Shirley
Shirley crushed the cigarette butt under her heel and pouted to herself. There was a new girl for her to train. Miss Lin had been pressing her for new recruits. She entered the room with high hopes to ready the girl for the task.
The girl was lying naked on the rags, facing the wall. She was tall, with blonde hair, and a really thin body.
“What’s your name?” Shirley asked.
The girl turned her head slightly in her direction and blinked.
“Rule Number One- Never look in their eyes,” Shirley reminded herself and arched her eyebrow, asking again, “Your name?”
“Liza,” came a whisper.
“Okay Liza, I’ll be honest with you,” she said sitting next to the girl. The girl contracted in herself at her touch. “Your old life is over. You are now the property of the wolves. You have to work for them.”
“Are you a wolf?” Liza asked sitting up.
Shirley tucked Liza’s hair behind her ear and replied, “No, I work of them. Like you, starting now.”
“I just want to go home,” she cried, “My parents, they would pay-”
Shirley shushed her by putting a finger on her cold dry lips. “Nobody goes home, ever,” she warned.
Tears soaked Liza's cheeks and Shirley hugged her, patting her back. “It’ll be all right. Just do what they ask you to do.”
Liza nodded, hugging her tightly and sobbing.
“Good girl,” Shirley said, “now let’s get you dressed and fed.”
Shirley left the cell but came back soon with some food and clothes for Liza. The girl draped the clothes on her bony structure and ate without a word.
“Now you are ready to work,” Shirley said after Liza had devoured all the food.
“What work will I do?” she asked.
“Very easy work.” Shirley smiled. “I like you. So I’m sending you to Miss Lin. All you have to do there is count her money.”
The only people Linda, or Miss Lin as she liked to be called, trusted with her money were those who had no use for it. For slaves like Liza money was nothing but paper. Miss Lin preferred little fragile girls, because they were easier to intimidate. Shirley had no problem with the business model, as Lin paid good money for the girls; and the wolves always gave Shirley a nice cut.
“You are lucky,” Shirley continued, “most girls get sold as sex workers or sex slaves.”
The horror was evident in her face as she gulped to digest the information. “I...I could be...?” She couldn’t complete the sentence.
“No baby, we won’t let that happen. You just need to keep your head down and be a good worker.” Shirley didn’t need to speak the “or else”. Liza had heard it clear and loud.
“You will sleep here for tonight,” Shirley told her, “Miss Lin will come to get you tomorrow.”
She stepped out of the cell and locked it again. “Joseph, she’ll be here one more night,” she informed the burly guard outside. He answered with a grunt and handed Shirley her pistol. Shirley never took her weapon with her in the cells. She pretended it was so that she seems friendly. In truth she wanted to avoid a situation where the captive turns the tables on her.
Joseph wasn’t the only guard on the floor. There were many more cells to guard. Most were used for torture; some to starve the more difficult slaves, some to 'treat' the enemies. A couple of cells held fresh meat like Liza.
Shirley took out her mobile from the back pocket of her jeans and called Miss Lin. “Linda,” she started.
“Tell me you have someone for me,” a tired and irritated voice spoke from the other end.
“I have one. Sixteen year old, delicate girl. You can have her tomorrow.” They had told Shirley that the girl was nineteen, but she knew Lin would feel better buying a younger person.
“I’ll send Brian to pick her up," Miss Lin said curtly, "right now.”
“I don’t care as long as you have my money,” Shirley replied in the same tone.
“You’ll get your money.” The call was cut.
“Easy money.” Shirley chuckled. “Change of plans. Miss Lin is sending someone right away,” she informed Joseph. He replied with another grunt.
Despite what she had told Liza, Shirley was very much part of the sindicate that called themselves the wolves. They had their hands deep in every illegal activity, be it drugs or arms or human trafficking. Shirley’s job was to oversee the transition of captives into recruits.
Brian came as promised. Shirley could not wait to get her money and leave the den to spend it. “Where’s the girl?” he asked. He was a mean looking man, even by Shirley’s standards. He always kept one hand on his gun and other on his money.
“In her cell,” Shirley replied and led him to the cell. She streched her hand for the money but he refused. “I’ll inspect the goods first. ”
Liza looked at both of them with a frightened face but did not speak.
“I’ll take her.” Brian threw the bag of money towards Shirley and moved closer to Liza. She stepped back in fear.
He grabbed her with one arm and said, “You are ours now.”
Liza looked at Shirley helplessly and for the first time, Shirley registered those blue eyes, begging her to take pity on her, asking her how she could just leave her with this man.
But she did. Shirley took her bag and Brian left with his goods. Unfortunately, Shirley could not get out soon enough.
The placed was suddenly searmed with uniforms. Shirley could not understand how it could have been possible. The boss had assured them that both the FBI and CIA had been infiltrated by the wolves. Still, the uniforms kept pouring in. They wore ummarked black vests and black helmets and she couldn’t understand which agency they were working with. Shirley didn’t use her gun. She gave up easily. Using gun meant she could get shot, but she liked to breathe.
One of them handcuffed her. The other took the money and her phone.
“Yup, this is the one that we traced,” the man told his colleague, showing him something on her phone.
The colleague asked with his brows knit, "DEATH? That's one wierd text.”
“I didn’t text nobody,” Shirley screamed.
“Not you, dumbo,” the first man said to her and continued with his colleague, “DEATH is the detective’s call sign.”
“And where is she?”
“She sold her.” The first man shrugged pointing at Shirley and the bag of money.
That’s when Shirley realised that the girl Liza had picked her cell phone when she had hugged her and placed it back too. “At least she is trapped with Linda,” Shirley thought. She decided to be content with the little revenge.
“I pity the fools who have come between Detective Hudson and the wolves,” one of them said and both men chuckled.
And then they shot Shirley.
