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“I know. It is verifying as we speak. However, if it fails, I will take responsibility.”
This was the last news I needed to hear right now. I wasn’t even strong enough to punish the bastard right now. “Estimate?”
“Maximum time would be seventy-two hours.”
“Fine. I’ve waited hundreds of years to find that rune. Seventy-two hours is but a drop in a bucket in comparison. Get some rest, Gio. If this is the right one, then we will have even more work to do.”
“Yes, Sir.” He stopped at the door before taking his leave. “Sir. The shooter at the auction was a friend of the dwarven blond we had in custody. The Suits reported seeing them flee the scene with him.”
A halfhearted chuckle escaped my lips. “It doesn’t matter. I care nothing for that dwarf. You can cancel the payments to the collectors.”
“Sir.” He bowed and exited the room.
So, some dwarves do care for each other, which surprised me. Most were so eager to sell each other out for the slightest pieces of gold to the point where I couldn’t remember the last time one of them stuck their necks out to save another, and yet it happened twice in one night. First my new mate desires to save his father’s life and now the blond’s friends saved him. However, there was still an unsolved mystery. That shooter was a fine marksman as bullets hit the walls above everyone’s heads. Enough to spook the crowd, but hardly anything near kill shots. However, two bullets were on a trajectory toward my mate, a clear headshot. If I hadn’t pushed him out of the way, he would have been dead. If the goal was to rescue the blond dwarf, then why try to kill my mate?
I swear he had more attempts on his life than I did.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
KAL
Days Later…
Water was my passion, but I couldn’t live on water alone and so far for the past… I have no idea how many days, that’s precisely what I was living on. The skin on my knuckles was red and broken from pounding on the door. That open window was looking more and more inviting. Perhaps these titans enjoyed tormenting humans. Banging on the door for another few hours was something I no longer had the strength to do, and my voice was hoarse.
The floor was wet from the rain spilling inside; the curtains blew from the wind, and I was cold; the only comfort was crawling under the blankets of the massive floor bed to keep warm. Was he watching me like some sick fuck? Watching me die in his pretty room? I stared at the ceiling, my mind on my father and how worried he must be for me. My promise to return home was in shambles.
The door groaned open. Was he letting me out?
It wasn’t him, but the titan with the black hair and immaculate black robes, his skin a stark white color the black accentuated. He stared at me through the sheer fabric surrounding the floor bed, and I looked at him, not knowing what I should do. He dropped a crimson and gold tunic and pants, a small bag, and red dress shoes on the floor.
“Thorsten expects your presence at dinner. Clean yourself up. I won’t come for you until you do, and if you refuse, you will continue to sit here and starve.” He closed the door.
I wanted to scream, to tell him and his boss, master, whatever to go fuck themselves. I pictured myself escaping and leading a revolt to end our titan rulers once and for all. But that was just a fantasy. The reality was that if I didn’t do as he said, I would starve to death. There was no getting around that.
I picked myself up and grabbed the items left for me, and then went to the big bathroom where a large floor tub and shower room with several stalls waited. The small bag contained some toiletries and cologne. After my shower, I sat in front of the vanity and combed my hair. I dried it with one of the blow dryers in the room. Once I dressed, it didn’t take long for the door to open. It was the blonde-haired woman who seemed to have a nasty attitude before. Now it didn’t appear that attitude went away any time soon, but amplified twenty times over as she stared daggers into me.
She made me feel small, and although the door was opened, I was afraid to move toward it. “Got your wish, didn’t you? Now you’re the master’s whore.” She turned and walked out, and I followed, wanting to protest but having nothing to say. Hannah and Zane and a few others lined each side of the vast hall with a chill of their gaze. They watched me.
My stomach churned at the savory aroma of food wafting about in the dining room, and it filled me with desperation to eatagain. The blonde choked back her whore rhetoric to introduce me with “The thrall has arrived.”
The servants who lined the walls upstairs followed behind and lined the majestic dining room's walls, I knew Hannah and Zane and the bitch. Still, there were three more faces I hadn’t seen yet, and I wondered if these six made up his staff's entirety. I suppose I would have been servant number seven until I screwed up.
The titan master of the house sat at the end of a lengthy dining hall table. A little step stool waited next to the chair on the opposite end of the table. That must be for me. When I sat on the cushion pillow to give me some height, I felt like a child being allowed to sit at the grownup’s table. It didn’t help that I was totally uncomfortable surrounded by so much gold and glass. Fancy clothes or not, I was just a pauper trapped in a palace.
The spread of food made my mouth water, sure enough meats and vegetables looked like the main courses. Steamed veggies, cubed braised beef, colorful rice, and some other morsels waited for me to devour. The fried chicken legs with a creamy looking sauce drizzled on top looked especially delicious.
His eyes watched me like a hawk. His hair was no longer loose, but braided back again. “If you take a bite right now, you won’t be eating again for a long time.” He spoke, and I wish he hadn’t.
Reluctantly, I dropped the chicken onto my plate and resisted the urge to lick my saucy fingers. Instead, I wiped it with the nearby napkin, wondering if it was allowed. I just wanted to fucking eat!
“Did you enjoy trying to escape? Have you gotten it out of your system?”
“I thought I was a servant,” I replied, looking from the servants lined up near the wall and back to him. It was my understanding that you allowed us to leave the apartments. Ididn’t want to address my stupid escape attempt. Next time I wouldn’t be so careless, if I had a next time.
“You were.” He replied, allowing me to get away with it, I think. “Until you changed the terms.”
“I just wanted—”
