After a night of fitful sleep filled with anger-fueled dreams, I woke early the next morning to the sound of a tray clinking down on my bedside table. At least, I assumed it was morning. It was hard to tell on a planet that had two moons constantly chasing each other, and a sun that was too far away to do much more than keep them bright.

I lifted my heavy eyelids just a little, peeking at my bedside guest. Expecting the sight of some beleaguered house staff grudgingly giving me food, I was instead stunned to see Rylos mixing something in a cup.

"Aren't you going to say good morning?" Rylos asked without looking at me.

I sighed and opened my eyes fully. "What're you doing here?"

"Good morning to you, too." He looked up from the cup. "I'm preparing a drink for you."

"But why you?"

"Why not me, pet? We need to get better acquainted, don't we? I thought you might appreciate me feeding you breakfast."

"Mar-i-on," I forced out through gritted teeth. "My name is Marion."

"Yes, pet, I know your name." He brought the cup to my lips. My stomach grumbled at the honeyed scent wafting from inside it but I kept my mouth firmly shut.

I held out a hand, blocking the cup from my mouth. "I can drink that myself."

"I was being quite literal. I'll be feeding you." He looked so amused I could hardly stand it. "I want to make sure you eat, and that you do so without any . . . accidents."

"I'd rather starve."

"No, you wouldn't. That would be a terrible way to die."

He tipped the cup toward me again. I eyed the smooth white liquid. I had no idea what it was but I wanted it. It'd been so long since I'd had anything worth enjoying.

They'd fed me some sort of nutritional slop for the past year. I was still alive, so obviously it worked, but it was as delicious as it sounded. Grainy, yet slimy texture with a flavor that could best be described as dirt and sadness. This drink, though? If it was half as good as it smelled, it would be ambrosia the moment it touched my tongue.

"Just let me feed myself," I said.

"That will come in time. You haven't earned my trust yet."

"Trust?" I spat out. "You're the one who should be trying to earn my trust."

"You're a smart girl. You know I've read your file." He sat down on the edge of the bed, still holding out that cursed cup. The sweet scent made my stomach ache unbearably with hunger. "The first time they gave you a utensil, you pocketed it and later used it to stab a guard."

"I had my reasons," I countered, eyes still firmly on the cup.

"Yes, well, you seem to find those reasons easily. So, until I know I can trust you . . ." He nudged my lips with the cup.

I scowled at him. He didn't even flinch. With a defeated sigh, I slowly opened my mouth. Hunger had won. Rylos slid a hand beneath my chin, then tipped the cup back. I didn't have time to be angry. I barely managed to hold back a moan when the sugary liquid hit my tongue. I placed my hand atop Rylos's and tipped it back further, hungrily emptying the cup.

When I was finished, Rylos brushed a finger over my lips. His own were slightly parted, a haze overtaking his silver eyes. I let out a shaky breath, telling myself in vain it wasn't because I liked the way he was looking at me.

"That wasn't so bad, was it?" he asked in a soft murmur.

I pushed aside my weird, intrusive thoughts and motioned at the tray. "Just give me the rest."

I was going to let the man who had purchased me feed me like some common house pet. At the moment, I truly didn't care. I was too hungry. My pride had disappeared with that first sip. That was all it took. My sweet tooth had always been truly criminal but this was a new low.

Rylos brought the tray to his lap and I stared at the one utensil waiting on the tray. They reminded me of training chopsticks. Two thin, cream-colored sticks carved from stone, linked together at the top by a flexible material that allowed them to be opened and closed. I'd only seen them once before in the lab.

Only once because what Rylos had read was true. I'd stolen them and then later plunged them into the thigh of a guard that decided to sit in bed with me much like Rylos was doing now—only his intentions had been much worse than hurting my pride by feeding me.

Rylos took hold of the chopstick-like utensil and used them to deftly pick up what looked like stark white noodles coated in a sticky syrup. Having freed a shameless, ravenous being somewhere deep inside myself, I dipped my head down and took them in my mouth before he had even moved his hand.

A small moan snuck through my lips as I bit into the chewy noodles. They were mildly sweet. Less so than the drink, but I was sensing a definite theme with their food. It made that nutritional gruel seem even more criminal than it had been.

I lowered my head again to take another mouthful the moment Rylos lifted it. He reached out to brush something from my cheek, a finger lingering at the corner of my lips. He brushed it along my lower lip, tracing its outline. His eyelids grew heavier with each passing moment. I was certain I knew what was coming before he did. I'd been here before.

"You're so beautiful," he whispered. "Your imperfections are endlessly fascinating."

I swallowed my mouthful of food with a grimace and pushed his hand away. I waited a moment, once again surprised when he didn't react harshly.

"My imperfections? Really? Nice compliment." I shook my head as I wrapped my arms around myself. "And, for the record, you sound just like the Adrax. If you're trying to win me over, you've already failed."

"Adrax?" he asked with a frown.

I barked out a hollow laugh. "The whole reason why we're here. Why we fled from our planet. Have you even bothered trying to talk to any of us in the past year?"

"You're the first human I've ever spoken to."

"So we're not on the radar of Korysti politicians unless you're buying us. That's just fantastic, isn't it?" It wasn't. It meant that we had no hope here. None at all. The Korysti didn't care about what they were doing to us. They only cared about how it benefited them.

"I understand your frustration, but . . ." Rylos made a point of focusing his eyes on mine, unwavering. He brought his fingers to my cheek in a fleeting touch. Gone in an instant. "You have my attention now."

An ache bloomed to life inside me, desperate to be sated—but this wasn't hunger. Not for food, at least. For touch. It was a hunger driven solely by the fact that it'd been so long since anyone had put their hands on me in a way that wasn't forceful. That brief brush of his fingers felt better than it had any right to. Especially considering this person had bought me and called me his pet. You're acting like a fool, Marion. Get it together.

I shoved that strange feeling aside once more, slowly growing infuriated by its persistence. The first Korysti to show me a crumb of kindness, and I was thankful for him to fawn over me like an animal. Honestly, it was barely even a crumb of kindness. It was a speck. Unbelievable.

I nodded at the tray. "More."

"You're even hungrier than I'd imagined you'd be." Rylos chuckled. "What were they feeding you?"

"They barely were."

For a moment, I thought I saw a fleeting frown on his face. But it was there and gone so fast I couldn't be sure. Did he doubt me? I sure hoped not. If he had spent so much time looking at my file, then he would see that I had lost a good fifteen pounds or so in my time there. Not to say losing that weight was devastating to my previously softer form, but I'd liked my body that way.

That had been the worst part about being a captive, aside from the obvious. It'd been hard to keep my sense of self. I had to remind myself every single day of who I was. That my name was Marion and not human or you.

I'd been so scared I would lose who I was after spending so much time locked in a square room. That I might become complacent and give up as I had seen so many others do. I didn't blame them, not at all. It was the easiest to just make the best of what you had.

I couldn't. Even if it made things harder. Because I was the one who'd gotten us into this situation, and I had to be the one to get us out.

After my odd breakfast, Rylos left, but not before he told me his maids would be coming to dress me. Because he was going to take me to work with him. I couldn't think of why he would ever make that decision. He still felt like he couldn't trust me to feed or dress myself, yet he was going to take me out in public.

It was roughly an hour later when the two maids entered without so much as knocking. They were beautiful, of course. They wore their hair in tight buns and were dressed in neat, cream-colored A-line dresses. Both had purple-black hair, silver eyes, perfect skin, and strong, athletic bodies. But like most Korysti their beauty was marred by the scowls on their faces as they looked at me.

"We're here to dress you," one of them shouted, enunciating each and every word. I stared at her in disbelief. When I didn't respond, she turned to the other maid and asked, "Can she really not understand us? After being here for a whole year?"

The other sighed and rubbed at her forehead. "She has translation discs, Solyndi, just like you do. Talk to her like you would talk to anyone else."

All Korysti wore the discs. They translated multiple languages, not just English and the Korysti language. From what I'd heard, it was because they got a lot of off-planet visitors. I wasn't entirely sure why. Maybe it was a tourism sort of thing. I didn't know how this part of the universe worked.

The more rational of the two approached me and bowed her head ever so slightly. "I'm Kastia, the head of Rylos's household staff."

"Marion," I replied warily. "So, you're here to dress me, are you? Not in another outfit like this, I hope?"

I stared at the dresses they wore with envy. Unlike my strips of silky, rumpled fabric, their dresses didn't leave their private bits on display for the world. Must be nice. I had never been one for dresses, out of practicality more so than a desire not to. I had spent the vast majority of time getting mucked up inside the ship's engine room, just trying to keep it afloat. There wasn't a time or place for dresses back then but I'd love to wear one now.

"Well, yes, it'll be similar to that outfit," Kastia said, her hands primly crossed in front of her. "That's how the Senator has requested you be dressed."

"That liar," I seethed through clenched teeth. "I knew he made them put me in this."

"You shouldn't talk about the Senator like that," Solyndi said, her permanent scowl deepening.

I slowly lifted a brow. "Or what?"

With a look of righteous indignation, she opened and closed her mouth several times but nothing came out. With an irritated noise in the back of her throat, she stomped over to my closet and flung open the doors.

"He's done great things for our people," Kastia said, her voice soft, yet insistent.

"He has," Solyndi chimed in from inside the closet. "So have some respect, you classless animal."

"Says the idiot who's done nothing but insult me," I shouted back.

Solyndi stormed out of the closet, hands on her hips. "Kastia, do I have to help dress her? I don't want to catch something."

Kastia sighed. "Like what, exactly? They give them shots at the lab. I asked Rylos and he reassured me."

I couldn't mask my disgust if I wanted to. They were actually talking about me like I was a house pet. Did I come with a certificate saying I'd received my yearly shots? Probably.

"Who knows what's breeding on her skin?" Solyndi shot me a glare. "Humans are such raska."

I wasn't sure what raska meant, but I could easily guess it wasn't anything nice. They would've made sure it was in the translation disc's dictionary if it was something good. But she could insult me all she wanted as long as she didn't mind me tossing it right back in her perfect little face. Something told me she couldn't though.

"Solyndi," Kastia snapped. "Just get her clothing."

The other maid hesitated, her jaw clenched tight.

"Now."

Solyndi jumped then disappeared into the depths of my closet.

Kastia let out a labored sigh before motioning toward the main door to my room. "I'm going to show you to the bathroom while she prepares your outfit."

I nodded. "Thanks, by the way. For getting her off my back."

I might not like my situation but I would take allies wherever I could find them. I wasn't stupid. Maybe Kastia could help me escape later. It was all about the what-ifs.

She gave me a tight smile. "You really should try to be more amenable to your situation. It could be worse, couldn't it?"

I eyed her for a quiet moment, then smiled back. "You get back to me on that when you're treated as an object to be bought, sold, and played with. We'll compare notes."

So much for having an ally.