But she isn’t.
She’s Meadow.
My Meadow.
“I say we take a vote. See what the club’s feeling is here. All those in favor of cutting her up, seeing what she’ll tell us before she expires and then dumping that bitch?” He raises his finger. “Aye.”
“Nay,” I say, then turn to stare down Buzz. He pauses for a second, but he owes me one and eventually he shakes his head.
“Nay.”
The vote passes around the room, and Troy grits his teeth when the vote goes my way. By one.
“Fine. You’ve got some more time to do things your way. But you’d better use some of that famous Chain charm, because tomorrow we’ll have another vote. And another the next day. And the next. Eventually, you’ll run out of good will. Either that gash is going to talk to you, or she’s going to talk to us. So, you just tell her that.”
“I need to make her an offer,” I mutter, placing my fist on the table. “Let’s face it, we need to know who she’s working for. We need to know if more shit’s coming. She’s might be nothing, but who knows what’s behind her.”
Troy purses his lips, then nods. “Sure, I’m listening. What do you have in mind?”
***
She looks up as I enter the room. “Oh, thank God it’s you.” There’s genuine relief in her eyes, and the red rims tell me she’s been crying. My chest clutches, but I try to keep it out of my expression. “Those other guys aren’t like you. The things they say they’re going to do to me…”
“Yeah, well, they won’t touch you so long as I’m here.”
“I know. Thank you.” She pulls herself up into a sitting position. The day before yesterday, it became clear she needed to sleep, and use the bucket for…well, use the bucket. So, we swapped the tangled sheet for a metal chain, and a locked stainless-steel collar around her neck, so she’d have a bit more slack. And I gotta say, it looks hot. I like knowing I padlocked that on her. “What have you got for me?”
“Chicken pot pie. Hungry?”
She nods, and I sit beside her and start cutting up the pie. This has become our routine and I fucking hate to admit it, but I love feeding her.
Her clothes are filthy, and the bucket beside her bed stinks of shit and piss even though we empty it. She must be desperate for a shower and the use of a bathroom. Ordinarily, I wouldn’t care, but this girl has me wrapped around her finger.
“So, I’ve done something for you.” I turn and raise my eyebrows, but she barely responds, her spirit about as low as I reckon it’s ever been in her life. “I’ve got you a deal. You talk to me, I get to let you out of here.”
“I can go?” The hope in her voice almost breaks me.
I just nod because yeah, I can let her out of this room, but letting her go isn’t in the deal. “You gotta talk to me though. You gotta give me some info.”
She nods sharply as I put a bite of pie in her mouth. After she’s chewed and swallowed, she meets my eyes. “Thank you. Thank you so much.”
“You gotta talk though, Meadow. I can’t help you unless you do. Who are you working for?”
Tears start to brim in her eyes. “I told you already.”
“I need the truth this time.”
“Please, I’m not working for anyone.” She looks directly at me. “I’m telling the truth. You have to let me go.”
I sigh. I know she’s hiding something. It’s been there from the beginning, but every time I ask her she tells me she isn’t working for anyone, and I believe that. So, what is this girl’s deal? What is it she’s still lying about?
“Okay, so what about this mom of yours? You want to go home to her, tell me who she is. I can go round there, talk to her without raising suspicions, and if your story checks out we’re good.”
She hesitates for a moment. It’s barely there, but it’s something I can’t ignore.
“Who’s your mom working for?”
Meadow shakes her head, and I finally see her break. I see tears start to flow down her cheeks before she turns away from me, then her shoulders start to shake. “She’s dead, okay? She’s dead. Both my parents are dead.”
Chapter Five
Meadow
I’ve never told anyone that before.
The look on Chain’s face tells me I’m not just some prisoner. He looks hurt by what I’ve said. I’m affecting him, and that should be something I’ll use for leverage.
But somehow, I suddenly don’t want the leverage.
I’ve tried so hard to avoid looking at his eyes.
The blue is unlike anything I’ve seen before. Hypnotic, eerie…a brilliant glowing light blue surrounded by a band of black that draws me in and makes me forget to breathe. He wears a white t-shirt with his vest and patches. Classic Levi’s with a wide worn leather belt, chained wallet and black boots.