He closed his eyes and thought of what he could do. He looked at her. "This is a safe place; they never come this far out," Collin said. He saw her face grow fearful again, and she looked at him with a glare "Who?" She asked "The raiders," he answered. He tilted his head in the direction of the only window in the room."They usually come from the desert. They attack travelers for supplies. Most of the time they attack travelers, not outposts. I've seen them do a few raids around here." Raiders. That was the collective term for the groups of bandits who would ambush helpless victims. Collin knew firsthand what they were capable of doing. "Why doesn't anyone know about this place?" she asked. Collin didn't know how to answer that. He went inside and got her some water. He brought it outside the room where she was lying. As he touched her shoulder, she recoiled. "It's okay, you can drink it." Kayla picked it up. Her hands shook as she lifted the glass and drank a few sips. He could tell that she was afraid of people. He gave her some more to drink. At least now she wouldn't die. How had she survived as an adult without running into any raiders? Was she always a captive? She looked at him like she didn't want to answer his questions, but she was desperate for a kind word from someone. "There were doctors at the place we were held. I don't know where they were getting them. The men that ran the place wanted to be sure there weren't any diseases." Kayla was trying to speak matter-of-factly. Collin didn't want to say that he was sorry for her. He was. Kayla lifted her chin and wiped her eyes. "I was with girls who were ten, eleven, twelve. They separate us by age. There are a few little boys there too. What will happen to them? Will they keep looking for me?" Kayla asked. "You won't run into them again. I'll make sure of it." Collin said, with a hint of anger in his voice. Kayla seemed more afraid for the kids left behind than of her situation. She was curled in a fetal position on the cot. Collin sat on the ground in front of her, holding her hand. "How did you survive out there?" "I had a bottle of water." her voice was sad and sounding broken, "They made me carry it in my pocket....it was the only thing I had...I thought I would be killed for sure.....When I saw this place, I almost thought it was a mirage." He braced himself to ask his next question. "The other girl, who you tried to help, how old was she?" "Maybe five." She said, shuddering from the memory. Collin swallowed bile. He was thankful that Kayla was strong enough to survive. The idea of innocent children in a hellhole like that was getting to him. "Christ, Kayla." Collin felt the anger boiling in him. Trafficking in underage girls was becoming a common occurrence in the post-apocalyptic world. It was a dangerous business and unorganized. His stomach churned. Kayla had escaped from the unthinkable, and now there were other girls at risk. He would report it. It would make a difference. After a pause, Kayla spoke again. "I escaped, but what's going to happen to the rest of the kids?" She looked down, feeling sorry for the little prisoners she knew were still in the building, and for all the little children they water hadn't rescued. "What's going to happen to them?" "I'll get the word out. It'll be alright." He reassured her, but the look on her face told Collin otherwise. She knew better. But he didn't have the heart to say those things. Instead, he just kept talking as she laid back against the wall, listening. "We'll find a way to save them." He promised. Kayla didn't seem convinced. Collin sighed, "I'm so sorry, Kayla. I'd hate for what happened to you to happen to anyone else." Kayla watched Collin's face, memories and emotions flashing in his eyes. She knew what kind of man Collin was. He was one of the good guys. He was battle-hardened but knew to protect those weaker than himself. He had taken care of her. He wasn't like the guys who raped and tortured women, the ones who sold women. This guy cared about people. Kayla believed that, and she wanted desperately to believe in something that mattered. Kayla smiled weakly. "Do you mean it?" she asked. "Of course I do," Collin replied. "Thank you," Kayla said. "Don't thank me yet," Collin said. Collin stood up and started to pace. She knew he was thinking of how to handle this. The strong, yet gentle man, was fighting something in his mind. His posture said it all.
Kayla was in shock; she was sobbing and talking at the same time. Collin leaned down and hugged her. He wanted to let her know that he was there for her and that she could talk to him about everything she had been through. "Kayla, you're safe now. No one is going to hurt you." He moved towards the cot to her. "I'm sorry, Kayla, I know what you've been through. We'll find help for you." Kayla sat up and leaned on his arm. When he looked at Kayla again, he saw just how broken and scared she truly was. "You need to trust me. You'll be okay." He said. "But...I'm not even safe here, am I?" She said quietly, her voice quivering. Collin nodded, "I will protect you." He said. He felt a lump rise in his throat. "It's alright, love, only a few people have survived as long as you had in the desert. I don't think anyone will come looking for you. " He said, comfortingly. Kayla uplooked at him, those blue-green eyes pressing into him. He reached down and wiped the tears from her eyes. He looked at her. His own eyes were burning with emotion, trying to show his determination. He was going to find a way to stop what was happening and save everyone. Even if it meant killing every single one of the bastards that had done this. "I'm a soldier, I have to report what happened." He was trying to comfort her, trying to sound like the police on TV who would comfort a rape victim. He found himself lowering his voice and whispering, "It'll be alright, Kayla, I promise." "It'll be alright," Collin whispered again. He was trying to convey his sincerity while trying to hug her away from his thoughts. She could feel the pull of him, the intensity in his eyes, and her heart ached for him. "It'll be alright." He said again, his voice cracking. His voice was a whisper. "You can trust me." "I can give you something for STDs and that will keep you from getting pregnant." He said, trying to sound clinical. He didn't look in her eyes when he was talking to her. His face was clouded with sadness, shame, and a wave of slight anger. He was trying to be truthful to her, but never force her to tell him anything. "I know what you're doing. A few of our girls were raped by doctors." "Kayla, I won't hurt you. I just want to help you." Kayla was looking into his eyes now, looking into his soul. "How can I trust you?" She asked, tensing. She was trying to discern what he really was like and knew that he was keeping something from her. The tears started to flow from her eyes. "Listen, Kayla. I'm telling you the truth. I promise I won't hurt you. I want to help you." Collin spoke softly and gently. "You're safe. You can trust me." He repeated, hoping that she could see that he was sincere. He walked over to the cot and sat down. "Why are you doing this?" She asked. "Because it's the right thing to do." He replied. "Helping people is my job." He kept his eyes on her. "Why?" She asked. "Because I'm a soldier, that's my job." Collin reached over to her and gently wiped the tears from her face. "I'm here for you Kayla. I promise." His eyes searched hers, studying every nuance of them. He gave her the bottle of pills that he had brought with him. She opened the bottle and read the instructions, and took another sobbing breath. He knew enough about medication for the next question. "Birth control isn't something you should just stop taking. I can get you some if you want." He said. Kayla looked away. She took a deep breath. "Can I just take it until my next period? I want to feel in control of my body..... I never had that." She said, swallowing the words about her past away. Collin nodded. "Alright, take the pills. Just as long as you take them." She smiled and nodded. He was trying hard to picture her free from the traffickers. It was not a reality yet, but she had a chance. It was a little while before he could tell if she was really free. Kayla tilted her head slightly and looked away. Collin could tell that she was still in shock. Or maybe he was reading her the wrong way? "It'll be alright." He muttered, hoping that was the right thing to say. "I'll look after you." Her eyes lit up. She looked relieved, although Collin could tell that she wasn't entirely convinced. Collin had had some time to think about how to go about searching. He had to make sure that Kayla was really safe first. He was starting to feel strangely protective of her. "I'll have you move to a more comfortable bed soon. Just rest." His words comforted her, and she slowly drifted off to sleep again. Collin stared up at the ceiling, thinking about what happened. He couldn't believe a girl that had been trafficked for so long was still alive. He also couldn't believe how natural it felt to hold her close to him. He loved the feeling that she was against him, and that she needed him. He felt like he could protect her from anything. Her presence felt right to him. He thought he would die if anything ever happened to her. She needed protection, but she needed someone to take care of her too. He tried to clear the thoughts from his mind and to think about how he could help her. He would need to contact the main post for information.