“Godsdamnit. Then put her in the back room.”
I hesitate, and he misinterprets the action.
“Fine. I will show you the way, as I suppose I’m meant to do godsdamned everything around here. Hib, go take care of my sons.” Then he starts walking into the house.
Inside appears exaggeratedly large with high walls and spacious rooms.
“You’re quite tall for a human,” Eneko says after a moment.
I don’t respond.
“I didn’t realize there were so many giant bastards with Silvester. I knew that he helped the king’s halfblood.”
“Bastards aren’t well-liked in the yards,” I say, unsure exactly how to have this conversation.
He snorts. “Damn shame. Your kind is twice as strong as the others.”
We continue walking, but he stops abruptly at a door leading to a room tacked onto the rear of the house. I pull it open.Everything inside is small, hardly tall enough for him to walk inside.
“We’ve lost a few thousand of you in the last week after those humans escaped,” he says before I step inside.
I turn around and look at the man. I hate him as I have never hated before. Every inch of him. May his sons grow up and kill him.
Or, better yet, I hope I do it with my bare hands.
“We are short on slaves in our yard as well.”
“My apologies,” I grit out.
“Work for me. I’ll give you better meals than they do over there.”
I freeze. This was exactly what we wanted.
“My master will not be pleased.”
He frowns. “I’ll tell Old Silv if he asks. In fact, it is decided. You will stay and help my crew. Head over to the slave pens and look for the biggest hut at the end of the path.”
My stomach growls.
He smirks. “Just toss her on the bed. I’ll have Hib give you some bread before you leave.”
I nod, then walk into the room. It is chilly in here, and I worry about the temperature. When I place Melisa on the bed, I try not to linger. Not with her master watching me closely.
The only thing that causes me to pause is when one of her fingers brushes over my hand.
It’s a bit of comfort for a woman who asks for little.
My heart aches.
Risking it all, I covertly squeeze her digit and hurry away.
Once out of the room, I watch him remove a lock and shut her in. I bite back questions, keeping my gaze down.
Silently, we return to the front of the house. Eneko momentarily disappears and comes back with a half loaf.
“Frigid woman. It will be nice to have some soft flesh to touch once more,” he mutters, more to himself than me.
When he offers me the bread, I almost don’t take it.