London

Crewe walked into my bedroom without knocking, his brown eyes gleaming with sinister intent. “I’m having a guest for dinner. I want your hair and makeup to be done. Ariel can do it for you if you need help.”

There were so many things wrong with that sentence. “First of all, I can do it myself. Second of all, I don’t want to. And thirdly, who the hell is coming to dinner all the way out here?”

“A friend of mine. I want you to meet him.”

“Why?”

Crewe walked toward me as I sat on the couch. He looked formidable in his suit. “Because I’m going to sell you to him.”

“What?”

“Part of my plan. I’ll offer you for four million dollars. He’ll think about it for a while before he agrees.”

“Well, I don’t agree.” Crewe wasn’t the best man on the planet, but at least he didn’t rape me when I asked him not to. I would much rather stay with him, even if he was evil, because that was better than going anywhere else. “I’m not going anywhere.”

“You’re my property,” he said quietly. “You don’t get a say in this. Do your hair and makeup or I’ll make it happen.”

This conversation was so overwhelming that I didn’t even think of the last time we spoke. When his thick cock was inside me, and I confessed that I thought he was good-looking and attractive. I was humiliated those words had come out of my mouth, but this conversation was far worse. “No.”

He stepped closer to me then grabbed me by the throat. “Do as I say. Or I will fuck you.” After a terrifying glare, he released me. “When I return in thirty minutes, you better have done as I’ve asked. Or my cock is going in your ass.” He slammed the door on the way out, making me jump out of my skin.

* * *

I did as he asked because I didn’t know what else to do.

If I defied him, he would make good on his threat.

But if I didn’t defy him, I’d have to meet a man who would potentially buy me.

Either way, I lost.

Crewe came back thirty minutes later, wearing jeans and a dark green t-shirt. His thick arms were on display, lean and toned with corded veins protruding from the skin. He had just shaved, so his chin was free of hair.

He looked at me with approval. “I’m a little disappointed. I was hoping you wouldn’t listen to me.”

I ignored the implication.

“Take off that dress.”

“You didn’t tell me what you wanted me to wear.” I stood at the foot of the bed with heels on my feet. I found the outfit in the closet, along with the other clothes Crewe had bought for me.

“Because I don’t want you to wear anything.”

The blood drained from my face.

“Strip down to your panties. Now.”

I’d already stripped for him once. I couldn’t do it again, especially in front of a stranger who wanted to buy me for immoral reasons. “No.”

“No, what?” His hand shot out to my neck.

I threw my elbow down so his fingers wouldn’t squeeze me anymore. “I’m not taking off my clothes for anyone. If you don’t like it, you’ll just have to—”

He grabbed the fabric of my dress and ripped it with his bare hands. A long tear stretched down past my waist, my bra visible now that the material was falling apart. He yanked on it again until it was in two pieces. “You can leave the heels on. Lose the bra.”

“Fuck you.” I’d never been so degraded in my life, stripped and objectified because I was a woman and not a man. I spit in his face and tried to kick him in the nuts.

He blocked the hit then slapped me across the face. “Spit on me again, and see what happens.” His hand unclasped the back of my bra in one fluid motion. It fell down my arms and onto the floor.

How did my life turn into this? “You’re better than this, Crewe.”

“No, I’m not,” he said coldly. “When someone fucks with me, I teach them a lesson. Now you can try to avoid this as much as possible, but you won’t succeed. I have all the control. You have nothing.”

It was the first time I wanted to break down in tears. It was the first time I wanted to weep. All hope left my body when I realized I truly was just a piece of property, cattle to be sold to the highest bidder.

“We’re going to have dinner now. You don’t have to eat. You don’t have to talk. Just sit there.” He grabbed me by the elbow and guided me into the grand dining hall. My tits were out in the open, and only my panties covered my virtue. I passed Finley in the hallway, but he had enough respect for me to not stare.

Crewe pushed me into a chair then scooted me in.

I immediately covered my chest, my lungs tightening with impending tears. “Don’t do this to me. Crewe, please…”

“Lower your arms.” He grabbed both of my wrists and pinned them down. “Every time you cover them during dinner, I’ll backhand you.” He leaned over the back of the chair until his mouth was pressed to my ear. “Accept your fate. That’s all you can do at this point.” He walked out of the room just as Finley announced his dinner guest.

“Sir, Bones is here.”

What kind of name is Bones? The name alone made me shake. Whatever it implied was something I couldn’t handle. Without even seeing his face, I knew I would be terrified of that man.

Crewe and Bones shared a few words about the weather then Bones discussed his life in Rome. They headed to the dining room, their voices growing louder. I sat there in just my underwear, tears burning behind my eyelids. Some man was going to stare at me all through dinner—like I wasn’t human.

Bones walked inside, his face fair and his hair blond. He was large around the midsection, and the air around him was full of tense creepiness. When his eyes fell on me, I immediately covered my face, disgusted by his gaze.

Crewe’s hand moved to my shoulder. “What did we talk about, Lovely?”

I refused to lower my hands, to allow this sick man to see me. He had a thick mustache and evil eyes. He eye-fucked me while he looked at me, having no shame in seeing me as a prisoner. He was more terrifying than I expected him to be.

Crewe slapped me like he’d promised. The back of his hand smacked across my cheek. He put a great deal of force into it, making my cheek redden on impact.

I lowered my hands.

“She needs a bit of training,” Crewe said. “That’s all.”

“She’s fascinating.” Bones walked to me then leaned over, staring down at my body like he had every right to examine me. Then he extended a hand and cupped my tit.

I smacked his hand. “Don’t you fucking touch me.”

He pulled back his fist and slammed it into my face, making me cry out in pain. He pulled back to do it again.

Crewe steadied his hand. “One is enough, Bones. Why don’t you take a seat, and we’ll drink some of my finest scotch?” Crewe placed his body between us, protecting me with his size.

I shouldn’t have felt grateful, but somehow, I was.

Bones moved to the other side of the table.

Crewe sat beside me and asked Bones about his weaponry business. Apparently, Bones manufactured illegal weapons and sold them to the highest bidders from all around the world. I wasn’t sure what Crewe and Bones had in common, but it was obviously something.

Finley served dinner, but I didn’t dare eat a bite. I felt sick to my stomach. The pain from my eye was excruciating. I knew I would wake up with a black eye tomorrow.

Bones and Crewe continued to talk about business, focusing on Crewe’s experience in selling intelligence. They mentioned someone named Crow and his participation in selling weapons to their allies.

I was bored of the conversation but still terrified.

“So,” Bones said as he spoke with his mouth full. “Did you bring her along just to tease me?”

“No,” Crewe said. “This fine lady is for sale, actually.”

“Is she now?” He stared at my tits again, still eating. “How much? I’d love to give her a go.”

I wanted to hurl all over the table.

“Four million,” Crewe said. “The price is non-negotiable.”

“Four million? Are you out of your mind?” Food flew from his mouth as he spoke, looking oddly like a pig.

“She’s worth every penny,” Crewe said with conviction. “She’s got the feistiness you crave. Just last night, she snuck into my bedroom and tried to bash my skull in with a rock.”

Bones gave a hearty laugh, deep from within his throat. “She’s got spunk… I like that.” His blue eyes moved to me again, seeing right through my skin to my untainted soul. He wanted to take all of me, all the things I cherished.

“She’s got one hell of a mouth on her too,” Crewe continued. “It’s one smartass comment after another.”

“Even better,” Bones said. “But that price is pretty high, I’m sure you can agree.”

“Like you can’t afford it.” Crewe gave a charming smile, using his natural charisma even on men.

“Well, of course,” Bones said. “But I spend my money wisely. I can get a nice whore for a fraction of the cost.”

“I’m not a whore,” I hissed. I was tired of being discussed like I wasn’t even there. They joked about my spitfire personality, but they didn’t understand I was just trying to survive. What would they do if they were in a situation like mine? Give up?

Crewe patted me on the shoulder. “She’s right. She’s not. And that’s why she’s better. She was in medical school when I took her, so this will be her first rodeo. She’ll need to be trained. She’ll need to be broken. But that’s where all the fun is, if you ask me.”

Bones took another bite of his food and nodded. “You’re right about that.”

I twisted my shoulder, moving away from Crewe’s touch.

Crewe let me get my way and returned his hand to his lap. “I’ll give you a few days to think about it. But after the third day, I’ll open up the bidding to others.”

“I’ve got to ask, Crewe,” Bones said. “Where does the price tag come from?”

“Glad you asked.” Crewe drank his scotch before he continued. “You know Joseph Ingram?”

“Vaguely,” Bones said. “Name sounds familiar.”

“Well, this idiot paid me with counterfeit bills. He was stupid enough to think he could get away with it.”

Bones groaned quietly, his form of a smile. “That’s insulting.”

“If he had succeeded with an intricate plan, I might actually have some respect for him,” Crewe said with a shrug. “But he did something so amateur. Within five minutes, we knew we’d been taken for a ride.”

“Maybe he thought you wouldn’t be able to track him down,” Bones suggested.

“Well, it only took us two days. We brought him and his men to my headquarters in Glasgow. After a good beating, he doubled the amount he owed me. But, obviously, he never paid up. I couldn’t get the money from him. Instead, I took his sister.” Crewe wrapped his arm around my shoulders. “He knows all the horrible things that will be done to her, and that’s enough revenge. But I’m selling her for the price he owes me—two birds with one stone.”

Bones nodded slowly then lifted his glass to Crewe. “I commend you, Crewe.”

Crewe clinked his glass against his. “Thank you.” He threw back his glass and poured the scotch down his throat.

Bones did the same. “Perfect punishment. But I need to think about it. In the back of my mind, I can’t stop thinking about the number of whores I could get for the same price. Now that I know her backstory, I’m much more enticed. I’ll give her greater beatings just because I know someone is hurting for her.” He stared at me, his cruel gaze piercing my skin. I could feel arousal leaking from his skin with all the unsaid things he wanted to do to me. “I’d love to break both of her knees and watch her try to crawl away. I’d love to break her arm and command her to serve me. But she won’t last as long as the others. She’ll be buried in the yard within a year.”

I forced myself not to shake, not giving in to my fear while Bones was present. But I’d never been so scared in my goddamn life. The sobs pounded in my chest, and I was on the verge of fainting. This man was a monster, far worse than Crewe could ever be. All he ever did was slap me—and that was because I slapped him first. When I asked him not to fuck me, he listened. Crewe wasn’t evil at all—not in comparison to Bones.

* * *

When Bones finally left the house, I dashed into my bedroom and covered myself with clothes, my body finally shaking with terror. I couldn’t catch my breath because I was gasping too hard. If I had to submit to that psychopath, I’d kill myself.

That was the much better alternative.

Crewe walked into my bedroom without knocking. “That went well.”

I’d normally respond with a smartass comment, but I didn’t have it in me.

“He’ll be here with the cash in three days.”

“He said that?” My one hope was the price might be too high. I thought I would be too expensive to buy, especially if I wasn’t going to last long.

“Yeah.” Crewe stood with his hands in his pockets, still looking handsome despite the evil sale he’d just made. “He just needs to get the funds and travel back. When you’re always on the move, it’s hard to get your finances together.”

I didn’t care about the explanation. “Crewe…don’t do this.” I begged once before, and he listened. Maybe he would listen again. “Please.”

He looked down at me, nearly bored.

“I’ll get you the money, okay? Your debt will be paid.”

“You’ve got four million dollars lying around?” he asked with a cruel smile.

“No, but I’ll find it.” I’d sell drugs if I had to. “You’re selling me to get your revenge. Let me buy myself.”

He shook his head. “Even if you had the money, I wouldn’t take it. Giving you to a madman like Bones is part of the plan.”

“No…” I felt tears bubble in my eyes, but they didn’t escape. “I’m begging you.” I moved to my knees on the floor. “Please don’t let him take me. I know you have compassion. I know you have sympathy.”

His eyes darkened the moment I got to my knees. “I don’t.”

“Yes, you do. I’ve seen it.”

“The only reason why I didn’t fuck you is because I didn’t want to tamper with the goods. Your pleas have no effect on me.”

I didn’t believe that. Or perhaps I chose not to believe that. “I’ll do anything. Don’t give me to that psychopath. He’s insane.”

“That’s the point,” Crewe said coldly. “He’s the craziest man I’ve ever done business with—and that’s saying something.”

I brought my hands together, not caring about how pathetic I’d become. I was on the ground like a rat, but I didn’t care. I’d do anything to save my life, to save myself from eternal suffering. “Crewe, there has to be something you want. I can give you anything you need. Anything.” My meaning was clear. I never thought I would offer something like this, but I was willing to sleep with him just to avoid Bones. I’d take Crewe over Bones any day.

“There’s nothing I want more than to make an example of my enemies.” He walked around me, his hands still in his pockets. “You leave in three days. You can blame me all you want, but your brother is responsible for this. Blame him.”

“Crewe, please—”

He slammed the door.

Unable to bottle it in any longer, I succumbed to my tears.