After he left, the room was silent except for the beeping of my monitors.
"I'm going to Chicago anyway," I said finally. "Whether the Council approves or not. Those trafficking victims need help and I'm not going to abandon them because some politicians are afraid of change."
"If you do this, they'll use it against you at the hearing," Owen warned. "They'll say you're acting without Council approval. Overstepping your authority."
"Then let them. I'd rather lose my Council seat doing the right thing than keep it by abandoning people who need me." I looked at Damon. "Tell your contacts we're in. Tomorrow night, we shut down that trafficking cell."
"Mary, think about this," Juniper pleaded. "You could lose everything you've fought for."
"I've already lost everything once. I survived. I'l
