“Please tell me this is what I think it is.” He took the small plastic rectangle from her hand.
Proof. That’s what he prayed she’d somehow managed to get. Something concrete that would bring the wrath of hell down on the sons of bitches responsible for ruining so many lives.
“That should be enough to take Vic and Pauly and the rest of them down for good.”
Yes!
“What’s on it?” Scarlett asked.
Rose looked back to the other woman. “Two weeks ago, I was sitting in the office, working on the schedule, when I heard a commotion coming from outside. Curious, I got up and went to the back door. When I peeked out, I could see…” Her voice broke, but she cleared it and went on. “They were loading a handful of girls into the van. I was alone in the club, then, so I ran back to the office and grabbed the camera. I was hoping to get evidence of the girls with Vic and Pauly. I knew they had to be missing, like me, so I thought…” Her voice grew thick with emotion. “I thought if I could get evidence of those two with them, and then somehow get that evidence to someone I could trust, then it would be all the proof the cops needed to swoop in and put a stop to the whole sordid operation.”
When Rose hesitated to continue, Scarlett reached for her hand again. “It’s okay,” she whispered. “Take your time.”
And that was the moment Olly knew he wanted the teacher from Indiana to be a part of his life. Not because she was Rose’s sister. And not just because the sex between them was phenomenal—which it was.
Fucking phenomenal.
He wanted her—needed her—to be a permanent fixture in his life because she was Scarlett. Sweet. Funny. Sassy Scarlett who had a heart that was bigger and more generous than he’d ever imagined was possible.
Rose was back, and she was safe, but that didn’t mean he wanted whatever it was they had to end. But that was a conversation for another time.
“I turned on the camera and went to the back door,” Rose spoke again. “I peeked out the door just in time to see one of the girls take off.”
Ah, hell.
Rose’s face started to crumble, but she shook the heavy emotions away and pushed herself on. “She, uh…she only made it about five yards when Pauly pulled out a gun and shot her in the back.”
“Oh, my god,” Scarlett gasped.
“You got video evidence of Pauly killing one of the girls?” Olly stared back at his friend with disbelief.
You wanted proof…
Rose nodded. “It was awful. I was in such shock, I just stood there. Recording the whole horrific scene.”
Olly didn’t ask for more. The poor woman had already shared plenty. And if the flash drive in his hand really showed what she’d just described—and there was no reason to believe it didn’t—the FBI would have all the proof they needed to go after Vic, Pauly, and the rest of the twisted fucks.
Rose sniffled again before wiping her face dry with the palms of her hands. “I stopped recording when they began dragging her back to the van. Couldn’t risk Pauly spotting me at the door, you know?” She gave a quick lick of her lips. “As soon as the van left, I ran back to the office, put the camera in the drawer, and I…I took off.”
“On foot?”
A humorless chuckle shook her sagging shoulders. “It’s not like Vic left an extra set of car keys laying around for me to find.”
Olly took a moment to process everything that had just been shared. From the look on Scarlett’s face, she was doing the same.
“So what now?”
He looked back up to see Rose giving him an expectant stare. “Now we take this”—he held up the flash drive—“to the FBI.” Then, though he and Scarlett had previously decided to wait until later to share the news about how she fit into the picture, he had a sudden change of heart.
His friend had experienced a horrible trauma. One that would no doubt stay with her for the rest of her days. And since nothing he could do or say in that regard would make her feel any better—other than hearing the FBI tell them Victor Manning and Pauly had been taken into custody, of course—Olly decided to give Rose something good.
Because she needed that. Desperately. And if he could provide her with even a sliver of joy in the midst of all her pain, he damn well would.
“Before I make that call, though…” he started softly. Giving Scarlett a quick, sideways glance, he prayed she understood when he told Rose, “There’s something you need to know. It’s about you and Scarlett.”
He turned to the woman beside him. As expected, Scarlett’s eyes had grown wide with surprise. A second later, her brows came together with confusion.
But Olly simply nodded, motioning for her to go ahead and tell Rose the truth about who she was.