Chapter 39
Michael began by filling us in on how he and Wally had first connected. He then went on to explain how it had unfolded.
As I listened, I realized how naive I’d been. I knew trafficking occurred, after all, I haven’t been living under a rock. It’s just that this is Temecula. It never occurred to me that our quiet town could be home to a teen trafficking ring. Even after seeing all those teenagers coming and going, I just couldn’t wrap my head around the reality.
Michael told us how the school bullying had started when he was fourteen. “At first, it wasn’t so bad, but it quickly got worse. I was afraid to go to school. Some days, I convinced my mom I was too sick to go, but then they just did it online. They’d send me endless messages on social media sites and through email. I
