Page 31 of Fighting Gravity
For a while, Spike just left me alone, letting his slave girls feed him weird pieces of raw meat off the table. The girls pretended to like it, but an explosive collar around your neck would make you pretend to do anything.
I sat in the corner, watching and listening and doing my best to pick up as much information as I could from what little I had. I noticed that Spike and the guards were the same species. I noticed they wore very similar suits, even if Spike dressed his up with flashy clothes and accessories. When I bit him, he bled. He felt pain. He wasn’t invincible. That was important to know.
The door into the room only opened for his guards because anytime someone came or went, one of them had to scan their hand on the door panel. I thought about snatching a shock stick, but I hadn’t really seen any of the guards fight yet. For all I knew, they could all be ninjas. I did see Norm headbutt one and break his spike earlier, so maybe they weren’t too combat-oriented.
No matter what, I had a collar on and that was my biggest problem. I hadn’t seen a remote or anything yet and the girls were so well behaved, their collars never acted up. Did they just explode? Was it a one-and-done thing or did they also shock like barking collars shocked dogs into submission?
Soon, another shikari entered the room. Another female, I assumed. Her frame was more delicate and her head spines were dull and swept back at a graceful angle. She was in no way beautiful, though. She still had yellowed, oversized eyes and a too-thin face that looked like something out of a horror movie.
The female approached me after some commanding words from Spike and pulled out a silver disk much like the one Sour Face used on me before. I shrunk away from her, ready to bite her fingers off if she stuck them in my mouth like Spike had, but she just used her little disk to do some kind of reading. I heard little beeping noises and saw lights flashing as she skimmed the disk close to my body, tracing my outline a few times before she pulled it back and nodded to herself.
Spike spoke to her again and his gross voice drew my eyes, which gave the female time to jab something into my shoulder. It was so fast it was like a bee sting and then she was standing, replying to Spike’s commentary.
Great…
I was pretty sure she was scanning my vitals, taking X-rays, and had snatched a blood sample. For what, I wasn’t sure, but I didn’t like those creeps having any of my data. It made me wonder what they needed it for. Was I really going to be the one to help every alien in the galaxy figure out every human weakness? It wasn’t exactly the legacy I planned to leave behind.
I needed the collar off. I was going to kill every last skinny asshole in that place. I swore it.
The female left shortly after she arrived and I remained in that room with my new “owner” and his concubines. I felt gross and on edge and probably on the verge of a panic attack. Either that or the shock sticks had sent my heart into a sprint that made me feel like I was going to implode. Hyperventilation would come soon if I didn’t get myself under control.
Kepler-186f, Kepler-452b, Kepler-283c, Kepler22b, Kepler-69c…
I learned a long time ago that simply counting backward from ten didn’t help me relax. I needed something more complicated. Something that took more brain power to think about. Naming planets and stars had become my go-to meditation when I was about to break down. And every time I named three, I took a deep breath. Three more and I let it out. Over and over, I did it, staring daggers at Spike and telling myself he was first when I eventually freed myself.
When Spike tossed a piece of meat at me like I was some mangy stray, I began getting my spunk back. I was about to put my collar to the test when Spike spoke a few words to his men and two of them strode toward me. I stopped naming planets when they grabbed my arms because there was no way I could relax when their sharp fingers were dragging me toward the table in front of Spike.
One of the females moved the bowl of meat and the other one took the drinks so the surface was clear. Spike smiled, the expression grotesque as the two guards shoved me down onto my back. As if I was the next course, Spike rubbed his long hands together and licked his bumpy tongue across his teeth.
“Get the fuck off!” I shouted, aware they didn’t know what I was saying. Nor did they care.
I started flailing, kicking my legs out in protest when Spike flicked the edge of my oversized chemise and exposed my legs. I roared in frustration, slamming the top of my foot into one of the guard’s heads.
That hurt.
And just like that, I found out what exactly the collar did because a jolt of pain pierced my skull, making my muscles seize for a split second. It was excruciating, quickly bringing tears to my eyes and making me taste burnt blood on my tongue. I went limp for a moment long enough for a third guard to grab my ankles, pinning me on that tabletop like a frog on a dissection dish. Spike’s fingers crawled up my thigh and crept dangerously close to a place I absolutely didn’t want him touching me.
His interest in human anatomy was going to be my driving force when I drove my fingers into his eye sockets. Hate mingled with anger and a desire to survive the approaching violation and all of it together made me wonder what to do next. Struggling again would make that collar go off. Not struggling would make me sick with disappointment. I told myself I would always fight. No matter what, I’d always fight.
I promised I’d never give up again.
I promised.
Tears swelled in my eyes the more I thought of my very limited and horrible options. Spike’s fingers snaked to the inside of my thigh while his other hand cupped my breast, kneading it rudely.
That was when I decided that pain was the lesser of two evils. My body wasn’t for him to enjoy. Balling my fists, I prepared for another debilitating shock to my nerves, but commotion from inside the club drew everyone’s attention.
Something slammed into the door to the room so hard it cracked the weird glass barrier. I craned my neck to look back when the barrier slid open. On the other side stood Norm with an unconscious (or dead) shikari at his side. He had his hand pinned to the door’s control panel, but he dropped the limp appendage once the barrier slid away.
Norm took a long stride into the room, eyeing Spike first before his gaze swept over my body splayed out atop the table. For a short blink, I thought I saw concern in those dark eyes, but that was hopeful, foolish thinking. He wasn’t a knight in shining armor. He was a green demon who was marginally better than the one with his fingers poised to violate me. It wasn’t as if I was better off with Norm, but if his presence got me off that table, it was a damn blessing. I swallowed, entirely aware that my eyes were glossy with tears. Pathetic. If there was anyone I didn’t want to look weak in front of, it was Norm.
When I felt the guards loosen their grip, I jumped off the table and pressed myself against the wall like a cornered animal. Immediately, Norm began to spill the strange language at Spike. My eyes kept switching between the two men like I was watching a Spanish soap opera. For all I knew, Norm was pissed that whatever he got out of the deal wasn’t what he expected. No matter what, I was probably still screwed. After all, I was just the coin. Whatever they were saying to each other likely had very little do to with me.
While they were occupied, I reached for my boots which were still laying on the floor. I didn’t know why, but having them on my feet made me feel better. If I got any chance to run, I wanted my feet protected.
When they ceased their argument, Norm turned, his jaw tight with anger. I stared up at him, tilting my head as he began to walk past me. I wouldn’t have said anything if he didn’t hesitate, but since he did…
“You fucking asshole,” I said through my teeth.
