Read Online Furious by T. R. Ragan - Free Book Online Page A

before shooting her husband a glare.
    “What were the men looking for?” Jana asked.
    “I don’t know,” Faith said, her body trembling as that moment in the garage came back to her in a rush. “I begged him to let the kids go, let us all go, but as soon as I saw the expression on his face, the cold ruthlessness in his eyes, I knew there was a good chance we might die whether he found what he was looking for or not. I tried to get free, but he slammed me to the ground and everything went black.”
    “This is all so crazy,” Jana said. “I feel as if we’re talking about a movie where the bad guys are looking for a tiny capsule filled with important information. What could they possibly have been looking for? It makes no sense. Had Craig been acting strange or different in the days before?”
    Faith shook her head. “Whatever it was they were looking for, they didn’t find it. So why did they take my kids?”
    Colton looked over his shoulder toward the living room to make sure his wife and kids were out of earshot. “Mom’s been keeping me updated, and I’ve also been doing some research of my own. My first thought was that these guys must have come to your house because they wanted something. And now you’re telling me that’s exactly right.” He sighed. “If they came to your house looking for something of value and then didn’t find whatever it was . . . then it’s possible they took the kids because they were worth something to them. I’ve been reading up on trafficking, and it appears that younger children bring in ridiculous amounts of money.”
    Everyone at the table fell silent.
    “Trafficking?” Faith asked, unable, perhaps even unwilling, to make sense of what that could mean for her children.
    “Human trafficking,” Colton said. “It’s a billion-dollar business.”
    Dad set his fork down. “Faith,” he said, his tone grim, “nobody’s asked for ransom. If they were going to kill them, they would have done it right there at the house. Maybe you should give some thought to what Colton is saying.”
    Mom placed her napkin on the table, pushed her chair back, and left the room. She didn’t appear to be angry, merely disturbed by it all.
    “Please tell me what you know about trafficking,” Faith told her brother. “If I’m going to find my kids, I need to know what I might be dealing with here.”
    “Colton could be on to something,” Steve said. “I saw a documentary about this human trafficking business. They talked a lot about young children being a commodity. Traffickers are getting bolder these days, too. I read a story about two younger guys who met a girl in the mall, followed her home, and simply took her. These guys are fearless.”
    Colton nodded. “People think human trafficking is confined to places like Thailand and Malaysia, but Sacramento is ranked number two for sex trafficking in the United States. Being in the trucking business I see way too much of it.” He used his fork to poke at the peas on his plate. “Most truckers think they’re paying for sex, but they’re paying for rape since pimps are the ones pocketing the money.”
    Jana paled. “I think I’m going to be sick.”
    Steve pushed his chair back and helped Jana to her feet.
    Faith watched them leave the room. There was no possible way she could allow herself to imagine either one of her children being sold for sex. The notion of anything so horrible wouldn’t compute. And yet she squeezed Colton’s arm and said, “I need a place to start, someone I can talk to.”
    Colton rubbed the bridge of his nose. “No way. This isn’t the sort of thing you should be poking your nose into. Talk to Detective Yuhasz about it and see what he has to say.”
    “Faith’s done enough talking,” Dad said. “It’s time for her to take matters into her own hands.”
    Stunned, Colton looked from one to the other, shaking his head before he said, “I’ll see what I can find out.”
    Dad, Colton, and Faith