Submission

2

"I am so sorry," I stuttered out an apology as the man wiped the splashed drink from the sleeve of his jacket.

"It's fine," he sighed. He ran a hand across his forehead in an annoyed way, like just speaking to me was a great inconvenience. I picked up the tray just in time for the men who had brought me to arrive on the scene.

"What have you done, you stupid girl?" The first man hissed at me. The other man was offering cocktail napkins to the nearby guests I had assaulted with a champagne shower.

"What have I done? That idiot-" I was cut off by the man roughly grabbing my arm and yanking me along with him. He shoved me to the kitchen and I looked back to see the man I had fallen on watching curiously.

"What did I say about behaving?" Busy kitchen staff worked around us as he threw me to the floor. A shattering pain erupting from my elbow as I hit the hard tile.

"I didn't-" Electricity bolted through me before I could speak. I cried out trying to restrain myself from pushing it away. It was enough to keep me on the ground, but not enough to restrict my movement so I grabbed his leg, hoping to share the pain with him. He cried out and kicked me hard in the face to force me to let go.

"You stupid bitch!" He yelled. He picked up his phone and started adjusting the voltage, causing me to scream when someone behind him interrupted. He turned off the remote to speak.

"Excuse me," the voice said. I looked up to see the man I had fallen onto. "How much for the girl?"

I felt my jaw drop. This is the time he chose for this? I couldn't exactly be picky as I was sure the man was about to fry me, but I couldn't imagine walking in on this and still choosing to ask something like that.

"You'll want a different one, Mister Purick." He turned to the man and smiled. "We have three other girls available, this is the first night for all three so all of them are fresh and a pick of the litter."

"No," the man said calmly. "I'll take her."

"She is unavailable at this time."

"When will she be available?"

"She will not. I can give you a slight discount on one of the others for your inconvenience. The vampire is going to cost you three hundred for every hour, the cheerleader would cost-"

"I want the cat." The man I now knew as Purick didn't ask. His tone held a sense of power that dared him to disagree. "And I don't want her by the hour. I will be purchasing her. Now, how much for the cat?"

"Uhm," the man with the remote looked down at me for a moment before looking back at his phone. "Let me make a call, sir."

"Make it quick," Purick said it so calmly, but I could tell it was a threat. He came over to where I sat on the floor and gently helped me up. He put his large tattooed hand on the small of my back to guide me with him.

"Sir, this is his party." The man pleaded into the phone. "I don't want to be the one to tell him no."

Purick took the phone from his hand and held it to his ear.

"I don't like hearing the word no anyway." He said casually. "So, I'll tell you how this is going to happen. Name a price and I take the girl or I kill your minions here and take all four for free."

He waited a moment for a response, he chewed the inside of his cheek as he stared at the man in front of him.

"A package deal? That sounds wonderful," he spoke as though he had just closed a great business deal and smiled down at me. I could tell the smile wasn't meant for me. He looked at me like I was a prize he had won. He tossed the phone back to the man who failed to catch it. "I'll be waiting in my car. Bring me the cat and send the rest with my brother, Kenneth. He'll tell you what to do."