Mercedes sat in her office, taking a deep breath as her mind went over her talk with her dad. He understood and said that he would give her the money, no questions asked. Considering her history with him, she wondered what the actual cost was. The way he said they would talk soon, the way he sounded like he knew her secret but had one of his own, it scared her. But losing Sam scared her more.

Something had happened, and Sam wouldn't see her the last few days. River said he had appointments and that she could still take him during the weekend when she put the down payment for Sam down. Still, it seemed as if maybe River was right, and Sam didn't want the freedom she was offering him.

Braxton could sense something was wrong with Mercedes. He knocked at her open door, leaning against it. His arms crossed as he looked at her. "Hey."

Mercedes looked up, seeing Braxton at her door; this just wants she needed. "Hey, do you need something? She asked, placing the files down.

"You seem off today," he mused quietly. "Just checking in. You didn't verbally attack me yet." He was teasing, of course.

She let her lip quirk up at that. "The day is young; you never know what could happen." She pushed her chair back and smoothed down her pencil skirt, silk blush blouse tucked neatly in. "I am working on something, and it got me a bit off."

"Need to talk?" Braxton may have been pushy and cocky, but his heart was in the right place most of the time. "You know I'm good at secrets." That much was true. He was the only one in the office that didn't fuel the gossip machine.

She shook her head. "Thanks, but I guess I am just sad I can't save the world. I feel like I let them down. Like I let everyone down in a way. I know I can't help everyone. But I really want to help this person." She ran her hands through her hair. "The sad part is that I was blinded for so long, and now I can not unsee things." She was blabbering, but that's what happened when she was worried.

Braxton took a step into her office and hesitated. "This person means a lot to you, don't they?" He sounded somber.

She nodded. "I uh..." she frowned, wondering if she really could trust Braxton.

He tilted his head to the side. "Well, if you need any help, I am pretty damn awesome at my job."

"I know you are, but this is..." she bit her bottom lip. "This is more than just doing a job; this is someone's life."

He took half a step further into her office, then stopped. "Who do I need to punch?"

She laughed softly. "Brax was a cocky jackass, but he had his moments. "It's a crazy situation. " She warned.

"Hey," he replied. "Crazy, I know I can do."

She looked behind him. "Can you shut my door?"

He nodded and closed the door. "Mind if I sit?."

She nodded, letting him take a seat. "Have you ever heard of The Elite?"

Braxton hesitated for a moment. "I have. It's a bit... beyond my pay grade and moral code."

She smiled. "Good to know. But Q and the girls took me there a few months back, and I had no idea what I was getting into."

Brax chewed on his lower lip. "That sounds forbodeing."

Mercedes sat back. "I met this guy who at first I just wanted to protect him, but then I realized that..." she hesitated; this was where trust came from.

Braxton felt his heart sink. He was indeed very interested in dating Mercedes, but it seemed as if she found another. "You don't have to tell me if you don't want to."

She frowned. "I used to have a best friend, someone who I wanted to protect with all of me. And then my dad shipped me off to boarding school, and we fell apart. I found him in that club; he needs help. He needs to be saved, and I need to save him, get him to his family.."

Braxton fell silent for a few moments. "Mercedes," he started, then he stopped. "How can I help?"

She looked at him. "Really? Just like that?"

He bit his lip again. "Yeah. You're the only person that wants anything to do with me."

She laughed. "I am sure that's not true. "

He snorted. "I meant on a level that's not surface level."

"I guess that's because sometimes, like now, you let your good guy show, and I like that guy." She said honestly.

That made him smile. "But not as much as the other one."

She laughed. "And he's back."

"I was honest..."

She nodded. "I know. And I...I want to put a stop to the Elite."

His eyes went a bit wide. "I don't think that's possible."

"I had a meeting with the guy over there. He creeped me out. To "buy" my friend I have to pay $700,000. But it's worth it. He and his family were the only ones to love me back then. I have to get him out."

His eyes went wide. "That's a fuckton of money..." he managed.

She nodded. "I have it...no one knows that my inheritance is worth a lot of money; I just never wanted to use it. The thing is, I scared they won't honor the contract. He's been through so much; all he wants is to go home."

"I can't even imagine," he whispered in complete shock.

"So now you see why I want to protect him. Why I want to take him out of there. " She sighed, "but I don't know if I can do it."

"I'll try to help."

She glanced at him. "You will?"

Braxton nodded. "Yeah."

She tilted her head to the side. "Why?"

"Because never in my life have I seen you so passionate about something."

She sighed. She and Brax had known each other for years, and she knew she came off as cold sometimes. "I just want to save him."

Brax nodded. "Then we will save him."

She bit her bottom lip to stop her from wanting to cry. "You are; you have no idea how great that is." She stood walking over to him. "I can't thank you enough.

"Don't thank me until we get him out."

"Yeah, but the question is how do we do it? How do we make this happen?"

"I dunno."

She sighed, sitting on the edge of the desk. "He won't leave... If he leaves, his brother will have to take his place to do everything he can to stay. And I told you I don't think they are going to let me do this."

"That's so fucking wrong," he whispered.

"He's only there because he was trying to take care of his family. His sister got sick, and he took out a loan." she sighed. "I am out of my depth here,"

"You really are, Cedes..."

She frowned with a laugh. "Yeah, thanks. I was really hoping for some I dunno advice here."

"I'm the one that goes to you for advice. I don't really have any."

She sighed. "What if I don't make it in time to help him? What if, what if I lose him." She said, shaking her head. "I promised his family that I would save him."

"You can't take this all on your own. You're only one person."

"Yeah, well, it's all I have right now!" She said, frustrated.

"You have me now too."

She looked at him and nodded, wiping the tears away from her eyes.

"Can I give you a hug?"

She sniffed again, looking at him; she nodded, knowing she needed one.

Braxton moved closer and wrapped his arms around her. "I got you."

She let him hug her and gave in to hug him closer, and let the tears fall. She had been dealing with this alone for a long time, and getting to know that Brax was going to help her took some of that weight off of her.

He held her as long as she needed.

After a few moments, she pulled away. "Thank you."

"You're welcome." He wished the hug was under better circumstances.