The Cartel 3: The Last Chapter (6 page)

There were about fifty other girls all around her who were just as eager as Breeze, but all of their fear originated from the quake. Breeze’s torture had included so much more. The rape, the kidnapping, the degradation from Ma’tee was a precursor to this natural disaster, and if she did not speak to her family soon, she was sure that her sanity would crack. Overwhelmed and anxious, she pushed through the crowd to get to Ms. Beth.

“Ms. Beth!” Breeze called out to get her attention amongst the many young women. As Ms. Beth tried to organize the crowd, Breeze followed behind her. “Ms. Beth, do you have a cell phone that I can use? I haven’t talked to my family in so long. I just want to let them know that I’m coming home. They don’t even know I’m alive.”

Ms. Beth was too busy to stop her stride, but Breeze followed behind her as she watched everyone begin to form a line.

“I’m sorry, Breeze. I don’t have a phone that is available for you right now. There’s no service on this side of the island. As soon as we reach the States, I will get you to a phone so that you can call your family,” Ms. Beth stated. She could see the disappointment in Breeze’s eyes, so she put one hand on her shoulder and added, “Don’t worry. Everything will be fine now. You will be back with them before you know it.”

Breeze nodded.

“Now, go ahead and get in line so that you can get your vaccination. We can’t have you bringing any diseases back to the U.S. with you,” Ms. Beth said reassuringly.

Breeze got into the line, and when it was her turn to receive the medicine, Ms. Beth tied a thick rubber band around her arm, causing a huge vein to emerge. Ms. Beth smiled at Breeze and said, “I promise all of your pain will go away, Breeze.”

“I hope so,” Breeze answered back through tear-filled eyes. Ms. Beth stuck the needle in Breeze’s arm and injected it slowly. As the drug entered her system, a warm, euphoric feeling traveled up her arm and spread throughout her entire body.

“You’ll be tired for a while, but this will keep you from getting sick. A disaster this big brings about a lot of infection,” Ms. Beth stated. “There will be a cot for you to rest on once you’re on board.”

Breeze nodded, but really did not pay attention to anything that Ms. Beth said. The euphoric feeling that took over her body made all of her worries, all of her pain, and all of the horrible memories of Ma’tee’s abuse go away instantly. Her eyelids felt so heavy that she could barely keep them from closing, and her mouth fell open slightly in satisfaction. Every spot on her body tingled, and her clitoris hardened as the drug surged through her veins. Breeze felt so good that she came to an orgasm where she stood, causing the place between her legs to become wet with her own juices. She obediently fell in line as she followed the rest of the girls onto the boat.

Breeze awoke to the prick of another needle being put into her arm. This time, it wasn’t by Ms. Beth, but one of the men she had seen when she boarded the boat back in Haiti. As she looked around, she noticed that the other girls were being injected as well. She wanted to ask what they were giving
her, but as quickly as the thought of protest popped into her mind, the drug took its effect and erased any objection that she had. A stupid grin spread across her face as her neck muscles weakened slightly, causing her head to dip onto her chest. Nothing had ever felt better, and she welcomed the sensations that traveled through her.

She had no idea that Ms. Beth and her team were forcing heroin into her system. All she knew was that the medicine made her feel good. It made everything feel like bliss, and numbed her emotions to the point where she forgot about all that had happened. She was almost drunk with ecstasy as her body began to warm. It did not feel as good as the first dose, and as the man stood to move to the next girl, Breeze grabbed his arm.

“Can you give me a little more? It doesn’t feel as good as the first time,” she whispered.

The man chuckled and shook his head. “It never does, sweetheart,” he replied before moving on to his next victim.

Ms. Beth was in the business of human trafficking, and went from impoverished island to impoverished island in the Caribbean to lure young women and children with the hopes of a better life. The children that she abducted were usually trafficked into modern day slavery, but the young women were like budding flowers and were picked for the sex trade.

When she stumbled across Breeze, she knew that she had hit the jackpot. Her American clients would go crazy over the young beauty, and she would make a big profit off of her because of her fair skin tone.

The heroin made it easier to take advantage of her victims. The drug kept them under control and dependent. Breeze had just been introduced to the world of addiction, and she would always chase the potency of the first high that she had been given. Her ignorance would only last for so long, and by
the time she realized that she was hooked, it would be too late for her to stop. Even though she was on her way back to the United States, she was now more far away from home than she had ever been. Now she was lost in a boy that was so strong that once he got a hold of you, he rarely ever let go.

After two days of traveling underneath the deck of the ship, Breeze was relieved when the boat finally docked. Breeze rushed up the stairs. The door leading to the main deck was always locked. The girls traveling below were not allowed on the main deck, and as they traveled, they had confined below, anxiously awaiting their arrival. For many of them, it was the start of a new life. For Breeze, it would be a return to her old one. Breeze beat the door with her fists as she anticipated the reunion she would have with her family.

The door opened, and Breeze rushed out only to be stopped by one of Ms. Beth’s workers.

“What are you doing? Let me go. I just want to see where we are,” Breeze shouted as she struggled against the man.

It wasn’t until she felt the hard sting of his hand that her instincts told her something was horribly wrong. Now that her high had worn off, she was able to process the situation in a new light. She did not know what was going on, but now that they were back in the U.S., she wanted off of that boat. “Where’s Ms. Beth? I need to speak to her!” she yelled persistently as she was pushed back beneath the deck. “She said I could make a call.”

At that moment, the metal door opened and Ms. Beth walked down with five men following behind her.

“Ms. Beth!” Breeze shouted as she pushed past the man apprehending her. “Where are we? I felt the boat dock. You said I could call my family,” she reminded desperately, but as Breeze
spoke, she noticed that the disposition of the friendly woman she had met in Haiti had changed. Her eyes were cold and revealed sinister intentions as she stared unflinchingly back at Breeze.

Her father always told her she could see the character of a person by looking in their eyes, and as Breeze studied Ms. Beth, she finally saw the devil that dwelled inside of her. Her brow furrowed in confusion.

“You said you would help me get home!” Breeze shouted as she watched Ms. Beth’s staff filter through the room and begin to blast heroin into the other girls’ arms.

Breeze backed away from Ms. Beth as she looked down at her own arms. Non-stop needles had been put into her veins for the past forty-eight hours, and foolishly, Breeze had allowed them to do it.

“What have you been giving me?” she screamed hysterically. “Why are you doing this?” Breeze demanded.

“Restrain her,” Ms. Beth said calmly to one of her workers.

“You bitch!” Breeze yelled as she charged Ms. Beth. She smacked fire from Ms. Beth before she was finally subdued, and she screamed like a mad woman as she watched the woman who she thought would be her savior approaching her with the needle.

“No! Please … I just want to go home. You have no idea what I’ve been through,” Breeze reasoned.

Ms. Beth ignored the pleas and jammed the needle painfully deep into Breeze’s vein.

“Aghh!” Breeze cried out as blood trickled from her arm. She could feel the tension leave her body as a tear of defeat slipped from her eyes.

“What are you doing to me? What have you been giving me?” Breeze whispered as the orgasmic high once again came over her.

Ms. Beth looked cruelly back at her and smirked before replying,
“Heroin. By the time I’m done with you, you will be nothing but a junkie whore.”

Breeze’s soul cried out silently as she felt herself going into a nod. The last thing she heard was Ms. Beth’s voice.

“Shoot her up twice. She’s going to be a handful. The faster we get her hooked the better. She’ll learn to go with the flow one way or another.”

“Everything is easier if you forget about your past.”

—Liberty

It was pitch black when Breeze finally came to, but she could hear the cries and groans of the other girls around her. The air was so thick that she could barely breathe, and her stomach rumbled violently as the urge to defecate overwhelmed her. She could smell the stench of bodily waste around her, and she gagged from the horrendous odor. She was sick partly from the stench and partly from her body craving its new best friend, heroin.

Breeze did not know how long she had been out, but she knew that Ms. Beth was transporting her somewhere. As she reached out her hands, she felt the steel walls. The bumpy road beneath her let her know that she was in the back of an industrial truck. The wails of the young women around her told her that she had been there for a while.

Her situation had just gone from bad to worse. She took deep breaths to stop herself from panicking, but it was no use. Breaking down was the only thing left for her to do.
I should have never trusted her,
Breeze thought as she withdrew into herself, curling up with her knees to her chest. She cried so hard that her chest hurt, and each time she gulped in air, she felt like she was suffocating. Unable to hold it in any longer, she threw up all over herself.

“It’s easier if you breathe out of your mouth,” she heard
a girl beside her say. “It won’t smell as bad if you take it in through your mouth. Bring your face low near the seams of the wall. There’s a little bit of fresh air down here. I have a small blanket you can breathe into.”

Breeze huddled down near the girl and took a small piece of the fabric into her hands as she breathed into it. The girl’s technique did not provide much relief, but it was better than nothing, and Breeze was grateful for it.

“Thanks,” Breeze whispered.

“You’re welcome. I’m Liberty,” the girl stated.

“Breeze,” she replied. No other words needed to spoken to establish a friendship. They took a liking to each other because they both realized that they were one and the same. Their fates were not their own, and their lives no longer theirs to live. As they clung to the blanket, they wrapped their arms around one another and prayed together. Neither of them knew what lay in store for them, but they were both terrified of the possibilities.

“How long have we been in this truck?” Breeze asked.

“I’ve seen the light come and go two times. Two full days have passed,” Liberty replied, referring to the tiny bit of sunshine that crept through the crevice in the wall.

“Where are they taking us?” Breeze asked frightfully.

“They are taking us to Murderville,” Liberty replied solemnly. “I am not new here. I’ve been there before, and it is worse than death.”

Breeze did not respond, but her thoughts ran wild. She had seen the name
MURDERVILLE
scribbled in graffiti on Ms. Beth’s boat, and now she hated herself for allowing the white woman to sell her a dream. She had been to a place that felt worse than death when she had been with Ma’tee, and now thanks to her naivety she was on her way right back to hell.

After seeing the sun rise and set one more day, Breeze felt
the truck finally stop moving. Hungry and soiled, she peeled herself off of the floor when the back door was lifted. She felt like cattle marching to slaughter as she was herded off of the truck. They were placed in a line side by side, and because she had no one else to turn to, Breeze grabbed Liberty’s hand tightly. They barely knew one another, but at that moment, a new friend was better than facing the unknown alone.

“Take off all your clothing,” a black man stated as he walked up and down the rows of girls. Breeze was reluctant, but everyone around her obediently began to disrobe.

“Undress,” Liberty whispered urgently.

“What?” Breeze exclaimed. “No.”

“Everything is easier if you forget about your past. Your place is here now. Just do as they say,” Liberty warned.

Feeling as if she could not sink any lower, Breeze pulled off her clothes. The life and times of being a Diamond heir, her father’s princess, were so far removed that it almost felt like she had never lived it. She could not believe that her life had come to this. Her father had kept her closely for most of her life. He had protected her and guarded her, but instead of helping her, his overprotection hindered her. It had made her vulnerable, and that vulnerability had led her to this place.

She was nothing like her brothers. She was weak. As she stood in the line, tears flowed freely down her dirty face, and she helplessly watched as the man grabbed a high-pressure hose and aimed it at her line. She closed her eyes as she was blasted with cold water like an animal. Through it all, she cried. Liberty held her hand while the little bit of Breeze Diamond that was left was washed away.

“Hold out your arms,” the man stated when he finally put the hose down. Breeze already knew what that meant, and although her mind told her to protest, her body urged her to give in. It had been three full days since Ms. Beth had injected
her with her last fix, and already her body was hooked. It craved the drug against Breeze’s will, and instead of fighting it, Breeze gave up. If she was going to have to live like this, she may as well be numb to the pain.

Breeze clung to Liberty as if her life depended on it. Day in and day out they kept each other sane, until one fateful afternoon, Ms. Beth came to the camp where they were being kept. Whenever she came around, an eerie aura swept over the girls. She was the one who had manipulated most of them into coming to Murderville in the first place, so everyone feared her. She was the perfect example of the blue-eyed, blonde-haired devil, and Breeze hated her.