For the next month, Maggie’s nightmare continued. She no longer thought about getting away or going back to her old life. She preferred to think about death. But she couldn’t figure out how to kill herself. The traffickers were always around, always looking in on the kids or having sex with them between clients.
Six weeks after Maggie was left at the warehouse, the traffickers told her to put on the clothes she’d been wearing when she arrived. Brute stood in the doorway of her room while she changed, and when she finished, he led her up a different set of stairs.
Maggie looked around as she entered a large, dimly lit room.
“Sit over there,” Brute instructed, pointing to a chair in the corner.
As Maggie sat waiting and no one came, her anxiety grew. She hadn’t been in this room before, and she worried about what that meant. In the middle of the room, there was a bed, and at its foot was a tripod with a camera attached. She looked at the camera, remembering the first day of her captivity. The memories filled her mouth with sour bile.
Forty-five minutes later, the door opened. Maggie held her breath. She gawked as Rock strutted into the room and gazed at her.
“Ya like your new home?” Rock asked.
“No,” Maggie said, starting to cry. “I want to go back with you.”
“Oh yeah? Now all of a sudden ya like bein’ wit’ Rock, don’t ya?”
Maggie nodded. “Please, Rock. Don’t leave me here. Take me out of here,” she pleaded.
Rock rubbed his chin as he considered what she was asking. “I’m not sure. Ya might need a little more time to think ’bout what ya really want. I mean, ya haven’t been here that long, and well, I got me a couple new girls since ya been away.”
What Maggie didn’t know was that Rock had negotiated a deal with Julius. In order to buy Joey for ten grand instead of twenty, Rock agreed to leave both girls there for six weeks to make up the difference. Rock believed it would serve two purposes: pay for the new kid for Thelma and tame Maggie. It had worked.
Maggie stood and walked to Rock. When she was in front of him, she tilted her head and looked into his eyes. Then she slowly leaned in and kissed Rock. He responded as he parted her lips and drove his tongue to the back of her throat. Resisting the urge to vomit, Maggie willed herself not to pull away. When their kiss ended, Rock watched Maggie closely.
“Please, Rock,” she whispered. “Please take me back home. These men are nothing like you. They’re vile and nasty. I’ll make you feel really good if you just take me out of here.”
“OK, baby, Rock will take ya home,” he said.
Rock took Maggie’s hand and led her out of the room. A few minutes later, they met with Julius in another part of the warehouse.
“Where’s the kid?” Rock asked Julius.
“Waiting down by the door. You can grab her on your way out,” Julius said.
The two degenerates shook hands, and Rock led Maggie toward the exit, where they saw Joey waiting with one of the guards. As they approached, Maggie gave Joey a smile. Joey moved deliberately toward Maggie and stood next to her. Then the girl reached out and took Maggie’s hand.
Rock watched them closely. Little bitch better cozy up to Thelma like she is with Maggie, he thought.
Joey had light-brown, wavy hair that hung to her shoulders. Her eyes were the palest green Rock had ever seen. Beyond the intriguing color, he saw a fire there that made it impossible for him not to be drawn to her. She was as pretty as Maggie was, just a whole lot younger. He hoped Thelma would love her; otherwise the kid was in for some hard days.
Oh well, Rock thought, that’s the kid’s problem. If Thelma doesn’t like her, Joey will just have to deal with it.