The girl smiled.
“It’s okay.” Annalee figured the child didn’t speak English. But she had to try. The girl clung to Annalee’s hand. As if her life depended on it.
The group hurried down the street with Niran in the lead. Even still Annalee wasn’t sure what would happen once they reached Niran’s van. Would the child really go with them? She was young and thin and scared, but she didn’t know them. Annalee and her family were clearly not from Thailand, and Niran was a complete stranger.
Still, the child didn’t hesitate.
Niran helped her into the van and forty minutes later they drove through a set of double gates to a sprawling compound. Part of that time, Niran talked on the phone, no doubt preparing his team for the arrival of the girl. Behind the chain link and razor wire was a large white brick building. The place wasn’t glamorous but clearly this was the safe house. More like a safe hotel. They parked and a woman met them as they got out of the van.
“That’s Som, his wife,” Annalee’s father explained to the others.
The woman took the girl and gave Annalee’s group a traditional greeting. Hands together and a slight bow. As she left with the child, Niran turned to them. “She looks forward to meeting you later.”
They walked toward the front door. Annalee still couldn’t believe it. “How… old is she?”
Niran gritted his teeth. “Eight years.”
Like someone had kicked her in the gut, Annalee reeled toward her mother. The child was barely more than a baby. How could this happen? She stole a look at Tommy.
His eyes flashed with rage. “Mr. Niran… can I ask you a question?”
“Of course.” Niran’s eyes were teary.
“Where were the police?” Tommy clenched his jaw. “If we could see those girls so easily, why couldn’t they? Someone in authority should be rescuing these kids.”
Annalee agreed, of course. They all did. Ending the problem of sex trafficking in Phuket seemed simple enough. Arrest the guys with the children, lock them up and throw away the key. That would stop traffickers from thinking they could steal boys and girls and sell them on Bangla Road.
Niran shook his head. “They are smart, these men.” He looked disgusted. “They say they are Grandpa or Uncle. The kids usually agree.”
“Why?” The question was out before Annalee could stop herself. “Don’t they want to be rescued?”
“It’s complicated.” Niran crossed his arms. “Traffickers confuse the brains of these children. They threaten to kill their parents or families. It’s very precise how they treat their victims, like a science. Captors know how to keep their slaves.”
“Of course, it’s not just here.” Annalee’s father looked at each of them. “The United States has the same thing. Even Indianapolis. It’s just harder to see.”
Niran nodded. “I’m afraid so.” He looked toward the front door of the safe house. “We cannot help every child. But today, we thank God for saving that little one.”
Yes, Annalee thought. She closed her eyes for a few seconds. Lord, restore this child of Yours. Give her new life here. And help Niran and his wife save more boys and girls.
And suddenly she had a glimpse of the future. She could see herself working with rescued girls, giving them a safe place to live and heal, saving them from their wretched existence. Right in her own city.
In the vision she didn’t see only herself working with broken children. She saw someone else. But his face wasn’t that of a stranger. It was the face of the only boy she had ever loved.
Tommy Baxter.
3
Basketball practice let out early that September afternoon, and Tommy was thankful. He had agreed to take Annalee to a doctor’s appointment, a checkup. Just to see why she was still tired. Everyone figured she had mononucleosis. Something she might have gotten when they were traveling, and the virus was still lingering.
Her parents were out of town so today it would be just the two of them.
Routine, he told himself. No big deal.
They were a month into their senior year at Northside and all of life lay stretched ahead of them. Today wasn’t going to change that. She’d get the official diagnosis for mono, follow the doctor’s orders and get better. After talking to God about Annalee, Tommy had a sense everything would be okay. Annalee wasn’t dealing with anything serious.
She couldn’t be.
He took another five three-point shots and swished them all. His routine to end every practice.
Across the court Coach Anders entered the gym from the locker room and walked toward him. “Got another call from a scout. University of Michigan.” Coach was a veteran. He’d worked at Northside for nearly two decades. “You telling your parents about these offers?”
Tommy smiled. “They know.” Not for a minute did he want to play college basketball. He’d made that decision a year ago. He wasn’t tall enough for the NBA and college hoops would take too much time. He didn’t need the scholarship. His grades would take care of that.
Coach had a basketball under his arm. “We’re talking full ride. Division I programs.”
“No thanks.” Tommy led the way to the locker room. “Someone else out there wants it more than me. You know that.”
“True.” Coach Anders shook his head. “I’ll never understand you, Baxter.”
That was okay. Lately, even Tommy’s parents struggled to understand him. “You could at least try a season of college ball,” his dad had said to him a few days ago. Tommy listened, patient. But his decision never wavered.
He bid goodbye to his coach. Then he showered, grabbed his backpack and walked across campus toward the library. Annalee would be waiting for him there.
He saw her before she saw him. Did she look thinner? More frail? She wore a white button-up sweater and her shoulders looked practically bony. Weight loss was a symptom of mono. She should’ve gone to the doctor before this. But what if…
No. Annalee was fine. Her weight loss was just a part of the virus. Or maybe she hadn’t lost weight. Maybe it was just the way she wore the sweater. Yes, that was it.
They walked to the parking lot and he helped her into his black Jeep. Before they reached the road, she turned to him. “Tommy… you aren’t afraid, right?”
“Me?” A strange panic welled up inside him, but he hid it. Don’t be worried, he told himself. He forced a laugh. “Of course not. This is just a checkup.” He reached for her hand. It felt colder than usual.
She nodded and settled into her seat. After a minute she checked the time on her phone. “We’re early. My appointment got moved back an hour.”
“Well then… I have an idea.” He turned at the next light and headed to Benson’s Bakery on Main Street. Oldest Indianapolis creamery around, and Annalee’s favorite.
A smile lifted her lips. “You’re not taking me for—”
“An iced vanilla latte?” He kept one hand on the wheel, his eyes on the road. “Yes, Annalee, I am. After what happened last time… I think it’s only right.”
She laughed and the sound was music in the air. That, combined with the wind in the trees and the bright blue sky, made Tommy relax. Everything was going to be fine. Annalee would receive her mono diagnosis, get better and move on with life.