"Yes, we took some photos during the examination and noted the skin damage you mentioned. The scars left in the muscle tissue are hard to identify, but the rough outlines are visible."
The attending physician for the surviving girl, Haley, was a middle-aged woman with graying hair. She was visibly angered by the girl's ordeal and immediately pulled out a folder, showing one of the photos to Hannah.
"Haley is extremely, extremely lucky. The attacker deliberately avoided major internal organs, but under normal circumstances, this level of blood loss would have been fatal. That she survived and even managed to run nearly a mile for help is nothing short of a miracle.
"I need to prepare for her follow-up surgery now. I hope these photos help."
"Thank you very much, Dr. Olivia." Hannah accepted the photos and thanked the kind-hearted doctor.
Dr. Olivia left the entire folder with the two FBI agents and hurried off.
Hannah scrutinized the photos, trying to identify the marks beneath the girl's damaged skin, while Jack flipped through the other photos in the folder.
The way the perpetrator inflicted the wounds reminded Jack of someone called the "Boston Reaper"—a killer who liked to stab victims repeatedly, using it as a substitute for physical intimacy to gain some form of satisfaction.
"This symbol... it looks like a crown?" Hannah handed the photo to Jack.
"The specific symbol isn't what's important here. We've confirmed that each girl has the same mark in the same place, which disproves our original theory. This isn't the work of a serial killer."
Jack put the photo away, trying to distance himself emotionally. Anger was useless now and would only be counterproductive.
"A serial killer would typically leave marks for psychological satisfaction. Here, the purpose of marking was to conceal these girls' identities. So, we're dealing with an Eastern European human trafficking ring."
Hannah nodded in agreement. "So, did these girls die because they lost their 'value' or because they broke some rule?"
"Perhaps both." Jack walked alongside Hannah, discussing the case as they reached the hospital room. They were about to greet the female agent stationed outside the door when a heart-wrenching scream came from inside.
Haley's voice was hoarse and filled with anguish, as if her mind was still trapped in the nightmare she had survived. Jack and Hannah exchanged a look, a hint of excitement showing on their faces—Haley had woken up.
In the TV crime shows Jack had seen before, both American and local, he always found it frustrating when writers would invent scenarios that prevented victims from speaking, seemingly just to create suspense.
Hannah quickly entered the room, while Jack stayed outside, given the earlier report that the victim had suffered prolonged assault before being stabbed.
In this case, it would be better for Hannah, as another woman, to help calm the girl down. Jack could go in once she was more emotionally stable.
After a lot of effort and with a nurse's assistance, Hannah finally managed to calm Haley down. From the girl's broken, incoherent words, they learned her fear wasn't just due to her brush with death; she was also deeply worried about her sister.
"Please, save my sister. This is all my fault. If it weren't for me, my sister would still be safe back home. It's all my fault. It was my idea to come to the USA."
Haley clung to Hannah's arm, sobbing and pleading, while Hannah gently comforted her. Seeing that the girl's emotions were again becoming intense, and knowing she would soon need to go in for surgery, Jack cleared his throat and stepped into the room.
"My name is Jack, and this is Hannah. We're both with the FBI, handling this case. We'll do everything we can to help you and your sister, but first, we need you to tell us what happened as clearly as possible.
"The faster we find the person responsible, the sooner we can rescue your sister. Do you understand?"
She nodded firmly, forcing back her tears, and Jack continued, "Let's start from the beginning. What's your sister's name?"
"Polina. Her name is Polina Nureyev. We're from a village called Tranev in Ukraine. I saw an ad online saying we could take a simple test for a chance at a job interview in New York.
"The employment agency said they could help place us in housekeeping jobs. This is all my fault; I should've known it was a scam. My sister is only fourteen."
Sighing inwardly, Jack asked, "What happened when you got to New York?"
"Three men picked us up at the airport. I only knew their nicknames—the leader was called Snake, and the two others were Spider and Wild Boar."
"Were they all Ukrainian?" Hannah asked, holding her hand gently.
"Yes, Spider and Wild Boar were Ukrainian, but Snake wasn't. He spoke some Ukrainian, but not well; he was more fluent in English."
Pain flashed across Haley's face again, the next part of her story clearly difficult to recount.
"Please, continue. Try to remember as many details as you can." Jack maintained a neutral expression, taking notes. Any display of sympathy would be excessive now; his professionalism was the best encouragement he could offer.
"In the car, they pulled out knives and threatened us, then blindfolded us until we were brought to a basement."
Haley covered her mouth, trying not to cry.
"They said if we resisted, they'd kill us and hurt our families. Then... then they violated both me and Polina, for three days."
"I'm sorry; I can't handle this," murmured the nurse who had been helping Hannah comfort the girl, running from the room with her face in her hands.
The questioning lasted less than fifteen minutes before Dr. Olivia reappeared and took Haley to surgery.
Even in that short time, Jack and Hannah had gathered crucial information about the case.
After breaking down the girls' dignity and will to resist through repeated threats and abuse, they had turned them into profit-generating tools.
Haley and her sister were forcibly separated, moved nightly to different locations to service clients, and kept locked in basements with no access to daylight.
Haley's escape attempt had been triggered when she heard from another girl that her sister had fallen ill. Usually, sick girls who didn't recover were simply "taken away," never to be seen again.
Haley had decided to risk everything. During one encounter, she had asked a regular customer to call the police, but Snake, the gang leader, found out, leading to the events of that morning.
Unfortunately, Haley was unclear about her previous locations, only recalling that one of the basements had been near the coast because she had once heard the sound of waves.
Instructing the agent outside the room to arrange for a sketch artist as soon as Haley was out of surgery, and to notify the operations center, Jack and Hannah left the hospital.
For anyone who thinks that decriminalizing prostitution or legalizing it is a good idea, I say those involved deserve to be staked on the roadside for their crimes.
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