Wicked Game

Chapter 8

            Lucy leaned into the overstuffed cushions of the forest green sofa, once again looking down at the delicate necklace hanging below her chin.

She picked up the pendant, examining it as she had done all day.

The gold chain was light as a feather as it draped around her neck. The pendant was a small, golden key. The bit had a unique curve and the oval shaped pommel was decorated with a small, pearl finished medallion inlaid with two cobalt blue jagged lines.

Lucy's heart ached when she thought about watching Natsu walk away from her this morning.

She hated lying to him.

The real reason Lucy couldn't leave the club was simple. If she tried, she'd be killed. Or, worse, she'd end up like the many dozens of other girls who disappeared from the club.

She may have been peacefully unaware of what Ivan was doing with Tartaros, but she was all too familiar with Ivan's current business, and it wasn't simply running a night club.

The turnaround rate for dancers at The Blue Kitten was unusually high. Except for a select few, like Lucy, many of the girls would leave after just a few months, sometimes even weeks. Ivan would say that he liked having fresh blood in the place. But that was a lie.

The girls weren't just up and quitting or moving on. Ivan was selling them off like cattle.

Lucy shuddered at the thought. Her overwhelming desire to rescue those poor girls from their fate was defeated by Ivan's threats. If Lucy tried anything to put a stop to it, she would be killed or sold off herself. He'd also threatened her friends. Lucy wasn't about to be the reason for anything happening to the other girls like Cana and Juvia who had become even more than friends to her, they were her family.

There was no way out. The feeling of helplessness that thought brought her had become a part of Lucy. They were all trapped. Why bother clawing at the cage?

She ran the pendant between her fingers again, as if it were a magic talisman that could protect her.

Natsu made her feel human again. And it was eating her alive. Torn between the life she was being forced to lead and the temptation to truly believe she could escape this place.

She wished she could ask him to take her away from all of this.

Natsu, though, may be just as intricately tied to this place as she was. He was working with Ivan, and those types of business partnerships never ended well. Even if by some miracle Natsu were to whisk her away, she still wouldn't truly be free of Ivan.

Lucy's only consolation laid in the fact that, though Natsu may be involved in Ivan's new business dealings, he was clearly unaware of what was happening with the girls. If he had been, he never would have suggested she could just up and leave.

The relief that brought her was immense. Maybe Natsu was everything he seemed to be. He wasn't just a willing bystander allowing innocent girls to be shipped off to their inconceivable fate.

Still, Natsu wasn't her knight in shining armor. He wasn't there to save her. She had to remember that.

"What's that?" Cana's voice broke through her consciousness. She was suddenly aware of all the voices whirling around the room as the dancers moved to and fro getting ready for their sets.

"It's nothing" Lucy said evasively as she let the necklace fall back against her chest.

"Did Natsu give it to you?" The brunette asked, moving to take a seat next to Lucy.

Lucy avoided making eye contact with the other girl.

"Look, Lucy," Cana started in a gentle voice. "I think you need to be careful with this guy. Don't get too attached," she glanced at the necklace, "if you aren't already."

"I know how this works Cana," Lucy replied more defensively than she meant to. She sighed and briefly pressed her palms to her eyes. "Sorry," she said.

Cana gave her a soft smile. "I'm just looking out for you. I don't want to see you get hurt."

Lucy nodded. Cana had been the first friend she made when she started at The Blue Kitten. She liked to come off as a loud mouth and a bit of a smart ass, but the truth was Cana had a huge heart. She would do anything for her friends- they were all the family she had.

"What am I supposed to do Cana?" Lucy nearly whispered, her voice stuttering with desperation.

Cana's brow bent in a frown. "You'll do what you have to do."

Lucy looked up at Cana and nodded, tears welling in her eyes.

"Look, I know Natsu has been a fun break from all of this," Cana gestured to the weathered, ageing room around them. "But that's all it is, a break. He'll move on and you'll go back to work like normal. Nothing's changed."

Lucy nodded again, trying to accept the truth in Cana's words.

Cana wrapped an arm around Lucy's shoulders and spoke to her quietly. "I know Natsu seems like a great guy, but he's working with Ivan. I don't know how involved he is or what he actually knows about this place, but that's enough to make him a bad guy, despite how he may seem."

"Right," Lucy replied with a sniffle.

Cana smiled at her. "Enough crying," she said putting on a cheerful voice. "You're mascara is running everywhere. Go get cleaned up, maybe take a nap, and I'll grab you when it's time for your set. I'll grab a couples beers for us for after, too," she grinned.

"Thanks Cana," Lucy whispered. The girl flashed Lucy another smile before strutting across the room to the bar.

Lucy headed back to her dressing room. She took a seat at her vanity and stared hard into the mirror.

Cana was right. But it only made Lucy feel worse.

Would it really hurt anything to enjoy Natsu, while she had him?

As she leaned in to touch up her makeup the pendant caught her eye again. She should probably take it off before the show.

No, she decided. She would leave it on. Natsu would be there tonight, she hoped, and he would see her wearing it. She wanted him to know that, despite everything, she was his, even if it was just for a little while.