Total pages in book: 138
Estimated words: 127461 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 637(@200wpm)___ 510(@250wpm)___ 425(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 127461 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 637(@200wpm)___ 510(@250wpm)___ 425(@300wpm)
“Who ran the boarding school?” Jeremiah asked. “I didn’t know many people. I was a punk kid, but my mother knew a lot of people. She might know them.”
“Jaoa and Carolina Escabar Velentez,” Idris replied. “Jaoa’s name carries a lot of weight with shifters in that country. With everyone. He’s done a lot of good for the economy there. Turned things around.”
Gorya thought it significant that Idris was the one the others allowed to speak for them. His voice rang with not only pride but almost a fanaticism. They may have been orphaned by Escabar Velentez and then brought to the boarding school to be programmed and shaped to be used as his agents. Escabar Velentez had seen the Cortez family fail when they’d tried to rule Panama with a bloodthirsty reign of terror. He was much more intelligent and made those around him fiercely loyal to him.
Gorya nodded thoughtfully. “We have a few friends in Panama. I believe they’ve mentioned Escabar Velentez many times and make him out to be a good man, although his opinion on a variety of subjects differs greatly from mine.”
Ian’s eyebrow rose. He caught up another piece of the coffee cake. “What opinion?”
“He believes in human trafficking. I draw the line there. Drugs. Guns. Gambling. Prostitution. There are plenty of ways to make money without selling human beings.”
Liam frowned. “How would you know what Jaoa believes in or doesn’t?”
Gorya sent him an easygoing smile and gave a casual shrug as if the conversation was of little consequence. “I took over the territory in the Atchafalaya River Basin and had to shut down the trafficking ring. There were several in the lair not happy about it.”
“It’s a lucrative business,” Idris pointed out. “Very lucrative. And if done right, can turn an economy around quickly.” Again, there was pride in his voice.
“Perhaps, but on the backs of children and young women and men. You make them sex slaves. They’re subjected to rape, torture and often murder.” Gorya kept his voice low, mild, not in the least challenging. “As orphans, all four of you could have easily been sold into that trade. You were lucky you weren’t.”
“And how many others are saved because of the sacrifices of a few?” Liam asked. “You should talk to Jaoa. If you listen to him, he can explain the pros and cons and lay it all out for you so it makes sense.”
“I grew up in a lair that believed in human trafficking,” Gorya said. “Nothing about it makes sense. My cousins grew up the same way. We witnessed how it tore apart our families and eventually destroyed everything we had from the inside out. It was killing our leopards. Killing our people. We’ve worked hard to rebuild. Trafficking is not something we would ever allow.”
“Unfortunately for you, that’s outdated thinking,” Idris said. “It happens and it’s here to stay. No one can stop it. It goes on all over the world. We may as well cash in on it and do good for our people. Many were starving. It can be done right.”
“There’s a right way to buy and sell human beings?” Gorya asked.
“Clearly, I’m not the one to discuss this with you. One of these days, you really should talk to Jaoa. I think you’d find him very interesting,” Idris insisted.
The men didn’t seem to notice that the room had gone eerily silent. Gorya sighed. “Sadly, I will be talking to him a lot sooner than I ever expected. I must personally deliver very bad news to him.”
Instantly, the smiles were gone from all four men’s faces. “What is it?” Idris asked.
Gorya shook his head. “It is very personal to his family. I plan on flying in our private jet to visit with him myself and tell him the news. I don’t want him to hear any other way.”
“It’s possible we should fly home to be with him if this will in any way impact the family,” Ian said. “It isn’t just curiosity. Jaoa has been a father to us.”
Again, Gorya heaved a sigh and put on a somber expression.
“Raul, Jaoa’s middle son, was visiting Derk Malcom, a college friend and the son of one of the more prominent leaders in our lair. Raul and Derk were caught red-handed in front of witnesses kidnapping, raping and torturing a fifteen-year-old girl. I’m certain Drake Donovan drilled into you the consequences of that kind of behavior.”
All four men straightened simultaneously, clearly horrified. “There’s a mistake.” It was Idris who spoke for the others.
“There was no mistake. The two of them were brutal and caught in the act. They were executed.”
“You don’t understand. Family is everything to him. He’ll go to war,” Ian said.
“Evidence will be presented to the council. I will also give it to him.” Gorya turned as if to walk away but then turned back. “A couple of other things you might find interesting. Those young women you kidnap and rape, quite a few are shifters. The mate to a leopard. You might not think it’s important because you’ve spent a good part of your life enjoying raping young girls and think that’s your right. You don’t think about what that’s doing to you or your leopard. You’ve been brainwashed by your mentor and believe whatever he tells you.”