Page 164 of Scavenger's Oath

Becausehe’shere.

Bennett.

My empty stomach churned when I heard his voice through the thin walls after he arrived.

Knowing he’d be told that I’m here, I’ve been waiting.

Hearing his footsteps coming, my breathing quickens, heartrate spiking.

He walks in like he’s God’s gift to humanity, as if the very dust in the air should part for him. Draped in the dusty white sheet he wears like a robe, red sigil stitched crudely over the section he uses to hood his greying hair.

Derek follows behind, eyes gleaming like he’s been starving for years and just caught the scent of meat.

Bennett looks… pleased.

Smug and relaxed, in that slow-burning, cold way I’ve learned means real pain is coming. Not the chaos of a man lashing out, but the sadism of one who knows he’s in control.

He’s quiet at first, standing in the room, watching me like livestock under auction. So I make a point of not dropping my gaze like I was trained to.

“You’ve come home,” he rejoices, holding his hands out welcomingly. As if I’d run into his arms even if I wasn’t chained. “But you’re not trembling.Hmm...”

Derek chuckles from the doorway. “She’s got some fire now, don’t she?”

“She was quiet when she ran,” Bennett murmurs, stepping closer. “Obedient. Meek. Now she’s sitting up straight, eyes on mine. You notice that, D?”

“Oh, I noticed,” Derek chuffs. “She spat in Neil’s face when they dragged her in. Thinks she’s better than us now.”

Bennett rubs his stubbled chin, looking down his nose at me. Then tilts his head like he’s examining a piece of art that someone dared to smudge. “Two months. That’s all it took, huh? You were with traders longer than that.”

I purse my lips, refusing to speak.

“You think you’re holier than us now? Don’t need atonement?” he scoffs, hand moving before I can brace, fingers digging into my cheeks to tilt my face up roughly. I continue glaring at him, even though it hurts. “Where’d the fear go, Ivy?”

I breathe shallow, gritting my teeth, refusing to show pain or fear. “I’m not scared of you anymore,” I grit.

Derek laughs low, a sound that makes my skin crawl. “She’s cute when she lies.”

But Bennett’s not laughing. He lets go of my face and turns to Derek. “Lying is a sin,” he deadpans. “She’s been defiled. She’s not mine anymore.That’snot mine.”

Derek’s smile stretches slow and greedy. “Then… I can have her, Benny?”

Bennett sighs and looks back at me wistfully. “I gave her everything. Spoilt her. She was going to be my Eve—the first of many wives to birth a pure line and usher in our paradise.”

Fire surges through my veins, boiling my blood. My whole life had been about bloodlines and this lunatic was no different. Just far less educated and far more deluded.

“You purchased me!” I scream. “You kept me chained up andbeaten down. You raped me over and over again.” I scowl at his stunned face, hitting him where I know it hurts. “Youdefiled me!” I roar.

The back of his hand connects with my face. Hard.

My vision sparks, pain flaring through my jaw, mouth flooding with blood. But I make sure I stay upright even as I sway, my vision slowly clearing.

Renewing my glare on Bennett, I spit my blood on the floor at his feet. “I wasneveryours.”

His face darkens. “Yes, you were!” he bellows. “And you were grateful for it! Blaspheme again and I will have your tongue—”

Derek jumps in. “Come on, Benny. Let me bring her back to obedience. I can scour the sin from her. I’ll have her behaving proper again. No need to cut out her tongue yet.”

Bennett doesn’t reply. I brace myself, but he doesn’t hit me again. His eyes flick to Derek as if weighing something, the moment stretching tight as a bowstring.