Born for Silk (The Cradled Common)

Chapter 10

Chapter Ten

Rome

Her scars...

The tiny white rivers of past wounds that snake down her inner thighs. How did she get them? I could not be more pleased that I executed that Wardeness in the Lower-tower last week. She was careless and blind. This girl—my Aster—has not lived a gentle life needed to be a Silk Girl.

The last-light dim creeps away in the corridor as I leave The Circle and Aster…

"Aster is out,” I state, pushing open the door to Cairo’s quarters to find him hunched on the side of the bed, pulling a shirt on, the lashes from his flagellation on display for a slither of a moment. When I was a young man, I used to wonder what thoughts made him want to pursue a path of penance each last-light before he slept.

Now, I do not care.

I continue, “We are a lord down and she is the smallest. I will take the redhead."

“Iris,” he confirms, standing and stopping in front of me. Bowing his head, he says, “Sire.” He continues his routine, hovering over a small basin, and begins to wash his hands.

His chambers are as barren as his heart, a wooden bed, desk, basin, and bookcases. The minimalist space reflects his commitment to The Trade as his sole identity and interest. “Aster has two very interested lords. It is a pity.”

My back muscles bunch. "Who?"

"You know I cannot say,” he states.

"She is out.” I widen my stance and remember a time when I was eager to be an emotionless warlord like my father. How very unlike him I am when my thoughts and passions bubble away in my veins like molten lava. “Her thighs are scarred. She has been through too much to be a Silk Girl.”

"I'm not going to ask how you know such things.”

"I will not repeat myself. She is out.”

He smiles wirily and looks up from his hands, meeting my gaze in the small brass-framed mirror. "Shall I leave now to inform the other lords they are required to start immediately? We have missed a night waiting for you to finalise your decision.” His brows weave, and I know this is it. “I will ensure there will be no crossovers. You will start with Iris tonight. This is your first time making an heir. Let me explain how it works.” He turns to face me. “Usually, a Guard would monitor the comings and goings, to ensure only one lord is inside The Circle at any time, but over the next five nights, I will stand at the door. You will go first. Do her well.”

I sneer. "She'll be limping by the time I'm through with her. You'll have an heir this season."

“ We will have an heir. Make it happen, Sire."

Teeth grinding, I turn to walk back through the door, when his words slice through me, halting my step.

"I shall send Aster to a new placement."

I talk to the open door, my blood roars, ready for what he might say next. Clenching my fists at my sides, I say, "She is mine. I will do whatever I want with her.”

I hear his dark chuckle. “You would keep Meaningful Purpose from her? It is all she has known. She will not take this well. Let me reassign her to a lord with less… standards.”

“No.”

"If you want to fuck that girl, Sire. You need to treat her in the appropriate manner. As a Silk Girl,” he states smoothly, reading me too fucking well. I loathe his intuitions, not that I have managed to hide my interest in Aster well. “She is a breeder. She will get pregnant easily. If you want to fuck her at leisure not Purpose, we will need to remove all the parts that may bring you an unauthorised heir... you understand?"

I see black.

I don’t intend to fuck her.

I want to keep her pure, safe.

My last piece of humanity.

Perfectly intact.

But his threat digs at the grave of my darkest memory, and my weakness. I want to. There is no doubt that I want to fuck her and if I do…

He will cut her open.

Pull out her womb.

Leave her broken.

Just like my sister.

Hatred and disdain creep into my vision like phantoms finding my humanity and choking it. I do not dare turn around.

I lower my voice, deepen it. “If you touch a hair on her head, I will drag your spine from your torso by your skull.”

Without another word, I storm away from his chamber. The Guards I pass flatten themselves to the brick walls as I violently shake, visibly fighting to control my anger.

If he didn’t know I cared for her before, he sure as hell knows now.