“You’re taking him with you, right?”
“He’ll stand outside the back door. I’ll be outside the front one to make sure no one interrupts the exam.”
I nodded, even though some small part of my brain didn’t fully believe him. In my world, men always made promises and didn’t keep them. First my dad, then Viper, and now Fuse. They were all the same. It wasn’t a matter of if they would go back on their word, just a matter of when.
Ace stepped out first without saying a word. Fuse lingered a second longer, his eyes meeting mine. “You’ll be alright,” he said quietly. “Just talk to Dr. Harper like you would any other doctor.”
I gave a small nod, pretending it was all going to be okay.
The door closed behind him, leaving me alone with her.
She stood with a stethoscope in her hand and smiled at me. I could hardly believe how warm and open her expression was.
“I’m Dr. Cassandra Harper.” She shrugged with one shoulder and continued, “You can call me Cassandra. Everyone does.”
I didn’t know quite what to make of her, but I came forward anyway, because I needed answers.
“How can you be with them?” I asked before I could stop myself. The question came out sharper than I intended. “Knowing what they do.”
She didn’t get angry or defensive. She simply picked up a blood pressure cuff and stepped closer. “Sit,” she said calmly. “Let’s make sure you’re alright and we can talk about the Dark Slayers as we go.”
I sat because I had this thing on my chest that needed to be looked at.
“The Slayers aren’t what you think,” she said as she wrapped the cuff around my arm, her fingers gentle and efficient.
“They bought me,” I said quietly. “That’s human trafficking. Don’t think that because I’m young, I’m stupid. I know what this is.”
Her hands paused for just a second before she pumped up the blood pressure cuff. “Not everything is what it seems with this club.”
I didn’t argue. I just watched her face, looking for signs that she might be fibbing to me.
She finished checking my vitals and wrote something down before looking at me again. “You don’t have to be here. You know that, right?”
I swallowed thickly, thinking about how my plan on the way to the clubhouse was to run at the very first chance I got.
“Do you want to leave?” she asked. “If you do, we’ll take you out the back door right now. Where would you go?”
The question felt like the world falling out from under my feet. I stared at the floor, shaking my head without meaning to.
“I don’t have anywhere to go,” I admitted reluctantly. “If I want to go to any of my family they would just turn me over to my father. He would probably just traffic me back to Viper, since that worked out so well for him the first time.”
She nodded slowly, understanding without pushing. “There are women’s shelters. Places that can help you get back on your feet. The club will help you, but if you prefer not to be here then that’s another option.”
I thought about the locked suite upstairs that locked from the inside, the clean clothes, and the job offer. That was hard to walk away from, just to stay at a women’s shelter. I couldn’t be guaranteed of finding a job in the community and wouldn’t have any way to get back and forth. Fuse promised that the job came without any conditions. Could I really believe him?
“They offered me a job. I might be able to stay,” I said rubbing my forehead.
When I looked up at Dr. Harper, her happy smile was nowhere to be found. “The real question is do you feel safe here?”
I hesitated, the truth caught somewhere between fear and uncertainty. “They gave me a private room. The locking door makes it feel safe. But am I, really?”
“The Dark Slayers are protective of women. I’ve never known one of them to hurt a woman. But you’re right about there being no way to be certain. All I can say is if anyone makes you uncomfortable, all you have to do is yell. Brothers will comerunning. I’m certain they’ll make sure you’re safe, because they take things like that seriously,” she said firmly.
I nodded, “Alright, I trust your judgment.”
She put her equipment back into the bag. “You can always text me or the police if need be.”
“I don’t have a phone,” I admitted.
