Beast One growls when his friend crumples beside him gasping for air. “That puckered burn mark must sting the ego a little, huh?” I blurt before thinking better of it.
Shit.
Primal instinct kicks in the second the other one realizes what I’ve done and reaches for me. My pulse hammers and there’s only so far I get before Beast One catches me, slings me under his arm, and stalks toward the door with me in tow.
“Stop playing. Unlock her chains and let us go.”
Beast Two, choking and looking like he wants to pass out, stumbles to his feet with murder in his eyes. He reaches over and releases my chains from locks with a set of keys.
“If they don’t buy this one. I’ll take her.” His voice is strained but that only makes his threat sound more ominous. “Teach her manners and how to obey her master. Make her my ashtray.”
“Yeah, fuck you. I’m no one’s pet,” I spit out but a hand muffles my next words.
I claw and thrash against the other one’s side but his size keeps the vital parts of his body out of reach. Until he slips up and lets my unchained feet touch the ground. Two seconds is all it takes for me to turn the tables a little in my favor. I lunge up, knee raised, and drive home with the force of a sledgehammer. All my past horrors come rolling back and I’m right back where I was five years ago inside my head. Tied down, shackled, and willing to do anything to fight for my life and my sister’s.
But apparently, this guy’s balls are made of some kind of steel. Beast One barely flinches. He just growls down at me and I swear to God he looks at me like we just had a round of foreplay.
But his hand gripping the wall is a strong indicator I got to him and not in a good way.
“I like my woman to have some fight in her.”
He takes a step toward me.
“I’m not your woman, asshole. You can go fuck yourself.”
I seriously need to shut up.
I retreat and prepare for just about anything from these two. Beast One hisses, shoves me into his friend’s meaty hands, and glares at me so hard I’m contemplating if these are my last few minutes on this planet.
“Get her cleaned up,” he growls and throws a hand out. Chunky fingers wrap around my throat and those dots from earlier come back to swirl in my vision. I claw at his hand but he only squeezes tighter. My lungs scream for air. I brace my hands around his, but he’s not budging. My knees are ready to give and just as the vision starts to blacken, I can suddenly breathe again.
“You’re getting sold at tonight’s auction. If no one plucks money down for you, you’ll make a good whore for the club. Volkov will love you. But first, we’ll take a lot of pleasure breaking you in for your new job.”
Visions of the life he paints make my stomach fill with acid.
Beast Two takes my hair between his fingers and twirls the ends with a look of detachment on his face. “Antonov hears the Volkovs are selling on their own; he’ll slit all our throats.”
“This is our city. Not theirs. Remember that,” Beast One grunts.
“Won’t it be some irony if that Savage asshole buys her?”
“Keep your mouth shut.” There’s a tense moment between them before the smaller asshole nods.
Whoa. What was that about?
“She needs her cuts properly tended to, and cover her bruises. Then get her lined up with the rest. We have to move the merchandise quickly. The bosses will want this one gone by the evening. Trouble makers don’t make good long-term pets.”
I didn’t need his deeper meaning spelled out.
My gaze swings to the other man, unbelieving of the conversation passing between them. Like I’m not standing right there hearing their nefarious plans.
My view is blocked by these two thugs that I only catch a hint of someone in a leather jacket behind them. His hair is long and pulled into a knot on the back of his head. I watch in horror as he disappears inside my cell only to exit with my lifeless friend. Edges of his neck tattoo peeking out of his collar are the last thing I see before he’s gone.
Noooo. My heart wails with grief.
“And that one?” Beast Two jerks his head in the direction the guy in leather took Ellie.
“You can explain to the bosses how you killed another one.”