Page 38 of Freedom Mine
“Get out of my way,” she demanded, hoping her voice wasn’t shaking like the rest of her.
He and Tieg didn’t move. Her hand went to her pocket. No knife. She’d have to chance it. The longer she stayed here, the more brazen they’d become. “I have to get back to work,” she said as she tried squeezing past the men.
Bawson grabbed a fistful of her hair, yanking her to him. He sniffed her hair before lowering his lips to her ear. “You set us back quite a bit, Blue. Four, five times the cost of one of us.”
“Wasn’t my choice. Let me go!”
“Just getting to know you, is all,” Bawson said as he ran a hand down her side to her waist. “You’re right, though. That wasn’t your decision. That was Kayo’s, and the man has an eye for talent. Right, Tieg?”
“Used to think so, until he bought her. At least we’re earning our keep and our freedom.”
“Don’t be so hard on the girl, Tieg. She’s earning her keep too. Days on her feet here with us, nights on her back with Kayo.”
“Back to work!” Jace shouted from down at the mine entrance. He and Diggs had just come out of the mine and were carrying a heavy piece of equipment. Jace’s face twisted in anger, but he couldn’t drop the machinery to intercede. The protruding blade swung up against his body. He’d sever his arm if he moved too quickly.
“Can’t deny the boss some pussy, especially when he owns it,” Tieg whispered so Jace wouldn’t hear. “Just wish he’d share.”
“Nah, he’s got plans for her,” Bawson said as he squeezed her bottom. “She’s an investment, like this mine. She just doesn’t know it yet. The mine’s not producing. When Kayo gets desperate, he’ll rent her out. Wait and see. Happens all the time, and it works, too. Not much pussy around here, so he’ll get thirty, maybe forty parchas for her, per night.”
“Have you gone deaf, Bawson?” Jace slammed a pipe against his palm as he bounded over.
Bawson released her, sliding his hands to his back so smoothly Jace wouldn’t know he’d been holding her.
Alli pushed past him and Tieg and ran past Jace without stopping. She ran as hard as she could, past the mine entrance, the shack, and down the mountain. She shouldn’t listen to anything Bawson and Tieg said, but they had every right to be mad, as did Masher and the others.
Kayo had poured all his funds into her and she wasn’t giving anything back in return. They didn’t need her on the mountain. Kayo had given her a pity job, something to make her feel worthwhile and justify his purchase.
Bawson, though crude, was a smart guy. She had value, and that would land her back on the auction block sooner or later, it always did. Kayo could return her, sell her privately, or rent her out if he got desperate enough.
* * *
KAYO
Kayo paced on the porch, waiting for Jace to return. Something had happened up at the mine. Alli had run into the house an hour ago, two hours earlier than usual. He’d been working across the yard on the roof of the longhouse when he’d spotted her running by, tears in her eyes.
Before he could get down from the roof, she’d locked herself in her room. Kayo tried everything to get her to open the door, but she refused. He thought of going up to the mine to find out what had happened, but he didn’t want to leave her, not with her so upset.
Hells, he couldn’t stand there any longer with her up there crying. He raced up the steps to the attic again and knocked lightly on the door.
“Alli, please let me in. I just want to talk, to see if you’re okay. I promise I haven’t taken a drink all day. I won’t do anything stupid.”
Slowly, the door inched open, and bright blue eyes peered out at him. Her eyes weren’t red from crying, but she was wringing her hands and biting her lower lip. She’d changed from her shirt and pants into what he considered her slave dress.
He should have burned the damn thing, but he’d left that up to her. He hadn’t seen her wear that since the day she had arrived. Why now?
Dried mud still clung to her hair, and he wasn’t sure what to make of that either. This reserved, cautious woman before him wasn’t his brave Alli who pushed him away with the spirit of a fighter. No, this was a slave whoknew her place.
“How about that walk now?” He held out his hand for her.
She nodded but said nothing as she left her room. Though she walked alongside him, she kept her hands locked in front of her, giving him no opportunity to hold her hand. They walked along the fence bordering Garitt’s property where the flat and tree-lined area offered scenery and privacy for strolling.
“Talk to me, Alli, please.”
“About what?” she asked, her mind elsewhere.
“Did someone bother you up at the mine?”
She tensed and then tried to hide her reaction by turning away.
