Sorry it's taken so long to update, I got sidetracked. I apologize for spelling mistakes and poor grammer, this is unbetaed.
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I don't know what it is about him but there's something about him that makes me smile.
He smiles back and holds out his hand to me.
"I'm Crusoe." I take his hand and shake it.
"This is Skylar and I'm David," David says shaking the man's hand. Crusoe looks at me, I think he's wondering why I didn't speak.
"He's a mute," David says simply. So I know he didn't mean it as an insult, he pulls me to him and kisses the top of my head.
"I'm sorry. I meant no offence."
I grab the Scotsman's hand and shake my head, smiling.
"I'm guessing that means I didn't offend you?" I smile at him and nod.
"How long age were o branded?" Crusoe asks David.
"Earlier today."
"I thought they looked fresh." Crusoe tilts his head as if to look at the brands at a different angle. "I've never see a chest branding before."
"What do you mean?" David asks.
"Most people carry their brands on their backs." With that he turns around and shows us a brand like ours. It's not inflammed and sore. "From what I can figure out,' he says, turning to face us again, "they changed from chest brandings at least thirty maybe forty years ago."
I suddenly feel ill.
"You right there, lad?" Looks at me concerned. "You two should sit before you fall." I look up at David. He looks green. Crusoe leads us to some cots at the end of the cage.
"What's going to happen to us?" David asks when he sits down.
"Have you been told anything?" Crusoe asks sitting down next to me. I wait for David to pull me closer but he doesn't. He mst trst Crusoe. I'm sitting in the middle of the two. David on my left and Crusoe on my right.
"We've been told that this is where we will be staying until the auction in five days. What auction are they talking about?"
"You do know you're going to be sold, right?" Crusoe asks us.
"Our fathers already sold us to the man who brought us here," David says to the scotsman. "What are we being sold for?"
"What do you think the 'S' on your brands stand for?"
"We have no idea." I shake my head, I don't know either.
"They stand for 'slave'," Crusoe explains to us. "You see, there are rich people in the world who love to own another's life. Slaves are one way to do that. If you are sold as a slave, as far as your master is concerned, you have no rights. As long as they don't get caught by the police they can do whatever they want to you. Most just stick with beating slave but some masters whip their slaves just for the fun of it. The brands and metal collar are the main ways to tell if someone is a slave."
Metal collars? I remember the men and women I saw on the way in. Some had leather collars.
I point to the leather strap across Crusoe's chest and then point to my collar.
He picks up what I'm trying to ask quickly. "Leather collars?" I nid. "Well, not everyone here will be sold as a slave. Some are sold as pets."
"Pets? You mean like cats and dogs?" David says.
