1
Etta
Twenty-Four Years Old
I smile at the girls as I help them get settled into their new rooms, their new clothes, and their new life.
Their faces show exactly what mine did five years ago when I was eighteen years old, when my brother took me out of a cult.
My job now is to save those who need out. I take care of them and help them transfer into the real world. It’s such a life-changing thing, even to this day sometimes I have a hard time.
But I am here for them, whatever it takes.
The MC has given me free rein to do whatever is needed to take care of the girls. We have a hotline that girls can call if they are in trouble and we’ve gone nationwide.
I’ve been doing this since I was eighteen, when the MC took in the girls that belonged to the cult I was in.
My stomach is twisted in knots at the thought of some of these girls being forced into this. There are some that can’t be saved and they’re suffering in this very moment.
It’s hard doing this, mostly mentally. I see things that give me nightmares, and it brings up old memories, but knowing I am making a difference is so worth it.
I was married at fourteen years old. My sister Lynn was married at thirteen and she had a two-year-old daughter by the time she was sixteen.
My husband was extremely abusive. He sent me back to my parents in hopes that they could fix me.
Nothing could have fixed me. I had spirit and a will to fight him. I never had a child. I’m forever thankful for that because I’ve helped my sister Lynn raise her daughter.
For as long as I can remember I’ve been abused, by my father, my mother, and other family members.
Cults are built on it.
Religion is their way of justifying it. They take verses in the Bible and twist them for their benefit. It’s their way of using their sick fantasies and making them normal.
It’s taken years but we are known countrywide for the work we do.
The Grim Sinners MC and the Devil Souls MC started this. They supply the funds, but in the last year people from around the world have donated to make sure we can help everyone.
We started a new fostering program and we’re allowing some of the teenage girls to go and stay in foster homes if they want so they can have space from all of the other girls. We only allow people with links to the MC to foster the girls and we have a rigorous vetting process.
Lynn, my sister, is twenty-two and a counselor. She specialized in this. Together we are changing the world, we are speaking on the way we grew up and how this is happening right under everyone’s noses.
Not anymore.
Tonight I’m going on a mission with the Grim Sinners MC. We received word that a thirteen-year-old girl is being married off to a deacon in her church and the Grim Sinners are joining me to go get her and any others we come across.
I spoke to Lane in great length on the information she has given me, but she had to hang up because she had to get breakfast ready for her family.
Her wedding is tomorrow so it has to happen tonight or we may lose her, forever.
Lynn walks into the main house where I am, holding her daughter’s hand. Michaela smiles widely when she sees me.
“Hi sweet girl, how was school today?” I ask her and pull her into my arms, hugging her tight.
She squeezes me tightly; she is truly the sweetest little girl. “It was okay. I’m starving.”
I laugh and smooth down the back of her hair. “Tell the cook to make you a snack before dinner, sweetheart.”
She takes off running and I look at my sister. “Are you ready for tonight?”
She nods, throwing her hair over her shoulder. “I am. I’ll probably stay in the apartment upstairs tonight because I don’t know how long it will take once you bring her here.”
Lynn is the person who helps get everyone adjusted emotionally. That’s the most important part, honestly. The internal fight is the biggest struggle. You are so brainwashed, trained to think a certain way, you just can’t help but fight yourself.
The bravery of these women astounds me—it takes extraordinary courage to take a chance, reach out to me, knowing if they’re caught the consequences would be dire.
“That’s a good idea. Rosie is struggling also. I heard her crying in the bathroom if you want to check on her.”
Lynn hugs me and moves through the house to Rosie’s room. She was rescued last week after she was forced to marry her uncle. It was a complete surprise to her and she finally had a chance to call us a week after she was married. She was his eighteenth wife.
Michaela, now seven, was three when my brother took us out of that life. She was young enough that she wasn’t affected and I’m thankful for that more than anything.
My phone buzzes, letting me know that the guys are driving through the gate. “Lynn, I’m leaving!” I yell up the stairs and grab my bag, running outside.
I’m confident in my training. I was trained by a Navy SEAL that trained some of the guys in the MC. It was not like their training at all, but I can shoot and I can defend myself—and someone else if it came down to it.
Three large SUVs pull to a stop in front of the building. Lane gets out, with Smiley and Wilder, and then I can’t stop the grin when I see my brother Vinny get out also.
He almost always joins me to make sure I’m safe. This hits close for him also. The cults deeply affect him just as much as they do me.
He comes around and hugs me. “How are the twins?” I ask.
He gives me that dopey smile that lets me know he’s living his best life. “They’re great. It’s hard to believe they’re turning five years old.” He shakes his head in disbelief.
My heart aches with happiness, but I long to have my own kids someday. “I can’t wait to see them tomorrow.”
“We’ll stop before we reach the location to put your vest on, Etta.”
I smile at Smiley. “Thank you, Smiley.”
His wife is like a mom to me. She’s here practically every day, mothering everyone here to make sure they’re okay.
Smiley motions for me to get into the front seat. I hand him my bag as I climb inside.
I take out my phone to text the girl to tell her we are leaving and we will be there in a few hours.
We can sneak her out, but we’ve learned that sometimes it’s easier to just bust down the door.
It sends a message that we aren’t afraid and lets others know we mean business. We want to be feared, we want the girls or boys being abused to know that we are here and no matter what we will be there.
The drive there is mostly silent, besides the guys talking about club business, which I tune out because I learned a long time ago to mind my business when it comes to such things.
The closer we get, the lights grow darker and darker. The houses are all the same—the same style, the same colors, and no decorations.
Lane pulls over to the side of the road. I step out and Vinny hands me my bulletproof vest, slipping it over my head and securing it.
“Be safe, Etta. Don't do anything stupid, yeah?” He says this every single time, and I nod, but I know I would do whatever it takes to protect these kids.
Smiley comes around wearing his very own vest. The guys all still have their cut on. He hands me a pistol with a holster, and I bend over and strap it around my right thigh for easy reach.