“I’ll be back tomorrow. I’ll have my second night with you and during that hour, I’ll tell you the details.”
“How… how many people are in on this?”
“Not enough.” Luke didn’t touch her. But his hand was inches from her waist—probably in case Asia walked in. “Many of the Belizean police are working with your father. You probably know that.”
“I hate him.” Eliza closed her eyes for a few seconds before looking at Luke again. She hadn’t known. “Police officers never visit the Palace. That makes sense now.”
“Exactly.” Luke kept glancing at the door. “But we have people on our side, too. And we’ve got FBI operatives on the ground. The raid is happening Thursday night.”
Thursday night. The day before she turned twenty. The day before she was supposed to walk out of this place. She stared at him. “I heard a conversation. About Alexa.”
“Good.” Luke sighed. “We were hoping.”
She still hated this. Hated him. But for now she needed to find a way to survive. “What do I have to do?”
“You have to agree to help us.” Luke searched her eyes. “No tricks here, Eliza. You’ll only get yourself killed sooner. Once your father knows you spent an hour with an undercover agent, you’ll be taken out.”
Eliza believed him. She didn’t like it, but she had the sense that everything this man told her was the truth. Anger burned inside her. Given her options, she had no choice. “I’ll help.”
For the next ten minutes, Luke told her the plan. How he would scope out the place when he returned tomorrow night. “I need you to prepare the younger girls. Make sure they trust you.”
“They do.” It was the reason Eliza often hated herself. Because the girls at the Palace trusted her. “What do I tell them?”
“Before the first clients Thursday night, you’ll convince the guards to let the girls spend time with you. All of them. Whatever you have to tell your father and his men, just make it happen.”
Eliza had done that before. Thinking about it made her feel sick. The times when she had brought the girls into the boardroom or her own room, and talked them into being good girls for the customers. “I… I can do that.”
“That’ll be at seven thirty. At seven thirty-five we’ll enter through every door on the property and the guards will be… neutralized. I’ll work with another agent to get you and the girls out and onto a bus and then to a bluff half a mile down the beach. Once we’re there, a helicopter will pick us up.”
A helicopter? The plan sounded crazy. How could it ever work? She started to shiver again. “What if… what if it doesn’t show up?”
“It will.” There were no cracks in Luke’s confidence. “There won’t be time to—”
Eliza heard the sound of the doorknob turning. At the same instant, Luke rolled on top of her, his mouth on hers. Their bodies intertwined. Eliza had never done this before, but his kiss was warm and marked by a passion that took her breath. It lasted only a few seconds while Asia watched.
Then—as if he had only just noticed someone else was in the room, Luke jerked his head up. “Hey, man… what’s this?” Luke shot Asia an angry look. “You’re dishonoring my bride.”
The guard stared at the two of them. Jack was still on top of her, moving in a way that would convince the bodyguard. The giant man chuckled. “Your time’s almost up.” He leered at them again, and finally stepped back into the hallway and shut the door.
Instantly Jack was off her, and laying on his side again. “I’m sorry.” His eyes were void of every emotion but one—frustration. “He had to believe us.”
“Yeah. I think he did.” She wondered if he could hear her heartbeat.
If this FBI agent was tempted… if he was feeling anything physical for her, he didn’t show it. Instead, he studied her face. “You’re a victim, here. Do you know that? Just because your father never trafficked you, doesn’t mean you’re not a victim. You are.”
They were both whispering now. Eliza forced herself not to think about his kiss. “You told me I was a criminal. I could serve time.”
“You could. But what you did… grooming those girls… you had to do that.” His eyes saw straight through her. “We know all about your father. The goal is to set you free, get you help so you can have a new life.” He paused. “You and all the girls here.”