I felt him fall to the bed beside me and say something, but his words sounded mumbled as he grabbed onto me, pulling me close to his body. I was in a pleasure coma and it was then I realized we’d just had sex without a blindfold again, something he said he never went without. I smiled to myself at the thought that I was different, that he’d changed his rules for me. It was like he used the blindfold as a security blanket and he’d finally discarded it, for me.
His arm tightened around me and I could feel his heart beating against my back, making me feel sated and content as exhaustion took over my body and everything turned to black.
Chapter 27
Mason – Seventeen years old
I was at the point of not knowing who I was anymore. When I looked in the mirror, I didn’t see the person I was the year before.
After the visit with Donicko, I was forever changed.
I knew I was being blackmailed. I’d said I’d never get involved, but they figured out a way to wrap me in a neat web of lies and deceit, and I’d agreed to all of his terms. There was nothing else I could do. Sophia’s life was on the line, and I would do anything to protect her. He said she’d eventually be let go, that she was just a pawn, and I made myself believe it was true. I knew it was a long shot, but I had to do something.
John had filled me in on what I’d have to do in order to keep Sophia safe. I had to help them get girls.
And not just any girls.
Donicko had a business to run and I was going to be his most prized possession. My job? Get the description of a girl they wanted and lure them to a specific location. What happened to them after was out of my hands.
At first, I’d laughed at the notion that it was what they were after. I didn’t understand what made them think I could pull it off. How would I lure them? How could I get away with doing something like that? And how could I, mentally, be okay with doing it?
But John had it all figured out for me. There were plenty of avenues I could venture into in New York. There were plenty of call girl services, prostitutes, and homeless women to choose from. John suggested scouting out joggers in the mornings. He made it seem so easy. And I was reminded almost daily that every girl I delivered promised another day for Sophia.
It was the hardest decision I’d ever had to make.
Ruin hundreds of lives in order to save one. I couldn’t justify it, but I knew that even if I weren’t helping Donicko, hundreds of lives would be ruined anyway. He would find someone else to do the dirty work. One way or another they’d get what they wanted, so I agreed.
It was easy at first. I went to the parts of town known for prostitution. Picking up women from there was easy.
It was the leaving them part that was the hardest.
I never let the thought cross my mind of what happened next until the job was already done. I knew where they went. I’d seen it on news channels like CNN or in movies about the places where women were tied to beds and drugged so men could have their way with them. I never once imagined it was real and right under my nose.
I was supplying those women. They were sex slaves in every sense of the word, and I was the grim reaper who delivered them to their final days. I was the darkness that swallowed their lives, and I did it all to save one.
One I’d grown to love.
She was my friend, my confidante. We grew closer every day. She’d told me once I was the reason she still had hope, and I’d stared into her eyes and told her I’d get her out. I’d do everything I possibly could. I was her anchor in that sick world, but she’d also become mine.
Being in that life did things to me. I became a person I didn’t like. I lost friends because I was too focused on trying not to hate myself. Going directly to Sophia’s room was the only reprieve I had.
Her Hell was my Hell.
I tried to find out several times how long it would continue to go on. How long I would have to do it until they’d finally let her go. I didn’t want her to leave, but being with me was no longer an option. She deserved better. I wasn’t worthy of her after everything I’d done, even though I’d done it all to save her.
I was never given an answer. I was told to do my job and that was it.
I knew deep down it was all just a ruse and it started to mess with my head. I started questioning myself. Was all of it worth it? Sophia would never get out, so I’d have to find a way. Donicko was too much of an asshole to let her go. I’d ignored the idea for so long, but I couldn’t any longer.
I stopped doing my job. I stopped being a puppet. I stopped pretending everything would be okay.
That was my mistake.
“Come in,” John answered after I’d knocked on his office door. I’d received a text earlier in the day telling me to go directly to his office when I got home from school.
I walked in and closed the door behind me. John was sitting at his desk and I was not too pleased to see Donicko was there yet again.
“You said you wanted to see me?” I walked to the chair in front of John’s desk and took a seat.
“He didn’t want to see you,” Donicko interjected. “I did.”
He walked away from the window and sat down in the chair beside mine.