“If anyone can make her see the reality of her situation and get out of there before the FBI raids the place, it’s you.”
Killian made a scoffing noise. “So, I’m damage control?”
“There are rumors of cartel connections. Ilyana doesn’t want her girls getting killed, or trafficked. You’re the only chance two young women have of getting out of a horrible situation before it all goes to hell. ”
And that was really all she needed to hear. Raven knew it as much as she did. “You’ve got people ready to help them when they come home?”
“Ilyana has already secured help from one of the top deprogrammers in the country. All you have to do is destroy what they have on the girls and bring Dylan and Lyria home.”
“How much time do I have?”
“I don’t know. Maybe a couple of weeks.”
“Jesus Christ. I have to get in and out of a paranoid cult in fourteen fucking days?” She tossed the folder on the table. “How am I supposed to do that?”
“They’re having a retreat this weekend.” Raven dropped another file on top of the first. “You’re already registered. An ex-con looking to change her life and make something of herself. They’ll love you. You’ve got two and a half days to convince them you’re Incarnyx material.”
Killian’s jaw tightened. “Already registered? That’s pretty fuckin’ brazen, even for you.”
“I went on the assumption that you’d actually be game to save two girls who have been exploited and abused.”
“Don’t start singing that fucking song again.” That was Killian’s weakness and she knew it.
“Please, Kill.” Warm, strong fingers seized hers as Raven leaned across the table. “I was always there when you needed me, and now I need you. Please.”
“Shit,” Killian muttered. She never turned her back on a debt. Never. “Fine. I’ll do it.”
Raven’s relief was palpable. “Thank you.” She squeezed Killian’s hand again before letting go. “Thank you so much.”
“Yeah, yeah.” Killian curled those same fingers into a fist. “You’re welcome, but I want payment up front.” She wasn’t surprised when Raven handed her a fat envelope. Shannon’s eyebrows rose, but she stayed silent.
Raven rose to her feet. “I’ve taken enough of your morning. I’ll be in touch before the weekend—make sure everything’s a go.”
Killian walked her to the door. “I don’t want to come home and find you here again. You want to talk to me, you call.”
There was a flicker of something in her gaze—hurt, maybe. Or maybe she was constipated. Whatever, Killian didn’t care. “Right. I’ll call you, then.”
Killian locked the door behind her when she was gone and headed back to the kitchen and her breakfast, which was no doubt cold at this point.
Shannon leaned back in her chair and smirked at her as she sat down. “So, you and her, huh?”
Killian piled her bacon and remaining egg between two pieces of toast and made a sandwich. “Go get your shit together. I’m taking you home.”
TWO
Son of a bitch.”
Dash Clark, Killian’s boyfriend, looked up from his phone at her outburst. His green eyes narrowed. “What’s up?”
Killian slouched back in her chair. “This registration form Raven filled out for Incarnyx. She made me sound like a douche. ‘My years incarcerated have left me feeling awkward in social situations. I’m afraid people will judge me personally and professionally based on my past.’” She grimaced.
“I think she just wrote what she thought would appeal to them.”
“I never would have written that, regardless. I don’t feel fucking awkward in social situations.”
“I took you to a party last weekend and you fidgeted and scratched all the way through it.”
“I’m not used to wearing a dress.”
“It was a romper.”
“Same thing.”
“No, it’s not. I know this because you told me it wasn’t the same thing when you bought it. You said that you could still kick someone in the head without flashing them in a romper.”
Killian’s gaze narrowed. “Whose side are you on, Clark?”
He smiled slightly. “Is this really about the form?”
She tensed. It was a good thing he was so pretty; otherwise she’d bust his condescending mouth. “What else would it be about?”
Dash met her gaze directly and held it. “You two were together for a while. Are you jealous that she’s with this actress?”
Jealous? “For real?” Didn’t he know that gay for the stay was a legit thing?
He merely arched a brow, which made her want to throw her cup at him. Then make him swallow the pieces.
“Prison’s its own world,” she reminded him. “You do things inside that you don’t do on the out.”
“That doesn’t make it less real.”
“You don’t know fuck all about it,” she retorted. He’d never been arrested as an adult. “Maybe you’re the one that’s jealous.”
“I know what it means when you get defensive.” His tone stayed low and even, as he subtly reminded her that he’d known her since she was a kid. “And this isn’t about me, it’s about you, but for the record, I’m not above a little insecurity, either.”
He made it impossible for her to maintain anger sometimes. It used to be so easy for her to get ahold of some rage and hang on to it. Sighing, Killian leaned back in her chair. “I’m not jealous. I just feel stupid. She played me and I never saw it.”
His green-gold eyes glittered. “So, it’s about ego.”
She could argue… “Yeah. Okay.”
“Look, maybe it did start off as just a job, but it couldn’t have all been a lie; otherwise you would have seen through it. And how she came into your life doesn’t change the fact that she had your back. She could have gone to anyone in the network for help and they would have said yes because of her connection to Maxine, but she came to you because she trusts you.”
“You can shut up now.” She tossed the registration form on the table.
Dash smiled. “Sure. Still think she made you sound like a douche?”
“Yes,” she replied hotly. “I know it’s to make me sound susceptible to what they’re selling, but it creeps me out. I never got sucked into religion or gangs on the inside. Not that any of them wanted me.”
He was still smiling. “You were too badass.”
Okay, that made her laugh. “Too much of a pain in the ass.” And a little too notorious. The bounty Rank put on her head made her a target, and no one who’s trying to keep their head down wants to associate with a target—unless they’re crazy. Killian did have a couple of allies on the inside, but not many. Raven had been one of them, though she’d done it for a paycheck. Nothing Dash could say would erase that fact.
“Okay, so what’s the plan?” he asked, setting his phone on the coffee table. For almost ten years Killian hadn’t owned a cell phone. She’d gotten one immediately after getting out of prison because Megan insisted she needed one. The dependence society had on the device made her shake her head. Even Dash, who was by no means a social-media butterfly, spent a lot of time staring at his phone screen, as he conducted a lot of his business through it.