“The rings tell the world that you’re taken and so am I. I want the world to know that.”
When she turned my way, her eyes glistened. “And you’ll wear one too?”
“Yes, of course.”
She looked down at her hand. “The only ring ever offered me was that monstrosity from Marion.”
“Andros?” I asked, hating that I’d mentioned his name.
“No,” she said, shaking her head. “He gave me jewelry, all kinds. Never a ring. I never asked why, but I was relieved. I didn’t want to wear his ring.”
“Good,” I said, lifting her hand and kissing her fourth finger. “Monstrosity. Yes, I saw it at the jewelry store. Tell me what kind you want.”
“Whatever you want to give me.”
“Now you have me thinking.”
Our fingers intertwined as Madeline spoke, “There have been so many thoughts and memories over the last few days.” She looked up. “I’ve been trying to imagine where we’d be if I hadn’t been taken.”
“I’d do anything to have saved you from your experiences, but for me, I’m not unhappy where I am and now with you also here, it’s perfect.”
“What were you going to tell me?”
I let out another breath. “Reid found Kristine and Pastor Roberto.”
My eyes widened. “Is that where you went? What happened?”
I laid my head back again. “They weren’t expecting our visit.”
“Our?”
“Mason went with me.”
“Oh.”
I scoffed. “Oh, don’t oh Mason. He has some unique experience that up until today, I’d yet to see firsthand. Let’s just say he’s very persuasive and imaginative.”
“I’m not sure I want to hear the details.”
“I’ll spare you those. I want you to know they’re dead, both of them. I realize it won’t make you sleep better, but it will give you the reassurance that two other people from your past will never bother you. You see, that’s what they did: they blackmailed both others on the sales chain like the Millers and also victims.” The thought brought the small hairs on my arms and legs to life. When they found a victim who’d made it to the other side, they blackmailed them, threatening to expose their past.
“They won’t be found,” I said. “And with time will be officially classified as missing like you and so many others were by their doing. It’s appropriate to let them disappear. They don’t deserve a clean break.”
“Why won’t their bodies be found?”
“The means by which they died is classified. If their bodies would ever be discovered and the wrong people found out what agent was used, it could have repercussions. There aren’t many people who know that chemical agent exists.”
“Could you or Mason be caught?”
I shook my head. “No. The Ortizes lived near the Gulf of Mexico. Now they’re dead within its depths.”
“Did you talk to them first?”
I nodded, remembering the scene. With each Ortiz tied to a kitchen chair, Mason and I had their undivided attention. I let out a feigned laugh. “They didn’t remember me.”
Maddie’s eyes grew. “How could they not remember? I thought of her…more times than I care to recall.”
“Nope.” My head shook. “That simple fact alone made killing them easier. Once she realized the error of her lack of recollection, Kristine pretended she remembered. She had the facts and time of year wrong. You see, the two of them sold so many women and babies, they couldn’t separate one from the other.” I turned to my wife, lifting her hand again and peppering her knuckles with kisses. “You were and are the most important person in my life, and to them you were another sale, another transaction.”
“Another commodity,” she said, her tone dripping with sadness.
I lifted Maddie’s chin, bringing her gaze to mine. “People like them are monsters in the true sense of the word. Yes, I killed them. I listened as they cried out, writhing in pain. I watched as their bodies began to fail them and the realization hit that they wouldn’t live to see another day. I listened as they begged for the antidote. I wanted to give it them just to watch it all again.”
Her eyes fluttered shut before opening. “I think there’s something wrong with me. What you’re saying isn’t upsetting me. I feel almost vindicated.”
“Good. You and others like you. And me and others like me. They sold you, and in doing so, changed the course of my life too. Each individual was a pebble tossed into a pond, and they didn’t give a shit where the waves landed.
“Don’t you see, Maddie? I’m a monster in my own way, and I’m not apologizing for it. It’s all about power. The Ortizes used their power and lies to suck in young people as we’d been and gain their trust, only to turn around and sell them to other monsters, such as the Millers, who in turn sold them again. Some might see you and me as monsters for not feeling remorse in their deaths, but in reality, the world is full of monsters. To a mouse, a cat is a monster.”
“I’m one too,” she said.
“How many women did Andros make you prepare?”
Madeline looked down. “Twenty-seven.”
“The pastor and Kristine weren’t able to give me a number. Pregnancies were their thing. That’s why they came after us. A young couple with no money doesn’t pay for birth control. They targeted us from the get-go so they could sell the mother and baby. Creating the mission was the perfect front to lure kids that no one else wanted. Who would miss them?”
Maddie’s green gaze came to me. “You. You missed me.”
“Every fucking day for seventeen years. In Mrs. Miller’s journals, we’ve learned about an attorney named William Adkins who specialized in private adoptions. You said Kristine was paid $500 for our unborn child. What we’re seeing is that Adkins was getting $20,000—$50,000 per baby. Someone was profiting in the middle. It appears as though the Ortizes sold to more buyers than Dr. Miller.”
“Who did Dr. Miller sell me to?”
I sat straighter. “McFadden was the top of that chain.”
“Yeah, but the way Marion and Andros talked, McFadden tracked me down because I was the daughter of Allister Sparrow. If that’s the case, then yeah, the senator knew where to find me, but who was in charge of the cell house? Who took us there and kept us there? I would guess that few other pregnant girls left there showered and set for auction in a mansion across town.”
My jaw clenched as I again sat back. My mind was swirling in a new direction. “I hate asking you to recall particulars. You told me about the auction and the room in McFadden’s home. The house with the cell, you said, was a normal-looking home from the outside.”
Madeline nodded. “I wish I could remember more or even that I’d tried to look. The night they drove me to the auction, I wasn’t thinking straight. I remember being dazed by fresh air. It was warm. I’d lost track of time. When Kristine sold me, it was winter. I remember being told to behave or I’d be brought back.” She sucked in a deep breath. “Fucking pitiful, but that was my motivation to stand there—anything not to go back.”