Boris Yeltsin: Rachel and the other girls are the vulnerable women Troy looks after in his church.
brittanyZVAmoore : Carlos is the guy she slept with (her client) and Juan is her pimp.
Armmisc: thank you :)
Black Sumo: he did?
Keep the comments coming :)
Ang
CHAPTER 3
"What time is kick off?" Gabi asked as she dragged Troy's gown into the kitchen, having shrugged it off her tiny shoulders and revealing some of bare skin to him as he sat and ate oatmeal at the table.
"Eleven." He swallowed, his gaze flicking over her hair, her make-up free face and falling on her chest, which although was covered by the gown, was still prominent with the fillers she'd had cosmetically implanted.
"I have to get my stuff," she supplied, sitting opposite him.
"I'll take you." He offered easily, rising to get her breakfast.
"No, its okay. I should go alone- less conspicuous."
"Gabi, after the state you were in last night, I'm not letting you go back there alone."
"You have to get ready for your people." She said insistently.
"Gabi…"
"I'll be there. I promise." She assured.
"What are you having for breakfast?" He asked, swallowing his concern for her.
She smiled. "Jam on toast?"
"I can do that," he nodded and she smiled beautifully at the thought of it.
"I haven't had jam in ages…"
"You came to the right place."
/
"Cast your cares upon the Lord, for he cares about you…" Troy began his sermon with only one thought in his mind. Where was she? The front pew had a big gaping hole where he had expected to see a petite black haired girl sitting waiting for him to speak.
He stared out at his congregation, scanning them all for her features, finding her nowhere and immediately his heart pounded heavily in fear.
A few nervous coughs began in the crowd and he realized he had paused, and he blinked himself back to the moment, picking up his speech again and continuing with forced energy.
Never had fifteen minutes of his life passed so slowly and he shut his bible on the lectern with a snap, jumping down from the stage and running toward the front of the church, his cloak flashing behind him as his crowd tried to meet with him and he sped by them all, knowing exactly where he was going.
The night he'd found her, he was sure she couldn't be too far away and no-one could mistake the small beauty if he asked after her. And so he stripped off his church costume to leave him in a blue cotton shirt and smart grey pants as he jumped into his truck and took off, heading for the girl he already cared so much about.
/
Gabi opened the flimsy door of her bedsit with a sigh, placing a palm to her forehead as she wondered where to start.
She didn't have a lot of stuff, but it was scattered everywhere. She was a messy person, there was no denying it as she came inside and bent to pick up the discarded items first. Socks, shoes- crotchless knickers, there was everything strewn about in her usual habit of trying everything on before she went out.
The thought of having a semi-home was comforting. She let that thought fill her mind as she collected up the mess, tossing it all in the one big suitcase she owned, that thing went everywhere with her she mused.
When she had left Nevada, it was all she had, that suitcase and now it was all she was taking with her again- along with some grim, regretful memories.
She wondered for a moment if Troy was right. Could she actually change her fate? Did she have a chance to start over and become whatever she wanted to be- with support and guidance from the man who saved her?
She hoped so. She prayed so.
"That's the last of it," she smiled sadly as she clicked the suitcase locks shut and looked around, strangely emotional in this moment. This was all she knew. All she had ever known. And now she was going, venturing into a scary new future.
"Where do you think you're going?" The voice was familiar and unwelcome and Gabi closed her eyes against it. Juan.
She turned and lifted her chin, faking courage. "I'm leaving, Juan." She told him and he laughed.
"That's funny! You sound like you think you actually have that choice…"
"I do." She swallowed as he approached her.
"I don't think so, honey. You know you belong to me." He smiled devilishly.
"Not anymore."
Juan merely smirked, standing before her as she craned her face up to meet his dark, hard gaze.
"You want me to show you?" He asked, muffling her cry with his hand as he kicked the suitcase from the bed and pushed her down onto it, his hard, heavy body too strong for Gabi to fight.
/
"Gabi!" Troy yelled up the stairwell of the building he knew she was residing in. He had friends on the street corners in this part of town and everyone knew the exact girl he was describing and where her pimp lived- meaning she was under his roof, at least when she actually stayed there.
He took the steps two at a time and took a breath before he banged loudly on the door he believed to be hers, the whole chipboard wall shaking with his knock.
"Gabi are you in there?"
All he could hear was a faint noise, not one he could decipher as he took more calming breaths and fought his anger down… please God, show me patience…
"Gabi!" He yelled as he heard a whimper and his blue eyes lit with fear. He stepped back, assessing the frame before he shot one short, sharp kick at the lock with the heel of his foot, splintering the door with ease, leaving him to break in and look around frantically.
Two steps inside brought him to the bedroom, where he saw a strong male figure holding down a smaller female one.
"Hey!" He shouted, striding in and grasping the semi-naked man with his bare hands, pulling him from the struggling girl and throwing him to the floor. He knew it was Gabi, he'd known the moment he'd strode into the room, he couldn't recognise her as anyone else with her beautiful hair to identify her.
The man he'd thrown down scrambled up and growled at him, heading for him with a vicious snarl.
"Troy!" Gabi sobbed in fear, throwing her hands over her mouth as she watched Juan charge him like a raged bull.
Her mouth dropped open as Troy slammed the heel of his hand into Juan's chest, throwing him back onto the floor as Troy took a martial arts pose and waited for his next attack.
"Oh my god…" Gabi watched with shock as Juan stirred and she felt a little tickle in her belly at Troy's ability, shocked and turned on by his power.
"Look out!" She cried as Juan flipped onto his feet with practiced ease.
Troy floored the restored Juan with perfectly controlled blows, slamming first into his shoulder, and then taking out his feet with a flat kick to his shin in combination.
"I won't hurt you," he flicked her a look, sure now that Juan was sufficiently injured to allow them to escape.
"I know," she nodded and sat up, hugging herself as she revealed her stripped body- apart from her panties.
"Oh, Gabi…" He ached inside, quickly grabbing the top that had clearly been discarded during the attack. When she had put it on, along with some leggings, he turned and tilted his head in sympathy. "Are you alright?"
She smiled shakily and shook her head, stepping forward to hug him around the middle and he hugged her back, sighing out against her hair. "We should go before your friend pulls a gun on me."
She nodded, taking Troy's offered hand as he led her toward the door, only she couldn't resist the temptation and she ran back to kick Juan in the belly, spitting down on him for good measure.
"Scum," she accused, putting her hand back into Troy's as they made their way out.
/
It wasn't until she was back in the Chapel, in her old guest bed that she felt the effects of the last two hours hit her. She'd missed Troy's sermon, she hated herself for that and then something horrible had happened. She'd been caught by Juan, who then wanted to exact his revenge by forcing her into sex. It brought back every bad memory, every reason why she wanted out and every fear she had for leaving him behind. And when he was above her, pushing her down, stripping her bit by bit, she'd felt like it was over, that her last shred of dignity would be stolen cruelly away.
And then he had come. He had come for her. And he had saved her from the most humiliating experience of her life. To have Juan touch her, force her into something she hated, it was enough to make her gag.
Knock knock.
She looked up, knowing who the visitor was but still feeling frightened at the sound of fist against wood.
"Come in," she called nervously.
"I brought chamomile tea…" Troy offered, his thick brown brows lifted hopefully.
She smiled at his concern and gestured him in. "You know women too well." She accused.
"How are you feeling?" He wondered, sitting on the edge of the bed and handing her the mug of warm drink.
"Afraid."
"He won't come here." Troy assured.
"Not if Ninja Troy is around," she arched her brow and drank from the mug.
His cheeks pinkened familiarly and Gabi reached out to touch his shoulder. "Don't be shy."
"Its defense, really." He explained away.
"Uh-huh…"
"It's true. This part of town…"
"You're solid, Troy." She accused.
"So I like to work out." He shrugged.
"Working off sexual frustration?" She replied.
He stared at her, feeling a piercing pain in his chest at her accurate deduction. People weren't supposed to know these things.
"Yeah." He admitted honestly, watching her face as she smiled.
"I have a way to do that, too." She offered.
"It's my vow." He reminded her.
"That's inhuman."
"Raping someone is inhuman." He reminded her. "Fighting my sexual urges is just…part of the job."
"He really wanted that last part of me, you know?" She breathed out through her nose.
"I'm sorry; I didn't mean to bring it all up again…"
"No, you're right. You are this amazing guy who can control himself to the highest degree and then you get shit bags like Juan who think they can take what they want just because I sell myself." She shook her head.
"It's over now." He said softly.
"Will you stay with me a while?" She asked, laying her mug on the side and lying onto her back to look up at the ceiling.
"I guess I could manage that…"
"Don't worry, Troy. You're not breaking any rules." She assured and she smiled as she watched him lay next to her.
"I know."
"You're not supposed to be alone with me, are you?" She guessed.
"No." He smiled with relief.
"Then I don't want you to get into trouble…"
"We're both adults. I have friends outside of the work I do here. It's up to you which side you sit on. Do you want to be one of my girls and for me to be your mentor? Or do you want to be my friend and have the whole ugly truth behind the smock?" He wondered.
"Do I get to do this if we're friends?" She tilted her head sideways, her hands beside her ears, resting in her hair.
"I guess so," he tilted his head, too, to look at her with a warm smile.
"Then I'll have what's under the smock," she drawled suggestively.
"If you're sure…"
"What am I agreeing to? You sound positively intriguing…"
"Just to seeing me as I am. Not as a Reverend or a Father or anything remotely formal." He explained.
"You can do that? You can switch from friend to leader like that?"
He nodded and pursed his lips cutely. "I have to."
"I'm honored you'd even let me choose." She smiled.
"I couldn't stop worrying about you when you went this morning…"
"Ten minutes later and I would have been…." She swallowed, her eyes becoming moist with emotion.
"Shh, hey…" He shifted over and carefully put his arm around her shoulders, leading her to lean into his chest.
"I never had this…" She whispered, leaning her head onto his shoulder.
"Had what?"
"Someone with no ulterior motive. Someone to hold me…" she explained.
"You do now."
"The others might get jealous," she posed.
"I'll share myself equally." He promised with an amused lip twitch.
"I don't like sharing," she admitted, grasping his shirt to cuddle closer.
"I'm all yours tonight." He promised, barely able to resist ghosting his lips over her forehead as she fell asleep in his arms. A place he entirely knew he shouldn't have her. A place he felt like she belonged.