"Stay with Star," I reined her in to a stop to the left of the cave entrance. "Whoever's in there is scared and trying to defend themselves. I don't thing they're a threat to us, or they would have been shooting at us."

"Is she trained to stay with her reins dropped?" Chayton whispered in my ear.

"Yeah, but she's skittish right now. Ready to breed."

I heard a horse scream and the high pitched voices of children as Bingo barged out of the craggy opening. Star skittered nervously and Chayton slid off over her rump. I backed her in a circle as saw him put his fingers to his lips and a piercing whistle almost deafened me.

The roan and white appaloosa stallion slid to a stop, rearing slightly before he dropped his head and butted Chayton's chest. He checked the saddle, and swung into it, releasing the reins from where they were looped around the saddle horn. I wondered how he trained his stallion to stay like that.

Five girls poured out of the cave, and a woman followed. Her voice cracked as she spoke, "Help us, please."

"Damnit!" Chayton stopped Bingo beside Star and his horse dropped his head over my mare's withers, almost knocking me out of the saddle. "He's going to mount her right here."

The kids were staring with wide eyes. The woman stepped in front of them and herded them back into the shaded grotto entrance. I dismounted quickly, tossing the reins to Chayton.

"Take care of them. Let Bingo do his thing. I want this foal."

He nodded, swinging to the ground as well.

"Go see what's up with them. I think that might be your sister. She was in charge of caring for the youngest girls. I'm not sure how they escaped but look at Bingo. He's got one thing on his mind."

"Holy shit. I didn't recognize her." I darted over to the cave and strode inside. The remnants of a small fire glowed in the corner where a natural chimney drew smoke up. The embers lit a row of blankets spread on the rough ground.

The woman sat on a rock outcrop and I spotted a tattoo on the back of her hand. Malia had a unique one and the brilliant turquoise and red design confirmed Chayton's tense comment.

"Malia?" I pitched my question softly.

"Alyana?" Her eyes went wide. "No way, it can't be you."

I approached her cautiously, and dropped my jacket, revealing my matching tattoo on the inside of my right elbow. "Do you remember when grandma took us to get them?"

"My prayers have been heard." She whispered the phrase and I folded her against my chest. Malia felt brittle. We heard the Bingo bugle outside, and she said, "The horses, yours?"

"Mine and my boyfriend's. Sorry, he's a stallion, and my mare is in season. We want the foal."

"Explains why he was so restless. Must have smelled her. Is it really you, Alyana? Is grandma's hooghan still here? It's where we were headed but the little ones were too tired to go further." I could feel her drawing on my strength. We always had a close connection.

"How did you escape? I knew you were trapped there, and there's a raid coming in a couple of hours. We were coming to get Bingo."

"Who's with you?" Malia sounded suspicious. "Must be Chayton. I've sensed something off about him. Too kind to the women. He never took advantage of us like the rest of them."

"Your instincts are dead on."

The little girls sat down on the blankets, cross legged with their eyes down. It was heartbreaking. I could see tears on their cheeks as their chests shook silently.

"I had to get them out. The guards passed out. I couldn't believe it. They're filming today. Probably in around an hour or so if I have the time right. I go by the sun, like Grandma taught us. I couldn't let it happen. Anything was better than letting them use the girls again. Even death."

"Let me go out and check on things. I'm sure Bingo is having his way with Star. I wasn't kidding, there is a raid happening shortly, and I need to let command know you're here. I need to let my boss know too."

"Boss? I've missed so much." Silent tears traced their way down the deep hollows under her cheekbones. My own eyes watered in response.

"Boss. I'm a special investigator for the Department of Justice. I've been in Grandma's hooghan for over three years gathering the evidence on this ranch. Chayton has been feeding me the final proof over the last two months. Let me go talk to him. I'll get help up here."

"We can walk down the hill. It isn't that much further," Malia insisted.

"I believe you. You might have too. There's no way for a vehicle to get up here, not even a goat track anymore," I told her. "But keep them in here for now. I'll be right back."

I was desperate to gather the littlest one in my arms. She couldn't have been more than five years old.

I shielded my eyes from the bright sun as I exited, to find Bingo and Starr locked together. Somehow, Chayton got their saddles off. I wondered if I could strike it any luckier when it came to committing to a man. He knew horses. He blew me away pitching in with the cleaning last night. And his ethics were as good as my own. As far as chemistry? I smiled at the thought.

"Over here."

He was sitting with his back to the rocks watching his stallion.

"It's my sister in there. She's got five juveniles in there with her. I'm sure they've been used in the videos. I recognize the littlest one. She says the guards passed out last night. You wouldn't know how that happened would you?"

"Spiked the punch. They trust me for bartending at these pre-filming bashes. I was hoping it would spare the women, maybe even the littlest. Perverted jerks. It was another reason I was so late getting Deringer down. I hope their goddam cocks are limp for the rest of their lives."

"Amen!"

"Amen," he whispered the word like a half forgotten mantra.

"We need to let command know about Malia and the girls. They're all pre-pubescent." I couldn't keep the waver out of my voice. A loud bugle from Bingo, punctuated my comment.

Chayton smiled. "At least they're having fun." He pulled his cell phone out of his pocket.

"We have signal up here?" I was dubious, but then again, I never bother to take my cell phone with me when I go exploring. Probably a mistake, but my me time is precious.

"We do. Those girls are going to have to walk. We can't get any sort of vehicle up here."

"That's what I told Malia. She reassured me they could do it. I left extra water in the saddlebags. I'm taking it in with me. Trail mix too."

"Get it. Those two are done." He nodded toward Bingo and Star, now standing shoulder to shoulder leaning into each other. "I like that you're prepared. Get the supplies into the cave. I'll make the call. We're high enough here for me to have line of sight to the cell tower at the junction."

I yanked my saddle toward me, fumbling with the fastener on the leather accessories I had permanently attached to the back of my saddle. Sharing my stash was the least I could do.