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The female bidders are less interested in the festivities and stand against the wall, content with studying the proceedings.
Out of all of the people present, I’m most scared at the prospect of being purchased by one of the women. With the men, it is clear what my purpose would be. But with the women, I’m not sure.
And, like the saying goes, the devil you know is better than the devil you don’t.
Luka takes a half-hearted lap around the room before making his way back to me and dragging me out to the dance floor.
I’m still angry with him. For not trusting me. For coming to save me before he looked for Milaya. For telling me to my face that he doesn’t think I can take care of myself.
However, as soon as we are together on the dance floor, hidden in a crowd of other people, with music pulsing all around us, I can’t begrudge my body what it wants: to be near him.
Luka wraps an arm around my lower back and jerks my body against his. Our hips crash and grind together in time with the music, and I tip my head back, letting my hair shake loose.
Luka groans, and I lift my head to see him staring at my chest. His eyes inch up slowly until our gazes meet, and he shakes his head.
“I’d appreciate it if you could be less sexy,” he says as quietly as possible while still being heard over the music. “You are making my job more difficult with every man you make interested in you.”
“No one is paying any attention to me,” I say.
Luka raises an eyebrow and tips his head to his right. I follow his gaze and see the man in the bird mask staring at me. He has a woman held in the circle of his arms, her back against his chest while she grinds into him.
But his eyes are locked on me.
I turn into Luka quickly, feeling sick. The momentary high I got from being close to him is fading, being washed away by dread.
“Even if we get out of here, they can hold Milaya over our heads,” I say finally.
Luka looks around to be sure no one is listening, and then slowly dances me further from the crowd. “I’m not sure what you want from me, Eve. I’m here for you—”
“Exactly,” I interrupt. “You should have gone after Milaya. I could fend for myself.”
“How?” he barks a bit too loudly, drawing the attention of one of the women in purple. “I can barely fend for myself here. How would you have gotten out?”
I don’t want to tell him that maybe I wouldn’t have. Luka won’t accept that answer, but it is the truth. I accepted that I might spend the rest of my life as someone else’s slave. I came to terms with that, and while I would have done everything in my power to get out, I also would gladly follow that path if it meant Milaya would be safe with Luka.
“I did my best,” Luka says. And for the first time, I see his uncertainty. His doubt.
Luka isn’t sure he made the right decision, and now I’m making it worse. If I know anything about him, he has been beating himself up for the fact that we were taken in the first place, and now I’m making him feel guilty about the way he is trying to save us.
I want to wrap my hand around his neck and pull his lips to mine. I want to apologize and promise him that we’ll find some way to make this all better.
But before I can, a heavy hand lands on my shoulder.
I spin and nearly get hit with the birdman’s beak again. He smiles at me and then at Luka. “I believe I’ve shared her enough now, don’t you?”
Luka’s jaw clenches, and for a second I worry he is going to haul back and punch the birdman right in his hooked nose, but then he lets his hands fall from my waist and gestures for the bastard to step in.
I watch Luka disappear into the crowd, wanting nothing more than to follow him. But my attention is quickly drawn to the birdman’s hands on my waist.
He grips my body like I’m a freshly caught fish that might jump from his grip. He is holding me so tight that I can barely breathe, and my chest heaves with the effort, which seems to only make him squeeze me tighter.
He talks to me, though I don’t listen. Whatever he is saying, it doesn’t require my response, and I’m glad because I would have nothing to say.
My thoughts are with Luka and Milaya and the bidding board in the lounge area. Has anyone else made a bid on me yet? Has Luka?
Who will I be going to bed with tonight?
The thought sends a chill down my spine, and then the entire room goes cold.
