I fought my gag reflex but flinched when he rested his hand on my shoulder.
“She still seems to be in fighting form. Well done, Sin.” Cal smiled, looking like a toothy shark.
“As whores go, she’s not so bad.” Sin took a glass from a passing attendant’s tray and downed it.
Cal nodded. “Are you a whore, Stella?”
Sin tensed at my elbow and covered it with a laugh. “Answer him.”
“No.” My voice was barely a whisper, the sound stolen by the rage that constricted my lungs.
“No? Come now. What would it take for me to get one night with you?” Cal tipped my chin up, and I met his eyes. I hoped he could feel every ounce of revulsion that pulsed through me at his touch.
I didn’t respond. He wasn’t asking me anyway.
“That’s something we could negotiate.” Sin’s fingers dug into my arm despite his words.
“You’d share?” Cal’s eyes were still on mine, testing me.
“Hell, if it meant I was the next Sovereign, I wouldn’t just share, I’d give her to you.” His words rang false to my ears, but I couldn’t tell if Cal heard the lie as easily as I did.
“Would you like that? Wouldn’t it be nice to be mine? Fancy clothes, big house, warm bed.” He grabbed my palm and placed it on his crotch. “This in your mouth, pussy, and ass every night.” Cal raised his eyebrows, looking for a response I wouldn’t give him. I focused on getting through the trial, not on the foul words falling from his wine-stained lips.
Sin’s fingertips pressed deep enough into my arm to hit bone. “Cal—”
“Shh, I’m talking to Stella.” He moved my palm up and down his hardening shaft as my stomach churned. “Tell me how tight your pussy is. If I stuck two fingers in there right now, would it hurt? Could I add one more and make it three without you crying? I bet your ass could use a proper fucking. I wouldn’t be gentle. A filly like you needs a strong hand. I’d have to break you in. My come mixing with your blood, your tears, your screams—all of it sounds like heaven to me—”
“Daddy, the line.” Sophia walked up, a flute of champagne in her hand and a forced smile on her elegant face.
Cal cleared his throat, snapping out of his fantasy of horrors. “Right you are, darling. Can’t keep our fabulous guests waiting.” He let go of my hand.
Sin eased up on my elbow. “Looking forward to the game as always, Sovereign.”
We walked past Cal as he continued greeting newcomers. Sophia joined us and took Sin’s arm. She gave me a look so full of venom that the hackles on my neck rose.
“Sin, how are you?” She pulled him away, her short emerald dress and high black boots showing off her hourglass figure and long legs.
Sin glanced at me and continued along at her side. “Fine. Ready for the show. How was New York?”
I wanted to wash my hands, to erase every touch, every word from Cal. Still, I knew it would take more than soap to rid me of his vicious intentions.
Sophia led Sin into the crowd. Left alone for the moment, I kept my head down and walked out of the main aisle toward a bare area against the fort wall. Turning my back against the moss-covered stones gave me some sense of security. It was a ridiculous thought, as if having a centuries-old wall at my back could stop these people. I peered out at the crowd—the rich elite all in one place. I wished for a grenade.
A few moments passed, and I was glad for each second I was left unmolested. I feared my luck was at an end when a man stopped near me. I looked up at him, dreading a confrontation, but he took no notice of me. His eyes were trained on Sin and Sophia several feet away.
He was handsome, his hay-colored hair short and neat. Tall and wiry, he was older, perhaps forty. I wished him dead, just like everyone else here.
“Ellis, my man! How are you?” Another man of about the same age walked up and shook hands. Even with the distraction, it took Ellis more than a few beats to turn away from Sophia and Sin. They fell into conversation and melded into the mix of people in the center of the tent.
“Ma’am?” A server with black hair and dark brown eyes walked up and offered me a flute of champagne.
I took it with a shaking hand. “Thank you.”
He stopped and glanced back at me, his eyebrows raised in surprise. “You’re welcome.”
I supposed no one ever thanked the servants, never said a kind word. Vultures weren’t known for their warmth. And here, where they could be themselves, their worst was on display.
He tilted his head to the side and glanced around before approaching me again. “Are you in some kind of trouble? Do I need to do something?”