A/N I added timestamps at the beginning of the chapters. I was having a little trouble keeping the timeline straight as it tends to jump around depending on whose perspective we are with at the time. I was a little concerned some of you might be as well. I hope this clears any potential confusion. Enjoy!
A/N 2 I'd also like to give a warning. This chapter contains situations that may be upsetting/triggering for some people.
Regular text - Story
Italicized text - thoughts
Chapter 6
5:45 pm
Anxiously I paced from one damp cell wall to the other. The bell tower had yet to let out its discordant ringing, but Jane had finally gathered up her cart and had left just as silently as she'd appeared. I knew the bell would ring any minute, and the guards would come. I honestly didn't know what would happen. Years and years of the same routine, and I'd let Nami, a girl I'd only known a handful of hours, convince me that her crew would save her and with her us. But as the minutes crept on, my slight hopeful flair had dwindled. Over the last hour, I had finished getting myself and Nami ready. Khol lined our eyes, and our lips had been stained by the red wine we'd both drank. Nami was pale beneath the light dusting of rouge I'd put on her cheeks. I paced over and caught her staring forlornly out the window, watching the sun as it disappeared from the sky. I placed a hand comfortingly on her shoulder and squeezed. Tara and Jezza had drunk themselves into a stupor. Luckily, I was spared Jezza's gleeful sneer and Tara's petty taunts as I prepared to be taken, and Wendi was tending to the new girl Sadie, trying to soothe incessant tears. Alice was ever silent in her corner, eyes blank. I looked around and thought I should probably take the time to get to know the other girls. We were all trapped in here. It seemed silly that I only knew six out of twenty girls.
I turned back toward Nami and sighed heavily. Dreams of freedom and men I'd never have had distracted me from preparing her for what was to come.
"Nami," teary coffee-hued eyes turned to me, "when they come for us, try not to put up too strong a fight, ok? Save your strength."
Her eyes blew wide, and she looked almost offended. Her previously sad expression exploded with righteous indignation, and a harsh, biting laugh bursts from her lips. Girls passed out around us shifted grumpily at the sudden sound.
"So what then? I just let them assault me with a 'Thank You, Come Again'? Not very likely. I'll fight tooth and nail for my freedom, no matter the cost. I was under the impression you felt the same." She looked at me as if I was somehow responsible for the situation. That stung. I didn't bond with many people, that's an excellent way to gain weakness and invite pain, but I'd felt a connection to Nami that I couldn't understand, and I desperately needed her to understand the danger she was about to face. Nami huffs and turns away from me. I grab her shoulders and turn her back, "You don't understand; they want you to exhaust yourself. They get off on you giving up and punishing you for misbehaving, and they won't be afraid to damage you for that misbehavior permanently." I look pointedly at Alice spaced out in the corner. "And I feel the same, and I fought hard to escape and see justice done. Until the day Marcus presented me with a bloody gown, locks of mulberry-hued hair, and a severed ear with one pearl drop earring that belonged to my sister. She's not dead yet, as far as I know, and as long as I behave, she stays that way."
Nami looks horrified and frantically looks around the room. I huff another sad laugh and wipe a lone tear from my eye, "She's not in here, Nami. I haven't seen her since they had to break my arms to drag her away from me eleven years ago."
"W...where is she?" I scoff gently and sit at the foot of my bed. "As if they'd tell me. She's their trump card. I'd never risk my baby sister, and they know it."
"So you are just going to rot away in this tower?" Her tone was sour and accusatory, and it stung me deeply.
"Yes! I promised her I'd protect her, and I failed once. I will not do it again." I'm breathing hard now; Wendi is looking at me sadly. No doubt thinking of her sister, who had blessedly escaped the rebellion. "Do you have any idea how many times I tried to escape and find my sister before they handed me a literal piece of her? How many beatings I've had to endure? I didn't sit here like a coward and not try, but even I could only be put through something like that for so long."
I rest my head in my hands and look up at her. There's pity in her eyes and not a small amount of understanding.
"I understand doing things to save your family. I don't think I can do these things, though."
"You'd be surprised what one is willing to do when death is the alternative."
"I'm not some naive little maiden, you know. I was part of a major pirate organization since I was a child! I watched them murder my mother and many others. I've stolen and beaten with the worst of them."
Oh, I must have pressed a nerve. "I'm so sorry for that, but this is different. This isn't some treasure chest or royal vault; this is your body, your mind, and your will being stolen and beaten. It takes a certain mindset not to lose yourself, and that's all I'm trying to prepare you for."
She crosses her trembling arms and stands silently beside me.
"I hate to say this, Nami, I really do, but your crew is too late. Any minute, guards will show up and drag us off to some new horror, and I think you might be in denial about this."
"I am not in denial! I just so happen to know that Luffy will not rest till he gets me back, so what's there to be afraid of?"
This was said in a haughty tone that almost covered the slight tremor in her voice.
"So many things, my friend, so many terrible things could happen before your crew even makes it into the castle." She resolutely refuses to look at me. Instead, she stares at a far-off bit of wall. She's not ready. Marcus will crack her open, and there isn't anything I can do because she won't listen.
Suddenly, the bell rang out, and our eyes swung in sync toward the door. I could see Nami shaking as if she couldn't believe this was happening.
We watched as shadows appeared under the cell door a few moments later. One shadow became two as they split closer to the door. It swung open and revealed two guards, whose names I'd never bothered to try and learn. They stood on either side of the door with cruel smiles, and sharp spears pointed toward us. In the early days of girls being kept in this cell, the guards had happily thrust their spears, both weapon and personal, at any girl they wanted, reveling in the pain and torment they inflicted. Since then, they'd been given orders to only use them when the situation called for it, but I'd always known they waited for any excuse.
From between the guards walked a woman. Leanna sashayed into the cell on overly tall heels, her tawny-colored eyes sweeping across the room with cruel superiority, her lips already curling into a brightly painted sneering smile. I watched her take in the drunk and terrified girls huddled around the cell one by one—her growing smile getting fouler by the second. I scowled as I looked her over. There was no more hated woman in the whole of the castle than Leanna Tovie; even Tara and Jezza were with me on that. She was Marcus's official mistress, who he took to all the hoity-toity events and who he used to schmooze the higher-ups that us mere dungeon whores could never satisfy. Leanna had long, luxurious blonde hair, carefully coiffed and styled to flow in perfect waves to her hips. Her make up heavy and dramatic, her clothes tight and barely there; she always looked tacky and cheap. I'd once called her that to her face. Those lashes had nearly not healed.
She surveyed the room for a moment before her eyes landed on me, and her painted lips stretched farther into a vicious smile. "Lavender. How lovely to see you. Been a while. I see you're looking a little peaked, dear. A little worse for wear. Not sleeping well?"
She laughed like she had made the funniest joke in the world, and the guards joined to avoid her ire. I smile a serene smile back, "Leanna, pleasure as always. I see the wrinkles around your eyes are looking particularly deep today." Her smile dropped, and she stomped forward, snatched my hair roughly in her boney little hands, and wretched my head back. "Your lucky Marcus wants you a blank slate, or I'd make you eat those words, you dirty whore." It took everything in me not to tell her her breath smelled like egg.
"He wants you," she said in her screechy voice, "And the new one. He's in the mood for a show tonight." She flung my head away and began walking toward the door, expecting us to follow just because she said so. Instead, I simply took a slight step in front of Nami, but I didn't move other than that.
She stopped and looked behind her when she didn't hear footsteps following hers. Her mask slipped, poison swept into her eyes, and they flashed a bright green, her devil-fruit power flaring as she lost her temper. "Move." Her voice had taken on a slightly huskier tone, and my feet lurched forward without my consent, much like everything else. Nami grabbed my arm, the motion grabbing Leanna's attention. She swung her head to face Nami and said, "You too." Nami's body went rigid, and she moved to her feet so fast that she stumbled and her grip on my arm was all that kept her from falling.
That husky voice sounded again, even deeper this time, "Follow." And we did. A feeling of sinking into warm water washed over our heads as her power washed away our own will and replaced it with hers. The constant low hum of her voice in my head told me to take every step. I wonder if it's exhausting to maintain control over another person's will constantly. If it were, though, she'd never said. Her face had settled into a careful aloofness, but her eyes remained green, and her shoulders were tense.
Leanna had never liked sharing Marcus. She had what was commonly referred to as aspirations above her station. Marcus allowed her to believe that he would marry her one day and be with only her. He even told her these things before he shared her with a governor or visiting dignitary. But she was just as much a prisoner as we were, and one day, when he no longer got a kick out of her jealousy and when she had bored him, Marcus would get rid of her. Sell her or kill her, he wasn't picky about how he got rid of things, and that's all we were to him, things. I know this because he had told me in the dark of night when his delusional mind let him believe we had pillow talk. As if we were conspiring lovers. It almost made me pity her. Almost.
Our feet dragged as we fought her pull, but eventually, we were at the door and about to step across. Nami went very stiff as we began to walk over the threshold. I patted her hand, "It's ok. It's disarmed." She nodded but didn't look any less concerned, and I was about to say something else when Leanna's gaze snapped toward us. "Silence." My lips locked, and my teeth clacked hard.
I glared at the back of her head as we walked on. Nami looked around, taking in her surroundings and no doubt looking for a way to escape. I, too, looked around; a deep sense of melancholy swept over me. The castle had changed dramatically in the last eleven years. Windowed corridors had been bricked up, and light paneled wood walls had been painted dark red and black. The wall hangings bared the Urasea crest, a dying man praying over a fire, and gothic art and architecture were distributed evenly down the corridor. Distantly I could appreciate the art and even acknowledge that it was nice. Still, when I think of the paintings of past rulers and their families and the vases overflowing with fresh flowers, lush indigo carpet, and the Floria crest of a bright red and blue soothsy flower in full bloom, I can't help but hate the dark nature this beautiful building had taken on.
The carpet under our bare feet was warm and lush, but Marcus had changed it to dark grey. It was a welcome relief after walking on the cold stone of our cell. We eventually came to a set of stairs that would lead us directly into a hidden room beside the throne room. It had once been part of the servants' hallways, so they could get around quickly without being seen. The stairway was unlit and very steep. I glanced briefly at Leanna's extremely high heels and wondered if she'd even be able to make the first step. My hopes of watching her topple backward down the steps were quickly dashed as the guards kneeled beside her; I couldn't help but roll my eyes. Of course, she'll be carried. Like the queen, she wishes she was. I managed to bite back my snort of a laugh. This night will be rough enough without pissing her off further.
As we climbed, my breath came hard, and my legs burned. We finally reached the top after a dark, dank, fifteen-minute trek. Being forced to stay in one room daily didn't give us an appropriate way to get any daily exercise. I'd always thought that was another tactic to keep us from running. You can't escape what you can't outrun a pursuer. I had briefly gotten lost in my thoughts and almost ran into the guard's backs before Leanna held up her hand and said, "Stop," as we reached the last step. The guards set her down gently, and she wobbled slightly on her heels. It had always been clear that she wasn't a proper lady. Not just because she was a kept whore who enjoyed hurting other women, but because a real lady brought up with manners and grace would never wobble in her heels.
The door in front of us was still original to the previous regime. Where for generations, royal children would hide to listen to grown-up conversations in the throne room, their parents pretending they didn't know they were there. I very ardently did not look toward the bottom of the door where generations of royal children had carved their names to prove they had been there. It was too hard to think about all that had been lost, all that this kingdom had lost. Instead, I stared at the little covered window that had been harshly cut through the old oak door, the metalwork of the hinged door covering it taking on the appearance of screaming faces if you looked too hard at it.
Leanna lifted her perfectly manicured hand and knocked three times on the door. After several long seconds, the peep-hole door popped open on the other side to show Henric's mottled face. He stared past Leanna almost immediately at me. I could feel her irritation at so obviously being ignored, she didn't get dressed up like a two-dollar whore to be ignored after all, but I couldn't move my gaze from his. He'd always been like a poisonous snake to me, the second you looked away, he'd strike, and I'd already been bitten more than once. He took an obscenely deep breath through his nose and then, without moving his gaze, snapped the little door shut, and we could hear the door as it unlocked.
Unlike the door to my cell, this door swung open without a sound. Leanna turned her poison gaze back to us and told us to walk. From beside the doorframe stepped Henric. His outfit was the same as it had been earlier, but now there were several stains of what I could only guess had been his lunch. Pig. He let us all pass, but I felt him reach out and grab my ass as I walked by. My skin crawled, and it took some effort not to let my rolling stomach lose my dinner. An ass pat isn't even the worst that'll happen tonight. I can't afford to waste my energy now. I drew a deep breath in through my nose and watched as he made the same pass at Nami. Her pale face went slightly green, and I desperately wished I could offer some comfort.
Turning my attention back to the front, I tried to focus on getting through tonight so I could get back to our cell. I knew I would have to take care of Nami, so I would have to be as obedient as possible. Obedience has never been my strong suit; even eleven years of slavery hadn't changed that. It embarrassed me that Nami would see the person I was going to have to be. I grimaced even as I thought that.
The small, hidden alcove that hid the door gave way suddenly to the throne room. A shiver wracked my body as I properly stepped into the room. Marcus always liked to keep the room where we were to meet cold, so I'd start every night already off balance. Fucking psychopath. I'd once known the throne room to be filled with warm fires and music. Joyous laughter and well-met debates had echoed across the stone walls, muffled by tapestries and plush rugs of rich crimson, indigo, and canary yellow. People used to gather here, royal and common folk alike, sharing ideas and coming up with solutions. It was a place of community where all were listened to and felt they belonged.
Now it was barren. The walls were made of bare, grey stone, the floors stripped of their carpeting and left rough underfoot. The only color in the room was the large golden throne with midnight blue padding and a large pool of dried blood spread out from the throne down the four stairs that elevated it from the main floor. I studiously did not look at the pool.Instead, I looked at the other people in the room. Fredric stood at the base of the stairs, his face pulled into a sneer as he looked Nami over. Something about his face seemed off, he always looked nasty and mean, but now it seemed like Fredric had something he was dying to share but was picking his moment carefully. The box at his feet made me very nervous.
Moving my gaze from Fredric, I looked up toward the top of the steps for the first time. And Marcus stood there with the old King's crown crooked on his head. He wore a crisp black dress shirt with the top two buttons undone and black, pressed dress pants slung low on his hips. He was tall, I'd estimated him to be well over six feet considering I was five foot seven, and he was heavily muscled, his shirts constantly straining against him. My gaze moving up to his face, I wasn't surprised to find his gaze hot on me. His eyes slowly swept from my head down to my toes, making me feel naked and covered in a layer of grime. His eyes, ordinarily flat, were heated with lust, and his dark olive complexion was slightly flushed. He smiled when he realized I was looking at him and his white teeth flashed in a sinister smile.
Marcus began walking down the stairs toward us, reminding me of a predator that had caught prey. "My lovely Lavender. Oh, how I have missed you, my pet." His voice rumbled in my bones, and as he reached me, he reached up, sunk his hands into the hair on either side of my neck, and pulled me in for a kiss. Kissing King Pin had always felt like being sucked under a current and battered by sharp rocks. He used too many teeth, and his tongue was always thrust too deep into my mouth until it cut off my breath. I always came away with bloody lips gasping for air. This time was no different, except he squeezed my neck when he didn't feel me trying not to pull away. He liked that I hated him, liked that I fought. This time was particularly horrible because I had fresh thoughts about my future, the men I knew would protect me from anything if given a chance. It made me feel even dirtier than I usually did. Like I was tainting memories I didn't even have yet. Eventually, Marcus noticed my lack of response and pulled away. He looked at me confused before turning and seeing Leanna still holding me with her gaze. Marcus became enraged, his face warping into a feral snarl. He released my head with a brutal toss and sharply struck her across the face, causing her to fall to the ground. Leanna was shocked by the blow, and she landed hard on her ass, one of those tacky heels falling off her foot when she crumpled.
"You dumb whore. How often do you have to be told not to use your disgusting devil-fruit power in my presence?" King Pin was not a fan of someone who could make him do things against his will. How ironic, I thought bitterly. Leanna debased herself at his feet and begged forgiveness, turning weepy eyes to him, mascara running in rivers down her cheeks. His gaze remained blank in the face of her begging, and he turned back to me, dismissing her completely. I tried to feel bad about the obvious heartbreak on her face but didn't have the energy to spare her. Reaching up, he motioned with his hand, and I turned my head. He grabbed my left ear and, from it, removed my one piece of jewelry, a sea prism stone earring.
As soon as he removed it, I felt my body rejuvenate. The cuts on my lips healed, the starvation and dehydration pain soothed away, and my aching feet and back faded to a dull throb and then away altogether. I took a deep breath and saw Nami staring at me questioningly. I couldn't explain, so I shook my head and watched Marcus roughly grab Leanna's ear and shove the earring through her unpierced lobe. She yelped and immediately dropped to the ground, drained of energy and inconsolable. I felt her influence lift immediately and moved in front of Nami without thinking about it. Marcus noticed and smiled cruelly. "So this is the chit causing all the trouble, eh?"
Nami looked confused but wisely didn't say anything. Marcus moved forward and grabbed my arm hard enough that had been anyone else, and it would have bruised. "How are you feeling, love?"
My stomach rolled again, and I fought nausea as he called me that. "I feel fine, Marcus." He liked me using his name, and he smiled wider. If I keep him happy, maybe he won't hurt us too badly. "Good, I will need you in tip-top shape for tonight. I've got big news." I tried to smile but felt it slide off my face before it could even start. Marcus didn't notice. Instead, his eyes had moved to Nami standing behind me. He tugged me with him as he moved to stand in front of her. "But first, let us look at our newest acquisition, hm?" Placing his hands on Nami's jaw, he began to turn her head from left to right. She struggled, trying to yank her head from his grip, but he held tighter until she stopped struggling with a choking gasp. Finally, however, when he tried to check her teeth, she had had enough, and she bit him hard, drawing blood and a small amount of skin. I sucked in a breath as I watched Marcus yank his hand from her face and pull back his other fist to punch her.
Quickly I touched his side, "Marcus dear, here, let me look at that." The words felt like acid in my throat, and I'm surprised I didn't choke. I glanced at Nami as she glared at me with blood on her face. I wanted to congratulate her, and comfort her, but instead, I pulled Marcus's much larger hand in two of mine and placed a kiss on the center of his wound. The smell and feel of his blood were almost enough to cause long-awaited nausea to turn to full-blown vomiting, but I held firm as I used my ability for the first time in six months.
Before our eyes, Marcus's skin knit back together, the blood flowing backward. Then, after a few seconds, there was a patch of slightly paler newly grown skin. It always felt like a weight had been lifted when I used my devil fruit, a sweet release that was addictive. Marcus smiled at me, "Thank you, sweetie," he patted my cheek with his freshly healed hand and began to turn before quickly turning and backhanding me to the ground, similar to how he'd hit Leanna. If not harder, I bounce back quicker, "but don't ever interrupt me again."
Nami had tried to run, and Fredric was now holding her tightly around the waist with one hand stroking dangerously close to the bottom of her crop top. She was screaming something that I couldn't hear through my ringing ears. When my hearing finally cleared up, Marcus had crossed the room to her and had grabbed her gently by her short hair.
"You can't do this! I'm a pirate, and when my captain finds out about this, he and the rest of my crew will kill you!"
She continued to yell for several seconds before Marcus gripped her hair harder and throttled her. Her teeth made an audible clack as her head jerked back and forth. She seemed shocked silent as she tried to get her bearing back. Fredric and Henric were sneering in a way that made me very uncomfortable.
"Tell me," he pauses, one hand lightly tapping his lips, and I knew he's thinking of a new name for her, "Blossom, is your captain a rubbery boy?" I watched Nami's eyes go wide.
"My name is Nami." Marcus, still holding her hair, smacked her across the face. "No, your name is whatever I say it is."
He pauses and looks back at me, "Lavender, what is her name?"
"Blossom." No hesitation. Hesitation gets you beat.
Nami turns betrayed eyes toward me. "No, no, no! My name is Nami!" Her voice was frantic, and her eyes were darting.
Again he smacks her and, this time, splits her lip open, her blood mingling with his down the side of her chin. It hurts to see her this way. She was so firey, and to see her wilting right before my eyes physically hurt. She takes a breath, no doubt to refute her name again, before she seems to register what Marcus had asked her.
"How would you know that? About my Captain?" I see it coming before she does. Again he smacks her. Only Fredric's hand on her waist kept her standing. Rule number 1: Do not question King Pin. Bleary-eyed, she looks up at him. He lets her sit for several long seconds, daring her to say another word with his eyes. Finally, he says, "My comrades here had a run-in with a young man in a tavern in town, straw hat, rubber arms. He accosted my men in the middle of their meal and made quite a scene. But he was punching way above his weight, and I'm sorry to tell you he didn't survive the struggle. My men put him down as is their right as keepers of my laws" Henric cackled at this. An evil glint in his eyes. Nami's eyes go wide with disbelief. "Some common thugs wouldn't beat Luffy." All three suddenly look at her with hot rage and a little bit of disbelief at her gall. She flinches, expecting another slap but instead, a black cloud wraps around her, and I hear her scream. I know she sees something. The brother's fog has a mind of its own. It takes current and past fears and twists them into an unrelenting nightmare. The torture was enough sometimes completely to break someone without ever having to touch them. The sorrow in her scream will echo in my ears for a long time.
Nami had sagged against Fredric when the fog rolled away, and her face is bloodless, and a river of tears falls from her eyes. Fredric had bent down to the box at his feet, and I tensed as he slid the cardboard open and reached a hand inside. He pulls a tattered straw hat from it with a bright red band and presents it to Nami. Her eyes widen as Fredric drops the hat and stops on it with his dirty boots.
Marcus stands laughing as he watches her collapsing in despair, clutching desperately at the hat under Fredric's foot. After letting her wallow for a few minutes, Marcus says, "I expect that now that your crew is down two members, they will undoubtedly recruit and sail on. At least they'd better. Ships that stay too long in my port tend not to last very long. Neither do their crews, for that matter."
The obvious threat against her people causes Nami to close her eyes, her breathing becoming erratic. "Now, why don't you tell me your name, little one."
Her eyes pop open, and she takes several quick rapid breaths. Surprisingly she still has a glint of fire in her eyes, but she makes the smart decision and gives Marcus the answer he wants. "Blo...Blossom. Sir." She hung her head after speaking, like giving the wrong answer was taking a physical toll. I notice Marcus didn't hear that bite in her words. A tiger in a cage. That's what Nami is.
"Oh, sir? I like her already. She learns fast." He pats Nami's head gently, and his hand obscures her vicious glare briefly before he moves back toward his stolen throne. Still holing Nami's waist, Fredric's hand has finally moved up under her shirt, and I can see it heading for her breast. Standing on wobbly legs, I moved to take her hand, pulling her out of Fredric's grip earning myself a nasty look. I hugged Nami and aloud said, "It's so nice to have a new sister! It's always so exciting." God, I hate that my voice can even go that high. I grip her extra tight and move her gently to the other side of me, away from Fredric. "I even hear that Marcus has news." I injected as much enthusiasm and excitement into my tone as I could without gagging.
I turn my eyes toward Marcus and wait. A lesson in asking a question without asking a question. Out of the corner of my eye, I can see Nami stare bewildered at me, at my shifting personality, and I just shake my head. I'd explain later.
Marcus's eyes had taken on a suspicious gleam, and he stared at us for a long time before finally speaking, "Right, you are my love. I've finally decided that I need to settle down."
A pit opened in my stomach. A loud gasp drew all of our eyes to the other side of the room. Leanna was overjoyed. Within moments she had run across the room and thrown herself into Marcus's arms, her lethargy from the sea prism stone momentarily forgotten. She began shouting excitedly, "Yes, yes 100 times, my love." Marcus looked down at her the same way people looked at gum on their shoes, and he quickly unwrapped her arms from him and tossed her to the side. She wobbled in her heels once again and fell back on her ass.
"You moron. You think I'd marry some old whore." It's as if he hit her again. Fresh tears washed down her face, and she wobbly stood and took several steps away from him. "If not me, then who?" But she answered her question and suddenly flew across the room and began scratching at me. I dodged and ducked as best I could, but she clipped me numerous times with her talon sharp nails. "You dirty bitch. I'll never let you have him. He's mine!" Other nonsense poured out of her mouth as I avoided her, but I couldn't even focus because I also thought he meant to marry me and was sick with that thought. The idea of being his not just because I couldn't physically leave but also because he was my husband was almost more than I could bear.
Finally, we circled the room and were about where we had started, and Marcus snatched Leanna out of the frenzied run she'd taken and rattled her hard. "Leanna! Behave!" She looked at him, flushed and heaving for breath. "I won't let her have you." She didn't flinch, and the strength in her voice was something I hadn't thought she possessed. If she weren't such a raging bitch I'd almost be proud of her.
"Who are you to question me!? Who I marry is none of your business." Again she looked scandalized and turned venomous eyes toward me—dumb cow. No one wants him but you.
Henric spoke up from his spot by the stairs, "King Pin, shall we fetch your bride to be?" So not me, then. I'd never been so relieved in all of my captivity, and the weight dropped from my shoulder like a heavy coat.
"No, my friend. Not yet."
Henric and Fredric moved up beside Leanna, and Marcus addressed the three of them. "Boys, take Leanna to the rack. She seems to have forgotten her place." The rack was a long wooden platform located in the dungeon. It was rough-hewn pine with restraints placed at odd intervals. I was there a lot when I was first captured. Once strapped in, you were tortured in all manner of ways, though the brothers preferred the whips, often tipped with sharp, barbed things, and you weren't removed until Marcus had either become satisfied you had learned your lesson, or he had grown bored. He once forgot Jezza on the rack for two weeks; when she finally returned, she had developed a permanent limp from having her leg pulled out of place for too long. To my knowledge, Leanna had never been on the rack, though she was always quick to suggest it for others.
Leanna went paper pale and began to back away from the brothers as fast as possible. "Please, darling. I'm so sorry. I just love you. You know how I hate to share you." She raised her hand as if she meant to caress his cheek, but Marcus swatted her hand away, and without even looking her way, signaled for Henric and Fredric to take her away; her screams echoed through the empty stone room for several long seconds.
The soft tapping of leather shoes on stone alerted me to Marcus's approach, and I quickly turned my attention to him. Nami was shaking against me. Looking at her, I noticed her lip was still bleeding, and bruises had started to bloom on her cheek and neck. I wanted desperately to use my powers to heal her, but erasing a mark given by King Pin would be seen as a direct insult, and the punishments for such offenses could be lengthy and painful; Leanna was proof of that. Instead, I squeezed her tighter, praying I could take the brunt of Marcus's temper.
His face was no longer relaxed. Deep lines had started on his forehead and around his mouth, drawn down in a deep scowl. Fucking great, that great cow has made this even worse. A heavy sigh built, and I fought hard to keep it down. I braced myself, and just like I thought he would, he grabbed me by the arm as soon as he got close enough and yanked me against him. I didn't make a sound as he roughly pressed his lips to mine once more. More teeth, more blood, only this time it healed almost immediately. He pulled away, breathing heavily, and turned his gaze toward Nami. His calm voice was in strong opposition to his enraged face.
"Blossom, my dear, come here." She hesitates, eyes uncertain, and lips were quivering with fear. Never hesitate! Marcus yanks me with him as he stalks toward her and, closed-fisted and without a sound, hits her in the jaw. Nami drops like a bag of rocks and is out cold, crumbling like a broken doll to the floor. A heavy sigh escapes through King Pin's nose, and he turns expectantly to me. I kneel by her side and press my hands to her jaw. Her skin is soft beneath my hands, and she looks very innocent while asleep. I almost want to leave her sleeping. Spare her the pain I know is coming, but it'd only be a slight reprieve and might worsen the next instance. Repressing tears, I press a little harder; I heal her just enough that she'll wake but not enough to leave her a clean slate. Her coffee-colored eyes blink open painfully, and she squints miserably up at me.
A booming voice sounds behind us, "Now Blossom, I believe I gave you order." Beneath my touch, Nami tenses, but she doesn't hesitate a second time. Instead, she begins to struggle to her feet. I don't help, and I desperately wish I could explain to her that helping would make it worse, but instead, I stay blank-faced in the wake of her betrayed glare. She walks past me and toward Marcus, who towers sinisterly over her.
I've got to do something.
"Darling," the word burns my tongue, "it's been so long since we've been alone. Maybe we could send her back-," He cuts me off with a savage look that makes me feel very small, and I know I'll be punished later.
I go cold as I watch Marcus lift his hand and place it gently on Nami's shoulder. He grins, and he gently forces her to her knees and then presses her face until it's hovering an inch from the ground. He then begins to list all the things he finds disgusting about her. Her breast are too large, her hips too thin, and her feet too huge. Her hair reminds him of the vomit you get if you drink too much citrus ale. He lists things that are 'wrong' with her, and tears drip off her nose in heavy drops. Even though every flaw he points out is made up, I can tell the anguish is worming its way into her. I know from experience that having something pointed out, a flaw, a personality quirk, correcting behavior is an excellent way to cause anxiety and is a good first step to breaking someone's spirit.
"And that stomach, I mean god, did you decide to let yourself go when you became a pirate? These clothes Lavender has given you are practically bursting at the seams!" He grips the top and pulls the shoulders until the seam rips themselves open slightly, and Nami releases a strangled sob. When he's not looking, I scowl. Marcus likes to keep us hungry and weak, and if he can trick us into starving ourselves, half the work gets done for him. I'd seen many girls starve themselves to death after one too many nights just like this.
Nami finally sinks her head that final inch to rest on the floor. Marcus smiles, satisfied, squats next to her head, and pet her hair gently. "But don't worry, my dear. Though others may find you repulsive, I think I'll keep you. After all, who else would even want you? Especially after I have you." A wicked smile snaps onto his face, which he flashes me as if we were sharing an inside joke.
Marcus extends his hand to me, and I walk over. He lowers me to the ground to sit by Nami's head and places my hand to pet her hair. She flinches from my touch, and it pains me how fragile she already seems. What did they show her in the Fearscape to make her so sad, broken? It can't just be this berating? Marcus's voice draws me out of my thoughts.
"Now, my Lavender, I believe I told you of my upcoming nuptials, yes?" I nod, knowing that words aren't necessary. "Fantastic. So without further ado, Gunther! Bring in, my bride!"
A door opens from the opposite side of the room, and two people walk in, and my breathing stops. The first is Gunther Urasea, Marcus's much younger brother. He's the opposite of Marcus in color. Pasty skin and silver hair. They share a similar height, but Gunther is willowy and thin. His eyes, almost always squinted, were a deep burgundy color. I'd never seen him without his sinister smile, and of all the people who had come into my life over the years, he made me the most nervous because he had never touched me, but the threat and what I had seen him do to others always made my blood go cold.
Like right now, as I watched him drag the Crown Princess Celia Floria into the room by her bicep. She was taller, as tall as the queen had been, at about 5'9". She was taller than when she went missing eleven years ago. Her mulberry-hued hair was pulled up into a loose ponytail, with wild curls escaping all around her face, covering her missing ear completely. Her face had lost the roundness of childhood, and she now had a regal tilt to her nose and chin. What struck me as odd was that her dark brown eyes didn't show a hint of fear. She even appeared to huddle close to Gunther as they approached the spot on the floor where we were all sitting. I couldn't breathe as I looked at her—all these years of not knowing where she was or how she was being treated, wondering if I'd ever seen her again, and here she was, looking relatively unharmed.
Marcus's smile widened as they approached. "My little brother, how are you this evening?" His voice was filled with laughter. I couldn't understand what was so funny, but he was looking at his brother like they were five, and he had taken Gunther's favorite toy.
Gunther cleared his throat and yanked Celia forward to present her to Marcus. "I'm quite well, brother. I've brought the girl just like you asked." Was that snark I hear in his voice? Trouble in fraternal paradise? I studiously avoided letting Celia see my face. I petted Nami's hair and tried to soothe her as best I could.
"My lovely Lavender, look, Gunther has brought my Sugarplum to see you. It's not polite to not introduce yourself." For the first time, Celia turned and looked at me, and there was genuine fear in her eyes now because, until this moment, she knew without a shadow of a doubt that I was dead.
"We...Wellesley!?" her eyes widened, and she delicately covered her mouth in shock.
A/N P.S. I finally finished this chapter. I've been drafting it and drafting it and am still not 100% happy with it, so I will probably edit it periodically. That can only work to your benefit. I also plan on posting a brief additional ficlet of Nami's fearscape. I hope you enjoy and review if the mood strikes ya. :) -CL