namesake, you listened to
the serpent. That you seduced
that man, who was weak of spirit.
“No. He seduced me, with food
and soap. And I wasn’t the first
girl he’d coerced in that way.
When you’re starving, you’ll do
anything for a piece of fruit.
Eve is hungry right now, Mama.
I don’t know if Jerome is back,
or if there are others like him,
but whatever she did, this is not
a proper punishment for it.”
She jumps on the defensive.
What she did was emulate you.
You ought to be ashamed of
yourself for encouraging her
immodest behavior. Just look
at you now, in fact. I knew
you’d figure a way to get back
together with that person
out there. Why . . . why . . .
It’s a regular abomination.
It’s no wonder you ended up
on the streets in that hideous
city. It was God’s chastisement.
You can’t circumvent his laws
and expect anything less.
Slapped down. I remember
this feeling so well, like I
could never deserve God’s
mercy. I look her straight in
the eye. “Return to the scriptures,
Mama. ‘If we confess our sins,
he is faithful and just to forgive
us our sins, and to cleanse us
from all unrighteousness.’ God
has forgiven me. Why can’t you?”
Tough Question
One she’s having a hard time
answering. While she thinks
about it, I go to the door,
wave to Andrew for him to
join me. Might as well get
to the meat of things. When
Mama starts to sputter, Papa
actually quiets her. Curiosity?
Guilt? Some tiny hint of love?
Leave her be. She deserves to
have her say, and so does the boy.
As Andrew speeds up the walk,
no doubt worried that I’m knee-
deep in trouble, it occurs to me
that Papa rarely dared to disagree
with Mama in the past. Has he
grown tired of her domineering
attitude? Has my command of
scripture swayed him? Does he
hear the truth of my words?
Does he, maybe, miss having
his children in his household,
and sincerely regret he didn’t
stand up for us sooner? I’d like
to think all of the above hold true.
I’d like to believe my papa loves me.
Whoa
Sobering thought, because
it doesn’t include Mama. Would
I like to believe my mama loves
me, too? On some deep personal
level, I really don’t care anymore.
Andrew crosses the threshold,
and as he does, I vow my children
will never doubt their mother’s
love. Are you okay? he asks,
concern obvious in his voice.
“Absolutely. I just don’t want
to break our news to them without
you beside me.” I twine my fingers
into his, squeeze hard, and tug
him toward the living room.
Mama’s hackles rise noticeably,
and I try to lower them first.
“Do you know what thought
just crossed my mind, Mama?
That I don’t believe you love me,
and to be honest, I wonder if you
ever did. I think you’re afraid
of love, and that makes me sad.
Because love is of God, not in
spite of him. And you’re wrong.
My love for Andrew is not
an abomination. It’s real, and
beautiful, and so, of God. Look . . .”
I extend my left hand. “Despite
all that’s happened, and Andrew
knows everything, he wants to
marry me. Yes, we’re young, but
you were only a couple of years
older when you married Papa.
I wish . . .” A giant knot forms
in my throat, and I can’t finish,
so Andrew tries. I know it’s hard
for you to believe this, but when
I first met Eden, I’d never been
in love before. And do you know
what made me love her almost
immediately? First, her incredible
spirit, which could only be born
of God. And second, her respect
for Creation, which had to come
from you. I’m sorry ego came
into play last year—both mine
and yours. Mine, because yes,
I wanted her to love me. And
yours, for much the same reason.
Double Whoa
Forward momentum at full
throttle, I do my best to swallow
the lump in my throat. “Without
your permission, we can’t get
married until I turn eighteen,
despite the emancipation.
It’s only a year, and we don’t
mind a long engagement, but
I don’t want to spend it in Las
Vegas. Andrew and I plan to
live here in Boise. This is our
home. I hope we can maintain
a civil relationship with you, and
I’d very much like to stay in close
contact with Eve. I really wish
you can find room in your hearts
for me, but if not, I’ll work through
it. Either way, please, please find
room there for Eve. She deserves
parents who will show her love.”
Mama sits, speechless, eyes cast
toward the floor. Papa looks a bit
shell-shocked. “Come on, Andrew,
we should go. Merry Christmas,
Mama. Merry Christmas, Papa.”
It’s a Picture-Perfect Christmas Night
Crisp and clear, with myriad
stars sequinning the black velvet
sky. I beam a silent thank-you
in that direction. I’m not sure
how much we accomplished,
but it could have gone worse,
and as we left Papa said,
You’ve given us a lot to think
about. At least one of them
heard us. I hope we used all
the right words. Andrew slides
his arm around my shoulders,
snugs me tightly against him
as we walk to the Tundra.
“I’ll still need to go to Elko.”
I figured as much. I’m on semester
break for another week. We’ll go
in a day or two. Everything will
be okay, Eden. I promise. Hey,
have I told you lately I love you?
“Andrew, you just told my parents
you love me.” We stop beneath
a streetlight, where anyone can see.
And this time when he kisses me,
I know without a doubt I’m home.
Author’s Note
I first became interested in the subject of Domestic Minor Sex Trafficking (DMST) when I came across the statistic that the average age of young women introduced into prostitution is twelve. This was in 2007, just as the widespread problem of child sex trafficking was becoming news. I spent the next year researching and writing Tricks, which introduces five teen characters from different parts of the country, all of whom, for very different reasons
, end up turning tricks in Las Vegas.
All five lived on in the minds of readers, and eventually a sequel was called for, as the characters’ fates were still undecided at the end of the book. While Traffick provides those answers, it also introduces readers to other DMST victims, some of whom become survivors, and others who don’t. All these characters are inspired by very real people, living very real lives as DMST victims. We have become much more aware of the problem in the last decade, and awareness is the beginning of change.
With new federal guidelines in place, the penalties for DMST pandering have greatly increased. Trafficking children under the age of fourteen now carries a mandatory life sentence in many states, including Nevada. However, DMST will continue as long as there is a market. Education is paramount, as is intervention by law enforcement and great organizations like Children of the Night, GEMS: Girls Educational and Mentoring Services, and other rescue services. Help is available.
You can find a service provider in your area by calling the National Human Trafficking and Smuggling Center at 888-373-7888.
Or, report suspected child prostitution activity to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children at 800-THE-LOST or cybertipline.com.
According to the National Human Trafficking and Smuggling Center:
• Human trafficking is the exploitation of a person for the purposes of forced labor or commercial sex, regardless of citizenship or nationality. Despite the connotation of the word, “trafficking” doesn’t always indicate movement between cities.
• Sex trafficking is when a commercial sex act is induced by force, fraud, or coercion, or whenever the person induced to perform such an act has not attained eighteen years of age.
• Trafficking happens to US citizens, within the borders of this country, and in every state.
• The average age of a child introduced to DMST is twelve.
• Daily in the United States between 150,000 and 300,000 children under eighteen are trafficked.
• Up to 30 percent of DMST victims are boys, including straight, gay, and transgendered youth.
• More than 70 percent of homeless youth living on the streets turn tricks to survive.
• Victims of DMST don’t always self-identify as victims. Often they believe they don’t deserve a better life, or that their pimps truly love them and this is a small price to pay for that love.
Ellen Hopkins is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Crank, Burned, Impulse, Glass, Identical, Tricks, Fallout, Perfect, Smoke, Tilt, and Rumble, as well as the adult novels Triangles, Collateral, and Love Lies Beneath. She lives with her family in Carson City, Nevada, where she has founded Ventana Sierra, a nonprofit youth housing and resource initiative. Visit her at EllenHopkins.com and on Facebook, and follow her on Twitter at @EllenHopkinsLit. For more information on Ventana Sierra, go to VentanaSierra.org.
Margaret K. McElderry Books
Simon & Schuster • New York
Visit us at
simonandschuster.com/teen
authors.simonandschuster.com/Ellen-Hopkins
Also by Ellen Hopkins
Crank
Burned
Impulse
Glass
Identical
Tricks
Fallout
Perfect
Tilt
Smoke
Rumble
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MARGARET K. McELDERRY BOOKS • An imprint of Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing Division • 1230 Avenue of the Americas, New York, New York 10020 • www.SimonandSchuster.com • This book is a work of fiction. Any references to historical events, real people, or real places are used fictitiously. Other names, characters, places, and events are products of the author’s imagination, and any resemblance to actual events or places or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental. • Text copyright © 2015 by Ellen Hopkins • Jacket design and illustration copyright © 2015 by Sammy Yuen Jr. • All rights reserved, including the right of reproduction in whole or in part in any form. • Margaret K. McElderry Books is a trademark of Simon & Schuster, Inc. • For information about special discounts for bulk purchases, please contact Simon & Schuster Special Sales at 1-866-506-1949 or
[email protected]. • The Simon & Schuster Speakers Bureau can bring authors to your live event. For more information or to book an event, contact the Simon & Schuster Speakers Bureau at 1-866-248-3049 or visit our website at www.simonspeakers.com. • Book design by Mike Rosamilia • Book edited by Emma D. Dryden • The text for this book is set in Trade Gothic Condensed 18. • Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data • Hopkins, Ellen. • Traffick / Ellen Hopkins. • p. cm. • Sequel to: Tricks. • Summary: Five teenagers struggle to find their way out of prostitution. • ISBN 978-1-4424-8287-6 (hardback) • ISBN 978-1-4424-8289-0 (eBook) • [1. Novels in verse. 2. Prostitution—Fiction.] I. Title. • PZ7.5.H67Tp 2015 • [Fic]—dc23 • 2015000095
Ellen Hopkins, Traffick
(Series: # )
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