Page 3 of Maxim (The Syndicates #12)

L ast night was hell. I had no idea what my father had in store for me, but I never imagined it would be that. He’s always hid my body, yet all of a sudden he put it on display.

I have no idea why. What changed?

All night I dealt with men leering at me as I poured them drinks. Thankfully the bar was between us. The couple of men who dared try to touch me were dealt with by my guard.

I wanted to ask Father why he put me on display like that, but it would be a futile attempt. He would never answer me. If I was lucky, he would simply be annoyed and send me away, but chances are I wouldn’t have been lucky, meaning I would have been punished for speaking out.

Life with him has been terrible. I wouldn’t wish it upon my worst enemy. I can’t leave, though. I endure for the two beings that mean more to me than my own breath.

My two younger siblings.

They are pure and full of joy. I shield them the best I can from my father, and he lets me. I don’t know if it’s because he can’t be bothered with them or if he has no use for them, but I’m grateful for it. He can keep his attention on me as long as he leaves them alone.

So last night means nothing in the grand scheme of things. Just another trial I must go through in order to make it back home.

Taking a deep breath, I force a smile on my face as I walk into their bedroom.

“Olena, where were you last night? You didn’t read us our story,” Daryna whines.

“Stop it. She can’t always be with us,” Alek chastises his younger sister.

It makes my heart hurt. Alek used to be more like Daryna. He was blissfully unaware of the horrors of this world.

Father has been calling him away at times now though. I guess he’s decided that Alek will be his heir and should learn the ropes of the business. Seven years old is far too young to witness the shit my father does, but my hands are tied. All I can do is try to comfort him when he comes back to me.

He won’t tell me what Father does with him, but his comments make me think that he knows the evil he is capable of.

Daryna starts to sniffle. “I missed her. You don’t have to be so mean.”

“Shh, it’s okay. Everything is fine. I had to go out, but I’m here now. What did I miss?” I whisper.

“We played outside until dark. Then Miss Melnyk fed us dinner and put us to bed early,” Daryna says.

I look over at Alek, but he doesn’t meet my eyes.

“Alek, is that what you did as well?” I ask.

He glances at me with guilt on his face. “Father had me sit in on a meeting with him.”

I frown. “What meeting? What was it about?”

He gives me a sad look, shaking his head.

Whatever it is must be bad. I don’t push him further. Father likely has the place bugged. I would hate for him to get into trouble.

“Why are you still in your rooms? It’s a nice day. We could play outside again,” I tell them.

Alek shakes his head. “Father has company and told us to stay in our room.”

Daryna looks up at me with sadness in her eyes. “The guard didn’t even let me get Muffy. Do you think Muffy will be okay?”

My heart aches for her. Muffy is her stuffed bear that I bought her when she was a baby.

I never wanted her to know that it came from me, though, so I told her it was a gift from her mother.

She doesn’t need to know the woman left or whatever might have happened to her.

It’s a piece of her mother she can keep with her to help comfort her, even if it’s fake.

I did the same with Alek, but he doesn’t use his anymore.

Father threatened to toss it once. That was the last time I saw the stuffed dog.

So I understand Daryna getting upset about her stuffed bear. It’s the only possession she owns that she cares about.

“I’m sure she will be fine. Where did you leave her?” I ask.

I can’t hide the wince on my face from her answer.

“Outside Papa’s office on the table.”

If Father hasn’t seen it yet, it will still be there, but if he noticed it? It’s already gone.

I won’t let him take anything else from her.

“I’ll go look. You two stay here,” I tell them.

“Yay. Thank you, Sissy,” Daryna says.

“It’s not a good idea,” Alek whispers.

“I’ll be careful. Take care of Daryna.”

He nods solemnly as I step back outside their room.

Heading down the hall, I listen carefully for anyone wandering the halls. There’s no one, though.

Father knows we wouldn’t dare leave. Not with his reach. The guards only stay outside the house to protect from threats coming in.

With practiced steps, I go down the stairs, dodging and weaving to miss the creaky steps. I’ve learned the path well over the years.

Coming to his office, I smile when I see the stuffed bear sitting behind the lamp on the table in the hallway. As I move closer to grab it, my father’s voice catches my attention.

“Olena would make us a lot of money. It’s a good plan.”

I freeze in my spot. What does he mean I would make him a lot of money? He took all my tips from last night, but they didn’t seem like much. I was surprised people were even leaving them.

“I know I would throw a good chunk of my money to finally get a taste of that virginal snatch.”

My heart pounds in my chest as I recognize the voice. It’s Szymon. I knew he paid a little too close attention to me yesterday. My body shivers in disgust.

My father laughs. “As if you could afford her. No, she will fetch me millions. I already have many associates inquiring about her now that she is eighteen.”

My heart clenches in my chest. I’m eighteen now?

I had no idea my birthday had passed. My father never told me when it was.

He said birthdays weren’t important. I had no idea how old I was until this moment.

It’s why I made sure to remember my siblings’ birthdays.

We don’t have any parties or anything, but I always try to sneak them something small. They deserve to know how old they are.

“Han Mǎ, the Chinese billionaire, took a liking to her last night. He sought her out many times. He commented on her dainty hands. Asians and their interest in small women. I’ll never get it,” another man says.

I don’t recognize this man. He must be the guest Alek said Father was meeting with.

“Must make their cocks look bigger.” Father’s words send all the men into laughter.

My heart hurts as my mind runs through scenarios. There’s no way that he would sell my body, would he?

Last night wasn’t him making me get a job to pay him back for all the years of taking care of me. No, it was a dry run for whatever he has planned.

I swallow hard as I clutch the bear to my chest. Tears fill my eyes.

“I better go. I am meeting with the new guy today,” the man I don’t know finally says, his chair moving.

I don’t wait to hear what else they might say. I hightail it back to the kids’ room.

When I finally slip inside, Daryna squeals, grabbing the bear from me.

“Thank you, Sissy,” she says as she hugs the bear to her chest.

Alek looks at me with a solemn look in his eyes.

“What took you so long?” he asks.

I shake my head. “Nothing. Everything is fine.”

He scoffs, looking at his shoes. “Nothing will ever be fine again.”

It’s then that I know that he knows. Whatever is going to happen, he knows about it.

The guilt in his eyes is because he knows and he can’t tell me for fear of what I might do with that information.

I don’t blame him. I can see it as he looks at Daryna.

He can’t save me, but he’s hoping he can save her.

I hope he can too because she’s all he will have when Father does whatever he is planning with me.

How pathetic is it that I am hoping he is planning to prostitute me out but let me stay here?

As I look at the two most important people in my life, I realize that I would be willing to do anything to keep them in my life.

Without them, what would be the point of even living anymore?

Another night and yet another party.

I swear these people need a better way to pass the time.

Music plays overhead just loud enough for the women to be dancing in designated areas but low enough that the men can talk.

I’m sitting in my corner booth, keeping an eye on the room. Several of the women approach, offering their services, but I turn them away like I always do.

I know I will likely have to do some questionable things to prove my loyalty to these people, but I’ll hold off for as long as I can. I don’t want to compromise my morals more than I need to for the cover.

My eyes catch on the woman behind the bar.

Jan’s daughter. Whispers on the street are that his daughter is finally eighteen and ready to be auctioned off.

He’s supposedly trained her to obey whoever ends up with her.

What really sparks interest is her virtue.

Everyone wants a perfect, innocent doll to break.

It disgusts me.

I take another sip of my bourbon as my eyes take in the room. That’s when I see him.

Jan.

He’s headed straight for me.

This will be the first time he has approached me. I’ve introduced myself to him, but I still haven’t gotten an invite to an auction yet. It doesn’t seem to matter how many times I throw my money around. He doesn’t seem interested.

I should be nervous that he is headed over to me, but I’m not. No matter what happens, I know we will take this sick fucker down.

I stand to greet him as he reaches my booth.

“Jan, good to see you.” I hold out my hand to him.

“Maxim,” he says simply, shaking my hand before taking a seat.

I follow his lead, taking my own seat.

“I’ve sent quite a few women your way tonight and even a male. They don’t seem to be of your taste. So tell me, what is it that you are searching for in my club?” he asks point-blank.

Can’t say that the man isn’t blunt.

“I appreciate the offering you have put in front of me, but none of them make my cock twitch. I have specific tastes. I don’t believe they will be met here, but one can hope.” I take a drink of my bourbon as my eyes scan the room.

Two guards within striking distance. Neither seems on edge, so he isn’t going to kill me. What is his end game?

“Why don’t you tell me what tickles your fancy and I’ll see if I can make it happen.”

I laugh. “I’m not sure you can. It’s quite specific.”

“What do you want? A newborn babe? I can arrange it. Nothing is out of my reach.”

My stomach turns at his words. My fingers itch to reach for the gun that isn’t there. They do not allow armed members into this establishment.

Still, the thought of smashing my glass and using the shards to cut his jugular before his goons can kill me is at the forefront of my mind.

The death I would receive would be well worth it.

It wouldn’t stop anything, though. He’s the leader, but he has fail-safes put in place. The show would go on without him. We need to figure out who his partner is first. Take not just the head of the snake, but the body and tail along with it.

“Nah, the young ones could never satisfy my needs.” I swallow a swig of bourbon just to get the next words out of my mouth.

“I prefer the innocent ones. The ones who have never been touched or know what it’s like with a man.

I like to take them and twist them into what I want them to be until they are so dependent on me that they have no reason to breathe unless I say so.

The power over them being the only thing they know.

” I think back to what Nikolai did to Lia.

“I like to brand them with my mark so every other fucker knows she belongs to me. I own her, and it is up to my mercy if she lives or dies. I decide if she is shared or kept as my toy. That’s what I’m looking for.

No offense to your product, but they all looked well used. ”

It’s true too. They came and offered with their sultry smiles and innuendos, but they all looked tired beneath the surface. Well used and torn to pieces. I want to save each and every one of them.

“I see. You like the pricey ones. I could probably source one for you.” He admits.

“I prefer to pick my merchandise out myself. There’s this look they get in their eye. The one that says they might defy me. It gets my blood pumping. I like knowing I’m going to have to strong-arm them into obeying me.”

My eyes flick to Olena as I say the words. She wouldn’t meet that criteria. It makes me question my words, but it’s the cover we put in place for us. The man would likely already know all of this. It’s what we had spread around prior to my arrival.

“I will have some brought in for your next visit.”

My eyes find their way back to his. He didn’t miss me looking at his daughter. I can only hope he thinks it’s because of the innocence comment I made. She is as innocent as they come.

“I would appreciate it. Would you like a contribution to show my interest?” I ask, knowing this is customary.

“Fifty k should be enough.” He stands, so I stand with him.

“I’ll have it sent over via a courier of your choice tomorrow.”

“Great. See you soon.”

As I’m shaking his hand, a high-pitched scream comes from behind us.

My body reacts before my mind catches up. I’m over at Olena’s side in an instant as her guard pulls the man back from her.

Olena is on the floor, so I pull her to stand, but she resists me.

“Stand up. Now,” I bark at her.

She looks up at me, stunned by my tone. She does as I ask, though, standing.

Then I hear the laugh.

Looking over at her father, I realize I fucked up. I showed a card I didn’t want him to see.

“The innocent ones. I see it now. The dom in you. Yeah, I got something for you. Olena, go with Szymon.”

“I did it out of respect for you, sir. She is your daughter,” I tell him.

He nods. “Of course you did. Doesn’t hurt that she’s gorgeous. She’s got a nice ass like her mother did, but her tits are much smaller. She still has her virtue, though. Not sure she would defy you much, but hey, she is innocent.”

He chuckles as he pats me on the back before walking away with his guard.

I stand there wondering what the fuck I just did.