Page 4

TRINITY

I wake to the scent of fear and unwashed bodies. The familiar cloying smell I'll never get used to, no matter how many times I return to these cells.

"Trin! You're back!" A too-thin girl with matted blonde hair rushes toward me, relief flooding her face.

I force a smile as I shift on the hard stone floor, wincing slightly.

The soreness between my thighs a stark reminder of last night's activities with the captain.

He was a tad more possessive and I wonder if my conversation with Vael has unleashed some side of him I thought I had avoided. "Just for a little while, Mara."

My gaze sweeps across the dungeon. About twenty human women crammed into a space meant for half that number. They've all been here as long as I have, their eyes hollow with resignation.

"Did you get anything?" This from Elise, the oldest among us at maybe thirty-five. Her practical voice cuts through the murmurs of greeting.

I nod, reaching into the thin fabric of my dress where I've hidden my spoils. "Some dried meat. It's not much, but?—"

"It's more than we had yesterday," Elise finishes, taking the smuggled food with gentle hands. Her eyes meet mine, understanding passing between us. She knows what it costs me to bring these small mercies.

I slide a small vial from my bodice. "And this. For infections."

A younger girl—couldn't be more than sixteen—presses against the wall, watching me with suspicious eyes. "What did you have to do for it?"

"Jessie," Elise warns.

"No, it's alright." I meet the girl's gaze. "Whatever it takes."

The stark truth hangs between us. In this place, my body is currency—a resource to be spent carefully for maximum return.

"The captain says he'll have proper blankets brought down," I add, loudly enough for all to hear. "And he's agreed to more regular meals."

Hope flickers across tired faces. Small victories, but they matter here where expectations are measured in crumbs.

I spend the day helping where I can—washing faces with our meager water ration, braiding tangled hair, listening to fears I cannot ease. Despite my better accommodations, I try to help here. But when the guards come to fetch me that evening, I'm almost relieved. I feel disgusted with myself.

"Captain wants you prettied up," the demon guard grunts, tossing a bundle of fabric at my feet.

I unfold it to find a dress of emerald silk. Expensive. Sheer in places meant to reveal rather than conceal.

"How thoughtful," I murmur, the words bitter on my tongue.

The women help me dress, their fingers deft despite their malnourishment. They know the drill. My success is their survival.

"You shouldn't have to do this," whispers Mara as she helps arrange my hair.

I squeeze her hand. "None of us should be here at all."

When I step into Drez'kor's private chambers an hour later, I'm Trinity the Desirable again. My smile is bright, my posture inviting, my eyes promising pleasures I have no desire to deliver but will.

"There's my pretty human." The captain's eyes rake over me, lingering on where the silk clings to my curves. "I've been thinking about you all day."

"I hope they were pleasant thoughts," I purr, sauntering toward him despite the screaming in my mind to run.

He reaches for me, thick fingers encircling my waist. "I've arranged something special tonight."

My stomach tightens with dread, but my smile never falters. "Oh? You spoil me, Captain."

"A private dinner in my quarters." His hand slides lower, cupping my ass possessively through the thin fabric. "Just the two of us."

I force a delighted laugh as his fingers dig into my flesh. "How intimate."

"And after..." His breath is hot against my ear, his grip tightening painfully. "After, I want to try something new."

I swallow my revulsion and trail my fingers along his chest. "Anything you desire."

His eyes darken with lust as he pulls me against him, hand now moving to my breast. The touch is rough, proprietary. "You feel that?" He presses his hardness against me. "That's what you do to me. Just looking at you."

I arch into his touch, playing the role to perfection. "I'm flattered."

"You should be." His mouth crashes down on mine, demanding and harsh. He's never been so rough with me, but I knew that his act had to be only a matter of time. I part my lips obediently, letting him explore while I try to dissociate from the moment.

When he finally breaks the kiss, he looks pleased. "The other demons are jealous, you know. They all want what I have."

"And what's that?" I ask, stroking his ego while his hands continue their possessive exploration.

"The most fuckable human on this rock." He pinches my nipple through the dress hard enough to make me gasp. He mistakes pain for pleasure and smirks. "And I've been thinking... maybe it's time we made things more permanent."

My blood freezes, though my expression remains coyly interested. "Permanent?"

"You're wasted in those dungeons." His hand slides up to grip my throat lightly. Not choking, just... controlling. "I could keep you here. In my chambers."

Hope and horror war within me. Private quarters would mean regular meals, a real bed, maybe even a bath. But it would also mean being at his constant disposal, with no respite.

Still, I think of the girls in the dungeon. Of Mara's thinning frame and Jessie's distrustful eyes.

"That's... quite an offer," I manage, leaning into him as if overcome. "What about the other girls?"

His grip on my throat tightens fractionally. "What about them?"

I trail my fingers up his arm, making my touch light, enticing. "I worry for them when I'm not there. They look to me for... guidance."

"Not your concern anymore." His voice hardens.

I press gently against his chest, just enough to look up at him through my lashes. "But it would ease my mind to know they're cared for. When I'm... focusing all my attention on you."

His eyes narrow, but I can see him considering the implications. A happy, willing bedmate versus one distracted by concerns.

"Fine." He slides his hand down to grope my breast again. "I'll see about getting their rations increased. But you'll be mine exclusively. No more being passed around."

The relief is genuine, though I mask it as gratitude. "You're so generous, Captain."

"Remember that when you're on your knees later." He presses his mouth to my neck, teeth grazing my skin. "Now pour the Amerinth. I'm hungry—and not just for food."

I detach from his grip with practiced grace, moving to the decanter while his eyes track my every movement. The emerald silk whispers against my skin, a constant reminder of how exposed I am.

As I pour the purple liquid, I catch my reflection in the polished metal of a wall sconce. I barely recognize myself in this perfect mask of desire and compliance.

But behind my eyes, where he can't see, there's steel. I'll endure. I'll manipulate. I'll do whatever's necessary.

For now, the girls will eat better. They'll have blankets. Small victories in a war I'm fighting one degrading night at a time.

The morning after becoming the captain's exclusive plaything is a blur of servitude. I'm shuffled between his quarters and the communal baths, where demon attendants scrub me raw under his orders. My skin stings from their harsh ministrations, but I endure it with a practiced smile.

"The captain likes his possessions spotless," a horned attendant remarks, her nails digging into my scalp as she washes my hair.

I meet her gaze in the mirror. "Then I shall be immaculate."

By evening, I'm dressed in another revealing creation—midnight blue that drapes like water over my curves, strategic cutouts exposing the sides of my breasts and the curve of my hip. The captain had it sent to his chambers specifically for tonight's occasion.

"A garden stroll," he'd announced over breakfast, his hand possessively resting on my thigh under the table. "I want everyone to see what's mine."

Now, as we walk the winding paths of the palace gardens, I understand the true purpose of this outing. This isn't about romance. It's about ownership—a demon parading his prized pet.

The gardens of Galmoleth are nothing like the practical herb plots of my human village.

Twisted trees with blood-red leaves tower overhead, their branches forming archways across the path.

Flowers that would never grow on Protheka bloom in riotous colors—some glowing faintly in the gathering dusk, others closing their petals as if shy of our presence.

"Beautiful, isn't it?" Drez'kor's palm slides down my bare back, lingering at the base of my spine. "Almost as beautiful as what I have right here."

I lean into his touch, a calculated move that makes him growl with approval. "The gardens are magnificent. I've never seen aracin blossoms growing away from the beaches before."

"Our mages adapted them." His hand dips lower, cupping my ass through the thin fabric. "I can have some sent to our chambers if you'd like to see them up close."

"That's very thoughtful." I force warmth into my voice even as his fingers dig into my flesh.

We round a corner, coming upon a secluded alcove surrounded by luminous blue flora. The captain pulls me roughly against him, his mouth finding my neck.

"I've been thinking about this all day." His breath is hot against my skin, one hand already bunching up my skirt while the other grips my breast hard enough to bruise. "About bending you over right here where anyone might see."

I arch into him, playing my part even as my stomach churns. "What if someone comes?" I ask breathlessly, making it sound like excitement rather than dread.

"Let them watch." His tongue traces my collarbone as his hands grow more insistent. "Let them see that you're mine."

His fingers find bare skin where my dress parts at my thigh, sliding upward with clear intent. I press my palms against his chest, not pushing him away—never that—but guiding him to a stone bench mostly hidden by towering plants with purple fronds.

"Why not here?" I suggest, my voice a practiced purr. "So you can watch my face while I pleasure you."

His eyes darken with lust. "Always so eager to please."

"Only for you, Captain." The lie tastes bitter, but I coat it in honey and let it fall from my lips.

He sits heavily on the bench, pulling me onto his lap so I straddle him. His hands immediately push my dress higher, exposing me to the cool night air. I suppress a shiver that has nothing to do with the temperature.

"I should fuck you right here," he growls, gripping my hips so tightly I know there will be bruises tomorrow. "Make you scream loud enough for the whole palace to hear."

I roll my hips against him, feeling his arousal. "I wouldn't be able to stay quiet anyway."

His laugh is dark as one hand tangles in my hair, yanking my head back to expose my throat. "That's what I like about you, human. Always so?—"

"Captain Drez'kor." A sharp voice cuts through our moment.

I feel his body tense beneath me, his grip tightening painfully in my hair before he releases me. Relief floods through me so intensely I nearly sag against him.

"What?" he snaps, not bothering to adjust my clothing or his own posture.

A demon guard stands at attention a respectful distance away, his eyes carefully averted from my exposed state. I casually tug my dress down, grateful for the interruption even as I maintain my mask of disappointment.

"Urgent message, sir. Commander Vex'thal requests your immediate presence."

The captain curses, shoving me off his lap with enough force that I stumble. I catch myself against the bench, quickly straightening my dress with fingers that tremble slightly with relief.

"This better be important," Drez'kor snarls, adjusting his clothing. He turns to me, grabbing my chin roughly. "Wait in my chambers. Be ready when I return."

"Of course." I lower my eyes submissively. "I'll make sure everything is to your liking."

He grunts, releasing me with a little push before stalking after the messenger. I watch him go, maintaining my posture of eager anticipation until he disappears around the curve of the path.

Only then do I allow myself a single, shuddering breath, my shoulders sagging as the tension drains from my body. The reprieve is temporary—he'll return eventually, probably angrier and more demanding for having been interrupted—but for now, I'm alone.