“Strip.”
He says that single word and watches me. I let it sink in. He pulls his hand back and smiles.
“You want me to strip?” I ask him.
“That’s right. Stand up and take off your clothes for me.”
I watch him then slowly shake my head. I won’t do it. I won’t play his games. “No,” I say.
“Are you sure?” He stands up and sighs. “All you need to do is take off your clothes. Let me see your body. Let me see those hard pink nipples, your tight, wet little pussy. You’ll enjoy it as much as I do, I can tell.”
“No,” I say, and look away from him.
“Okay then,” he says. He steps toward me and I recoil, terrified he’s about to hit me, just like my father.
Instead, he gently takes the new blanket away from me. He throws it out into the hall. He takes the pillow and the books and he tosses those out, too. When he’s finished, he takes the scratchy thin blanket, too, and tosses that outside.
I’m left alone on my cot, knees pulled to my chest, and he looks at me from the doorway. “Give in, Riley,” he says. “It’ll get much better for you. I won’t hurt you, but I won’t reward your disobedience, either.”
I stare at him then look away. I won’t let him see me cry. I’m so angry I could scream, but I know that won’t get me anywhere.
He leaves and shuts the door. I hear the bolt lock into position.
Why didn’t I just strip? It wouldn’t have been hard. I had to do it before. But there’s something different about this. It’s the way he looks at me, like he truly wants me. Maybe it’s also that I want him too. He says he can see it already, but I don’t want to give it all to him. I want to hold onto whatever I can for as long as I can.
But I don’t know how much longer I can control it. It’s going to be cold tonight, and I’m going to miss that blanket.
I stretch out on the cot, thinking about Logan and what he could do to me if I do give in and take off my clothes.
9
Logan
I hate playing these games with Riley.
I sit on top of the wall, my legs dangling over. I can see the ocean not far away, the waves rolling over the rocks. The sun is just beginning to rise and I know that I have to go see Riley again. I left her alone all day without food, which I despise doing, but I need results.
Anton found me again yesterday afternoon and was asking questions. He seems unimpressed so far, and I can’t let him get suspicious. I need to show them something from her soon, or else I’m afraid they’re going to throw me out of here.
I don’t have enough intelligence on them, not yet at least. I have a rough soldier count, but I don’t know how many girls are locked up. And the soldiers keep changing every other day, presumably because most of them are locals. That means that although there are a certain number of guys here, there are more they can call on out in the villages. I need to know exactly how many guys they have and how many they can call in for reinforcements before I call in a strike on this place.
It’s a dangerous game, snooping around. So far nobody has noticed me, since I’m new here. It makes sense that I’d be curious about the place. But soon it’ll be strange that I’m still looking around and asking questions. Anton isn’t as stupid as he seems, and I know he’ll see through me if I’m not careful.
Fucking hell. I need Riley to give me something. I clutch the stone wall and grunt. I don’t want to hurt her. I hate that I left her for two days without food. But I need her to understand that it’s better to submit than it is to fight.
I wish I could tell her that I’m here to save her, that her father sent me, but I can’t reveal that yet. It’ll only complicate things. I can’t risk it. She might be a bad actor, and that’ll screw things up. Anton might see through her.
No, it has to be real. I can’t fake it with her.
I climb down off the wall and head toward Riley’s cell. I stop off in the kitchen to get her some food then I go straight to her. The blankets, books, pillows, and other comforts are still on the floor outside her cell, which is good. I unlock her door and step inside.
Riley looks at me as I enter. I’m a little surprised she’s awake. She’s sitting in her usual spot, back to the cold wall.
“Good morning, pet,” I say, smiling at her. I hand her the tray, which she takes eagerly. She doesn’t bother responding to me, just starts eating.
I watch her eat for a second. From all my research on her, I know that she’s pretty innocent. She’s had maybe two boyfriends in her whole life, and her father has kept her very sheltered. There are some strange red flags there, some possible signs of abuse, but that doesn’t matter. Not yet, at least. I don’t know how far it went, but for now, I need to do what I have to do to keep her safe.