“That bush will have to go.” His eyes rake over me, and I can see the disappointment that I’d expected written across his face. “Fuck, you’re cut to shreds. Or healing from it, at least.” He steps forward, forcing the other women to move out of his way as he circles me. “That’s a fucking shame. You’re perfect in every other way. A bit thin, but that can be helped. Perfect breasts, good hips, long legs. Gorgeous face, thick, healthy hair.” He tips my chin up, talking about me as if I’m livestock, and it’s all I can do not to bite his fingers. “Good teeth. Lovely dark eyes.” His gaze rakes down the front of me again, taking in the scars on my breasts and belly and thighs, the still-healing wounds that are scabbed and nearly turned to scars themselves.
Alexei steps back, frowning. “I might get a decent price for you still. You’re young. Not a virgin and marked up, but there are men who won’t care. Some will even get off on it, although I doubt you’d enjoy being sold to one of them.” He chuckles. “Not that I care what you enjoy, either way. I might take some pleasure in selling Viktor Andreyev’s wife to a dungeon or maybe a hunting grounds.” He glances over me again, tapping his fingers against his thigh. “In the meantime, I’ll enjoy you. Like I said earlier, it won’t matter who fucks you before I sell you, so keep that in mind. Anger me, and I just may let a few of my men take their turn, so long as they don’t leave marks.”
This time, I can’t hide the shudder that ripples through me. The last thing I want is to go anywhere near Alexei, but if the alternative is being tossed to one of the brutes who just looked at me as if I were meat ready to be served up, I will take Alexei. At least for him, I have some idea of how to manipulate.
“You.” Alexei jerks his head towards Sofia. “You next. Ah, ah,” he adds, glancing at me as I reach for my clothes. “Stay just like that until I tell you otherwise.”
It’s clear that he’s enjoying this, and it makes me hate him all the more. I don’t bother trying to cover myself; I know he’ll just put a stop to that as well, and I risk making him angry. I’m flushed with embarrassment despite the cold, my nipples stiffening in the frigid air, and I can’t look at Sofia as she starts to strip down next to me.
“Much better,” Alexei says with satisfaction. “No marks on this one. Except—” He taps her belly, only faintly starting to round, shaking his head. “I can charge a premium for a pregnant woman, but once the child is born and weaned, the novelty is gone. Usually, the child is discarded, and her owner gets her pregnant again.” He smirks. “How many orphans in Russia are from just such a thing?”
Sasha makes a small sound of desperation, and I glance at her. She’s as pale as Sofia, her hands shaking, and she’s kneeling on the floor next to Ana, who is unable to stand. She’s squeezing Ana’s hand, and I’ve never felt more helpless in my life than I do at this moment.
“Please,” Sofia whispers, her words coming out numbly. “Please, just don’t hurt my baby—”
“Do you know the sex?” Alexei asks abruptly, and Sofia stares at him, shocked.
“No,” she manages finally. “I’m not far enough along.”
I can see the effort it takes for her to say that, the fear in her eyes. She’s terrified that Alexei will do something to hurt the baby, and rightfully so. It’s not a difficult leap to imagine him doing exactly that.
“Good,” Alexei says, to both of our surprise. “I might have a buyer, in that case.” He lifts a lock of Sofia’s hair, letting it trail through his fingers before it falls back onto her bare shoulder. “Very beautiful. A shame that perfect body is going to be ruined by a child.”
Sofia stiffens at that, her lips pressing together, but she doesn’t say anything. When he fails to get a reaction from her, Alexei turns away, glancing towards Sasha and Ana.
“The fuck is wrong with the blonde one?” he asks, reaching down to push Ana’s hair out of her face. “Russian?”
Ana doesn’t say a word, only flinches away from him.
His hand moves too fast to see, grabbing her chin and tilting her head up. “Answer me, bitch,” he growls. “What’s your name?”
“Anastasia Ivanova,” Ana manages, her eyes wide and terrified, the words coming out stilted through Alexei’s grip on her chin. “Please, you’re hurting me.”
“Then get the fuck up.”
“I can’t, my feet—”
“The fuck is wrong with you?” Alexei shakes his head, hauling her up by his grip on her chin. Ana cries out in pain, her toes curling as he tries to set her on her feet, and she immediately crumples again.
“Her feet were injured,” I cut in, feeling my stomach twist again at the look on Ana’s face. “She can’t walk very well or stand for long periods.”
“Christ, this one is worthless.” Alexei’s mouth turns down, a look of disgust crossing his face. “Pretty enough, but fucking worthless if she can’t even stand up. And she cowers away like a whipped dog. I ought to have my men come back in here and put her out of her misery.”
“No!” Sofia cries out before she can stop herself, her hand going to her mouth. “No, please don’t hurt her. Please—”
“Oh, shut up.” Alexei spins on his heel, his hand cracking across Sofia’s cheek. “I’m not going to kill her. I’ll find some use for her. In the meantime—” he looks pointedly at Sasha. “Get up, girl, and prove to me that this hasn’t been a complete waste of my time.”
Sasha looks as if she’s about to burst into tears, but she pushes herself up to her feet slowly.
“Good, very nice...” he says creepily, as tears roll down Sasha’s face. In an instant she shrieks, and I turn away seeing his hand come from between Sasha’s thighs.
“Fuck! If only you were a virgin.” He scoffs, angrily.
“So. What do I have outside of used goods? One scarred, one pregnant, and one crippled. Fuck if I shouldn’t have just killed the lot of you. But at least I ought to be able to get something for each of you, except for the crippled one.” Alexei shakes his head. “Get out of my sight.”
All of us scramble at once, reaching for our clothes, only for him to kick them out of the way.
“I said, get out of my sight.” His upper lip curls. “Find something else to wear upstairs.”