Page 16 of His Toy

“On the contrary. I’m offering you redemption. You came here to save your sister. You failed. You can change that. But it’s up to you.”

I’m used to picking up the pieces. Hazel runs, and I follow, making sure she’s okay. But there was something Zaid was hiding. The lines connected to his mouth, a half-grin filled with a sense of disgust. He was full of secrets.

“What do I have to do?” I asked.

He sucked in a breath. “You will be Eric’s slave for one night. He will think that you come as part of our business arrangement, a gift of sorts. A toy.”

I bit my lip. “A toy?”

“Eric has been known as a sadist longer than you’ve been alive,” Zaid said. Zaid looked older than me, but not by much. Eric must have been older than us both. Zaid stood, walked over to the wet bar, and poured a glass of dark liquor. “He will torture you. Physically. Sexually. Emotionally. Worse than any nightmare you’ve ever had.”

Instantly in my mind, I was lying in the grass, screaming, holding Hazel. Frantically searching for them. Our parents. Where had they gone?

That was a nightmare I hadn’t had in a long time. I had made peace with the lack of knowledge. It killed me not to know, but I couldn’t let those dreams get to me again.

“He will expect the utmost perfection. The gift of a slave is not an offering taken lightly in our circles.”

Our circles? Did that mean he knew Eric? That they were connected somehow?

“So I’m his slave. What happens then?”

“You’ll slip a sedation drug in his drink. Once he’s unconscious, I will take care of the rest.”

“What do you plan to do with him?”

He walked towards my side of the table, looking down at me. He offered me the drink.

“That is not your concern,” he said.

I stared up at him. I looked at the glass, then back at him. He peered down at me, holding me with his gaze.

“I have no need to poison you, Heather.”

His confidence leaked through the words. He knew he could control me; it didn’t take any poison. There was something about him, the pain behind those eyes. In another world, I would’ve been drawn to him. Wanted to know more about why that pain had morphed into rage. About the scar that was so much more than a mark on his skin. Maybe I was curious. It had to do with Eric. His past with Zaid. With Hazel. Why they were wrapped into this mess.

But none of that mattered. I needed to guarantee my sister’s safety.

“Hazel will be safe?”

Zaid nodded. “I once ran security for a clinic in Northern Arizona. The owner understands the nature of my work. Your sister will be safe.”

“And me?”

“You will be forbidden from leaving this house. I will train you in slavery and self-defense. You may not be a match for Eric or his current bodyguards, but you will have a better shot at survival.”

Surviving Eric wasn’t my concern right now. All I knew was that I needed to figure out a way to keep us safe. Right now, our safety had more to do with surviving Zaid.

“What about surviving you?”

A grin crossed his lips, the scar that crossed his eye made the expression seem jilted. “You think I want to kill you?” he asked. “I would’ve done so at the club. Why get your blood all over my home when they have staff paid to clean up those particular fluids?”

I scrunched my nose. That wasn’t that comforting. But I guessed there was some truth to what he was saying. He had even tried to make me leave Club Hades, and I had refused. He had given me a way out.

This was another way out, though a much longer path.

“Fine,” I said. “I’ll do it.”

He held out a hand. I stared at it; the rough palm, the thick fingers, hands big enough to reach around my neck, down my hips, to pull me in tighter.