28. Sawyer
SAWYER
“You’re friends with Aiden, right?” I ask one of four Keepers leading us into the mines.
Thick black brows descend as he tosses me a look over his shoulder, a baton jamming into my back. As if that wasn’t enough, I’m shoved forward by the back of my head and stumble straight into a wooden support beam.
Dust rains onto my face, and the smell triggers something deep in my chest. We’re not close enough to the cells for the scent that enters my nostrils to be real. Decay and desperation. Open wounds and caked sweat.
I blink dust from my eyes and ignore Liberty’s trembling as our shoulders brush.
“You need to tell him what happened,” I say to the familiar Keeper as I work to keep my gait even. “He’ll be worried by now.”
“Shut up,” The Keeper behind me growls, shoving me once again. I collide dramatically with the wall and angle my bound wrists to catch on a rock. I’m able to saw the rope only a few times before I’m forced forward. The rope at my back feels no less tight.
Aiden’s friend stays silent. I wish I knew his name.
Whoever he is, Luna trusts him. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have had him lead me to the training house my first night at the Keep.
Liberty yelps as a baton nudges her. She walks faster, but her spine straightens to make up for the display of weakness.
A roar echoes through the mines as we approach the cells. First, the pleas are incomprehensible, but the closer we get, the more hungry they seem. More hopeful.
Feeding time.
As we round the corner, prisoners flood the bars, their arms stretching through to get their share of the day's meager offering. Barely enough to fuel the day’s labor. Not enough to quell the constant nag of pain in the gut.
Two Keepers stand in front of the bars, one holding a long pair of clamps, the other holding the bucket of food. The smell is unmistakable… Karu.
My stomach turns as a Dreg in only a pair of dirty, white briefs snatches the meat from the clamp and hurries to shove it into his mouth. It’s less than a second before he’s tackled to the ground, the meat pried from his teeth by a stronger though equally desperate opponent.
The sight makes me shudder. Liberty looks over her shoulder at me, her eyes wide and pleading.
It’s okay, I mouth.
It’s really not.
The Keeper with the baton at our backs whips the cell door to force prisoners to clear out, the electric pulse of metal on metal lit up with a blue hue. Liberty gasps like she didn’t know it could be electric. I hate myself all over again.
But she’s a woman, and—unlike the prisoners—the Keepers have morals. They’re the least of our problems.
“Everything’s going to be okay,” I say to Liberty as we’re forced inside the cell with our hands still tied behind our backs. The cell door slams and kicks up dirt as it glides across the ground.
A few Dregs turn their attention to us, but most of the focus is put on the ‘food.’ Liberty and I back up into one of the corners while my head spins trying to think of a plan. Any plan. At the very least, a lie.
“What is this place?” Liberty’s voice wobbles. “What’s happening? What are they going to do to us?”
“Nothing.” My eyes have been darting around in search for something sharp to cut the rope around our wrists, but now I look at Liberty. “Listen to me, we’re fine. This is just a mistake. Luna will be here any minute.”
Liberty hunches forward with an exasperated exhale. “You mean the crazy fucking lunatic who just forced her boyfriend to…” Tears form in her eyes. Desperate, terrified tears.
I shake my head. “That wasn’t her doing. She—”
“Sawyer…”
She whispers with her frightened eyes aimed over my shoulder. I follow her gaze to find two Dregs, the two whose attention we caught when we walked in.
I recognize them. One—the one with his head tilted as he eyes up Liberty—is a guy named Foster. He was mostly quiet for my time here, but he’s always been fully dressed and I’ve never seen him messed with. He’s no doubt violent.
The other guy is called ‘ratface’ among the Dregs.
From what I understand, he’s been here a very long time, surviving off the information he gives the Keepers.
His only clothing is a pair of ripped black slacks rolled up to his shins and a red stocking cap that matches the blood dribbled down his chin from the meal he just had.
I don’t know which one is worse. They each have me retreating a step, my foot splashing in a shallow puddle. I look down at my shoe while my head flashes with information, any that could be useful.
Think.
Fuck, Sawyer, think.
Liberty’s shoulder brushes my back as she slips behind me. “Sawyer.”
“Look who’s back,” Ratface chimes with the high-pitched laugh of a child tapping a turtle out of its shell. “What happened? Did you bore the Head Keeper?”
Ratface seems interested in me while Foster’s eyes stay pinned on Liberty. When I shuffle, more water splashes, and finally, something occurs to me.
“Hemp,” I realize aloud.
Liberty shakes her shake. “What?”
“The rope,” I whisper as I turn. “Hemp expands in water. The fibers stretch.”
She just blinks at me. I glance at Foster and Ratface before hurrying to whisper in Liberty’s ear. “Soak the rope in the puddle, wait until you feel the knot loosen, then slowly rotate your wrists. Count to thirty before you give it a good jerk. You should be able to get a hand free.”
She goes to crouch until I hiss her name. She stares with a doe-like gaze that belongs to someone else.
“Go for the eyes.”
“Who’s your friend?” Foster stops maybe five feet away. Liberty shifts further behind me before slinking to the puddle.
Finally, I face the men. Ratface stands close enough that I can smell the human flesh on his breath. My stomach rolls.
“Actually, I pissed off her boyfriend,” I finally answer Ratface’s question. “You probably remember him. Big guy. Tribal tattoo around his bicep. Likes to break toes. Ring a bell?”
Ratface glares a moment before raking his eyes down my body. “She gives you nice clothes.”
“Yup. And if you untie my wrists, you can have them. She’ll give me more as soon as she comes to get me and my friend.”
“You think she’s gonna come for you?” Foster asks. Ratface belts out that high-pitched laugh that grates my ears and makes my chest expand.
I can feel the attack coming. The Keepers, now out of food, leave the tunnel, Aiden’s friend trudging behind. More Dregs turn this way. Not all of them will be brave enough to kill the Head Keeper’s pet, but at least a quarter will feel it’s worth it. The others…
I glance at Liberty.
Most haven’t seen a woman in a very long time.
“Yeah, I do. And I feel sorry for anyone who decides to fuck with either of her pets.” I look up at the ceiling. “There are cameras everywhere in these tunnels. There are probably Keepers informing her right now of this conversation.”
“Mmm.” Foster nods. “You know what’s interesting about that?”
I just stare.
“You didn’t seem concerned about any cameras when you came to rob the place and left us to rot.”
He gets close and gives Liberty a leer before whispering in my ear. “Don’t worry... We’ll leave you alive long enough to watch.”
I suck in a sharp breath at the comment—as if remotely surprised to hear his plan. I can hear him smile at the reaction, feel his satisfied breath against my ear. A bully is the same at forty as they are at twelve; give them an advantage and they’ll make torment a game.
I’ve never once played fair.
As soon as he pulls back, a smirk stretching his lips, I slam my forehead into his nose with a force that makes my vision burst with bright light. I’ve already got my foot raised and I’m slamming it into Ratface’s kneecap before I can even see, going off memory alone.
Ratface shrieks as he buckles to the ground.
Foster stays upright, though wobbly, his hand pressed to his gushing nose. Before he can recover, I slam my foot into his groin and jerk my attention to the other Dregs as he howls and drops to his knees.
“I don’t want any trouble,” I yell toward the others. My body swings as three Dregs start to close in. “My friend is going to untie my hands, and then all my belongings are yours. As soon as the Head Keeper comes, I swear to God I’ll get more food for the Dregs. But I have to be alive to do that.”
When a man with every last rib showing lunges at me, I shift my body and ram him into the bars, which isn’t that hard considering he weighs about a hundred pounds. But another comes right after him and jabs his thumbs toward my eyes. When Liberty screams, I know they’ve reached her.
I jerk my head until one of his thumbs comes in contact with my mouth, then I bite down until I taste blood.
“Ahh!” He kicks me away and sends me into the bars.
I zero in on the guy who’s reached Liberty, his hand flinching from her leg when she screams and thrashes. When someone grasps my shoulder, I rip away to barrel toward the guy with Liberty, my knee smashing into his head before I fall against the wall.
I’m yanked back by my shoulders and thrown to the ground, and as soon as the first punch lands to my jaw, I know I’ve lost.
The sound of prisoners cheering floods my mind while a long-haired mountain-man looking asshole wraps both hands around my neck and squeezes; his teeth bare like a maniac. My hands jerk against the rope as I try to thrash, but it’s less than useless.
Then, through the cheering, a feminine shriek pierces the room. The Mountain-man’s eyes pop as rope weaves around his neck and tightens until his face turns purple.
I gasp and choke as his hands leave my throat. He claws at the rope around his neck, but it’s so tight, his fingers can’t dig beneath.
He reaches behind him to remove the screaming banshee, but Liberty doesn’t relent. Her body jerks as he bucks and tries to stand, only to wind up collapsing on top of me, his hands still reaching behind him.
The prisoners' cheers dim until it’s mostly Liberty’s battle cry that fills the space. When the Mountain-man goes limp, she drags him off me then jumps up with the rope held like she’s ready to strike.
A couple people exchange a look before one starts toward her, but a Dreg known as Chasity—I have no idea why, maybe it’s his actual name—steps between them and raises a hand.
“Enough!” he booms in his full outfit, complete with boots and a beanie. Needless to say, he’s one of the most vicious among the Dregs.
I force myself to stand, my jaw tight while I ready myself to fight. I wait for the words ‘she’s mine’ to come from Chasity’s mouth, but it’s me he looks at instead.
We stare at each other a few moments, me with my eyes narrowed, him looking oddly calm. Finally, he speaks.
“More rice, less Karu. And a new pair of socks for each of us… Understood?”
I blink at him. It takes me a moment to understand the deal, but as soon as I do, I nod.
“Understood… It won’t be a problem.”
He nods curtly then turns and walks to the other end of the cell. Others seem hesitant, but few would have the courage to stand against him. Actually, no one would because they all eventually slink away.
I turn to Liberty who’s found sanctuary once again in the corner. I can see the question in her eyes without her needing to speak it.
Now what?