AllFreeNovel
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“Everyone’s gone,” I say softly. “I won’t touch you.”
She doesn’t open her eyes, but some of the whiteness fades from the joints of her clenched fingers.
I wasn’t caged for long.
Mostly chained and hung from the ceiling by my wrists.
Thought I’d never be able to use my hands again.
Trying not to flash back, I lift my voice so all the girls can hear. “I was nineteen when they took me.”
The girl’s lashes flutter.
I catch her peeking.
Oh man.
I do not want to trudge through the memory suckhole, but I don’t have siren pheromones to save my ass.
Have to bank on shared trauma.
“My brothers sold me. Half-brothers.” I focus on the girl, watching her reactions so I don’t have to hear the spill of words. “They put me on the stage. After I was sold—”
I choke.
A+ bravado, Sol.
The girl watches my toes through glistening lashes. “Alphas took you.”
“Uh huh. That’s not the future we want for you.” I offer my hand. “You want to get out of here?”
She drags in a breath, hesitantly reaching for help. Just before she touches skin, she finally lifts her head.
Hard-won calm flashes to horror.
“You—you—you—” She scrabbles away, jamming herself deeper into the cage.
Another girl shrieks.
When I whip to find out why, she crouches, tucking her head under shaking arms.
I check behind my shoulder.
No one else is here.
Which means she’s terrified of me.
What the hell?
The girls shake, refusing to look at me. One clutches her knees, the hem of a white gown pooling around her bare toes, but the bars and the circumstances can’t put out the bright spark burning behind the shadows in her eyes.
Brave girl.
“What’s wrong?” I ask, soft and slow.
“We didn’t try to escape.” She ducks. “That pineapple lady tried to make us leave. But none of us went. We kept our promise.”
“I’m those people. We came to bring you home.”
