It was all I could do not to focus on the silence and emptiness of the room. Or the fact I hadn’t had anything to eat since yesterday. I would probably throw up if they fed me, though. I swallowed down a mouthful of bile.

I opened my mouth to say something to the girls, when the door wrenched open. My worst fear came to life as a strange guy came down the stairs and grabbed my wrist.

Panic tightened my already rolling stomach. “What’s going on?” The words were a croak from my dry mouth.

He cut me a sharp look. “Shut the hell up.”

As he freed me from my chains and dragged me up the stairs, my legs refused to cooperate. I’d been sitting there so long I couldn’t feel my feet. Tingles and sharp pin pricks of pain poked at my legs and I stumbled. Landing on my knees, I smacked the edge of a step. I let out a cry as pain radiated up and down my leg.

“Let’s go.” He forced out between clenched teeth. “You stupid bitch.”

Getting back to my feet, I whimpered as I took the final step up the stairs. He led me to a room and basically threw me into a chair.

Stay!” he barked.

I stayed put, too afraid to move or even speak.

My heart dropped as John walked in. “You can go now, Alberto. And tell Brian to get the room set up. This won’t take long.” John pulled a chair in front of me and sat. He said nothing for so long the silence fed the fear. But it also gave me a small sense of power.

I dug deep and found my courage. “Why?” I asked, hoping I didn’t make him too angry, but I had to know.

He stared at me as minutes ticked by. I bowed my head, too terrified to look in his eyes. This man had been a part of my dad’s business for the past five or six years. I’d seen him at club parties and at meetings when I was at the clubhouse. The thought that he was behind this sick and degrading business made me think about puking again.

Finally, he shattered the quiet. “Because your dad fucked up.” My head snapped up. “See, your father never listened. I tried to tell him. Tried to make him see how much money we could make. We could’ve expanded our ties, expanded our territory. But no. He said it’d be too personal, like selling his own daughter. He couldn’t see the big picture. What he didn’t realize was that I already had some of the crew on board. I had it all lined up. All he had to do was say yes. But he had to go and have a conscience about it. Out of all the shit he’s got his hands in, he puts his foot down at selling women. Isn’t that just so heroic of him?”

As he spit his vitriol, all I could do was stare. I didn’t realize words had formed until I spoke them. “You think selling girls is okay? That making money off them and them being made to do God knows what is all right? One of those girls is only sixteen years old and you’re selling her as a sex slave! You’re sick!” I spat at him, unable to stop myself.

I never saw his hand until it whipped across my face. Fire followed.

Swallowing my fear, I looked him right in the eyes and lied. “I am not afraid of you, you piece of shit,” I seethed.

“You keep that mouth running and I’m going to show you what happens, you little bitch.” He gripped my hair with his fist and lowered his face to mine. “I tried to stay away from you because Daddy said so. Nobody was good enough for his princess.” I cringed at the thought. He was fifteen years older than me. “So, when you started messing around with that trash Irish, oh yeah, that pissed me off. You walked around acting better than everyone, but I watched you while you whored around. I stayed behind the scenes until I could make my move. When I was approached by a buyer, I knew they would do anything I asked. I only had one request. I told them I had a girl in mind and if they gave her to me, I’d gladly help them. It’s a win-win for me.” He yanked harder on my hair. “I get money for finding little sluts for them to sell, and they give me you.” John sneered as he tugged on my hair and I cried out in pain. Running his fingers down my cheek, he gripped my chin and roughly kissed my lips. Then he whispered in my ear. “When I’m ready, I’ll take what’s mine. What I deserve. And if you fight me, well, honey, I’m actually looking forward to that.” His grin sickened me. He proceeded to yank me to my feet. “Take her back down to the cellar.” Alberto stepped forward and grabbed my arm. “And feed them while you’re at it. We can’t afford to have the merchandise waste away.”

As I was being forcefully pushed toward the cellar, my stomach took that moment to growl loudly. My nerves and terror got the best of me and I giggled. Great. I was losing my mind. All I could do was pray my family found me in time.

Feeling helpless as that prick, Alberto, chained me back to the ground, I pleaded with him. “Please, just let me go.”

He growled. “Shut it. I’ll be back down with food. Don’t try to scream. It’ll only make things worse for you.” Walking back up the stairs, he slammed the door. I heard the faint sounds of arguing.

“Are you okay?” Grace asked.

“For now,” I replied. “We’ve got to get out of here. Somehow.” I said it with as much strength as I could fake.

I could only imagine the disgusting plans John had for all of us, and

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