I hesitate about whether to lie, but finally decide to do it.
"It brings some relief, but I have a long way ahead of me. It’s an experimental treatment developed by Blue Lowen himself."
Bay lifts his brows.
"Blue Lowen?" He sounds genuinely interested. When I nod, he adds, "Do you remember Gabriel, my cousin? Gabriel was part of a student eco-organization, you know, those campus activists, and after the last semester ended, he took part in the attack on one of Malden Pharmaceuticals’ labs."
"Really? That’s messed-up!"
"Yeah. They set it on fire, but it turned out there were cleaning staff inside, and some of them were injured. He got into legal trouble. My brother, Winter, had to intervene with his boss, Jacob Lowen, to convince Blue to have some of the charges against Gabe withdrawn and for Blue’s attorneys to agree to a settlement."
My mouth falls open in surprise.
"Seriously? Little Gabriel… a criminal?"
Bay has an amused twist on his face.
"He’s not that little anymore, he’s twenty-one, but you won’t believe what Blue suggested for part of his sentence."
"What was it?"
It feels strange to talk about Blue without revealing that he’s my uncle, because in my head over the last four years thatknowledge settled so deeply it became natural, I already think of myself as a member of the Lowen family.
"Well, Blue’s lawyers suggested he take part in a so-called Second Chance program, which offers an opportunity to first time offenders. His contract will be put up for sale in two weeks during the open fair for marriage contracts, that’s supposed to be his punishment: entering a marriage."
"What? I don’t understand a thing!" I open my mouth.
Bay glances briefly at my lips and then exhales softly, releasing a thin trail of vapor.
"The Second Chance program is a government-supported initiative. It offers unconventional options for offender rehabilitation, they believe family life, starting a family, can have a positive influence on young offenders, and instead of throwing them into prisons where they’ll be surrounded by hardened criminals and pick up the wrong habits, they’re given a kind of chance at a life that will be productive for the state, offering stability to that person, a normal life, and potentially raising children, even if it’s with a monitor on the ankle,"
"I can’t wrap my head around it, what would the divorce rate even look like? Even a one-time criminal incident can indicate someone is unstable and might need psychological help, some underlying issues. How is it a good idea to shove these people into marriages? And who would risk buying a contract belonging to someone with a criminal record?"
Bay seems unmoved by my outrage.
His face is completely calm when he answers,
"And yet such people exist. Of course the participants selected for this are thoroughly screened, it’s not just any offender, they go through mandatory therapy, it comes with it. And you also have to remember, these are only temporary contracts, usually short-term, which increases—"
"There will definitely be fetishists among them, people who get turned on by the idea of being in a relationship with a criminal," I cut in, huffing with indignation.
Bay lets out a quiet laugh, but it has no real cheer, it feels almost practiced, his dark green eyes still fixed on my face, with those short moments in which I notice them drop to my mouth but then lift again to meet my gaze.
"Well, should we be judging people’s choices? There are omegas who get excited by the idea of danger, the risk of sex with a potentially dangerous man."
He pauses briefly. And there is a subtle emphasis on the last words in his voice.
I blink, because I suddenly realize what he might be hinting at. Fucking with strangers in dark park thickets? Well, maybe I shouldn’t judge others while being like that myself?
"Some people want to experience a relationship with a ‘bad boy’, especially for a short time. Maybe they imagine the sex will be thrilling? And Second Chance runs a fairly solid background check on candidates who want to buy such a contract."
He says it with a calm conviction and I swallow. Well, Bay surely matured in his opinions and does not shy from expressing them, which is in a way sexy. He’s not a boy anymore whom I could convince to my point of view just by fluttering my lashes.
"So… Gabriel will be participating in this. Are you okay with that?"
"Well, this is all voluntary. He can decline it and pick a normal path of how these things go, do a few years in a state prison. Nobody is holding a knife to his throat," he shrugs and looks away, letting out a thin stream of smoke.
"When will it happen?"
