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“Shut it down,” I growl.
Po turns to me. “Imperator, that’s not—”
“Shut this down, now.”
He taps the aerial of his walkie-talkie against the guardrail. “Nero is expecting this shipment. The truck goes straight to his compound. If you don’t deliver, it will—”
“I don’t fucking care. Did you survive Brutus’ reign by demonstrating such disobedience? Because it’s not a great way to begin our working relationship. Turn this ship around right now. Take these women home.”
“These women and their families have paid for their passage to America, the land of milk and honey. Many of them are coming from poverty, war, abuse. If you turn this ship around, they will leap to their deaths rather than go back.”
“Oh, no. We can’t have that. Far better to sell them into sexual slavery.” The ice claws at my veins. “Fine. Unload them, but don’t deliver the truck to Nero. Instead, take them to the Colosseum. I’ll figure something out.”
“But—”
“That’s an order, Po. Effective immediately, I’m reinstating my father’s code. The Augusts no longer deal in skin. If Nero has a problem, he can bring it up with me.”
Po looks like he’s debating leaping into the sea himself. “Nero’s going to have a problem. He’s expecting these girls for his NYE party. He won’t be able to source a new shipment in time.”
“Boo-fucking-hoo. I’m crying for him. Perhaps he should have thought of that before he promised bread and circuses to a bunch of sick perverts.” I throw Po my Malloy glare, and I fancy I see his heart freeze in his chest. “Follow me to the club when you’re done here. I’m going to need all hands on deck.”
Eli
“Fuck me, Captain America. She’s been in charge three days, and she’s signed our death warrants,” Antony growls.
I stand with him and George and Gabriel on the gangway over the arena. At least thirty women huddle below. Noah and Po help more of them stagger from the back of the van. They’re filthy and hunched from the cramped confines of the ship. Some are barely moving, their faces blank, their eyes glassed over. They remind me of Claudia’s face after she was hit by the bullet – serene, accepting.
I look at Claudia. She clenches her jaw as her icicle eyes roam over the scene. I know she’s thinking about her mother, and Brutus, and Nero, and Alec, and all the men paying a premium price to do whatever they want to these women. I imagine the tortures I’d like to inflict, but none of them seem adequate for this breed of human horror.
This is what power does to people.
I can’t bear it any longer. I clamber down the ladder and move to stand beside Claws. She won’t want me to touch her in front of her men, but she reaches out a finger and drags it across the back of my hand. It feels like a razor blade.
“What are we going to do?” I whisper.
She glares at me with those glacier eyes. “That’s a question for you to answer.”
“Me?”
“Eli, this is what I need you for.” Her eyes are hard as stone. “You were right to yell at me the other day about the wedding. Beneath this stunning exterior, I’m a seething ball of rage and hate. You remind me what I’m fighting for. That’s why you’re the perfect person to take care of these girls.”
Right. Sure. Okay. I swallow down the panic. My brain starts to spin with ideas, lists, items we need to procure. This is what I do – I solve problems. This is the biggest problem I’ve ever been handed, but I can do this.
I have to do this.
I can’t save Casper and the other animals. I can’t save Claudia from her fate. But I can save these girls.
I drop the gun from my shoulder and step forward. The girls closest to me shy away. I kneel down, not wanting to tower over them. Some of them are so young. Too young. “Hi there. My name is Eli.”
Blank stares meet me.
“I know everything is scary right now, but I’m here to help you.” I know many of them won’t understand me, so I focus on keeping my voice calm and even. I open my palms, so they see I’m not carrying a weapon. “Does anyone speak English?”
Blank eyes stare back at me. I know many of them understand, but they’re too afraid to speak. A woman steps out of the crowd, her chin firm. “I do.”
“Will you be able to help me translate for those who don’t understand?”
“In Arabic, yes. But some of these women are from Southeast Asia and I don’t know their languages.”
