work with, this won’t feel like nothing.
“If they’re using shipping containers, can’t you track manufacturers?”
“Not if they’re being paid enough to keep quiet and fudge the books.”
That makes sense.
“And they’re trafficking people?”
“From what we know, yeah. Mostly addicts, people off the streets or from broken homes, people who aren’t missed and most of the time, not reported missing. There is big money in selling humans for slaves.”
Slaves.
My stomach twists.
“That’s awful. If Clara got caught up in that, I can’t begin to imagine where she is.”
Charlie leans forward. “Like I said, the chances are she isn’t alive. I know you want to find her, Addi, but you could be searching a lifetime and not get answers. You have to understand that.”
“Yeah, I know,” I say, and I mean it.
I know I might never get what I’m searching for, but at the same time, until I’ve followed every lead and exhausted every option, I can’t just let this go. I need to know I did everything I could. I just can’t stop until I’m sure.
“Was Darth high up?”
Charlie shakes his head. “No, he was just a worker. His record is sealed, which has me thinking there are more people on the inside than I know about.”
People are rotten.
The ones you’re meant to trust are the ones doing the worst things.
Police officers, lawyers, mayors, you name it.
Some of them are truly evil and have their hands in many pies.
“What if he sold Clara?”
Charlie shakes his head. “As far as I can see, the two of them were working together. The last time I could trace their location was from a report made in the woods just outside the city. Someone picked Clara up running from something, all messed up and bloodied. They took her to the hospital, and she bolted. Nobody has seen her since.”
Why could Clara be in the woods?
I make a mental note to look in the woods outside the city, maybe there is something there?
It’s not much, but it’s a start.
“I should get going,” I say, glancing at the time. “I’ll call you again soon.”
“I’ll walk you out.”
Charlie walks me outside of the bar and we stand on the side of the street. He goes in for a hug, and somehow, when we pull apart, our lips graze. I know he does it on purpose, and it throws me so off guard that I stand there, my arms still around him, staring up at him in complete shock. Shaking my head, I whisper, “I’m with someone, Charlie.”
He steps back. “I’m sorry. Fuck, I don’t know what I was thinking. It just happened. I just ...”
“It’s okay,” I say quickly, feeling bad for him. “I just need you to understand that I’m with a man who completes me. I love him more than I could ever explain. I’m sorry if I gave you the wrong impression.”
“You didn’t,” he says, his face growing slightly red. “I just had one too many beers and being with you makes me happy. I’m sorry.”