“Where did you grow up?” I asked as I wrapped my arms around her.
“Oh, we are talking personal now?” She laughed.
I could tell the question instantly made her nervous, and I regretted asking it while we were in such an exposed environment. But I did want to know more about her. I knew almost nothing about her, while she knew a lot about me.
“You mean where was I before I became a stripper?” she said with a touch of sarcasm in her voice.
“No, I just wondered if you grew up around here or if you came to Miami?”
“I came to Miami when I turned eighteen. Stephano gave me a job in his club right away and a place to stay. Back then, he had an apartment where we girls could stay. He didn’t even make us pay him rent. I thought I had found the best new life in the world.”
“Something changed?”
“Sure, I didn’t understand just how hard a life dancing was. I was exhausted all the time. I lived with five other women and there were constant fights. I felt like Stephano was watching all the time. It was hard to set boundaries back then. But last year, I moved to my own place. I felt a little better, but still had the watchful eye of him all the time. It made me think about my future, though, and I started planning to leave.”
I heard the sadness in Roxanne’s voice and I wanted to change the subject, but I also really liked hearing about her life. We all have pasts. There was no reason for her to be ashamed by hers. I had killed dozens of people while in the military and not all of them were bad guys. There were things I was ashamed about in my past. We all had those things.
“I’m glad our paths crossed,” I said as I kissed her on the back of the neck and climbed out of the tub.
I felt her eyes on my ass as I stood and dried off. Then, I turned around and wrapped the towel around me as I looked at her beautiful body in the water. She was such a gorgeous woman, both inside and out. It was sad that her life had led her to Stephano. I was positive she had the brains to do absolutely anything she wanted to.
“So, what did you decide for the plan?” Roxanne asked as she climbed out of the tub.
To be a gentleman, I turned around and handed her a towel. I wasn’t exactly sure what had come over me. I had already kissed almost every inch of her body. But I had a deep feeling that Roxanne was used to being taken advantage of and I didn’t want to be just another guy who did those same things to her. She deserved more than that.
“I’m going to try and set up a meeting with a friend who knows this industry. Maybe I can get an inside track to be a buyer.”
Roxanne didn’t seem pleased by my idea, but she didn’t object, either. I could tell there was something else on her mind. I knew it wasn’t the best plan, but it was the only one we had at that point and we needed to move forward. Ana was going to be sold soon and if we didn’t get her before then, we would never find her.
Once the girls were sold overseas, they were often kept in their man’s home. It would be impossible to find out who had purchased her or even which country she went to. No. We needed to move forward with any plan we had.
“I’m going to get dressed and then we can eat and discuss it more. How does that sound?” she asked.
“Perfect.”
While Roxanne went to the bathroom to get dressed, I called my friend PJ Robb. The CIA had a unit that specialized in human trafficking and Ana was the perfect case of what was going on throughout the world. I knew that PJ would be able to give me a heads up on what to do and say if I was going to convince Stephano to let me buy Ana.
“PJ, it’s Jackson Foster. How the hell are you?”
“Jackson, what do you need?”
“Do I have to need something to call you?” I joked.
“Yes.”
“I’m in Miami looking for a trafficked girl. She’s twenty-two years old, blonde, thin, model frame. I think Stephano Copal has her.”
“Then you’re probably not getting her back. He sells to high rollers in the Middle East. She’s probably not even in Miami anymore.”
“I think she is, and I want to buy her first. Any chance I could make that deal happen?”
“No. If she is still in Miami, it’s not likely you can do it. I’m in Orlando, where are you at? I’ll come down and we can discuss this some more. I sure would love to get Stephano Copal under my belt.”
“Sure thing! I’d love to have you join forces with us. I need all the help I can get. We could meet you anywhere you’d like. Just call me when you get to town.”
“We?”
“Yes, I have a local Stephano insider who I’m working with.”