A Player for A Princess

“When the boats come, if we have a pass, we don’t have to go.”

My brow lowers, and I look across the table at her. “How many passes does Ximena have?”

“None. Give me all your twos.”

I hand her the deuce I just took from the pool. “How do you earn passes?”

“One week with no violations is a pass.”

“A week?” I think about the time that’s passed. “But I’ve been here at least a week. Ximena never does anything wrong. She should have a pass!”

“She had many passes.”

“What happened to them?”

Selena is quiet, and I lower my hand slowly.

“How did she lose her passes?” My eyes are fixed on the girl.

She only shrugs. “It’s your turn.”

Reaching across the table, I grasp her forearm. “How did she lose them? That first night he took her? What happened?”

Selena shakes her head so that her dark waves bounce around her cheeks. “It’s not your fault. She chose to do it.”

“Do what?” I can’t move. I feel as if all my muscles are frozen while I wait for what she’s about to say.

“The day you came, everyone left, and you were lying on the sand in the yard unconscious and bleeding.” Her green eyes are fixed on her cards. “Ximena wouldn’t leave you that way even when Mako told her not to touch you.”

Folding my hand, I put the cards on the table and stand. We’re in the small room, and her mother is outside. I go through the curtain door and around the cinder block structure to where she’s in the little garden on her hands and knees digging.

“Ximena?” I say, going to where she’s working. I stop and lower to my hands and knees beside her.

Stopping, she pushes a lock of straight dark hair behind her ear and studies me with those black eyes. A knot twists my throat when I see the faded yellow bruise still on her cheek. My stomach twists when I realize she got that beating, and god knows what else, because of me. She was abused and probably raped because she took pity on me. She carried me into her house and gave me water. She gave me her food. She carried me to the bathroom.

The night they took her, her screams and Selena’s cries, fill my mind. I remember how I crawled onto that cot, clutching the blanket over my ears. I remember how I couldn’t help them, my splitting head, and I’m so ashamed.

Reaching for her hand, I blink fast to clear the heat from my eyes. “Danke.”

Her thin black brows pull together, and I know she doesn’t understand why I’m thanking her. Still, I scoot forward and hug her.

“Danke,” I whisper again.

That’s how it started.

Mako doesn’t come to the camp very often—at least he never did before. Selena told me he makes weekly checks to be sure all the women are in their houses. Unlucky for me, I happened to have wandered off to the shore on the day of his weekly check-in.

Today when he appears, I make a point of having Selena play blackjack with me.

“It’s the same as Twenty-One,” I tell her. She’s afraid, but she trusts me. She’s so much like Ava, I know I’ll never be able to leave here without her.

On the table in front of me showing is a king. Selena has an ace.

“Hit me,” I say, and she puts a six on my king.

She stands, and when we turn up the remaining cards, I have a ten. She has a king. Mako explodes with a loud laugh, causing us both to jump in our seats. Selena looks so afraid, I’m worried she peed.

“Abo bust!” he shouts, and bends at the waist laughing because I lost.