Page 11 of Secured By the Buyer

The room spins around me as the manager’s words echo in my ears.Fifty thousand. It’s an impossible sum, and not one I can cover. They’ll cut him up and sell his organs to get back their money.

Panic sets in, and my mouth opens and closes, searching for a solution that doesn’t come.

“P-please, just give me time,” I manage, my voice cracking. “I’ll figure out how to pay it off with interest.”

The manager leans back in his chair, smirking at my vulnerability. The scent of his musky cologne fills the room and clings to the back of my throat, making me want to gag.

“Your father and I have already come to an arrangement.” His smile widens. “Not only will it cover this loss, but it’ll wipe your family’s slate clean with us.”

My stomach churns, and anger flares within me like a match thrown on gasoline. I take a step toward my father, my hands balling into fists at my sides. “Did you sell our house?”

It’s the only thing I can think of that would come close to covering the debt.

“Your house isn’t worth enough, kid.” The manager shakes his head. “Don’t worry, though. Your father found another way to settle the score.”

Shocked, my mind races through all the possible scenarios. What do we have that’s worth so much? And why is he acting so smug about it?

I glare at my father, willing him to lift his head. “What did you do?”

Two thuggish men step into the room, their bulky forms blocking the door. The sour tang of sweat and stale cigarettes drifts from them, mixing with the manager’s cologne to create a nauseating cocktail. My heart pounds, my skin prickling with fear as my focus jumps between them and my father, searching for any hint of what’s coming next.

“Your dad made a deal.” The manager smiles like the cat who caught the canary. “And now it’s time to fulfill your end of the bargain.”

The air in the room threatens to suffocate me, an invisible vice tightening around my chest.

“What did you do?” I ask again, my voice cracking on the question, and my father finally raises his head.

“It was the only way.” Glassy, defeated eyes meet mine. “It was either me or you.”

I can’t help but choke back a bitter laugh. “So that’s it? You sold me out? To who?”

His silence is all the answer I need.

Fear takes hold, and I try to bolt, but the two burly men are faster than they appear. One of them grabs me by the arm while the other douses a cloth with a clear liquid.

My heart races with the desperation to escape. I kick out, connecting with the man’s stomach.

Winded, he grunts and glares at his partner. “Keep him still, asshole!”

With surprising force, the other man grips me so tightly that my ribs creak, pinning my arms to my sides. Panic courses through me, and I struggle against his iron grip, whipping my head from side to side.

But there’s no way out, and the first man covers my nose and mouth with the damp cloth. The world turns hazy as my desperate gasps draw in the fumes. My vision blurs, the colors bleeding together like watercolors on canvas.

My lungs scream for oxygen, but with every inhalation, the chloroform burns its way down my throat like acid. My head spins, thoughts scattering as the fight leaves me.

Lashes fluttering, I fall limp in the man’s hold.

Something bitter clings to my tongue as I groggily come back to consciousness. Like waking up with a hangover, only worse, my uncoordinated limbs heavy as lead.

My head throbs, and the faint buzzing in my ears refuses to go away.

Heavy eyelids lifting, it takes me a moment to process the dimly lit basement around me. Bars were drilled into the cement to create a prison cell.

Does a room like this exist in the casino? Or was I out long enough for them to move me to a different location?

I shiver, realizing that my maid’s uniform was stripped away while I was out, leaving me naked. I lie on a cold floor, the chill seeping into my bones and leaving me aching all over. When I touch my throat, bare skin slips under my fingers where my nape guard used to be.

My arms tremble as I push myself upright and peer around. Other Omegas huddle in this cramped cell, all of them looking as lost and frightened as I feel.

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