"What happened to Anna wasn't your fault," I try to soothe her.

I don't like Dee Dee. I don't approve of the choices she's made or the things she's allowed Casey to be exposed to, but she's human and she's hurting. She didn't do this. She had no hand in helping do what he did to her. Her fault only lies with Casey.

Releasing a sob, her hand reaches to her forehead while she covers her eyes in shame. "I knew he was..." Her breath hitches before she continues. "I knew he was up to something. With Hoss gone and his hate for Anna..." She's vocally unable to keep going with her explanation, but her sadness says enough. "That stupid poker game. Hangar can't handle losing."

Reaching out and resting my hand on her forearm, I continue to help her with her guilt. "Dee Dee, look at me." When she doesn't, I increase my leveling tone and repeat, "Look at me."

As her hand drops, her crying eyes turn in my direction and she takes in a ragged breath. "I may as well have done that to Anna myself."

"Did you help him get her down there?"

"No."

"Did you help him hurt her?"

"No, but..."

"Did you try to stop him? Talk to him before it started?

"Yes, but..."

"Not on you," I tell her with honesty.

"Where are they?"

"Anna's waiting for Viktor. She's being cared for. And I don't know where Hangar is."

Moving her head to the direction of the ceiling, her face is deadpan, wiped of all emotion, her voice haunting. "Viktor will kill Hangar for this."

"He would deserve it."

Nodding in agreement, she whispers, "He would."

"Dee Dee." I try to be careful during my address, because I don't know her anymore. I don't know with any degree of certainty what she's seen or been exposed to in this life. "What did he do to you?"

"What?" she asks, as if not understanding.

"Before he took Anna..." My eyes move the expanse of her small frame and I stop them mid-center, near her waist. "You were bleeding when you stopped me and were looking for Cilas."

"I'm fine."

"You're not."

"Max, I'm so sorry," she tells me again.

Lifting my hand to keep her from talking, I reiterate, "This isn't on you."

"I'm not just talking about Anna or Hangar. I'm sorry for Casey, too."

"I've got Casey," I a.s.sure her. "She's not going anywhere."

A breath of her relief falls between us. She starts to sit up, but a pained expression envelops her face. Using my hand at her waist to keep her still, she freezes mid-motion and falls back down.

"I'm goin' to have someone come look at you."

"Thank you." For the first time in all these years that have pa.s.sed, I sense her sincerity is genuine.

As I stand, I keep my eyes on her, ensuring she does what I've told her. Once I'm convinced she won't move, I put the chair back in place under the desk and move to shut off the light.

"Leave it on," she calls out from the bed. As I grab the handle to the door, she speaks again. "If I could do this all over again, I want you to know I wouldn't be here."

"I know. There's still time to fix what's been broken."

Her eyes turn to her focal point back on the ceiling. Her voice full of pain, and her body once again shaking, she expresses, "Some things are so broken they can never be fixed. Please give my love to Emma and tell her to take care of Casey the way I never did."

"Dee Dee," I whisper, loud enough I know she can hear me. I think about what else to say, but come up with nothing.

As I reach the common room, I find Cilas is the only one around. He's sitting at the bar, beer in hand, staring into the mirror, which hangs on the other side. He has scratches on his face and some dried blood on his arm. Other than that, he's untouched.

"Ci?" I call out and start to walk toward him. He doesn't move his head to look at me. "Got another one of those?" I ask, already knowing this will be yet another one-way conversation with the man I've now come to know as a gentle giant.

He nods towards the bar, indicating I'm to help myself. I do as he instructed and reach under to grab a beer. I adjust my body in front of him and rest my forearms on top of the bar. The sun has started to come up and the particles of dust dance in its rays. The room is filthy, so it's no surprise.

"Dee Dee will be fine," I start to voice my one-sided conversation.

Cilas' dark eyes lift to mine. They remain expressionless. The only way to know he's affected by seeing Anna the way she was is the constant ticking of his jaw. His temples protrude with each grind of his teeth.

I still haven't seen Viktor, so I'm unsure if he knows what's happened. "Any word about Anna? Is Viktor here?"

He nods then looks down and stares at his nearly empty beer bottle.

"Where's Hangar?" I ask, but once I do, I start to brace. Cilas' eyes narrow, and the knuckles on the hand holding the beer bottle turn white from the grasp he's using to hold it.

Thinking it best to leave him be, I give him notice. "Finish your beer. I'm gonna see how Anna is."

Turning his head to the second hall off the common area, the one opposite of Casey, he points. I follow his hand and find the closed door behind the bar. I've seen Anna coming in and out of it before, but at the time thought nothing of it.

"Thank you," I tell him, taking a quick drink. "For helping with Dee Dee and Anna." My eyes scan the room for a clock and I find the only one which works telling me it's now nearly six in the morning.

I'm exhausted.

Before walking out and leaving him in his place, I stop and turn around. I wait a beat for his attention before expressing my last thought, whether he wants to hear it or not. "And thank you for taking care of Casey."

I realize I'm walking on unsafe ground, since I've witnessed time and time again his loyalty to Viktor and Hoss, but in the tragic circ.u.mstance we've found ourselves in tonight, I don't hesitate to tell him further, "This is no place for a child her age and we both know it."

Cilas takes a pull from his beer, tears his eyes from mine, and goes back to the same position I found him in before walking in here.

Viktor is sitting on a small metal chair near a bed in a nice room I've never been in. The s.p.a.ce is clean, the carpet looks new, and it's decorated in black and red. If I hadn't known I was standing on this G.o.dforsaken property, I wouldn't have guessed a room such as this existed.

Anna is lying on her stomach in the bed with only a sheet covering her bandaged back. It doesn't look like she's wearing any clothes and I imagine with the shape she's in, it would hurt if she were.

Viktor's holding one of her hands while the other strokes the side of her beat-up and swollen face. I've never seen him dressed down and wearing anything other than a suit. He looks worn-out, broken, and exhausted under the circ.u.mstances.

Knocking softly on the door, I watch as Viktor's attention drops from Anna to come directly to me.

In a saddened, deep Russian accent, he instructs, "Come inside and close the door, Max."

I enter as quietly as I can and close it until I hear the handle click into place. "She asked for you," I tell him first. "She didn't want to worry you."

"She never does," he whispers, continuing to stroke her cheek, using the soft caress of his fingertip.

"How is she?" I finally ask from where I'm standing at the foot of her bed.

The dull lamp light is enough to see she isn't good. The whip Hangar used to beat her was so thick and wide in comparison to her that I imagine as he struck her in his tired state, he'd missed her back and the leather had landed on her neck and various other portions of her torso. The extent of the damage is plainly evident.

"She's strong," he answers. "So much more so than me," he whispers, sounding ashamed, his concentration going back to look at her. "I owe you for this."

His words are honest and I believe his sincerity, so I press. "Anna's a good woman."

"She's the light of my life. She's the reason I do some of the more humanly things I do. And you saved her."

"I did what needed done. Cilas was there, as well."

"Yes. And had you not both been the men you are, you could've walked away and left her to suffer."

Silence takes up the s.p.a.ce between us. Anna's head moves briefly to reposition on her pillow. A small whimper of pain breaks the quiet before she falls back into what looks to be a fitful sleep.

"I'm leaving here sooner than I had antic.i.p.ated."

"When?" I inquire as Aimes' timeline races through my mind. He has a plan, but I have no idea when it'll be set in motion.

"If I could pick her up and leave this place right now, I would, but she can't travel like this. Not the distance we have to go, anyway."

"Casey?" I bring her into this without hesitation.

Turning his face to mine, the look of confusion is striking. He talks softly and seemingly only to himself. "This was supposed to be a business. I took her away from those men for business. I should've let her go sooner, but I..."

Once his voice trails off and I sense he's done talking, I attempt to get him to continue. "Casey is a special girl. She deserves..."

"A home," he says. "A home free of monsters."

"Yes," I reply in agreement.

"Anna doesn't want her left behind. She wants me to keep her," he tells me with a sigh, looking back down to the woman it's obvious he loves. "She wants me to take her with us."

"This isn't a way to make something up to Anna," I return with care. "Giving Casey to her won't take away what's happened."

I find I'm absolutely right on the mark with my observation when he counters without hesitation, "Casey makes Anna happy. Anna's lived a long, hard life, and some of it is because of me. They should be together."

"You have someone coming to see her," I remind him. "That man who wanted the other girl."

"Yes, I do," he breathes out. Sitting back in his chair, he releases Anna completely and rests his hands on his thighs as he looks down at them.

"What about Casey?" I insist again.

"You won't get her. I won't risk her being given back to her mother. If her sale doesn't go through, I'm taking her away from here," he adds with finality.

"She's a good girl, Viktor. She has a good family outside of Dee Dee."

My words are penetrating. All his concentration is on Anna lying on that bed in front of him. I prod, "Viktor?"

"I've never been happier to have met you than today," he whispers. "Thank you."

"What will you do with Hangar?" I ask, giving up on getting Casey out of here on my own and hoping like h.e.l.l Hangar is already dead.

"When Hoss returns, which he will soon because I've told him to get back, I'll deal with Hangar."

"I'd like to help," I add to this darkened shade of conversation.

"I'll give you that."

"Thank you," I tell him as I walk toward the door and start to make my way out.

With his full attention yet again on Anna, Viktor says, "Thank you, Max. You've been a blessing to Anna. To Casey. And to me."

Chapter Twenty-Seven.

I've learned the reality of truly missing someone hurts more than never having them with you in the first place.

Casey knew the moment Max entered her room, pulling her attention away from her sketches, that something about him was different. Mostly, he looked tired. However, after further study, she noted he seemed misplaced. He didn't hold eye contact, hadn't touched her adoringly as he always had before, and his voice was broken as he uttered the words, "h.e.l.lo, monkey."

She didn't rush to greet him. Instead, she stood from her chair and fidgeted in place. It wasn't until her lip began to tremble with worry at the sight of his unfamiliar disposition that he finally reacted.

Now, as he's crouched in front of her, searching her eyes, begging her to answer for her sadness, she recognizes him as the person he's always been to her. Her small arms are wrapped in his large hands, the comfort of his touch enough to make her start to cry.

"Tell me," he insists. "Tell me what's wrong," he implores again, before she has a chance to answer.

Ever since Max had left her alone with only memories of her Aunt Emma, she hasn't been able to forget the way the gifted book made her feel. So much so, all she's done is try to recall every moment, every sweet endearment she ever remembered from Max or her Aunt Emma.

Within the time that pa.s.sed without Max in her presence, she's realized that before, although she felt lonely and neglected, she was able to get by with only knowing those faces she once sketched on paper. Those mindless drawings were the foundation to a life outside of this one. They were her companions who kept her safe in the dark. But more than anything, they were her friends.