Page 7 of Hidden By the Convicts
“Not on Narkos. I’m a soldier. I can lead men, strategize, and fight. None of these are qualities Dresden wants in a prisoner.”
“You’re underestimating yourself again,” Gavin said. “You run the planting and harvesting like a well-oiled machine. You haven’t missed a quota yet, despite the equipment always breaking down.”
“There are a lot of people on West Side that could run this operation just as well. A lot of ex-military over there working the mines. Which is where Dresden can and will send me if I piss him off. And stealing the woman he gave to the guards to use will definitely piss him off.”
“We didn’t steal her,” Harlis spoke up.
“Go ahead, Harlis. If they catch her, feel free to tell them that we’re innocent. Show them that hole while you’re at it and tell them it’s where we put the winter crops.”
“You ordered me to dig this, unit leader. Or rather, Gavin did. He said you ordered it.”
“I didn’t, but I would have. And I suggest you keep going until it’s done. Or do you need me to switch out for you?”
“Yeah, if you don’t mind. My shoulders are starting to burn.”
Bowen extended a hand and pulled Harlis out of the hole. Sweat beaded on Bowen’s brow as he stared at the hole for a minute before taking a deep breath and jumping in. The hole was three feet wide and four feet deep. The leader took a deep breath and started digging with a vengeance, it seemed.
Harlis approached her, causing her to back up until she struck the door.
“You have a question?” she asked.
“You going to sleep with us?”
“Harlis,” Bowen warned.
“I’m just asking a question. It’s not like I’m forcing her to do anything she doesn’t want.”
“The question is pressure enough. Back off,” Bowen warned.
“Ah, fuck,” Harlis said as he started to turn away.
“If it’s up to me, then no,” Teagen said, finding it easier to speak up with Bowen nearby.
Harlis faced her again and fingered the top of her frock. “How about we just take it slow, get to know one another, and see where things go?” He waggled his brows. “I can help you shower, scrub all those hard-to-reach places.”
She glanced at Bowen and Gavin, who were watching her now, not putting Harlis in his place as before. “Touch me again and lose a finger,” she said, not sure where the courage to threaten him came from.
Harlis smiled as he snapped his hand back, shaking it as if she’d bitten him. “Feisty. You could be a lot of fun.”
“I’m not here for your entertainment.”
“No, just the guards,” he said, turning serious. “How many do you sleep with each week?”
“None.”
On your knees or back. Either way will suit me fine, my little whore.
Teagen couldn’t breathe. She clawed at her throat and found herself on the floor, staring up into beautiful hazel eyes that danced with the light. The monster was gone, replaced by a man she’d just met, one who wanted to sleep with her, just like all the others.
“I won’t hurt you,” Harlis said, his brows pursed as he bent over her.
Gavin pulled him away. “Give her space to breathe. You triggered a fucking panic attack, Harlis.”
“Why shouldn’t I have a shot at what she’s been giving everyone else?”
“I didn’t give,” she snapped, as a deep breath finally filled her lungs. “They took.”
Harlis’s eyes froze in a face that lost its humor. Then Bowen edged his way in front of both men as he offered her a hand up. “I’m guessing we’re not what you expected, huh?”
