She nodded. There was no point in denying it. If she had been more welcoming to the coalition leaders, she would have been protected the night the wolves attacked.
She thought Gabriel had run out of questions and then he asked, “Were you mistreated by the wolves?”
“If Elias had remained in power, I have no doubt we would have been.” Memories of those long, tense days scrolled through her mind and Heather shivered. She’d been terrified her life was over the entire time she’d been at the mercy of the wolves. “But Alex is… I’m not sure what to make of Alex.”
Gabriel and Patrick exchanged knowing looks. “Now that I understand the situation, I’ll offer you a deal similar to the one developed by the cats.”
Her gaze locked with his as her fingers tangled in the blanket. “I don’t want to join the brothel. I know I’m not… worthy to be a mate, but I can’t do that. Please, there must be some other way.”
“Your debt to Patrick is considerable,” Gabriel said firmly. “For two years you knowingly supported the team of scientists responsible for his transformation. Is that true?”
She wanted to be honest, to take responsibility for the things she’d done. But her involvement had been limited, and he didn’t seem to be taking that into consideration.
“I require a verbal response,” Gabriel pressed. “Was my description accurate?”
“To a point. For two years I treated Patrick and the other members of his team. I knew they had been transformed against their will, and I knew they were prisoners of Nuevo Biotech. However, I was not responsible for their situation, and I could do nothing?—”
“There were many things you could have done,” Gabriel cut in. “You chose to ignore their suffering and prolong their captivity.”
“That’s not true,” she insisted. “I resigned my position and contacted the authorities. I’m one of the whistleblowers mentioned in the newsfeeds. My testimony was instrumental in shutting the whole thing down. That’s why Zion made the exception. That’s why?—”
“Too little. Too late,” Patrick growled out, resentment gleaming in his green eyes. “Why did it take two years for you to walk away and blow that fucking whistle?”
“I was protecting my sisters,” Heather stressed, struggling to remain calm. “Without the credits I provided, Rachel wouldn’t have been able to take care of Becca.”
“How noble,” Patrick sneered. “You turned a blind eye to our suffering because you needed money for your sisters.”
Conflicting emotions eroded Heather’s composure: anger, regret, and shame. He made her sound petty and self-absorbed. Maybe she had been. She’d focused on the ones she loved to the detriment of others. Wasn’t that a form of selfishness? “I’m sorry. How many times do you want me to say it?”
Gabriel’s eyes narrowed and his expression hardened. “We’re well beyond apologies. It’s time for retribution. For the next two years you shall be indentured to Patrick as a pleasure giver. He can release you earlier if your service is exceptional, but he cannot keep you beyond the second year. Your body is his to use in whatever way he chooses, and he can share you with anyone he wants.”
She gasped. “That isn’t how it works with anyone else. They’re only required to pleasure their mates.”
“You’re not a mate. You’re a pleasure giver,” Patrick emphasized. “But I will offer you a glimmer of hope. Fucking an unwilling woman does not appeal to me. Every time you pleasure me willingly, I will deduct a week from your sentence. And the only person I will share you with is Gabriel.”
Heather stared back at Patrick in stunned silence. Two years? She knew that her punishment would involve sex. That much had been obvious from the start. But she’d expected Patrick to fuck her a few times and then let her go. Why would he want to keep her around for two endless years?
She licked her lips and scooted to the edge of her chair. “Won’t it be easier to move on without a constant reminder of your captivity?”
“It was easier,” Patrick agreed. “And then I opened a bedroom door and saw you cowering in the corner.”
“Send me back to the cats,” she suggested, emotion making her voice quiver. “I’ll make sure you never see me again.”
“It’s too late.” He grasped her upper arms and pulled her to her feet. “I know you’re here and I won’t rest until you’ve repaid your debt to me.”
CHAPTER 3
“This isn’t fair,” Heather cried as Patrick’s fingers tightened around her arms. He stood so close that his fresh, woodsy scent enveloped her, stimulating and mocking her. He meant to imprison her, to humiliate and use her, so why did she feel sorry for him? She’d always found Patrick handsome. She enjoyed his easy charm and engaging personality. But resentment and lust burned in his leaf-green eyes. He wasn’t seeing her. He saw all the people who hurt him, all the years he’d lost, and the horrors he’d endured. If there had been any hint of compassion in his expression she would try to reach him, try to make him understand. “Harming me won’t undo the past. I’m not your enemy.”
“No, you’re my pleasure slave, my pet, an appealing object with only one purpose. To satisfy my sexual needs.”
Her belly tightened and tears blurred her vision. Arguing with him was pointless, but words were all she had. He was bigger and stronger, and a lot more determined. “I’m sorry they hurt you, but that wasn’t me. I would never?—”
He yanked the blanket out of her grasp and unwound it from around her body. “Get on the bed.”
“Please don’t do this.” She licked her lips and pleaded with her eyes, but he was staring through her and into the past.
“I do not repeat orders,” he stated mechanically. “Obey or you will be disciplined.”
