Crewe’s hand moved to my shoulder. “What did we talk about, Lovely?”
I refused to lower my hands, to allow this sick man to see me. He had a thick mustache and evil eyes. He eye-fucked me while he looked at me, having no shame in seeing me as a prisoner. He was more terrifying than I expected him to be.
Crewe slapped me like he’d promised. The back of his hand smacked across my cheek. He put a great deal of force into it, making my cheek redden on impact.
I lowered my hands.
“She needs a bit of training,” Crewe said. “That’s all.”
“She’s fascinating.” Bones walked to me then leaned over, staring down at my body like he had every right to examine me. Then he extended a hand and cupped my tit.
I smacked his hand. “Don’t you fucking touch me.”
He pulled back his fist and slammed it into my face, making me cry out in pain. He pulled back to do it again.
Crewe steadied his hand. “One is enough, Bones. Why don’t you take a seat, and we’ll drink some of my finest scotch?” Crewe placed his body between us, protecting me with his size.
I shouldn’t have felt grateful, but somehow, I was.
Bones moved to the other side of the table.
Crewe sat beside me and asked Bones about his weaponry business. Apparently, Bones manufactured illegal weapons and sold them to the highest bidders from all around the world. I wasn’t sure what Crewe and Bones had in common, but it was obviously something.
Finley served dinner, but I didn’t dare eat a bite. I felt sick to my stomach. The pain from my eye was excruciating. I knew I would wake up with a black eye tomorrow.
Bones and Crewe continued to talk about business, focusing on Crewe’s experience in selling intelligence. They mentioned someone named Crow and his participation in selling weapons to their allies.
I was bored of the conversation but still terrified.
“So,” Bones said as he spoke with his mouth full. “Did you bring her along just to tease me?”
“No,” Crewe said. “This fine lady is for sale, actually.”
“Is she now?” He stared at my tits again, still eating. “How much? I’d love to give her a go.”
I wanted to hurl all over the table.
“Four million,” Crewe said. “The price is non-negotiable.”
“Four million? Are you out of your mind?” Food flew from his mouth as he spoke, looking oddly like a pig.
“She’s worth every penny,” Crewe said with conviction. “She’s got the feistiness you crave. Just last night, she snuck into my bedroom and tried to bash my skull in with a rock.”
Bones gave a hearty laugh, deep from within his throat. “She’s got spunk… I like that.” His blue eyes moved to me again, seeing right through my skin to my untainted soul. He wanted to take all of me, all the things I cherished.
“She’s got one hell of a mouth on her too,” Crewe continued. “It’s one smartass comment after another.”
“Even better,” Bones said. “But that price is pretty high, I’m sure you can agree.”
“Like you can’t afford it.” Crewe gave a charming smile, using his natural charisma even on men.
“Well, of course,” Bones said. “But I spend my money wisely. I can get a nice whore for a fraction of the cost.”
“I’m not a whore,” I hissed. I was tired of being discussed like I wasn’t even there. They joked about my spitfire personality, but they didn’t understand I was just trying to survive. What would they do if they were in a situation like mine? Give up?
Crewe patted me on the shoulder. “She’s right. She’s not. And that’s why she’s better. She was in medical school when I took her, so this will be her first rodeo. She’ll need to be trained. She’ll need to be broken. But that’s where all the fun is, if you ask me.”
Bones took another bite of his food and nodded. “You’re right about that.”
I twisted my shoulder, moving away from Crewe’s touch.
Crewe let me get my way and returned his hand to his lap. “I’ll give you a few days to think about it. But after the third day, I’ll open up the bidding to others.”
“I’ve got to ask, Crewe,” Bones said. “Where does the price tag come from?”
“Glad you asked.” Crewe drank his scotch before he continued. “You know Joseph Ingram?”
“Vaguely,” Bones said. “Name sounds familiar.”
“Well, this idiot paid me with counterfeit bills. He was stupid enough to think he could get away with it.”
Bones groaned quietly, his form of a smile. “That’s insulting.”
“If he had succeeded with an intricate plan, I might actually have some respect for him,” Crewe said with a shrug. “But he did something so amateur. Within five minutes, we knew we’d been taken for a ride.”
“Maybe he thought you wouldn’t be able to track him down,” Bones suggested.
“Well, it only took us two days. We brought him and his men to my headquarters in Glasgow. After a good beating, he doubled the amount he owed me. But, obviously, he never paid up. I couldn’t get the money from him. Instead, I took his sister.” Crewe wrapped his arm around my shoulders. “He knows all the horrible things that will be done to her, and that’s enough revenge. But I’m selling her for the price he owes me—two birds with one stone.”
Bones nodded slowly then lifted his glass to Crewe. “I commend you, Crewe.”
Crewe clinked his glass against his. “Thank you.” He threw back his glass and poured the scotch down his throat.
Bones did the same. “Perfect punishment. But I need to think about it. In the back of my mind, I can’t stop thinking about the number of whores I could get for the same price. Now that I know her backstory, I’m much more enticed. I’ll give her greater beatings just because I know someone is hurting for her.” He stared at me, his cruel gaze piercing my skin. I could feel arousal leaking from his skin with all the unsaid things he wanted to do to me. “I’d love to break both of her knees and watch her try to crawl away. I’d love to break her arm and command her to serve me. But she won’t last as long as the others. She’ll be buried in the yard within a year.”
I forced myself not to shake, not giving in to my fear while Bones was present. But I’d never been so scared in my goddamn life. The sobs pounded in my chest, and I was on the verge of fainting. This man was a monster, far worse than Crewe could ever be. All he ever did was slap me—and that was because I slapped him first. When I asked him not to fuck me, he listened. Crewe wasn’t evil at all—not in comparison to Bones.
When Bones finally left the house, I dashed into my bedroom and covered myself with clothes, my body finally shaking with terror. I couldn’t catch my breath because I was gasping too hard. If I had to submit to that psychopath, I’d kill myself.
That was the much better alternative.
Crewe walked into my bedroom without knocking. “That went well.”
I’d normally respond with a smartass comment, but I didn’t have it in me.
“He’ll be here with the cash in three days.”