“We really don’t know what Maria was doing, but the police think she was murdered. No one deserves that.”
“I heard she was working down on Stewart Street,” Clarice offered.
Devon snorted and looked at Shanna. “Told you. Girl was stupid.”
Ari looked at Clarice. “Where did you hear that?” The girl ducked her head and mumbled something Ari couldn’t hear. “Clarice, I need you to tell me what you know.”
“I saw her down there when I was with my boyfriend.” Ari wanted to ask what she and her boyfriend were doing down there but kept the judgments for another day.
“Well, it’s possible. No one knows for sure what happened. But Maria wasn’t a bad kid. Nor are any of you. I’m worried, though, that someone out there may be taking advantage.”
“Advantage of what?” Devon asked. She looked ready to bolt.
“You. Your body. Your minds.”
“No one has control over me,” she said, rolling her eyes. “I do what I want.”
Ari sighed. Getting through the tough exterior with these girls felt impossible. She noticed Shanna fidgeting in her seat and glancing around the room at the other girls.
“Shanna,” Ari prompted. “Do you have something you want to say?”
“Sometimes, when we go out, guys are creepy and weird. I don’t like it.”
“Sometimes, boys are inappropriate. Many don’t have the best role models or impulse controls. It’s one reason why girls need to be wary.”
“They touch you and things—like they own your body.”
Ari swallowed, fighting back anger for these young women. She nodded, affirming Shanna’s thoughts.
Margaret raised her hand. “I had something happen to me a couple months ago.”
“Do you want to share?” Ari asked.
She shrugged and said, “I was down on the corner hanging out with some friends. We were going to go to the playground and watch some of the boys play basketball. This guy came around. I didn’t know him but the other girls did.” She looked up at Ari from under her bangs. “He gave everyone some candy. One of the girls asked him for some weed. He laughed and said he didn’t have any with him but that if she went with him he could get her some.”
“Did she go?” Shanna asked.
“Not at first, but he drove back around later when we were at the park and I saw her get in his car.”
“Do you know her name?” Ari asked.
“Dani or Debbie or something. I never saw her again,” she said. “But it’s not like we were friends or anything.”
Margaret broke down the barrier and the other girls began sharing. They each had stories about dangerous situations and weird behavior from some of the boys and men in the community. Some of it was typical. Teenage boys were awkward and strange. Other men were scary and Ari had a renewed fear for the kids she worked with. Just before the hour was up, she took a shot in the dark. “Have any of you heard about girls being forced to prostitute themselves? Like being held against their will?”
Shanna shrugged nonchalantly, but Clarice said, “This one girl in lockup said she’d been held at a house for a month. The guy who owned the house made them do tricks for men. She only got out because she got arrested.”
“Do you know her name?” Ari wondered if it was Hope.
“Nah. I just heard her talking about it in the cafeteria. She got a visit from some dude, and they released her the next day.”
“Some dude? Who was that?”
“I figured he was her lawyer or social worker or something. I don’t know. I stay out of people’s business.” Clarice wrapped her small, thin arms around her waist defiantly.
Ari closed the group, thanking them for their candor. As they filed out the door, she knew where she needed to go next to help these girls.
***
“More,” she whispered. They kept their voices low. Coming to Davis’ office had been insane. Stupid. Completely unprofessional. She’d started it, like usual, coming in at the end of her work day under the pretense of needing to talk about work. Partially true, but she’d simply wanted to see him, share her idea with him. The idea of sex … in his office hadn’t been on her mind, but the GYC was empty and they were alone.
Things progressed between them rapidly, from a causal touch to a heated kiss. Before she knew it, they were skin to skin and her skirt was up to her waist. It was wrong. Incredibly wrong.
Ari felt sweat trickle down her back and around the curve of her hip. His or hers, she didn’t know. Bent over the arm of the leather couch she kept an eye on the door, convinced that at any moment it could open. The idea flamed fear and excitement in her belly, mingling with the arousal and desire already building. One damp palm slipped and she tightened her grip, bracing herself for Davis.