Page 13 of Freedom Mine
Chapter Four
KAYO
Kayo hadn’t slept much last night. He had spent the night listening for the creak of the attic door, the soft padding of bare feet descending the stairs, the sounds of Blue sneaking out of the house to escape him, her life as a slave. She didn’t get it, and he understood that. It was too soon to accept that he hadn’t lied to her.
He had never worried this much with any of the men, but he couldn’t get his mind off of Blue. She planned on running; he could feel it last night when they ate dinner. It wasn’t a question of if but when.
All slaves ran, and most came back, once they made it past the pylons. That’s when they truly knew that he wasn’t lying. Oh, sure, the newcomers spoke with the other men who gave them the cold hard facts, but they still ran. They had to see for themselves. Kayo understood that. He’d do it himself if he were in their position. Hell, he had.
Blue was different from the rest, and not just because she was a woman. She watched and observed everything around her, careful not to stand out, at least as much as a beautiful woman could go unnoticed. He’d carried her through the pylons, to show her they’d been deactivated, but she’d suspected it was a trick. He’d seen it in her face.
When the right time came, she’d run. What constituted the right time for her, he couldn’t say. There was a lot about her he didn’t know, including her name.
Kayo knocked lightly on her door, praying she was still there.
“Yes?” Blue said, opening the door.
He’d never known such relief, just from hearing her voice. She hadn’t run, yet. The men came back because they had nothing to fear, but Blue feared him. She’d keep walking once she stepped through those pylons unless he could make her see there was nowhere to go.
“We start early here, before sunup, to make sure everyone gets to the mine on time.”
“Why does it matter when you get up? Isn’t it always dark in the mine?”
She hadn’t lowered her eyes yet. Good. She was becoming comfortable with him.
“The way up the mountain to the mine can be treacherous, especially after it rains, and I don’t have the money to spend on light beams for casual use outside the mine, so we make as much use of daylight as we can.”
While that was true, it wasn’t the main reason for starting early. He liked the men to exit before sundown so they could enjoy the sun for a bit, make their lives less dreary, but that would be changing tomorrow or the day after.
He hadn’t told the men yet that they’d have to pull longer shifts, which meant traveling to or from the mine in the dark. Neither option was ideal. Maybe he’d come up with another idea in the next day or two.
“What are my duties?” she asked, her face tight.
He didn’t have the answer to that yet either. His eyes roamed over her, scrutinizing her grimy dress. Most likely, she’d been living in that filthy rag for weeks. Dirt and sweat matted her hair, though her hands, face, and neck were clean. She’d probably been using a sink to keep as clean as possible despite the filthy conditions in the animal holds used to transport slaves.
He didn’t dare ask her about her previous owner or the conditions in which she lived. The history of who’d owned her, her date of enslavement, and her medical history would arrive soon enough from the Department of Registries, not that he’d look at the details. It felt too invasive. When he bought slaves, he promised them they were free here, and that meant more than physical freedom, it meant giving them control over what people knew about them too.
“There’s an autoclean in the basement. Throw your dress in. Next time we get to town, we’ll look for some clothes for you. In the meantime, rummage through my drawers and find some pants and tops that you can cinch with rope. As for your shoes. . .” He glanced at her feet. With all the mud in the compound and rough terrain beyond, sandals were useless outside the house. He’d have to scrounge through the clothing bin in the men’s dorm to see what he could find.
“After you get washed up and changed, meet me in the kitchen. We’ll discuss your duties here.”
At the mention of the kitchen, her body eased. He didn’t even want to think what she was expecting of him, but she’d taken the first step, by staying. Now it was up to him to figure out how to integrate her into life here.
“Can I use the hose at the stables? To shower?”
Kayo forced the bile down. “Hells, Blue, you need to stop thinking like a slave. Use the shower downstairs. Use whatever you find in the house or on the property.”
He walked down the steps, without looking at her again. She was bringing back too many memories for him.
* * *
He’d thoughther beautiful before. . . What the fuck had he been thinking of bringing a beauty such as her into his home. She stood there in the doorway to the kitchen, the shirt falling to an inch above her knees, showing off long, shapely legs and a figure that had him undressing her with his eyes before he forced himself to stop. He couldn’t touch her, not even in his fantasies.
“Find everything okay?” he asked. She’d chosen one of his long sleeve shirts, a blue one that brought out the blue in her eyes. He knew right then and there that he’d love no other color as much.
“Yes,” she said, still standing in the doorway, tightening the rope she’d used to cinch the shirt at her waist, transforming the shirt into a makeshift dress.
He liked the idea of her wearing his clothes; in fact, he liked the idea too much. It hadn’t been a good idea giving her his clothing, but seeing another man’s clothing on her would have been worse. She deserved better, better than he could give her.
