Thumper (Cerberus MC)

It’s no wonder she chose a profession that puts her in danger. The woman has faced scarier men in her own home than the ones she comes into contact with on the job. She’s fearless, stupidly so, but it makes for a great agent, one willing to take chances to get the job done.

It did grate on my nerves to think that Lauren wouldn’t trust me alone with Cara long enough to escort her to the restroom, but those are her trust issues.

I spent two hours after she left that room yesterday wondering if she wouldn’t accept my apology for what I did to her because she doesn’t believe that I regret it. I still don’t have the answer. It’s very possible that Lauren expects all men to behave the way I did, and that makes me sick to my stomach.

I shake my head, clearing it of Lauren and watch as Cara folds the tops of the beef jerky and nuts down before stuffing them under the corner of her mattress. Smart girl.

I look down at the paperwork she completed before her exam yesterday, and I have no doubts that she lied on nearly every single question. The only thing I don’t think she lied about is her first name. She responded too genuinely when I spoke it to her. She acted as if just saying it out loud was a betrayal she wanted to slit my throat for. That fire in her eyes was gone a second later, but just the flash of it let me know just how strong she is.

I’ll get my answers. The truth is important to make this whole thing go as planned, but I hate the pain so many women have to go through in order for us to shut down this trade route.

Gonzalo Sevilla is a heavy hitter in these parts and rumor has it the man is so powerful that even the cartels don’t fuck with him. Thousands of abductions have been linked to him and the men that work for him, and I heard his name more than once in the months I was working with Cerberus.

With Cerberus.

Ha. Unlikely. More like betrayal.

I don’t understand why I can’t move past it. Maybe because they’re great guys, and I’ve never worked undercover infiltrating an organization where they didn’t turn out to be criminal deviants, even those operating under the auspices of religion or not-for-profit. There was always some wrongdoing to find. I dug deep into Cerberus and found absolutely nothing. They aren’t bad guys, and I was so adamant about that, my boss threatened to have me fired and accused me of lying for them.

They’re the only group of guys—including members of the FBI I’ve worked with in the past–that I feel could lay their heads down with entirely free consciences at night.

And I fucked up. I let them get to me. I let myself start believing in my ability to change the world, yet here I am in the office of a sex trafficking house watching a captured woman hoard nuts and jerky away like a squirrel getting ready for winter because she doesn’t know when she’s going to eat again.

They’re going to be set free, but at what cost. It’s not like I can just hand them an envelope with cash and send them on their merry way and they’ll be grateful. They’re locked in cages for fuck’s sake.

My mind is wandering when knuckles hit my office door. I know it’s Angel having brought one of the girls to me because if he were alone, he’d just barge right in like he owns the place.

“This is Lisa,” Angel says as he escorts the sniffling girl into the office.

She’s terrified, that much is clear in her pretty blue eyes. Her blonde hair is a matted mess, but giving these women more luxuries, like conditioner and a brush will only draw more suspicion on me. I’ve already been questioned why they have cots with mattresses and blankets. One of the other assholes that Angel brought with him asked me why we waste money on heating the basement. According to him, their pussies still stay nice and hot despite the temperature around them.

I nod at Angel, the only hint he needs to get the fuck out of my face, but he pauses for a minute, his eyes warning me that I better not hurt her before her buyer arrives.

I sneer back at him, but wonder, not for the first time, if he’s closer to my side of justice than I originally thought when I hired him. He looks back at the girl, his jaw clenching like he has more to say, but he doesn’t open his mouth before leaving the room.

“Would you believe me if I told you that everything is going to be just fine?”