My eyes drop to the floor, my cheeks flushing with humiliation before I slowly glance back up at Valentine.
“Please, stop him …daddy.”
“Thank you, Julius. That’ll be enough,” Valentine drawls, after a long moment, with an off-hand sigh.
I blink as I turn back to find Dante rubbing his neck, no longer in the terrifying man’s grasp, and Julius cracking his neck as he tries to smooth out his outfit.
My eyes have to be playing tricks on me. Whatever … whoever I saw choking Dante a second ago wasnotJulius.
Is hallucinating one of the side effects of the drug Valentine slipped me?
It has to be, right?
That’s the only way I can explain whatever the heck just happened.
The elevator slows to a stop, and Julius steps forward to lead the way again as the doors slide open, as if nothing at all happened.
I barely have a chance to glance back at Dante before Valentine is dragging me out by the leash. He doesn’t even seem to notice that I haven’t gotten to my feet as I’m forced to scramble forward on my hands and knees.
Inevitably, the edge of the robe catches beneath me and sends me crashing forward. Still, Valentine doesn’t stop, and I have to clutch at the necklace around my neck to keep him from choking me to death as he drags me the rest of the way out of the elevator.
Dante’s jaw is hard as he steps up behind me, his hands balling into fists as he clearly struggles not to help me.
“Well, here we are,” Julius announces, as we come to a standstill.
Despite my exhaustion, I don’t waste a second getting to my feet before they can start walking again. I can’t help noticing the way Dante’s hand starts to reach out for me before pulling back, and my own internal struggle not to reach for him in return.
We’re so close, and yet, so far.
“I can assure you these are the best of the best, just take your pick,” Julius says as I turn from Dante to find a long hallway stretching out before us.
My mouth falls open as, one after another, lights suddenly flicker to life inside small glass-front rooms all along the corridor, revealing men and women in next to nothing as they stand on rotating platforms.
“Let the girl choose,” Valentine says, pulling me forward.
“What?”
“You heard me. Now, pick one,” he pauses. “Better yet, pick two. A male and female.”
I glance back at Dante, unsure of what I should do. Apparently, this is the wrong move.
Valentine grabs my face, jerking it toward him as his fingers dig into my cheeks.
“Did I tell you to—"
“I’ll choose for her,” Dante interrupts.
For a second, I think this only makes Valentine angrier, but then his grip on me loosens.
“You’ll do no such thing. The girl must choose.”
He releases my face, and I don’t dare look back at Dante as I step forward to get a better look at the men and women on display.
It takes everything in me to raise my eyes from the floor as I come to the first room.
The girl inside can’t be much older than me, her body is soft and feminine, with enviable curves. Glittery pasties cover her nipples and privates, and I can’t help but flush for her as I quickly lift my eyes to look up into her face.
She’s staring straight ahead, unwilling or unable to meet my eyes, and yet it’s impossible for her to hide the lifetime of pain behind them. My heart breaks for her even as I quickly move on to the next room.