‘Yes,’ she said in a reflex.

‘Good,’ Bruno said, Dax heard his smile. ‘You’re good at this, what a good girl you are. Take off your shirt.’

‘What?’ she faltered.

‘Just take it off and we’ll feed you.’

‘No, I won’t do that,’ she said. Clambering back to her feet, she stumbled back and caught the entertainment centre to balance herself.

‘One more chance,’ Bruno said. ‘Take it off and we’ll forget all this insubordination.’

‘Go to hell!’

‘Your choice, Bruno said, grabbing hold of her he pulled her back to the hall with the basement door.

The screams lowered in volume as they descended the stairs. Dax reached for the remote and turned on the TV again.

Chapter Three

They tried again two days later with no results, but this time Dax went with Bruno when he put the girl back into her shackles in the basement room. The determination in her was admirable, because this was no way to live. She had to be terrified but she wouldn’t show it, not in real terms. It all came down to one simple task: remove your shirt. But she wouldn’t do it. Maybe it was pure stubbornness, or maybe she was uncomfortable with her body, or perhaps she was just apprehensive about what the next command would be after she complied.

‘Give me a minute,’ Dax said to Bruno when he locked the door of the cage the woman resided in. Bruno nodded, and left him alone.

She didn’t say anything, just regained her composure and crawled over to seat herself on the foam mattress that had to be her resting place. When Bruno had brought her in he’d flung her to the floor and fastened two chains to her, one to her wrist and another to her ankle. The manacles gave her freedom to roam throughout the full caged space, but reminded her in no uncertain terms just what her situation was.

‘If you do as you’re told no one will hurt you,’ he said.

‘Go to hell,’ she grumbled and scratched under one of the shackles.

‘You’ll draw blood and get an infection if you keep picking like that.’

‘Now you care?’ she snapped, those vengeful eyes burning up to his. ‘What’s the fascination you and your friend have with seeing my breasts? You can pay women for that treat you know, or there’s always the internet.’

‘Sass won’t keep you alive,’ he said. ‘Argue all you want but the only person you are hurting is yourself. What we’re doing has a purpose, can you say that about what you’re doing?’

‘I give in and then what?’ she asked.

‘Why don’t you try it and see. If you don’t then there’s no chance you’ll be getting home to your mommy and daddy.’

‘I’m sure they’ll be disappointed,’ she said with a flare of ire then lay down on the bed.

‘If you want to spend the rest of what will be a very short life down here alone with your bitterness then go ahead. You’ll die alone and no one will know where to look for your body. There’s a big ocean on our doorstep, Minx, if that doesn’t remind you of how insignificant you are then maybe a few more days down here will.’

Ready to remove himself from her prison he was surprised to hear her laugh. ‘Still trying to impress that buddy of yours with your willingness to do anything for him?’ she asked. ‘Does he appreciate you?’

‘Back to that obsession you have with my bedroom? I’ll show you where it is right now if you’re ready to bow down.’

‘Is that what it will take?’ she asked, her eyes becoming slits, betraying that she was struggling to hold onto either her sanity or her consciousness. ‘It’s a shame, because you are sort of cute. But I’m damn sure you’ll never get the chance to disappoint me between the sheets.’

‘Don’t be so sure about that,’ Dax said. ‘When I want you I’m going to have you.’

‘I thought I wasn’t your type.’

‘You’re not. But I think you’re long overdue to be taught a lesson.’

‘What lesson is that?’ she asked. ‘That bullies can get their way if they’re strong enough to overpower you? Is rape what gets you off?’

‘You haven’t seen me try it yet, have you?’

‘You were happy for your friend to do it.’

‘Trystan isn’t my friend, he’s a colleague,’ Dax said, not planning to reveal his personal connection to Trystan and the Starks. ‘And it’s because of him that you’re here, that we’re having this conversation.’

‘That much I had established,’ she said. ‘What is the plan here? To keep me locked up forever? To turn me into some sort of slave or something?’

‘Or something,’ he said. ‘I’d recommend you spend your time down here thinking about what you want from the rest of your life, what’s left of it. Do you want to hang on to your obstinacy or make a future for yourself? What we’re offering here isn’t gonna do you any harm unless you are difficult.’

‘What are you offering?’

‘A chance for a better life, a better future, one where you’ll never have to worry about paying bills or finding your next meal. We’ll take away all of your worries and look after you. In exchange, you follow orders, that’s it.’

‘A simple exchange in your eyes maybe,’ she said. ‘But my body isn’t for sale.’

‘We’re not looking to buy, we’re looking to win, and your compliance is the prize. Think about it, Minx. You can have every treasure you dreamed of, or you can starve down here leaving no one behind to mourn you.’ Backing toward the door, he watched her eyes close. ‘Be smart.’

Whether or not his words had gotten through, only time would tell. She wouldn’t make their task easy, but there wasn’t an easy one ahead of her either. She needed a few more days to reconsider things and that was just what he was willing to give her.

Three days went by and they left her in her basement cell alone. Knowing she wouldn’t last long without water Bruno went down periodically to give her some, but he didn’t speak to her. On the third day Bruno brought her upstairs and made the same demands, but there was no change in her response, she was as headstrong as ever and Dax was beginning to think that she would never give in. The screaming, struggling, and sarcasm was becoming less because she had to be weakening, but that mettle remained steadfast.

Four days later Bruno retrieved her again. This occasion was immediately different, the struggling and screaming had stopped; her ability to resist was lessening. As he usually did, Bruno released her when they got onto the rug and instead of staying on her feet, she collapsed in a heap. Bruno came back to the couch and took a handful of popcorn from the bowl beside him and stuffed it into his mouth and crunched loudly.

From the way she barely moved except to blink and twitch Dax would say that she was on the cusp of doing their bidding. In the time that they’d had her here all of her decisions had been wrong, in his opinion, because they hadn’t gotten her very far.

‘You got water downstairs,’ Bruno said past the popcorn mulch in his mouth. ‘If you want to eat, take off your top.’

Her weakened state meant that she wouldn’t put up much of a fight if Bruno took over and removed her top, or all of her clothes. Except Dax had gleaned what Bruno was doing and it wasn’t about getting her naked. It was about getting her to volunteer to do something that she didn’t want to.

‘Ok, your choice,’ Bruno said, wiping his hand on the couch. ‘Back downstairs.’

He snatched her up to her feet and she objected. ‘No,’ she said and Bruno stopped.

With what energy she had left, she took her arm away from Bruno and while meeting his eye she took hold of the hem of her top and pulled it up over her head, then let it fall from her fingertips to the floor.

‘Good girl,’ Bruno said, ‘and now we’ll feed you. Don’t move.’

When Bruno turned his back on the girl to head for the kitchen he winked at Dax, who didn’t acknowledge the exchange.

The kitchen door clicked shut, signalling Bruno’s departure, all the while Dax kept his focus on the female. She might have had difficulty focusing her eyes, because she didn’t seem to look at any specific thing, eventually her attention dropped to the floor. She seemed unaware that her generous breasts, showcased in underwired white cotton and lace were on display. Ribs were almost visible, but the definition in her abs told him that she was used to working out and so probably hadn’t weighed much to begin with.