17. Sable
SABLE
If Bellthorn Academy wasn’t creepy enough on its own, they use green lights in their classrooms and make their students dress like Victorian pop icons. I’m not sure why they want me to feel like I’m inside the castle of some dark sorcerer, but the effect is uncanny.
Despite knowing several of the students at Bellthorn, it’s like seeing them all for the first time.
Black fabric, lace gloves, dramatic ruffled trains, and an inescapable sickly pallor from the miserable lights.
If I were listening to sense, I would assume Bellthorn is the set of a movie or a costly prank.
The Big Dude, who’s too good to tell me his name, but isn’t too good to fuck me, guides me through the maze of corridors, which can be classified in two ways: new and horrifying or old and horrifying.
The old and horrifying ones don’t tend to have other students, and somehow being alone with him is even harder than having an audience.
You can tell a lot about a man by the way he walks, and this one thinks he owns the world.
But can he really be that important when everyone stares at me as we pass?
My pussy reminds me that whether he fucked my throat or pussy, he certainly contributed to several of my orgasms.
We’re in one of the new and horrifying hallways when someone steps out in front of us. He’s a bit older than me with long dirty-blond hair in a low ponytail. He opens his mouth to reply, but a man steps up to us, cutting him off.
“Soren,” he says with a cordial tone.
“Orion,” my escort corrects through gritted teeth, surprising me with how easily he gave up the name he’s been keeping from me. Orion . I test it out in my head, surprised by how much I like the sound. I can imagine moaning it, provided I actually know who’s fucking me. My thighs press together.
“So this is the new Offering.” He looks me up and down, leering, and Orion stiffens.
“Bother her on Lex’s time. I have no reason to talk to you, Cillian.”
“I’m not bothering anyone, just saying good morning.” Cillian smiles, but looks at me a little too long.
“Oh yeah? And why the fuck would I wish you a good morning?”
Cillian's offended expression feels oddly fake, like he expects this reaction or wants it even. “You don’t have to be rude.” He turns to me. “It’s nice to officially meet you, Sable.”
My cheeks burn because there haven't been any good reasons to know me lately. “Uh, hi.” Orion vibrates with tension, and some of it is now directed at me. I’m not sure how to break it when my stomach suddenly growls, doing it for me. Cillian’s eyes cut from me to the man next to me.
“I thought you were supposed to feed the Offering? I guess the rumors from last year were true.”
Orion’s expression is murderous. “I said fuck off. I swear to God if you come near her again, I will fuck you up.”
Orion turns and drags me along, leaving Cillian behind.
His mention of last year makes my stomach turn.
Who was in my spot before me? What rumors did this guy Cillian hear?
Nerves run up and down my spine, and they’re only made worse by the anger radiating off Orion.
Someone else pissed him off, and now I need to deal with the fallout.
Fuck this school and everyone in it. Worst of all, Orion never mentioned whether he was feeding me or not, and I am starving. I struggle to keep up with him, my wrist burning as he grips it too hard, his strides twice the length of mine.
Before I can get too desperate, he leads me toward a wide set of double doors.
They’re nearly as grand as the main entrance, but they stand open, and I’m distracted from my hunger as I look around the sweeping dining hall.
Natural skylights in the ceiling drop sunlight on us.
I almost moan, and I wish I understood enough about the university to know where we are right now.
How high up are we? I don’t have a single window in my room.
Piles of food sit in a long line, with dishes stacked at the front, ready for people to fill their plates.
Some people do just that, while others sit and talk.
I know several of them, but not that many.
Excitement and relief rush me, and I take a step toward the food, but then I remember.
Are meals included in this deal? I can’t ask him and shrink myself even more.
There won't be room left inside me for all my anger and frustration. In my desperation to get away from Uncle Carl, I made a rash decision. I indebted myself to people I don’t even know. I see that now.
Dumb, dumb, Sable.
My hesitation is interrupted by my stomach complaining loudly again. Orion turns his head toward me. “Why are you so fucking hungry?” he snaps, sounding even more pissed off than he was at Cillian.
“It’s been a while since I ate,” I explain, hoping it will get him to stop staring at me and offer me some damn breakfast. I could barely eat yesterday morning, and no one has given me food since.
I don’t know who’s responsible for my meals or if maybe they’ll leave the door unlocked at some point and let me feed myself, but I won’t be able to survive too long on nothing.
“Come on.” Orion grabs my wrist again, my hand dangling limply like a misbehaving child as he leads me to the food. He drags me, though he doesn’t have to. I’m eager enough to get there on my own.
My stomach snarls as Orion pulls me toward the buffet.
The lack of food is making me faint, and for a moment, I forget that I don’t have any money.
I’m so used to never having to worry about it that the blow is harsh, even though it’s been months now.
I can’t dine and dash when there’s nowhere to dash, and I know I only have one option—the asshole next to me.
“I don’t have any money,” I admit as he grabs his plate, and I stare at the pile.
He laughs at my expense. “Well, obviously, or you wouldn’t have agreed to be our whore this semester.”
I cough to hide my shock. That’s what I’m doing here?
Is that the agreement that Lex was so sure I signed?
It takes nearly a minute before I can breathe, but I force myself to grab a plate and keep moving, controlling myself before I face Orion.
Last night makes more sense in these contexts.
They didn’t think they did anything wrong because they felt entitled.
The sheer thought of it repulses and titillates me, and I'm the strangest combination of terrified and excited. Everything finally makes sense.
“Constant access,” I whisper, repeating what that man said yesterday.
“That’s what the doors are for.” I count them in my mind, four glowing, five total.
How many men are there, and how many have a key to my room?
I don’t dare ask and make my position look even weaker.
Who would willingly agree to such a thing?
He smiles cruelly as I try to work all of this out, but my eyes are on the food.
“Choose whatever you want, Sable. We need you strong for everything we have planned. Trust me, I have every intention of getting my money’s worth out of your education.”
I swallow, but don’t let Orion see my fear, and there is so very much of it. “Sure,” I say before moving along the buffet to fill my plate with everything that looks good. There’s a lot about this place that I need to figure out, and starvation won’t help.
He thinks I chose this, but multiple layers of people must have lied to me for this to be true.
That betrayal goes deep. Did my uncle know and let me leave anyway?
Is this what he was keeping from me when he told me to refuse?
A distinct voice inside me says yes, he knew.
He wanted me to pay for not choosing him.
Orion makes a plate for himself and pays for us both before leading me to a table.
Everyone in the room watches me as I go, and since they’re all wearing the same unusual style of clothes, it must be my presence, not my outfit, that’s drawing their interest. I hope at some point I’m old news, but this situation, combined with my last name, seems unlikely that I’ll be left alone just yet.
We take our seats, and some of the people stop watching us, but not all.
I’m so hungry, but my stomach turns at the thought of eating in front of my audience, both the one at my table and the surrounding ones.
“Go on, Sable,” Orion encourages, sensing my hesitation.
When I don’t move right away, he snatches a mini croissant off my plate and shoves it in his mouth.
My lips press together. I really wanted that.
It turns out, I’m more of an animal than I thought, and an urge to protect my food has me biting into a thick strip of bacon.
He’s taking too much pleasure in this situation, but at least I have food.
“Swallow,” he says, a nasty nod to last night. My cheeks flame, but I obey him just like I did then. “Good girl.”