Total pages in book: 141
Estimated words: 128812 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 644(@200wpm)___ 515(@250wpm)___ 429(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 128812 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 644(@200wpm)___ 515(@250wpm)___ 429(@300wpm)
He gives her a wide smile as he hitches his thumb over his shoulder to indicate the truck. "I'm told we're to relinquish all of our belongings to you."
"Not everything," she quickly explains as if she has been treated poorly by others in our position before. "Just weapons, electronics, bug-out bags, that sort of thing."
"Do we need to unload it ourselves, or will we have some help?" he asks, his smile never fading.
Hell, the man almost looks approachable, and it's very reminiscent of how he looked at Dakota when she paid attention to him, as if he valued what she had to say.
No wonder this man took a job defending women. It's clear he can see the value in her, even when most people she crosses paths with only see her as a possession to be used and abused at their whim.
She narrows her eyes, her smile hesitant. "I heard you were mean."
His fake smile turns genuine at her challenge, and it's a fucking sight to see. Mesmerizing, almost, and I can't help but try to think back if he's ever looked that way at me.
I bite my lower lip, remembering that very same smile only a couple of hours earlier in the bathroom, and knowing he threw it my way more than once recently does nothing to help me build up a wall to fight what I'm feeling for the man.
"Only to assholes," he assures her. "You're not an asshole, are you?"
She shakes her head, smile growing wider, and damn if she isn't pretty. Although it's hard to look past the dark circles under her eyes and the clear bruising on her upper arm as if she had been recently grabbed by someone much bigger than she is.
"You guys can keep your clothes and any personal hygiene items you brought," she explains. "If you just lay out everything else right here, we'll get it into our inventory."
"Perfect," I say, rounding the back of the truck and dropping the tailgate.
I don't glance at Zeus when he meets me at the back of the truck, but I'm no less curious about him and the way he handled himself with Candy. I know better than to think he handled her with grace and kindness as a form of manipulation he wants to use to his advantage at a later date, but he has to know there can be trouble in how he treats the women here.
"Careful who you flirt with," I warn on a whisper, my eyes darting up to make sure that Candy is too far away to hear.
He chuckles. "Jealous?"
I drop the box I'm holding, the clank of supplies inside drawing her attention for a second before she lowers her eyes back to the clipboard she pulled from somewhere I didn't see.
"You have no idea who she's connected to," I explain, not giving a voice to his accusation. "Acting that way to the wrong woman can get you killed."
"Noted," he grumbles, grabbing a box and turning away from the truck, his asshole demeanor fully locked into place.
He isn't disrespectful to Candy, but she can tell as he walks toward her, no doubt a glare in his eyes and a snarl on his face that something has changed. Her lips form a flat line when he drops the box on the ground she indicated earlier, before turning back to the truck without a word.
Disappointment swims in her eyes as she watches him walk away, as if she had hoped he was different from what she had been told, only to discover that he isn't.
Watching that hope fade is a kick to the gut. It's clear she isn't happy here, and that she had imagined herself finding a friend in him, only for him to live up to his reputation.
It doesn't take us long to sort through what we're able to keep and what we're expected to hand over, but as soon as we lay the stuff out, Candy has it sorted and logged into her inventory.
I know from experience that this process has more to do with the organization's expectation of members' dependence on the group. For some, it might be punishment, all under the insistence that it's for the betterment of the group as a whole. It prevents theft in private lodging and prevents people from revolting against others in the group when they're pissed. Even the leaders of these groups know how much of a hothead some folks can be, and this is another way of preventing in-group violence and retribution.
If what Ricky said at the gate is true, and I don't doubt that it is, some people have got to be livid when they arrive, thinking they'll have an amazing life with the woman they brought, only to be told that she's now an item on their fucking inventory list. It also gives us an in and the ability to utilize those people's losses at a later date.