Acknowledgements

The horror and enslavement of sex trafficking and its counterpart, pornography, has long burdened my heart. Prostitution in all of its forms is not a victimless crime, despite what society says.

I am thankful to all who have helped with the formation of this novel. This was not an easy one to write. In many ways, it was harder than my first novel, Captives, which was about the same subject. So much has changed within the public schools, technology, and trafficking practices, that I really needed as much input as possible.

To Alycia Morales who read my original manuscript and made so many great suggestions to help me improve the scope and focus, I am so grateful.

To Officer Brad Wrobel and Onzlow Williamson for lending their time to discuss their roles as Security Resource Officer and School Security Guard, respectively, and for giving me an honest idea of the day-to-day experiences and difficulties of “policing” and interacting with kids in a school environment. I know I’ve had to take some liberties for the sake of the story, but I hope I have at least honored the hard jobs you both have.

To readers of my first draft: Deborah Harris, Cheryl Breeding, Bethany Harar, Debra Metzler, and Misha Chernov. Your comments on my very rough draft guided so much of what it became. Thanks for letting me know what was interesting and what wasn’t.

To everyone at Pelican Book Group. I am so honored to be a part of this team. Thank you, Nicola Martinez, for understanding the importance of this subject and for creating such a fabulous cover. Thank you, M. Jamie West, for your stellar editing. There is a lot of intuition, wisdom, and talent in this group.

To Lisa Thompson, for always being my touchstone and cutting edge information on this tough subject matter. You work in the trenches every day and see the worst of the worst. I pray for this story to be an homage to the women who have come through these horrible experiences.

To my family, for always supporting me and standing with me through this quest to write tough, gritty, sometimes dark topics. You guys have always been my biggest fans and my cheerleaders.

To my husband, Stephen, for always encouraging and motivating me. You’ve cheered with me in my victories and grieved with me in my losses. Your support and love means the world to me.

Finally, to my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. I write stories about and for those who need You in their lives. Thank You for allowing me the honor to serve You.