Page 6 of Savage

Ben sighs. “She’s skinny, but she’s not that light. Giulio should try lifting her himself.”

“You gonna tell him that?” Donny counters.

Of course he isn’t. Ben reaches out to pick me up and lift me over his shoulder like I’m a sack of potatoes. Donny helps push my nightgown aside so that my ass is entirely exposed.

I let out a squeak, my cheeks flushing red, and I wish I could pull it down again. I know better, though. They’re being gentle, almost nice, but that would change in an instant if I tried to fight them at all.

Another click from his phone—another picture—and I lose it. The tears start to flow as Ben carries me toward the door. Donny follows us down the stairs and toward the back exit. I catch Traci and Cat staring, and…

Elena stands by the exit, wearing a veil to cover her scarred face.

“Elena,” I say through my sobs. “Please. I don’t want to… Can you tell Giulio…”

She comes closer to me, and Ben stops for her.

“Stef,” Elena says gently, petting my hair. “It’s inevitable. Just try to figure out what he wants and give it to him. You’ll be fine.”

“Why is it inevitable?” I ask, leaning into her touch, trying to take some small comfort from the only mother figure I’ve had in ages. “I want…” I almost say, I want to stay here, but do I really? I’m getting numb to everything, but that doesn’t mean I’m happy here.

But if I go to the doctor, that’s it. There’s no one who cares if I stay safe, if I live or die.

I’ve never claimed to be smart, but I’m not stupid, either.

Giulio just sold me, and there’s not a damn thing I can do about it.

“It was inevitable the moment you ended up in this world,” Elena answers. “Your only hope is to become somebody they want. Remember, bending is better than breaking.”

Are those words supposed to be encouraging? I don’t want to change for somebody else. I just want to be me, and safe, and all sorts of things I haven’t had since I was a teenager.

Donny makes a disgruntled noise. “Yeah, thanks, Elena. We need to get moving. Her buyer is waiting.” Then he turns to look over his shoulder. “And the rest of you, stop staring and go back to cleaning or whatever you were doing.”

I try to breathe, try not to throw up all over Ben’s back, but it’s a near thing. I wish I could say I’m a strong person, someone who can survive this without breaking, but… I’ve never been strong. If I was, I wouldn’t be here now.

I catch a glimpse of Traci’s smirk as we pass, and I squeeze my eyes closed so I don’t have to see anyone else’s reactions.

Ben carries me toward a black sedan parked out back. “Was that dramatic enough?” he asks Donny.

Donny scrolls his phone and shakes his head. “Apparently not. Dump her in the trunk. I’ll take a few more photos.” He pops the trunk of the car and lifts it up.

I squeak, and I clutch at Ben’s shirt. I shake my head furiously. “No. No, please, not the trunk.” My voice is high with panic, and I fight not to completely lose control. “I’m being good. I’m behaving. Please, please, don’t do this. Just… just take pictures and…” I’m crying so hard I’ve started hiccupping, and I can barely even understand my own words. “And let me sit in the back. Please.”

Ben grimaces and lowers me into the trunk. “We could, right? Giulio wouldn’t have to know…”

Donny rolls his eyes and points toward the building. “The cameras are right there. And I’m sure Giulio’s gonna chat with the buyer later, who might notice if she wasn’t in the trunk.” He turns to me. “It won’t be too long, Stef. Maybe half an hour—”

Ben snorts. “Sure. Half an hour, if it was 2 a.m. and zero traffic.”

They’re trying to be nice—as nice as they can possibly be, given the situation—but that doesn’t help at all. I don’t understand why Giulio’s being so cruel about this. He knows I’ll behave, knows that everything will go the way he wants because it always does. “Please,” I whisper. “We could… could drive somewhere… and I could get out?”

I know it won’t work. Someone would notice a girl getting out of a trunk in her nightclothes no matter where we stopped, especially in the middle of the day.

“Sorry,” Donny repeats. That doesn’t change anything. They close the lid of the trunk on me, leaving me in total darkness.

I try to go for the latch I know has to be there, only to discover that it’s been tampered with and won’t move.

They’ve used this car for these purposes before.

Am I going to run out of air? It’s cool outside today, thankfully, so it isn’t boiling hot in the trunk, but… I feel like I’m suffocating already. I just wish I knew what I’d done to deserve this sort of treatment. I’m never going to get the answer to that question, though. Even if I could ask, Giulio would only smirk at me and keep his reasons to himself.

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