Page 67 of Devoured
We made our way to the ground floor, the bustle of the market the perfect amount of energy and delight. A sea breeze tickled my skin, and I reached for Teagen’s arm, linking mine with hers.
I admit that I had a weakness for farmers’ markets. Teagen and I had never been able to go together, but we sometimes ordered through apps for personal shoppers to get stuff for us, when we decided it was okay to splurge, (mostly my cash), and because Teagen was a decent cook, the fresh produce made a difference. A huge difference, actually. Made us feel like our lives were bigger than the walls of the Dahlia District. Like we were part of the community, and not the outcasted literal sex slaves, living off of the grid, where the rest of society pretended we didn’t exist. We were a family then. Part of the real world. Participants in an actual community.
And now, with Roland as the new owner, I could leave whenever I wanted, but I still wanted to treasure every moment of Teagen and my firstrealtrip to the farmers’ market together. It had taken her running away, and me falling for the new owner, to wind up in the same city in the midst of local produce stands.
Roland stayed back, talking with Ethan, while Teagen and I were a few feet ahead, picking through the stands. She stroked my arm like I was her dog—no, her cat would be more accurate, the distant mood fit me better—and I let her. Teagen was one of the only people I could stand having physical contact with. She didn’t make me uncomfortable like most people did. My biological mother hadn’t exactly been cuddly, and neither had my foster parents. Quite the opposite with them, actually. But Teagen never pushed. She let me lead and followed closely behind.
I turned back, looking at the two men. Roland locked eyes with me, and I swear he was smoldering and proud, watching me with my best friend. I returned the smile. I guess there was one more person who I actually wanted to touch, and who I wanted to touch me.
“Was the farmers’ market your idea?” I asked Teagen.
“Of course,” she grinned, a half-curtsey to her steps. “I insisted. It was a mandatory part of the trip. I knew you’d like it.”
She was absolutely right. This was better than getting her boxes of trinkets from places all over the states. “What’s been going on?” I asked. “Seriously. You guys are on the run?”
She nodded. “It’s fine though. Ethan has been doing stuff for his brothers, you know?Business stuff,” she said in a silly voice, meant to remind me that he was technically mafia now, which meant that she was too. “And I’m making music on this website.”
“Making music?” I asked. “I want to listen!”
“I’ll write down the URL later, but I should warn you; it’s anonymous. But you know me,” she winked, “Just click around. I’m pretty sure I’m the only harpist.” She looked back at the two men to see if they were watching us. Ethan was standing in front of the musician playing the acoustic guitar, and Roland was talking to a vendor about spice blends, holding up a small jar to the sunlight as they spoke.
Teagen lifted a container of orange marmalade, studying it. “You’ve been doing okay too?” she asked. “That cut on your face. What’s that about?”
She said the words without looking at me as if knowing that the question made me uncomfortable. I skimmed my fingers across the scab, which was flaking now. Healing. Yet the evidence still remained.
“I’ll tell you later,” I said.
“And how’s he?” She angled her chin at Roland.
“He’s fine,” I said, waving a dismissive hand towards him. But no. He was better than fine. Once he dropped that pill habit for good, he might even be great. Really great. “He’s actually not a bad person. He’s got his issues,” I shrugged, “but everyone does.”
“Did you do it?” she asked.
I scrunched my face, confused. “Do what?”
“Did you chop off his penis?” she asked. I laughed. “I mean, that’s why you like him now, right? That’s why he’s okay?”
“I thought about it,” I joked. “Wanted to. Almost did.” I lifted my shoulders. “But then we made this bet.”
“What?” Her jaw dropped, knowing that it was suggestive. “What kind of bet?”
I shrank down, my voice turning into a squeaky mess. “My complete submission in exchange for the Dahlia District?”
She pressed her lips together, setting down the marmalade, then switched to another jar of kiwi jam.
“So he’s got you submitting to him,” she said quietly. I thought she would have been happy. Or surprised. Or intrigued, at the very least. But this was an off-reaction, especially for her.
“What are you getting at?” I asked.
She grabbed my arm and pulled me forward so that we skipped a jewelry stand and a local honey booth. She tilted her lips to my ear.
“You need to be careful,” she said. “He has the Adlers watching you.”
I shrugged. “I know,” I said. I mean, I didn’t officially know that they were the Adlers, but I figured they were involved. “They’re my security detail or something.”
“Is that what he’s told you?”
“Told mewhat?” I asked. This was beginning to irritate me. “Just say it. Out with it already.”
