The Binding

Chapter Twenty-Nine

There may be trigger warnings in this chapter. Please be cautious.

Over the next few hours, I surveyed the girls shifting around the room in a strange mixture of sleep, boredom, and expectation. Each girl was young with a firm leonine body and beauty, ranging from exotic to hometown sweetheart. Beneath their bored and expectant façade, I could see a deeply repressed nervous agitation. I knew prostitution was legal in Turkey, but somehow I doubted any of these girls were registered and licensed. And more than a few looked much too young to be legally approved. 

    I turned and watched the people on the narrow street outside appear and disappear, blithe and unaware of this prison. I explored the room, amidst the girls' amusement and discovered the only other door besides the main one lead to a small bathroom with a single toilet and sink. There were no windows in the bathroom and hardly enough room for a single person to stand. The only way out of this room was the door or a five-story drop. I had already tried the latter; it was time to devise a plan for the former.  

    I needed to learn more about the layout of the building. To do that, I needed out of the room. I bided my time and waited. I was sure Petro knew I was waiting, strategizing. I also knew he didn't care. The sun had reached its zenith and began its descent before the lock clicked again.

    Two men came in and walked toward the girls clustered on the sofas. Two girls got up and followed one of the men out of the room as he gestured to them. The second man reached over the girl who had passed out and turned her head to face him. She opened her eyes and shook her head meekly. He grunted sourly before pulling her up and over his shoulder. She didn't resist.

    The soles of her feet were black and dirty. They looked swollen and discolored. I wondered if she could walk much. I doubted they cared and considering the state she was in, I suspected she didn't either. "They get rid of her soon," Agnes whispered behind me. "Sleep too much, little money." The girl disappeared through the door just before Özgür came in and walked toward me.

    "Come now, Cicegim," he said before he had fully crossed the floor. "It is time to learn your talents." Agnes made a soft noise of repugnance behind me. Özgür ignored her and smiled knowingly at me, making my skin creep away from him, but I didn't look away.

    Before Curtis attacked me, I'd only ever thought vaguely what I would do in a situation where I would be forced to defend myself. Besides the standard self-defense moves most women learn, I'd always fantasized I'd be able to fend an attacker off with quick thinking and a sudden knowledge of judo or karate. Foolishness. Curtis was strong and forceful, and I felt like a puppet. But I kicked and scratched and fought back with every ounce of strength I had. And Curtis killed me for it. Maybe he would have killed me anyway. It didn't matter. It changed my life. It made me Avati. I knew what I was. Still, it changed nothing. I would probably do it again. I didn't want to fight, but I sure as hell wasn't going to capitulate either. I didn't know what Özgür had planned, but I certainly wasn't going to make it easy for him.

    When I didn't move, he reached over and grabbed my arm, impatient. I still didn't move, and he turned on me with a hard look, intolerant and demanding... but behind that, I could see he was slightly amused.

    "Szarosfaszú," Agnes murmured quietly behind me, just loud enough for both of us to hear. I looked at her, and she smiled, wicked and delighted. Özgür stared back and forth in confusion and then smiled, somewhere between a sneer and charm, at her. I snickered devilishly, and his hand dug into my arm. Agnes had a mouth full of horrendous insults, and she wasn't afraid to fling them at Özgür whenever possible. If he knew what she was saying, he'd probably kill her.