Broken Hope

by Nicole Fox

  “One of these nights, the man in the dark mask is going to run out of money, and I’m going to win you,” he says. He dries his hands and crosses his arms over his chest, staring down at me. “I don’t want you to think I don’t have money. I do—plenty of it. I am just not willing to throw so much away on a woman who might not be worth it.”

  My instinct is to be insulted, but then I remember that I want this man to think I’m not worth it. He has been Luka’s stiffest competition every night so far, and he apparently has plans to continue that trend.

  “Though,” he says, bobbing his head back and forth. “The fact that he is willing to spend so much on you two nights in a row means the first night must have been good for him.”

  He takes a step towards me, and I want to evaporate. I want to disappear into the wall and escape this moment. But there is nowhere to go.

  The only way out of the room is past him, and he doesn’t seem willing to let me through right now.

  “What say you?” he asks. “Did you show him a good time?”

  I blink, staring at him like an animal caught in the headlights, feeling more helpless than I’ve ever felt in my life.

  He takes another step towards me and reaches out, laying a hand on my shoulder.

  His touch repulses me. His hand is warm, but it might as well be a snake tongue caressing my skin for how much I enjoy it. I pull away from him.

  “It is none of your business what happens between me and—” my husband. That is what I want to say. Instead, I swallow the words. “Between me and another guest.”

  “It’s okay. You can tell me if you enjoyed it,” he says softly. “I’m not a jealous man. Just ask my friends. I always share.”

  My stomach turns.

  Luka has to get me out of here. I’ve known that since the moment he arrived, but this man is driving the idea home for me. I can’t go with someone else. There is no telling how long I’d survive being passed between this cretin and his friends.

  Then, he brings his hand up to my neck, rubbing his thumb down to my collarbone. “Or maybe you don’t want to admit that it was bad. That’s okay. I’m sure it was no fault of your own. I mean, how could a woman like you ever disappoint? If he didn’t treat you right, I promise I will. I’ll make sure you have a good time.”

  This man has no idea exactly how good it is with Luka. He has no idea how good it can be with someone because, clearly, he has never known what it is to be in love.

  If he did, he wouldn’t be here at this auction to buy himself a good time.

  “Perhaps,” he says, moving in even closer until there is just a breath between us. “You can give me a little taste of what I’m missing. A little encouragement for the auction tonight.”

  I close my fist, ready to knock him in the nose, but I can’t. As much as I want to, it will only cause more trouble for me later.

  He closes his eyes and leans down, expecting me to listen to him. To do whatever he asks because he would rather have a sex doll than a real human woman.

  Instead, I do the only thing I can think to do and grab the cleaning bottle from the countertop and spray the stream directly at his crotch. I only realize when he yelps because he never put himself away after using the restroom.

  Apparently, he wanted much more than a little bit of encouragement. He wanted a free sample. And instead, he just received a chemical mist to his most sensitive member.

  The man jumps back and begins fanning his crotch, unsure what to do, and I take the opportunity to dart past him and back into the hallway.

  I can still hear him mumbling and bumping into things in the bathroom, and I book it down the hallway, walking as fast as I can without breaking into a full-out run. When I reach the end of the hallway, I turn towards what I hope is the lounge area, but I stop short at the sight of two people standing close together at the end of the hallway.

  I see Maddie’s wild flames of red hair first. She left it loose around her shoulders today rather than pulled back. It looks nice.

  Then, she moves slightly, and I recognize Luka standing next to her.

  He has his mask on, but I can see the firm set to his mouth. He is frustrated and doing his best to hold it in.

  My heart trips at the idea of him sneaking around in hallways with Maddie, but as soon as the idea pops into my mind, I push it away.

  He wasn’t sneaking. He told me Maddie talked to him the day before. He told me what she wanted and how he felt about it. Luka has been open with me, so there is no reason for me to doubt him.

  With that in my mind, I walk down the hallway towards them, waving when Luka looks over Maddie’s shoulder and sees me.

  Relief washes across his features, and I chastise myself for ever doubting him.

  When Maddie sees his attention is elsewhere, she turns around and narrows her eyes at me.

  “I thought you were supposed to be dusting,” she bites.

  “Finished.” I smile, hoping to soften her anger, but it seems to only sharpen it.

  When I stop next to their group, Luka takes a silent step towards me, and Maddie notices.

  “I was just having a conversation with our guest here,” she hints, nodding her head towards the lounge. “Maybe we can catch up with you inside.”

  “I think we were about done,” Luka says. His tone is harsh, but the words are gentle. He is trying to be kind to her. For me.

  “No,” Maddie argues, eyes widening in desperation. “I had more I wanted to say about—”

  “There is plenty of time to talk the rest of the day,” Luka says, moving back towards the lounge. “We’ll finish up then.”

  Maddie moves to follow him inside, but I reach out and grab her arm, gently pulling her back towards me.

  She wrenches her arm out of my grip. “Don’t touch me.”

  “What is the matter?” I ask quietly. “You’ve changed so much in the last couple days, and I’m trying to understand what has happened.”

  “Nothing,” she growls, rolling her eyes.

  I reach for her hand, but she rips it away from me, and a thought I can’t shove away appears.

  “Has someone hurt you?” I ask, stepping closer to her. “You are a virgin, so the rules should preclude you from being purchased throughout the week, but if someone hurt you, you can tell me. Lord knows rules don’t actually apply to the bidders.”

  My mind flashes back to the man in the maroon mask cornering me in the bathroom. Did he or someone else do something similar to Maddie?

  “I’m not telling you anything,” she says.

  “Maddie, we are in the same position here.”

  She barks out a laugh and pushes a finger into my chest. “By the looks of it, I’m going to be sold to one of the gross men that commands women to smack their own asses or moan the alphabet. I am going to be sold to a man who will look at me as nothing more than a place to put his dick. But you? You somehow spread your legs wide enough to hypnotize the nicest man here into caring for you. So, no, we are not in the same position.”

  I want to argue with her, but I can’t. Not really.

  While we are both on the auction block, I have someone here who loves me and is fighting for me.

  Maddie is alone.

  “You want Luka to bid on you,” I say softly.

  Maddie looks up at me, eyes wide. “His name is Luka?”

  I curse internally for giving anything away, but it is too late now. I nod. “It is.”

  She smiles softly, the anger in her face dissipating slightly, and another wave of jealousy washes over me. She wants my husband. She doesn’t know he is my husband, but she wants him. And by the looks of it, she thinks he is more than just the best option available. The moony look in her eye tells me she has a crush on him.

  I’m trying to find the words to explain to her that I’m doing everything I can to help her without giving our plan away, but before I can, there is a gunshot.

  Followed by screams.

  Maddie looks at me, eyes wide. “Wh
at was that?”

  I grab her hand and pull her down the hall towards the gunshot. This time, she doesn’t pull away from me.

  We run down the hallway, past the bathroom where the man in the maroon mask tried to assault me, and into the entryway. Guests and slaves are moving cautiously out of the lounge and ballroom, looking around to find out what is going on. But Maddie and I have a front-row view.

  The front door is wide open, the lawn and parking lot of the inn visible, and just outside the door is a guard with his gun raised.

  I follow the line of the barrel to a purple shape on the grass.

  One of the virgins.

  I can’t see her face, but I see that she is moving.

  She is dragging herself across the grass, but it is useless. The guards are approaching her from every direction now, highlighting the futility of even thinking about escaping. Luka and I would be no match against that many armed guards.

  “What happened?” Maddie whispers.

  “She ran!” Edgar bellows, his face stern. “She ran through the open door and our guards did their jobs. Did I not warn you?”

  I watch in horror as the guards get closer to the woman, each of them with their gun raised as though her pitiful crawling figure is a danger to them.

  Then, one of the guards extends his gun arm, presses his barrel against the back of her head, and pulls the trigger.

  The shot echoes through the lawn outside and into the inn, reverberating through the walls until I feel like they will come crashing down on us.

  Maddie slouches against my side, momentarily forgetting our feud, and I wrap an arm around her waist to keep her standing.

  She already angered the Cartel once, so I don’t want her to make another scene. Especially since we’ve just seen what happens when you piss them off.

  They kill you in cold blood.

  15

  Luka

  The bidding board is still in the lounge Sunday evening, but there is one notable difference: Number Five has been crossed out with a thin black line.

  The change is slight, but it hangs like a dark cloud over the entire room. At least for me. Many of the other bidders don’t seem as bothered. Fox-Face is still chatting with the brown-skinned woman he has almost exclusively set his sights on, and the man in the maroon mask keeps making eyes at Eve, winking at her whenever she happens to look his way.

  I can see in her face that she is trying not to cry. Ever since the woman was killed this morning, she has been on the verge of tears, and I want nothing more than to take her back to my room and wrap her in my arms.

  There is just another night of bidding that stands in my way.

  Just like the two days before, the man in the maroon mask has already bid on Eve, marking his interest in her. Tonight, he has started with three thousand dollars, following the same trend as the last two nights of increasing the bidding.

  One by one, the women in red dresses are handed out to the highest bidder. Some of the women who aren’t bid on receive death glares from Edgar and then fall back in line looking terrified.

  Eve told me any woman not bid on at the end of the week will be murdered. As scared as they all are, a few of them must be relieved that Number Five was killed.

  Less competition.

  Eve tries not to look at me as it gets closer and closer to her turn, but there is little point in trying not to show our interest in one another. I’ve bid on her the past two nights. Everyone here knows she is the woman of my choice. Still, I do my best to follow her lead and look ambivalent, at least.

  When Eve steps forward, the man in the maroon mask wastes no time making his interest known. He walks through the crowd, eyes pinned on her. And for the first time, I notice his limp.

  It isn’t obvious, but his right leg stutters slightly with each step.

  I study him, trying to understand why this matters.

  His suit today is the same shade as his mask. The jacket has a shimmer to it that catches the light with black silk lapels. The pants are a similar material, though in a darker shade.

  Everything about him screams showman. He isn’t someone afraid of being recognized, which is why I’m surprised when I realize how long it has taken me to recognize him.

  I know who the man in the maroon mask is.

  His name is Joel Foli.

  Known for his extravagant clothes and a limp in his right leg from a much-publicized motorcycle crash a few years before, Joel Foli is an infamous hacker. He is a hot commodity in the criminal underworld, receiving offers from every crime ring in the city, including my own family.

  If anyone needs to crack security codes or steal credit card information without being caught, Joel Foli is the guy to call.

  He is expensive, though, which means I have even more reason to fear him in this auction. His finances could rival or exceed mine.

  My only hope is that, unlike me, Joel won’t be willing to give up everything to save Eve.

  “Five thousand dollars,” Edgar calls, nodding when I raise my hand and then turning to Joel, assuming he’ll increase the bid. He does.

  It moves up one thousand dollars at a time until we hit ten thousand, and I think Edgar might pass out from excitement. We are only on night three and one of his women has moved into the five-digit zone.

  I hate Joel a little more every time he raises his hand to increase the bid, but I also can’t help but think that he could be useful to me. If we weren’t both fighting for Eve, I could talk to him about helping me track down Milaya. If anyone can get into the Cartel’s accounts and figure out what they may have done with her, it is him.

  Finally, at fifteen thousand, Joel looks longingly at Eve and then steps back and bows out. “That is my limit,” he says, turning to me with a smile. “For now.”

  I grit my teeth and try to look at the larger picture.

  If he can help me track down Milaya, I might let him live after this week is over.

  For a few days, at least.

  Edgar wraps up the proceedings for the day, and Eve moves quickly across the room towards me, relief obvious in her face. I want to pull her against my chest, but it has to wait until we are in my room. Not here in front of everyone.

  Despite my restraint, I still notice Maddie cast a dirty glance in our direction. As if she can feel the darts flying at her, Eve turns to look at Maddie. The girl’s glare grows even darker, eyebrows pinching together, and Eve quickly turns back to me.

  “What the hell was that about?” I ask, placing a hand on her lower back to lead her from the room.

  She shakes her head, but I can tell it is bothering her.

  “Tell me.” It is a gentle command. She is dealing with enough right now that petty fights between her and other women don’t need to weigh on her mind as well.

  We are some of the last people out of the lounge, so the hallway is nearly empty, everyone disappearing into their rooms with their winnings or going back to the slave quarters at the back of the inn.

  I grab Eve’s hand and pull her back to face me. “Tell me what is going on.”

  “It isn’t a big deal,” she says, eyes going glassy with tears. “Really. In the face of everything else, it is just some basic drama. But suffice it to say, you were right about Maddie wanting you to buy her. I think she has a crush.”

  My chest swells with protectiveness. “Did she say something to you?”

  Eve squeezes my fingers. “Yes, but it hardly matters. She is scared and trying to make this situation as good as she can for herself.”

  “It matters to me,” I say.

  There have been so few ways in the last week that I’ve been able to help or protect Eve. I couldn’t keep her from being kidnapped, I couldn’t save our daughter, and I couldn’t keep her from being put on the LeClerc auction block.

  But this? I can handle.

  I can stop a mean girl from tormenting her, especially when Eve has done nothing but try to help Maddie. She doesn’t deserve this, and I can fix it.

&
nbsp; “Let’s just go,” Eve says, grabbing my hand.

  I pull away from her hold, lifting a finger to tell her to give me a moment. “I forgot something.”

  Before Eve can argue, I duck back into the lounge and am relieved to see Maddie is still hanging around.

  She has taken off her heels and is holding them by the straps, circling her ankles to stretch them. She doesn’t see me enter.

  “Hey,” I call.

  When she sees me, her eyes go wide, and then she beams at me. Eve is right. This is more than just an auction for Maddie. She legitimately has a crush. Or a hope, at least, that maybe there is a light at the end of this tunnel for her.

  “Hey,” she purrs.

  I shake my head to cut her off before she can say anything else. “Give it up.”

  Confusion clouds her smile. “What—”

  “I’m never going to bid on you,” I say. “You are wasting your time flirting with me and tormenting Eve. I don’t want you. And it isn’t Eve’s fault, either. She wants me to be nicer to you, but as long as you are throwing daggers at her from across the room, I’m not going to be nice, do you hear me?”

  Maddie’s eyes are filling with tears, and she bites her lower lip.

  “Do you hear me?” I repeat.

  She nods, looking down at her bare feet.

  Without another word, I turn and leave.

  Eve turns on me as soon as I close the door to my room.

  “You shouldn’t have said anything to her!” she yells. “I told you it wasn’t a big deal.”

  “It looked like it was a big deal,” I argue.

  “But it wasn’t.”

  “Tell that to your face.” I run a hand down my face and shake my head. “I’m sorry, but you were clearly upset, and I figured I could take care of it.”

  “That is what you think about everything,” Eve says, spinning around and pacing towards the bed. When she gets there, she turns on her heel and charges back towards me. “I can take care of myself.”