Page 133 of Captive Audience

Why?

Anger, fear, and confusion warred in my veins until my hands shook so badly I almost dropped the phone.

I’d trusted him. I’d let my walls down and started to fall?—

No. Now wasn’t the time to feel sorry for myself. It was the time for answers.

Rage, sharp and hot, pushed aside all other emotions.

I stormed down the hallway to find Rook and Finn in the kitchen. “Where’s Sierra?”

Rook glanced at the burner in my hand. “Shite.” He held his palms up. “I can explain.”

It took all my effort not to throw the phone at him. Instead, I yelled, “Tell me!”

“I don’t know. Christ almighty, woman. Calm down and let me talk.”

“You’ve been lying to me.”

He didn’t answer. Didn’t even try. Something inside my chest cracked like a rib snapping in two.

Moisture blurred my vision. “Why, Rook?”

His gaze flicked to Finn. “Leave.”

I held out my hand. “No. Stay.”

Finn froze, caught between us.

Rook’s jaw clenched. “I only wanted to keep you safe.”

The words hit like another betrayal. “Safe?” My voice broke, the fury barely holding the grief back. “Say something that makes sense in the next five seconds, or I swear to God I’ll walk out of here and you’ll never see me again.”

Rook drew a deep breath. “That burner belonged to a gang member Aidan and I interrogated at the docks three nights ago. It wasn’t the only thing we found. There’d been women in a container, a dozen or more, but they’d already been moved. Sold to buyers overseas by the Soul Collector.”

Overseas? My stomach turned. Sierra wasn’t even in the country anymore?

“The trafficking ring’sexpanding.”

Rook nodded.

“But Sierra’s alive?”

“I believe so. Torin has spoken to Brandon. He was pissed about the trafficking ring but agreed to let us handle it while the Zulu mercs recover the women and take down the buyers.”

I steadied myself on the counter. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

“Because we can’t go public with this intel.”

My head snapped to Rook. “What? No. We have to tell people what’s happening.”

“And drive the Soul Collector underground?”

“Or provoke him into doing something that exposes him.”

“This is exactly why I didn’t tell you.”

I folded my arms. “Because my opinion’s different from yours?”