Page 159 of Stone: The Precursor

She looks sad then. “Three. This is my fourth baby. One died, but the other two are healthy.”

I close my eyes. It just keeps getting worse. “Where are they?”

“I do not know. Some of the other girls say they were sold.”

“How many other girls are here?”

“There are 11 of us. Now there are 12 with you.”

“Are my friends here? The women I came with?”

“You mean the woman with the curly black hair? And the blonde?”

I nod, frantic for news.

“They are not here anymore. They have gone to other men. They will belong to them.”

I start to shake. Jacinda and Kamilah are gone. Oh God. “Where have they gone?”

Cara whispers. “I do not know, but they have gone further north. That is where some of the girls go. They belong to them now.”

Them? Who?The information overload is going to trigger a panic attack at this point. “Will they be alright?”

“If they do not fight they will survive. It’s what we do. It’s what you will do. Life is not bad. We stay here. We have our own rooms. We service El Jefe when he wants.”

Service?Like you would a car or a machine. It suggests that these women are at his mercy. “How often is that?”

“Everyday.”

“Everyday! There are 11 of you! How is that possible?”

“We are on shifts. The newer women take the evenings. The older women who have been here the longest do the morning shift and midday shifts.”

I cannot believe she is talking about fucking that animal like it’s a shift at a hospital or some shit.

“Eleven of you take shifts?”

“Yes. Four women at a time.”

“Together?”

“Yes. We wait for him together and then he performs.” She says it so matter-of-factly.“But for the first few days he will see you alone, so you understand the rules.”

“The rules?”

“Yes. The rules of what is expected of you.”

“What is expected?”

She shivers, whispering. I strain to hear her. “Just accept the pain, try to think of something else. He likes to punish.” She pulls up her sleeve, and I see a myriad of old scars. Bite marks,and what look like cigarette burns. He’s an animal. “I have some cream you can apply to numb you. We make it here, but you must do it quickly after I bathe you, before he comes. El Jefe would not be happy to know you have stopped the pain. He likes to hear you scream and beg.”Cara swallows; her eyes look somber and sad. My stomach churns with disgust. “So you must cry and beg. The more you show fear, the faster it is over. You can also pretend to faint. Some girls do that.”

Oh my god.“How many of you are pregnant?”I ask, needing to hear something else.

“Right now there are six of us pregnant.”

Six. There’s no telling how many children that animal has fathered. He’s selling his own children.

“Please lay down. I will shave you.”