Total pages in book: 66
Estimated words: 61868 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 309(@200wpm)___ 247(@250wpm)___ 206(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 61868 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 309(@200wpm)___ 247(@250wpm)___ 206(@300wpm)
Their conversation fades as a huge biker, who’s taller and more powerfully built than even Finn, approaches the window.
“Hey, Jack. We missed you last week at Reggie’s!”
“Yeah, sorry about that, Bones. Work is taking over. What are you lot here for?”
“You know, a few bottles and some tobacco. Nathan’s missus is out of town so we’re playing poker. Join us if you like.”
“We’ve got some stuff going on tonight.”
Jack jerks his head and Bones narrows his eyes, focused on where I’m huddling in the back seat, shadowed but still visible in the low light from the shop sign. His eyebrows shoot up.
“Pretty little thing,” he says.
Jack shrugs like my attractiveness is neither here nor there.
“We’ll catch up soon.”
“No problem, man!” Bones grapples in one of his pockets and pulls out a bundle of bills, handing some over to another one of the group who ambles into the store, stopping to talk to West as he emerges from the entrance.
I lower myself back down, trying to be as silent as I can and moments later, Finn and West are back in the truck, bringing a blast of icy night air with them.
I shudder and curl into a ball again, fearing and dreading a cold hand on my neck.
West stuffs the rustling bags at Jack’s feet.
I must’ve fallen asleep again because I’m disturbed as a rough hand, like sandpaper delivering the lightest touch, grazes my forehead. I blink in the darkness, forgetting where I am for a moment, and then jump when I wake fully. Finn is braced with his hands up, palms facing me. “We’re home.”
I look around, finding only inky blackness around us. I can barely see anything outside the glass.
Finn smiles, but it feels more like nerves than happiness.
I’ve done what I need to do. The money is within my grasp. All I have to do is get through the next three-hundred-and-sixty-five days, and then I’ll be free.
Home.
As West and Jack disappear into the darkness, and Finn urges me out of the car, I wonder if I’ll ever find a place I can truly call home again.
2
WEST
BOUGHT AND PAID FOR
My legs have seized on the journey, but the distance from the truck to the front door of the lodge loosens them. I clutch the bag of items I bought for the woman who’s trailing behind with Finn, feeling uncertain about what I picked out for her. It was the first time I ever had to choose underwear and sleepwear for a woman. The clothing selection wasn’t huge, but I got a few vests, sweaters, leggings, jeans, and woolly socks. Finn told me her shoe size, and I found a pair of warm boots that should fit. Maybe she’ll like everything. Maybe she won’t. She’ll have to wear it all, regardless.
I throw open the rustic wooden door, and the smell of home hits me in the face: pine, burning wood, and dust. We’ve done our best to keep it habitable, but none of us are winning any housekeeping awards. The sound of three sets of feet crunching over leaves and stumbling over roots disturbs the silence of the forest, but no one talks. The atmosphere is thick with anticipation, and everything that remains unsaid between me and my two friends, and the stranger who has come to join us in our home.
This is no small thing that we’ve done, and it wasn’t an overnight decision. We all acknowledged that we could do with a woman around the place to make this house a home, but how to achieve it was a hot topic of discussion. Finn misses the affection of a woman the most. Jack was opposed from the start. Women are trouble in his eyes. They can’t be trusted. He didn’t want to bring complications into our simple life, but it was two against one, and he’s fed up with dealing with all his pent-up frustrations himself.
Now, I feel as though I have something to prove to dismiss his reservations. The auction was the only way I saw we could achieve our goal. It’s not like three men can wander into a bar and proposition one woman. The sight of us with our big beards and giant hands would likely scare off even the most eager of women. Putting our attractiveness aside, there’s no refinement in this house. No romance, that’s for sure.
And what we need from this woman isn’t hearts and flowers. Paying for it makes everything clear-cut. She’s signed on the dotted line. She’ll have to get used to giving us what we need, and if she resists, we’ll bend her to our will or send her back with nothing.
Jack lumbers behind me, and his vibes are as menacing as ever.
Finn ushers the woman inside, and she glances around like a frightened rabbit, watching him close the door behind her with wide eyes and parted lips. Then, as if conscious of being watched and appearing scared, she straightens her shoulders and lifts her chin.