Total pages in book: 37
Estimated words: 34939 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 175(@200wpm)___ 140(@250wpm)___ 116(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 34939 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 175(@200wpm)___ 140(@250wpm)___ 116(@300wpm)
“You good?”
“I’m sorry I freaked out. I shouldn’t have thrown something at you. I don’t even know what it was.”
“Surprised you didn’t freak out before then. We’re not exactly what I’d call a restful bunch. It seems like you’ve been through the wringer. Just know you’re safe here. We’ll all protect you. And just between you and me?” He grinned at me. “I’d have thrown something at me long before you did. Don’t worry about any of it. You’re safe. I swear it.”
“Thank you. For this and for before.” I wanted to look up into his face but couldn’t bear to see pity shining there. Because, honestly, how could these men and women who were so strong and put together not pity someone like me? And they didn’t know the full story.
“You’re welcome.” He urged me to the couch. “Sit.”
Even though I was uncomfortable with so many strangers I owed them whatever time they wanted from me. They had questions. The least I could do was give them any answers they wanted.
A man sitting across from me spoke matter-of-factly. “I know there’s a lot of people here, Nyla. I’m sorry you haven’t had time to get to know us before we start throwing questions at you, but we need to understand what we’re facing here. I’m Sting, the president of Iron Tzars. You’ll meet my wife, Iris, shortly. Brick was at the gate after Eagle and Blaze brought you inside. He’s my vice president. You’ll also meet his woman and her sister.”
“Yes. I remember. Thank you for letting me stay.” I tried to look at the big man in question, but couldn’t. I knew better. I was never supposed to catch the attention of anyone. The easiest way to do that was to meet their gaze. It was a rule I’d forgotten over the last hour, but I needed to put my guard back up. These people were helping me now, but God only knew how long that arrangement would continue.
“No thanks necessary.” Brick sounded kind. Not harsh like he had at the gate. He was quite possibly the biggest man I’d ever seen, yet he managed to blend into the background when he chose. At the gate he was terrifying and very much in charge. Now, he sat very still and spoke softly. I wondered if that was for my benefit or if he was always like this when not in a hostile environment. Even as big and intimidating as he was, Brick knew how to diminish his presence. I’d only seen a couple of men in my life who either had that ability or the patience to develop it. Most simply steamrolled their way through any situation giving them pushback.
“Do you feel up to talking with us?” Sting asked. “I know I’m pushing you by being here now, but the sooner we know what we’re facing, the better we’ll be able to protect you.”
“I’m so sorry,” I said. “I didn’t want to get anyone else involved, but I didn’t really have a plan other than running like hell. If you hadn’t been at the gate when I first got there, they’d have dragged me back and probably killed me.”
“When did they take you?” Sting was persistent but gentle in his tone of voice. As much as I didn’t want to talk about any of this, I owed them an explanation if I expected any help from them. If I’d known how to help myself, I’d have left and gone my own way. I didn’t have that ability and I knew it. I’d been cut off from the world my entire life. Sure, a few of the men I’d been given to had allowed me access to television so I wasn’t completely ignorant, but never having lived on the outside, I knew just enough to know I had no hope of making it on my own. Not without someone explaining things to me.
“Those two got me about three weeks ago.”
There was silence, and I knew Sting expected me to continue but I didn’t really know what to tell him.
“So, they’ve had you for three weeks. They tried to say your father told them to keep you and convince you to keep your mouth shut. That sound right?”
I shrugged.
“Come on, honey.” I jumped when Eagle spoke even though his voice wasn’t loud. He leaned in and made his words soft and cajoling close to my ear. “No one’s gonna hurt you or judge you or not believe you in general. Just tell Sting what happened so he can look into the situation. We don’t like to make decisions without verifying all the facts.” Eagle sounded like he was choosing his words carefully. Like he was trying to tell me something without actually spelling it out.
“I belong to a man called Milo. He gives me to people. Sometimes.” My voice was barely above a whisper. It was all I could manage. Thinking about what Milo would do to me when he caught me made me want to vomit. No one left Milo. Ever.