Page 13 of Marek

“Well, Ellie, I like it.”

I huff, offering a small smile. “What are you here for? Drugs? Stealing? He always has a reason.”

She shakes her head. “He killed my abusive husband and is using me to get money off someone who owes him. If they don’t come for me, I’m toast.”

I take her in. She’s not his usual, but she is pretty and definitely catches the eye. “No, you’re pretty enough for him to use. He keeps the pretty ones for the shows.”

She stares at me, horrified. “He keeps them. What do you mean?”

“He trains them, like circus monkeys. Out there every day until they learn what he wants, if they refuse or aren’t good enough, they get punished. If that doesn’t work, he sells them off for cash.”

At least, that’s what I’ve managed to figure out since I’ve been here. There has been more than one occasion I’ve overheard them talking about selling the girls while they guard the exit. It’s disgusting.

Alexis gapes at me.

“What about you?” she asks.

“I’m a dancer. A good one, too. He happened to stumble across me dancing and decided he wanted me for his fucking act. Not to mention he was drawn to the way I look. The man is trying to break me, but he’s not going to win. I will not be broken, and I will not dance for him. I’m tough, so he can try his best.”

“Has he hurt you?”

I hold up my hand, because so far, this is the worst of it. “He tries. I know he won’t kill me, though. He’s determined to use me, and that only gives me the strength I need to endure his torture. He won’t mark my body, or ruin my face, not when he thinks I’ll be the star of his pathetic little show.”

“Have you tried to escape?”

I shake my head. “No, but I will. He’s not keeping me here; he just doesn’t know it yet. I have a career, people who will be looking for me. There is no way he’ll ever get away with making me perform.”

“Does he think he can break you enough for them to believe you went with him willingly?”

I shrug. “I think that’s the plan. He’ll get a rude awakening. I’ve dealt with bigger monsters than him.”

She looks concerned. “You really don’t think he’ll hurt you?”

“Oh,” I laugh, bitterly, “he’ll hurt me, he just won’t do it badly enough to ruin what he thinks I can bring to his little show.”

“I can’t believe people come to watch this,” she murmurs, rubbing her arms.

“They don’t know what he’s doing behind closed doors. Have you seen one of his shows? They’re breathtaking. Utterly awe inspiring. He is charming and attractive; he captures the audience in a way that is impressive. Marek is smart, and he’s powerful. He has some big fish behind him to ensure he doesn’t get busted.”

“I’ve heard of his shows,” she admits. “But I’ve never seen one. I certainly didn’t know this was going on. Do you think he’s going to let me go now that I’ve seen it?”

“Even if you told someone—” I shrug “—nobody would ever get close enough to do anything. He would have you killed long before that happened.”

She shudders.

I offer her a small smile and the bitter truth.

“Welcome to hell.”

HE GAVE US FOOD ANDwater then he disappeared for days. It was strange for him to not return, and when the girls in the tent came out of their drug-induced state and started crying all night for their freedom, I knew something was wrong. He keeps them drugged so they don’t cry out, and the fact that he didn’t return to calm them made me anxious.

Alexis and I spent those few days talking, bonding. She told me about a biker club that is helping her, the Prisoners of Purgatory MC, and how one of their members, Fury, is how she got involved. She tells me all about it, and I’m fascinated at the life she describes, with all the bikers, the dangers and the girls she has made friends with.

It helped pass the time.

When Marek returned and took Alexis from her cage, I could see the rage in his eyes. Whatever had occurred was enough to send him into a state where he was willing to do whatever he could to make someone pay. I’m guessing that someone is the club, because he made it very clear that he was going to take her life.

That’s when I was forced to make a deal.

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