“Hey, you still went,” I point out.
She nods her head, quiet for a moment. “There was a girl in my class, Sarah. She was beautiful. She always had a handbag that cost what I paid in rent every month, never wore the same outfit twice. She had it all. I assumed she came from money, because how else would someone my age have all that? One day in the middle of an exam I got a call from one of my jobs. They were yelling at me, asking why I wasn’t at work. I was not supposed to be. They did not put me on the schedule. I had a class that day, an exam, so I would have never agreed to that. Anyway, they flipped the fuck out and fired me for a no-call, no-show. I assume you know what that is, working at a bar?”
To be honest, I didn’t until a few years ago, but of course now I do. “Yeah.”
“Since it was an exam, the whole class overheard. I finished the test, but I could barely keep it together. That was the job where I made the most money between the two, and the other would barely cover my rent, let alone anything else.”
“Fuck, I’m sorry. I wish I’d known you. I could’ve helped you out.”
She smiles, reaching down and taking my hand. “That’s sweet. Unfortunately, I did not know you, and I didn’t know what I was going to do. Sarah caught me on my way out of class and asked if I wanted to go to lunch with her. Her treat, she said.”
It doesn’t feel like this could possibly be heading anywhere good.
“So we talked for a bit, then she started telling me how she couldn’t help overhearing that I lost my job. Told me she happened to know of an opening where she worked and she could guarantee I’d make a shit load of money if I could be open-minded about how I earned it.”
Yep, definitely heading somewhere bad.
She releases my hand. “I didn’t know how else to keep my life together. I didn’t know how else to take care of Laurel. So, I went to meet Sarah’s boss. They said I’d try out the first week, keep a quarter of what I made, and if I wanted to keep doing it, they’d bump me up to 40 percent earnings. Room for bonuses, if I brought in new clients. And the first week, working roughly 10 hours, I brought home $4,000. But I had to fuck eight men to get it.”
Aw, fuck. I kinda knew that was where it headed when she started describing Sarah—an obvious recruiter. Wasn’t sure if she dealt in drugs or sex, but considering Carly could easily model, that one made the most sense.
“So, before I turned 19, I started working as an escort. I’m 22 now. I don’t do it anymore, but I only stopped when I moved here.”
I’m not about to do that math.
“I wasn’t always so busy,” she says, with forced lightness. “It’s not like… I didn’t see eight men every week. But I made very good money doing it, so I made the decision to do it for as long as I could, or until I saved up enough to pay for Laurel to finish school, and for myself to finish school. As I got more experienced, I was able to be more selective with my clientele—”
“I get it,” I interrupt, nodding. “I know how… prostitution works.”
She goes quiet. I don’t know if I offended her by using the term ‘prostitution’ when she has been so carefully saying escort, but it is what it is, regardless of what you want to call it. It’s fucking strangers for money.
“Did you work for my family?”
“No. Not your family.”
“Who, then?” I know all the operations in Chicago, so it’s unlikely she made that kind of money and I didn’t know of them.
Carly inhales sharply, then blows out a loud breath. “Castellanos. The upper echelon, obviously not their… lower-income operations.”
I smile, but there’s pure madness in it. Nothing funny about this whatsoever. “So, you’re a high-class Mafia escort. Did Sal send you?”
Carly shakes her head. “No, I never met him. I tried to stay away from anything dangerous, but… well, the job itself was dangerous. Sometimes I had to do jobs I didn’t want to do. Be the payment for certain favors he needed. I never worked directly with Salvatore, but I did see a couple men for him. I set men up to be blackmailed twice. I did illegal shit if they asked me too. Saying no wasn’t an option.”
I nod my understanding.
“I’m out now,” she states. “Really out. I paid a high penalty to sever the ties, which I guess I should have known I would. Anyway, I don’t… I don’t answer to the Castellanos family anymore. But I thought I should tell you. I’ve been keeping that secret since I met you.”