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I think about what she says, and I guess it makes sense. I don’t know how old I am. I remember what my trainer said to me before I left, how he’d kept me for longer than he needed to. It makes me cold inside when I think about him, and my skin shivers when I remember his hands touching me.
“My trainer told me that he held me back because he enjoyed me. There was no measure of time in that place. I don’t know how long I was there. I’m sorry I can’t be more helpful.”
“Things will come back to you,” Maddy assures me, “In the meantime, if you remember anything, no matter how small, you bang on that door and tell me, even if it's the middle of the night, okay?”
“I will,” I promise her.
“Only me…”
I turn my head when I hear another female voice. The girl who’s let herself in has silky black hair that reaches all the way to her waist and the most beautiful colored skin.
“I’m not interrupting, am I?” she checks.
“Not at all. Come take a seat,” Maddy welcomes her.
“Shaniya,” she introduces herself to me, holding out her hand. I take it and let her shake. She wasn’t at the club last night, but I remember her from the night I arrived here. She’d been the first person to welcome me, thinking I was the person Screwy was supposed to have saved.
I don’t like the thought of him saving anyone else. That’s selfish of me. I hate to think of anyone still at that place, and from what Clara told me, there were other girls there too. I wasn’t the only person for sale at the auction.
Still, the thought of Screwy holding someone else, the way he’d held me, places an unfamiliar discomfort in my chest.
“How are you settling in?” Shaniya looks sympathetic. I can instantly tell that she’s a good person from the warm glow that's set around her.
“I feel good.” I decide to leave out the part about missing Screwy whenever he’s away from me.
“You know, when you're ready, you should really talk to Grace. She’s a fully qualified counselor now. She could really help you.” I smile at Shaniya's suggestion, but in reality, the last thing I want to do is talk about some of the things that happened in that room. I don’t want to unearth the thoughts that went through my head when I was scared and saw no way out.
“She might be able to help you get your memory back, too,” Maddy agrees.
“I’ll think about it.” I nod back. I remember meeting Grace last night at the club. She, like all the others, seemed so friendly and accepting.
“Anyway, I have exciting news.” Shaniya, thankfully, changes the subject.
“Oh, I love exciting news.” Maddy's blue eyes spark as she pushes down her laptop screen, ready to hear it.
“The cabin is finished, so me and Troj are having a party to celebrate tonight. Everyone's invited–even some of the tribe are coming. My uncle too.”
“That will be interesting,” Maddy laughs.
“Which is why I'm counting on you and Jessie to be there.” Shaniya turns to me. “You and Screwy too. It will give you a chance to meet everyone properly.”
“I don’t know if that’s a good idea.” I suddenly remember everyone's reaction when Screwy first brought me into the clubhouse. The girls were kind but the men… some of them really scared me.
“You think people are mad at you?” Shaniya says, like she has the ability to read my mind. “No one is mad at you. They’re all mad at Scre—” she stops mid-sentence when Maddy shakes her head at her.
“It’s all fine now–the club are dealing with it. You’re very welcome here, Lydia,” Maddy assures me.
I have so many questions I want to ask about ‘the club’ and this strange place where I’ve found myself, but I nod gratefully instead of asking them.
“I’m taking that as an acceptance,” Shaniya tells me before looking at Maddy. “And what about you?”
“I’ll be there for sure, but I don’t think I’ll be coming with Jessie,” Maddy answers, making a long, exhausted sigh.
“He’s still refusing to come home?” Shaniya asks, showing her pity.
“I don’t know how I can make him understand. It's tearing me up, and I’m trying to keep busy and stay focused, but I need him to forgive me.”
“What did you do?” The words come out before I’ve had time to stop them, and both the girls look at me with the same blank expression. “I’m sorry, that was rude of me. You don’t have to answer that.” God, I hate myself for being so awkward.
