“Who sent you to our room?” Neron asked, leaning inward and propping his elbows on his thighs.
“Um…” The curly-haired girl, a shade darker than me, bit her lip. “…Luna Liberty, did.”
“Which one of you is Alana and which one is Aiyana?” I inquired.
The girls bristled in their seats; shooting looks at one another. They shrugged their shoulders and exhaled sharply. They looked back at us and the redhead raised her uninjured hand. “I’m Alana.”
“And I’m Aiyana.”
Neron turned to me. “How did you know their names?”
“From this.” I stood on my feet and shuffled to the closet, picking out the note in my pant pocket. I handed it to Neron before sitting back in my seat. He opened the note and his glare hardened slightly.
“Where did you get this?”
“It was slid under the door a few days ago. I forgot about it until today.” I rubbed the back of my neck, blowing out a sigh. “Luna Liberty sent this, Neron. It is the only thing that makes sense.”
“She said you can help us.” Aiyana suddenly spoke, her small and sweet voice pulling our attention to her. Alana stared at her, unblinking, “She said you can get us away from the Alpha.”
“Alpha Jackson.”
Alana nodded with hope surging in her emeralds. “You’re so strong. Luna! You threw him like a baseball!”
“Yeah, it was funny.” Aiyana giggled, her white smile glowing against her skin. “Can you get away from him, Luna? Please?”
My mind spun. Liberty had entrusted me with the girls’ safety. She believes I can save them, yet I feel like I’m in over my head. How am I going to do this?
Neron slid an arm around my shoulders, rubbing smooth circles on my bare skin. “How old are you two?”
“Eleven, Alpha.” They replied in unison. Alana raised her hand. “But I’m a week older than Aiyana.”
“You always say that!” Aiyana complained.
“It’s true!” The redhead grinned, poking her arm.
“Goddess, they’re younger than I thought.” Neron whispered, covering his mouth with his hand.
“Where are your parents?” I suddenly asked. “Do they know what’s going on?”
Both girls became silent. Aiyana’s dark eyes watered as Alana clenched her jaw. There’s definitely a story there. Their eyes stoked the anger in me all over again.
“Mine aren’t around.” Aiyana said, twiddling her fingers in her lap. She crossed her ankles and bounced them against the bottom of the settee. “We were given to the Alpha and Luna for work. I was there first and Alana came after me.”
Neron and I shared incredulous looks, beyond stunned. “Wait a minute, ‘given”?” He asked. ” What do you mean by that?”
“Mom and Dad spent too much money, so I have to work to help pay their debt off. Alana explained, tugging at a piece of her hair hard enough to pull some strands from her scalp. “They left me and never came back.”
“Mine did the same.” Aiyana admitted. “They got some money, though! But they never came back for me either.”
I shot up from my seat and marched toward the window before I blew a gasket or two. The level of fury was akin to the level I felt three years ago. My nails dug into my elbows as I glared outside into the open landscape, watching the leaves rustle under the wind and the ocean water lap up against the shore.
I wanted to smash something. Anything!
*These innocent girls*. *What hell did Jackson put them through”?
“Kiya.” Neron walked up beside me, weaving a finger under my knuckles to pull them away from my elbow. He didn’t want me to hurt myself. “Aiyana and Alana were sold to Alpha Jackson and Luna Liberty as debt repayment. I don’t believe their parents have any intentions on returning for them if they gave them up so easily.”
“Say it like it is Neron.” I grunted. “Sold or not, they were essentially trafficked. How has no one stopped him yet?”
Neron’s jaw clenched when he looked back at the girls innocently communicating with one another in their silent language of hand gestures. A practice they probably picked up to cope with their situation. “Many cling onto outdated practices as means of power. Jackson isn’t the first to do this, and he won’t be the last.”
I shifted away from the window. “Aiyana and Alana aren’t girls to him-they’re his fucking property. How does one stomach this shit? All because of some accumulated debt? Give me one good reason I shouldn’t march out of this room and tear his head off.”
“Look at them.” Neron whispered, resting his hands on my upper arms. I did, and my heart melted at the sight. “The way they looked at you and responded to you means they trust you. They trust *us* to save them. Right now, we need to be there for them. You’re pissed and so am I, but we need to think of a concrete plan before we lose our heads.”
My eyes boiled with tears. “They can’t go back to Jackson, Neron. I won’t let it happen.”
“And they won’t.” Neron curled his finger and thumb under my chin and turned my head back to him. His eyes brightened with his determination and I got lost in them. “We’re going to get them out of this, even if it means them coming with us to Oregon.”
I haven’t known the girls for over ten minutes and I wanted to give them a better life. I’m here today because Mom and Dad took me in and helped heal me. Those girls deserved the same. I sniffled, wiping a tear before it fell. There was so much at stake here besides the girls’ safety.
There was also Luna Liberty to think about. Her safety mattered, too. I feel like I’m juggling fire and one wrong move would burn me. Three innocent lives depended on my choices and actions.
What if there were more victims? Or more perpetrators? What about their pack as a whole?
“I’m going to call Anthony in the morning and see if he and Alesia can figure out an escape plan for Liberty.” I bit my bottom lip. “She’s a victim too. She wouldn’t risk her safety and Jackson’s anger to protect the girls if she didn’t care.”
Neron turned to look at the digital clock sitting on one of the tables. “I, too, fear for her safety. But there is not much we can do about it tonight. It’s almost midnight, so why don’t we get the girls situated first?”
I nodded, smiling small. “Yeah, let’s do that.”