SABAN
When Aponi comes to get me, I know it’s going to be some bullshit just by the way she won’t meet my eyes. I vaguely remember her from before I left. She popped up one day out of nowhere and asked for protection from the club. Angel, I guess, was still fronting like he was a savior for Easy and allowed her to work.
“Hey,” I ask, trying to drive the conversation and hopefully win her over to my side.
“Hey,” sounding guarded, she steps back. “Snake wants you to be ready by the time he gets here.”
“Okay—” I drag out the last part hoping she’ll supply more information.
“Pressing my lips together, I try not to let my frustration when she doesn’t say anything more.
“I’m sorry about the way I acted earlier. The last thing I want to do is make your work harder.” I know better than anyone how I treated her when she was only doing her job.
“No worries.” She shoots me a wary smile. “C’mon, he wants you to use his shower. And he told me to zip-tie you first, but I don’t think that’s necessary, is it?”
“Nope.” I’ve seen her use her Cherokee wrestling techniques in the self-defense classes she taught some women in the MC.
She waves me ahead of her. I lead the way to the elevator, straining to hear any sounds of life behind the doors.
“Am I the only person here?” I ask for the fifty-eleventh time. Instead of answering, she presses the button to take us up to the main level of the house.
My first instinct is to shove her and run. Knowing Snake, the entrances are probably secured with the same system as the ones below. He was the one who handled the contract for the Takedas mansions, incorporating their tech into Cruz Construction.
“This way.” She says, leading me through the living room. I doubt it is used very much. Then onward to the wide staircase.
“You stay on the property?” I ask when we reach the second level.
“Yeah, otherwise I’d never be at work on time.” Her words are careful, like she’s deciding how much she can share without putting her life at risk.
Which further confirms that escape is impossible. I need to gain more of her trust and sympathy to make it worth the risk for her to help me get away from this evil motherfucker.
“You didn’t think he was evil yesterday when he fed you and you were begging him for orgasms.”The mean bitch in my brain, who is constantly castigating me, hisses.
“So what’s all this for?” I ask, following her into the ensuite bathroom.
In the dusk of the day, the room is much the same as the night Snake brought me here.
I barely noticed the time. The room he keeps me in has no windows. The lights are those to mimic the sun’s rays so I don’tgo crazy, but I have no idea how long I’ve really been here. When I ask Aponi simply gives me the day, not the date.
I know this is devised by Snake to shake my equilibrium and to keep me from making plans to escape. Still, seeing the sun dipping on the horizon draws me like a lodestone. I didn’t even remember the picture window above the bathtub, or maybe I dismissed it as a mirror.
Walking up to it, I see my reflection and the obvious weight loss. My waist dips in more accentuating my already wide hips. The mini Coke bottle of my shape mimics that of the actual soda, with my belly being just like the bottle’s generous bump.
“I’ll let you get to it,” she says, worrying her bottom lip. “He’ll be here in a few.”
“Thanks for everything.” For some reason, I feel a little afraid and not too ashamed to let her see.
She looks around and then steps to me. “Snake said nothing bad was going to happen to you when he brought you here. That’s the only reason I agreed to come help. He asked me because I was new and the other girls were mad about what went down — ”
Stopping abruptly, she grasps my shoulders. “I don’t know what your faith is, but where I come from, we know that we are never alone.”
In that moment, I go from slightly scared to terrified.
“I got it from here, Aponi.” Comes the ominous voice of my captor.
Pulling apart as if he’s caught us plotting his demise, we both look at Snake. Neither of us is able to hide the look of guilt spreading across our faces.
“Oh, um, okay.” She says, turning from me so fast her long, thick ponytail swings widely.
