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“I’m feeling strong,” I say, settling on a partial truth. I do feel strong. After being reunited with Luka, I feel more confident about my chances of getting out of here.
Kari furrows her brow and crosses her arms over her chest. “That’s good, I guess.”
“It is,” I agree, hoping to keep Kari from worrying about me. “I’m one day closer to getting out of this inn.”
Another partial truth. No matter what happens with the auction, I will be leaving the inn on Wednesday.
I just hope to God that it’s at Luka’s side, as a free woman.
Suddenly, Kari grabs my arm and pulls me to a stop. Her eyes are wide, and she looks up and down the hallway nervously before she speaks. “It is in your best interest to accept your fate.”
“Kari,” I sigh. “I’m not delusional. I know—”
“No,” she says, cutting me off. “I’ve seen so many women come through here thinking their life will be one way when they leave. They are rarely ever right. To protect yourself, it would be best for you to accept the fact that you will always be someone’s property. Thinking you’ll be free again is a pipe dream.”
She stares at me for a few seconds, trying to drive home the point, before she starts walking again.
“How long have you been here, Kari?” I ask quietly.
“Four years.”
The two words are cold and devoid of emotion, but they send a shiver up my spine.
* * *
When we get to the lounge, the bidders haven’t arrived yet, but all of the other women are standing in front of the fireplace like they are ready to take a group picture. The taller women are in back with the shorter in front, and Edgar is standing in front of them like a photographer without a camera. When he sees me and Kari walk in, he waves for me to join the group.
“Number Seven, finally.” Then he brushes Kari aside. “Go wait in my room.”
Without hesitation, Kari lowers her head and walks back down the hallway.
I move to stand at the edge of the group, but Edgar directs me to the center in the back row. “The best seat for our most expensive girl.”
He says it like a compliment, but it feels like a slap in the face.
The other women barely move out of my way as I squeeze in, so I end up jostled back and forth between them, and I can’t even be angry. If Edgar is going to show me any special attention at all, it means they will hate me. I understand it.
As I’m moving into position, I glance up at the electronic bidding board and see that there is already a bid for me for the day. I am the only woman who has been bid on this early in the day. I hope it is from Luka, but next to the number is a maroon dot. I didn’t notice those the day before, but I guess it signifies who made the bid.
My only theory is that the color of the masks coordinates with the dot on the screen. Luka is black, not maroon. There was a man in a maroon mask, and he bid on me last night.
I suspect he is already bidding on me again, and my stomach flips.
When I make it to the middle of the row, I realize Maddie is standing next to me. She gives me a nervous smile as I approach, and I tip my head.
She looks younger today. She is in another purple dress, but her hair is pulled away from her face in a low twist that cascades down her back, and it highlights the softness of her cheeks.
For her sake, I have to be strong. I have to show her how to get through this week.
And then I have to save her.
“Now that you are all here,” Edgar says pointedly to me. “I want to talk about what we expect from each of you.”
As if they don’t already expect enough. Several of these women were taken to bed by strangers last night. Surely, Edgar doesn’t have the audacity to expect more of them.
Unfortunately, he does.
“You need to be friendlier to the guests,” he says. “I want more smiles and flirting and enticing these men to want you or you will all be punished.”
