Page 25 of Keeping Lilith
Irish nodded. “And personally?”
“Whatever she wants to give me. She’s in control. Not me.”
“I’m not going to apologize for what I’m about to say, but I saw the way she looked at you when we found her. It wasn’t fear. It was disgust, disappointment, but also something else. I want to say yearning, but I can’t be sure. What the hell happened between you two?”
Irish was the master of observation, seeing things in pictures that other people missed. Picking up on cues in videosurveillance that helped in more ways than one. It was no surprise he’d noticed those reactions from Lilith. Explaining the interaction between him and Lilith, not to mention the way he’d treated her afterward, would not be received well by Irish. Of that Julian was sure, but he would keep nothing from the person who’d opened his house to a complete stranger.
“I was an ass, but at the time, I did what I had to, even though it didn’t sit right with me.”
How pathetic do I sound right now?
It didn’t matter if it was the truth. Hearing it out loud didn’t justify what he did or how he acted.
“I wish I could make things different. Do it differently,” Julian continued. “Hindsight, huh? Always so much more helpful.”
“Living with a ‘what if’ mentality is never a good thing in our line of work. But, yeah. I get it. There’s plenty I wish I had done differently. The thing is, whether it was what went down with Lilith or something else, you changed and ended the sick shit that was happening.”
“Doesn’t make it any better.”
“No, but you’ve been given a second chance. Up to you what you do with it.” Irish clapped him on the shoulder and walked out, leaving Julian to wonder—did he really deserve this second chance with Lilith?
Chapter Thirteen
“Is this right?”Lilith turned the computer toward Cass. Her friend had asked her to input some data into a program she’d created, and once it was done, it would create points on a map when Lilith entered the key combination Cass had written down.
“Yep. See? Didn’t I say you’d be helpful?”
Lilith smiled, a sense of pride filling her over a simple task of entering numbers in. Anyone could do it, but she’d done it. “Thanks. What does this show you?”
It meant little to Lilith, but it must have made sense to Cass.
“It tells me the hot spots around LA where women, teenagers, and men have gone missing. I’m hoping to discover a pattern for a case the guys are working on with Julian.”
Lilith turned back to the screen, the red dots seeming more sinister than they had a few seconds ago. “That’s a lot of places and people.”
“Yeah, human trafficking is a beast. No matter how much control you think you have, it’s actually nothing.”
“Or they’ve been sucked into a cult,” Lilith mused quietly, noting the red dots around one of the restaurants she’d worked at. It had been at her job where she’d seen the flyer about the “new job,” which was just another way to suck desperate peoplein. She’d been at the compound for about a week when she’d recognized one of the men as someone who’d frequented the restaurant. She’d even served him a couple of times. Of course, she hadn’t been able to go up to him to yell at him because, well, she’d wanted to live, and was smart enough to recognize it wouldn’t end well for her.
“Why do you say that?”
Lilith quickly relayed what had happened to her, Cass’s eyes filling with sympathy. As much as Lilith hated seeing it, it would be a while before no one looked at her with the emotion showing in their eyes.
“This is good information,” Cass said when she’d finished. “It gives us something to look for or make the people working on the various taskforces aware of. Not only could it be a way to lure people into places like The Hopeful Sunshine, but also tempt people into thinking life would be better if they went to a certain place, which is a meeting point for the traffickers. Thanks, Lilith.”
Warmth flowed through Lilith at the compliment. “Glad I could help.”
A soft tap at the door had her turning, and her heart did a little kick of excitement to see Julian standing there, a small smile on his face. “Hey,” he said. “Can I steal Lilith and take her to lunch?”
The excitement went from a flicker to a full-on blast of happiness. Something she never thought she’d feel around this man, but the person standing in front of her differed from the one she’d known. “I’d like that,” she answered without thinking.
“Great. There’s a park down the road from the building. We can grab some food and then sit there, if you’d like.”
The very idea of sitting out in the fresh air, surrounded by greenery, appealed to Lilith. “Sounds perfect.” She glanced overat Cass, who wore a huge smile. “Is it okay for me to leave? You don’t need me to do anything else, do you?”
The automatic questions came from years of servitude and being unable to choose freely without consequences. “You don’t have to ask for permission. You don’t work here, although I think your life experience might be helpful, but that’s a conversation for later. Go. Enjoy.”
Cass turned back to her computer, clearly indicating that she’d said all she’d needed to say on the subject.