“You and I both know I made you a lot of money. I don’t see why we can’t continue on that path. Besides, look around, why would I want to leave all of this?”
Riley gestured to the resort as they walked. She was doing her damnedest to play off Cuttles’ arrogance and greed.
“Your novelty will wear off eventually,” Cuttles countered.
“And when it does we’ll find some rich lonely sap to sell me to. I think we can do so much better than that lot of barbarians.”
“You are an unusual female.” Cuttles’ laugh warbled. “Show her to the slave’s wing,” he said to the nearest Verrater guard.
If they take me back to that cell my plan won’t work.
“Hold on a minute,” Riley said as the guard took her arm. “I’m not planning on taking off. Really, where would I go? I’d like to sleep on a mattress that isn’t stained. Surely you can spare a room. Maybe the one I was in earlier.”
“Do you also want meal service delivered?” Cuttles asked incredulously.
Riley could tell she was pushing her luck.
“Of course not. I’m sure I can earn my keep, like before. I’ve also got a few other ideas bouncing around my head. Besides you wouldn’t want me to catch some disease from the vermin in those cells.” Riley shivered in disgust to emphasize her point.
“Fine, but this arrangement lasts only as long as you are profitable.”
“Of course. Just promise me you’ll sell me to someone who knows their way around the bedroom,” Riley insisted with a wink.
“I don’t know, human,” Cuttles chuckled again. “By then you’ll probably have manipulated your way into a partnership.”
The Overseer knew Riley was working an angle, but he just assumed she was attempting to put off her servitude.
“I would love to discuss that partnership and my other ideas,” Riley joked. “Do you have time to meet in your office, in the morning?”
“Yes,” Cuttles said with a quizzical shake of his head. “Escort her to the Trivalis wing, suite one-hundred and five.”
“Thank you, and I never got a chance to thank you for lunch,” Riley said with a bow.
Cuttles nodded as he waved her off.
Riley walked tall as the Verrater led her to the hotel room. She waited till she entered the room and took refuge in the bathroom, before she took a deep heaving sigh.
For a brief moment, she’d felt a reprieve from the insanity all around her. Cyprian revealed himself to be the very thing she’d been praying for. They were going to save the day. Then he was snatched away. Riley had been hesitant to admit what she felt about the general. But all that foolishness dropped away the instant she saw the weapon pointed in his face.
Riley looked into the mirror for the second time that day, and assessed what she saw. She should have been distraught, but she wasn’t. Her hands didn’t shake where they propped against the counter. Her heart wasn’t racing and her breathing was steady. An eerie calmness had descended. Yes, she was unbelievably angry and afraid, but it took a backseat to determination. Threatening Cyprian was the final straw.
“You haven’t beaten me. Do you hear that?” Riley growled at the hand of fate. “You keep throwing shit at me, but I refuse to just lay down and die. Let’s do this.”
Riley squeezed the disk on the back of her pendant.
“Are you alone?” Aculus’ voice came out faint.
“I’m in the bathroom of a different room. My owner and his men aren’t here. It’s a long story. I’ll tell you when you get here. I also have a guard outside my door.”
“I have your location. Why is there a guard at your door?”
“Like I said, it’s a long story. Bring dinner. Use it to hide anything else. I will make sure my guard doesn’t question you.”
Riley walked out of the bathroom, and opened the hotel room door. Just as she suspected, there stood the Verrater guard.
“I have an admirer coming with dinner.”
“Is the Overseer aware of this?”
“You heard him. I’m supposed to fend for myself. Contact him, if you want to hear him repeat himself.”
Riley cocked her hands on her hips, challenging the hairy guard to disagree.
“That won’t be necessary. I recall what the Overseer said.”
The guard returned to his stiff position, staring straight ahead.
Good soldier.
The thought made Riley snicker as she shut the door.
I fell for a military man. Oh Lord, I’m going to drive Cyprian nuts. Riley was chaos to Cyprian’s order, yet somehow, they worked.
Riley sat on the bed and started thinking of all the scenarios she could imagine. Besides sabotaging Cuttles’ office and engineering, she had to find, then free the guys from the slave wing. The problem with trying to plan everything out, was that she didn’t know what opportunities or obstacles would present themselves.