Anybody's Daughter (Angela Evans Series No. 2) (28 page)

D
re stepped out of the motel room and was almost nose-to-nose with Darnell. The dude looked like a Skid Row bum. His skin was a pimpled mess and his teeth were way past rotten.

“Hope you had a good time, my brother,” Darnell said, grinning. “We got a large selection of youngsters, if that’s your thing. And we give repeat clients ten percent off.”

Dre did everything in his power to restrain himself from pushing the skinny man’s head through the window. He walked past him without responding.

Just as he reached his car, Mossy appeared from nowhere and climbed into the passenger seat.

“You find out anything?” Mossy asked, once they were inside.

“The girl recognized Brianna. She’s definitely at one of The Shepherd’s houses. But she doesn’t know the address. They cover the girls’ heads every time they leave so they don’t know where they’re going.”

Mossy smiled. “Well, don’t sweat it, my brother. I—”

Dre cut him off. “We’re going to stay here until she’s done. When that dude up there takes her back home, we’re following them back to the house.”

Mossy smiled wider this time. “Great minds think alike. See that white 4Runner over there.” He pointed at an SUV parked right outside the room Dre had entered.

“That’s the ride of the dude who knocked on the door when you were in the room with that girl. I’m assuming he’s the one transporting her. We’ll have no trouble following him because I stuck a GPS tracker underneath his truck. He’s going to lead us straight to Brianna. All we have to do is wait.”

Dre smiled and extended his fist to Mossy, who bumped it against his own.

“I just hope we can wrap this up before nine. Because if she’s not there, we have to make it back over to the Westfield Mall.”

“I told you, man, we’re going to get her back,” Mossy said.

For some reason, this time, Dre believed him.

* * *

It was another forty minutes before they saw Darnell and Kaylee leave the motel room. Darnell also hustled two other girls from upper rooms into his SUV. They could actually see Darnell give the girls hoods to put over their heads. He must have instructed them to lay down because they could not see them through the window.

Despite Mossy’s objections, Dre had called Apache, who was now sitting in the backseat.

“Man, once we got little shorty back, The Shepherd gonna have to deal with me,” Apache announced.

Mossy gave Dre a look. He knew the risks posed by having Apache join them. But neither Mossy nor Dre was strapped. If things got ugly they needed someone who had fire power and wasn’t afraid to use it.

Thanks to the GPS device, they did not have to follow Darnell very closely. The 4Runner drove down Ventura Boulevard for several miles. The traffic most of the way was stop and go.

“Hey, man,” Mossy said, “I forgot to tell you I took pictures of the dudes going into the other girls’ rooms. I assumed they were johns, but you never know.”

Mossy pulled out his smartphone and held it up so Dre could see it. “You recognize that guy?”

“No.”

Mossy scrolled to the next picture. “What about this cat? He didn’t go into any of the rooms, but I saw him talking to the guy transporting the girls.”

The picture was taken from several yards away and showed a side view of the man.

Dre stared at the screen for way too long. “I think I do know him.”

Mossy seemed surprised. “You do?”

“Yeah, but I can’t place him.”

Dre’s eyes went to the road, then back to the picture.

“Wait a minute.” Dre pounded the steering wheel with the heel of his fist.

He took the smartphone from Mossy and examined the photograph more closely. “That muthafucka!” Dre seethed. “That sick muthafucka!”

“Who is he?” Apache asked. “We can get his ass too.”

It had never made sense to Dre that The Shepherd had targeted Brianna. She didn’t fit the profile of the girls he went after. She wasn’t a runaway or a foster kid. She was a good student from a good home. But now Dre understood exactly how Brianna had gotten caught up in this nightmare.

“Somebody with access to children is steering girls to The Shepherd,” he said. “And that’s the pervert who’s doing it. As soon as we get Brianna back, that’s going to be my next stop.”

“W
ake up,” Freda grabbed Brianna’s upper arm and pulled her to her feet. She managed to stand unsteadily, then slithered down the wall.

“I told you to wake up!” Freda screamed. “You’re going on a date.”

Brianna was sluggish from whatever drugs they had pumped into her system.

“I don’t wanna go on a date. I wanna go home.”

“You
are
going home,” Freda said. “Right after your date. Your uncle’s been causing us too many problems. We’re sending you back.”

Freda’s words seemed to energize Brianna.

“I’m going home?”

“Yep, right after your date.”

Brianna didn’t trust Freda, but maybe she was telling the truth this time. She had been praying to God harder than she had ever prayed in her life.

“Here,” Freda handed her a black leather skirt and a pink halter top. “Put this on.”

When she didn’t take the clothes, Freda backhanded her.

Brianna slumped back to the bed.

“I’m tired of messin’ around with you. Just do what I tell you to do so you can get the hell out of here.”

Brianna took the clothes and wiggled into the skirt, which fit so tight it cut off the circulation in her legs. The top hung loosely from her body like extra skin on a piece of raw chicken.

Freda opened the door and yelled out into the hallway. “Tameka! Get in here.”

Tameka appeared in the doorway. Brianna was glad to see her. She was the only girl in the house who was nice.

“Put some makeup on this girl,” Freda ordered, as she headed out of the room. “She needs to be ready when Large gets here in ten minutes.”

Tameka disappeared then returned carrying a small duffel bag. She set it on the floor and opened it up. It was filled with makeup, foundation, lipstick, eye shadow and blush in all colors. Brianna hadn’t seen this much makeup in a department store.

“You doing okay, girl?” she gently asked.

“No! I wanna go home!”

“I know, I know. You gonna be okay. Just do what they tell you to do. You can’t be biting clients,” she said with a laugh. “I wish I coulda been there to see that john hopping around the room holding his dick. We was all crackin’ up when we heard about that.”

“Please help me escape,” she begged.

“C’mon, girl. It ain’t that bad. Stop actin’ like a baby.”

“Yes, it is,” Brianna sobbed. “I can’t do this.”

“Please stop all that crying, girl.” Tameka gave her a hug. “I can’t make you pretty if you crying.”

Tameka dug a compact out of the suitcase and began patting foundation on Brianna’s face.

“Ow!” Brianna winced when Tameka pressed a sore spot on her cheek.

“It’s a shame what Clint did to your face. But I heard that your uncle got him back good.”

“What?”

“Your Uncle Dre got Clint beat up bad. He’s in the hospital.”

“Is my Uncle Dre comin’ to get me?”

Tameka glanced toward the door.

“I think so. Freda told me to make you pretty cuz they gonna let you go. I guess they don’t want your family to see you lookin’ all beaten up.”

Brianna wanted to smile, but it hurt too much. “I’m really going home?”

Tameka nodded, excited for the girl. “Yep, that’s exactly what I hear.”

D
arnell’s truck pulled into the driveway of a two-story house off Sherman Way. Electronic gates opened and closed behind him.

Mossy drove past the house and circled the block, then parked several houses away.

Apache whistled. “This dude must be making some big cash to be livin’ large like this.”

Dre looked at his watch. He was supposed to meet The Shepherd to exchange Brianna for the cash in less than two hours. If they busted into the house and Brianna wasn’t there, Shep might follow through on his threat to ship her out of state. Dre was now questioning whether this was the right move.

Dre had been a risk taker for all of his life. Now was not the time to start playing it safe. The odds were good that Brianna was inside that house. Kaylee had seen her there that very morning. For all Dre knew, The Shepherd planned to stiff him when it came to the exchange. He had to act now.

He turned to Mossy. “I want you to stay in the car, engine running.”

Mossy looked at Dre as if he had lost his mind. “You going in there with
him
rather than
me
?”

Apache glowed with pride. “My cuz know when he needs the real deal. This ain’t no joke.”

“It might get ugly in there,” Dre said. “There’s no reason for you to go down if it does. It’s a different situation for us. Brianna is family.”

“The only way something’s gonna go wrong,” Mossy said, “is if Rambo back there pulls out his gun and starts cappin’ people.”

“I’ma do whatever needs to be done,” Apache declared.

“Let’s stop talking negative,” Dre said. “I’m planning on running out of that house with Brianna in my arms. I need you to be ready to roll when we come out.”

All three men climbed out of the car. While Dre and Apache crept toward the house, Mossy walked around to the driver’s side and slid behind the wheel. He watched as Dre and Apache jumped the fence.

They landed on the lawn and charged straight toward the front door, kicking it in.

Darnell shot into the entryway from an adjacent room. Before he could reach for his gun, Apache’s Glock was aimed squarely at his forehead.

“Don’t move muthafucka!” Apache said.

Dre snatched Clint’s gun from his waistband and punched him in the Adam’s apple. As he fell to his knees, grabbing his throat, Dre gripped him in a chokehold and pressed the gun to his temple.

“Where’s Brianna?”

“What? I don’t know no Brianna.”

Apache stepped past him, holding his gun with two hands. “Hand over Brianna and we’ll be out of here,” Apache called out as he headed down the hallway.

Pushing Darnell ahead of him, Dre followed after Apache.

They entered a large den. A woman and five young girls were huddled in a corner of the room. Dre recognized Kaylee, whose eyes were so wide he thought they might pop out of her head.

Still holding the gun to Darnell’s head, Dre stepped toward them. “Where’s Brianna?”

“We don’t know nobody named Brianna,” the woman answered. There was anger, not fear, in her voice.

Apache aimed the gun to the right of where the girls were standing. He fired two shots into the wall, setting off a chorus of screams.

“She ain’t here no more!” one of the girls cried out.

“Check the rest of the house,” Dre said to Apache.

Apache stormed through the house, charging in and out of rooms. He hit the stairs and tore through the second level like a crazed commando. “She ain’t here,” he yelled down to Dre.

Apache reentered the den and raised his gun high in the air. “Somebody better tell me where my little cousin is cuz I really do feel like shootin’ somebody right now.”

“They took her to see Demonic,” one of the girls blurted out.

Loretha’s story about Demonic instantly came back to him. Dre tightened his grip around Darnell’s neck.

“Where is she?” he yelled into Darnell’s ear. “Tell me or I swear I’ll choke you to death, then shoot you with your own gun.”

“I don’t wanna die,” a chubby girl wailed. “They took her to the motel.”

“Which motel,” Dre said to Darnell.

“I ain’t tellin’ you nothin’!”

“Can I shoot him?” Apache pleaded, bouncing on his tiptoes. “Please let me shoot him.”

Dre’s eyes met Apache’s. He released Darnell, then pushed him a few feet away. Dre nodded and Apache fired a single bullet into Darnell’s right foot.

Darnell hollered and rolled to the floor.

“You shot me!” Darnell yelled, staring in disbelief at his bleeding foot. “I can’t believe you shot me!”

All of the girls were wailing now. Even the hard-looking woman.

Dre looked around the room and spotted both rope and tape. It was probably what they used to restrain the girls they abducted. He started unraveling the rope.

Apache stepped toward the cringing girls, brandishing his gun.

“After he’s done tying y’all up,” Apache said, “I’m shooting you one by one until somebody talks.”

The woman finally cracked. “Please don’t shoot us! Brianna’s at the Wyndgate on Ventura.”

“You’re comin’ with us,” Dre said, pulling the woman away from the group.

While Apache lorded over them with his Glock, Dre took each of the girls and linked them together with their hands tied behind their backs. He did the same to Darnell, who was sobbing and close to passing out.

“I want everybody’s cell phone,” Dre yelled, as he scanned the area for a house phone.

He wanted to prevent them from alerting someone at the Wyndgate before they could get there. This time, he was going to find Brianna.

Dre was sure of it.

B
rianna crouched in the backseat of an SUV, her spirits lifted sky-high because she was on her way home.

What Tameka had said made sense. They wanted her to look presentable when they sent her back. That’s why Tameka had put all that makeup on her face. Brianna wished she could wash it off, but she didn’t want to scare anybody with all the bruises on her face. She couldn’t wait to see her mother and grandmother. She knew her Uncle Dre was going to rescue her!

When the SUV finally stopped, Brianna lifted her hood and peered out of the window. Freda had given her a shot, which made her feel nice and relaxed. But it also made everything blurry. She was hoping to spot her Uncle Dre’s car. But all she saw was the bright light from the motel sign.
The Wyndgate.

Maybe Uncle Dre would be in the room waiting for her. She was so happy!

“C’mon, get out,” a man said, opening the back door.

When she glared up at the big man, her happiness vanished. He looked like a giant monster. She remembered Freda dragging her out to the car, but she’d never seen this man before.

The man reached down to grab Brianna’s arm, but she shrank away to the opposite side of the car.

“Where’s my Uncle Dre here?” she demanded.

He ignored her question and easily pulled her from the car with one hand. He practically dragged Brianna behind him. As they started up the stairs, one of her high-heeled shoes flipped off and landed on the ground below.

“Can’t you even walk straight?”

The man headed back down the stairs to retrieve her shoe, gripping Brianna’s arm even tighter.

She tried to pull away. “You’re hurting me!”

“Little girl, you don’t even know what hurting is. This ain’t nothin’ compared with what you gonna get tonight.”

“My Uncle Dre’s comin’ to get me!”

“Yeah, okay.”

They continued up the stairs, then down the walkway. The man stopped, pulled out a key and opened the door. He flicked on a light and shoved Brianna inside.

“You wait right here. Have a good time.” He closed the door and locked it from the outside.

Brianna looked around the room. It reminded her of the same sad room where the man had tried to rape her. She sat down on the bed, overcome with emotion. She couldn’t wait to see her Uncle Dre. She was so sleepy, but she had to stay awake.

A few minutes later, Brianna heard the rattle of the door being unlocked. She stood up and covered her mouth with both hands. She was ready to run straight into her uncle’s arms.

When the door finally opened, the man standing in the doorway was not her Uncle Dre. She squinted at the hazy image. This man was fat and old. Older than her granddaddy who died before she was born. He was wearing a suit like a businessman and his short afro looked as if it had been freshly cut. He smiled at her in a way that made her feel dirty. A red duffle bag was tucked underneath his arm.

“Hi, Brianna.” His voice was gruff.

“Where’s my Uncle Dre?”

“I’m your uncle tonight,” the man said with a creepy smile. “Come here and give me a hug.”

He tossed the bag onto the bed and pulled out a short stick that looked as if it had been cut from a broom handle. Brianna backed away.

“Please,” she began to cry. “Please leave me alone. I’m just a kid.”

The man licked his lips. “I like kids.”

He unbuckled his belt and stepped out of his pants. He was wearing red silk boxers.

Brianna continued to back away. “Please don’t hurt me.”

“We’re gonna have some fun tonight,” he said, waving the stick at her. “Take off that top so I can see what you got.”

“Leave me alone!”

The man charged forward and snatched Brianna’s halter top, ripping it from her body.

She folded her arms across her chest, shielding her breasts.

Still holding the stick, the man dug into the duffle bag again and removed a small boom box. He pressed a button and blues music blasted from the speakers. He turned it up as high as it would go.

“I don’t want nobody to hear you screaming,” the man said.

“Turn around,” he ordered

Brianna didn’t move. She couldn’t move. All she could do was cry.

The man gripped the stick like a weapon, leaned forward and tried to ram it between her legs. Brianna darted away just in time, scampering across the bed to the other side of the room.

“Help me!” Brianna tried to yell over the music. “Somebody help me!”