Page 38 of Leading Conviction

“Nora,” Jules warned, her authoritative tone taking control of the room in an instant. She’d yet to touch her sandwich, making Hannah feel better for neglecting hers.

Ellie ate hers without complaint while Callie straightened in her seat and blew out a breath.

“Okay. Let’s get right into it. Hannah, what I’m about to tell you is disturbing, but I have a feeling you won’t be surprised. Are you ready?”

Hannah’s brow rose at Callie’s blunt delivery, but she found herself nodding that she was ready, even though she wasn’t sure if she was telling the truth.

“Alright, here goes. I’m not sure how much you know. Hawk isn’t typically like the others when it comes to their Neanderthal tendencies of protecting their women by keeping them in the dark, but it seems like he’s adopted the habit just for you. So, here’s what Iknowhe hasn’t told you.” Callie exhaled heavily again and met her gaze. “Your father is the head of an international sex trafficking ring. I was supposed to be sold in it, but he kept me instead.”

All the air left Hannah’s lungs, and she collapsed against the back of her seat.

“What the… he… hekeptyou?”

Callie nodded once with the same finality as the punctuation at the end of a sentence.

Heat bloomed up Hannah’s cheeks at the information.

“But… but MF7. He started that organization. Hawk left because they were supposed to be eradicating human trafficking. I… I don’t understand.”

“It was a front, Hannah,” Callie replied. “It was all a front so he could have highly trained operatives wipe out his competition. Once he took down other traffickers, his followers at a fake women’s shelter told the victims they were going to be helped back into society when in reality, the General forced them back into the market.”

“Mierda,” Hannah muttered as realization set in. “So, how does BlackStone Securities play into this? Hawk’s team now, they were once MF7. They were the ones who helped him. Are they going to get in trouble?”

“No,” Jules answered. “None of it was their fault. They thought they were helping people too, but they were tricked just like those women.”

“Oh, my…Dios mio. This is… this is disgusting. What the fuck? I always knew he was awful, but this? This is insanity.” The words didn’t feel like enough, but nothing would. She’d always suspected her father was a monster, but she’d naively thought his behavior stopped with her. “So BlackStone Securities is… what? Trying to make amends?”

“Well, it’s a long story,” Ellie conceded. “So here it goes.”

What Ellie said afterward floored Hannah. Ellie had been kidnapped from a party just like the one Hannah had attended and Nora had been kidnapped soon after by Vlad. Both were meant to be sold, but Ellie’s brother and the rest of BlackStone Securities were able to save them in time.

“They’ve been trying to take the traffickers down ever since, only to find out your father, their former general, was behind everything.”

“They only found that out about a week ago. It’s been a blow for them. Not gonna lie.” Nora sucked her teeth. “Callie was able to provide us more information after the team raided his headquarters in Atlanta.”

“Atlanta? Is that when he went missing?”

Callie nodded. “Yup. And that’s where this conversation comes in. Your father kept me for a reason and he made it very clear why.”

Hannah swallowed, afraid she knew what was coming. “Why?”

“Because I reminded him… of you.”

Bile rose up in her throat. “Me?”

“He made remarks about being ‘Papa’ Do you know—”

Papá

Hannah gagged and rolled back in her chair. Saliva built in her mouth as her body began to ready itself to vomit. It’d been years since she’d called him that. Not since she came to terms with the fact that what she’d been through was abuse.

“Hannah… did your father…”

Hannah shook her head violently, trying not to think about what Callie was asking. But she knew deep down they—especiallyCallie—deserved to understand.

“He was… he was inappropriate with me. He… touched me, but not… worse than that.”

“That’s fuckin’ bad enough,” Naomi spat.