A Debt To Pay

47

My entire body was numb with fear as we were lead off the back of the stage after the curtain fell and we were descended into darkness. The silence was overwhelming, with every girl speechless with dread. The four men chatted about the success of the auction amongst themselves, claiming their boss would be pleased with the amount paid.

A throat cleared behind them and I hovered behind the string of girls, still cuffed to Josie, watching as the four figures turned. "I want my girl," the man growled.

David raised an eyebrow. "Collection is a little later," he answered.

"I want my girl now," the man repeated, a stern scowl on his face that made me cower away alongside every other girl.

David nodded with a frown. "Okay, which girl did you buy?" He asked.

"46."

Josie's eyes widened as they snapped to me and I froze, my lower lip quivering as everyone turned to me. Through my watery eyes, I watched David nod. "Okay, I'll get the paperwork. Uncuff her," he instructed before leaving out of a door to the left.

Jace approached me with a small key and undid the cuff attaching me to Josie. My hand shook as he freed it, his shark like grin plastered on his face as he pulled me forward.

When he let go, I was standing in front of the huge man who had 'purchased' me, shivering with cold fear.

"Good," the deep voice grumbled in satisfaction, his eyes grazing over me slowly while my own stayed glued to the floor. "On your knees."

I froze, feeling utterly humiliated as I dropped to my knees on the cold floor, praying to every god that he wasn't going to force me into anything in front of all the girls. Still, I kept my eyes on the ground while he moved away from me to sign the paperwork. When he looked back, he crouched down in front of me. The warmth of his body so close to mine had me sweating and I had to try and stop myself from throwing up.

"You're mine now," he told me, reaching forward to place his finger on my chin. He tugged my face up so I was staring into his dark, misty green eyes and my heartbeat quickened. I nodded quickly as he delved into his pocket and pulled out a thick black collar. My eyes widened as he reached up to clip it around my neck and the thick leather felt heavy around my throat. "You will bend yourself to suit my every request and bow down to me," he stated, a glint in his eye that had me recoiling in fear.

"Is that so?"

I froze. My whole body tensed at the sound of the voice and then heavy footsteps followed, echoing as they thumped painfully slow across the concrete floor.

The guy frowned in front of me and then raised his eyes, locking them on the intruder. "Who the hell are you?" He hissed, raising to his full height and standing off against the them.

A series of lighter footsteps pattered across the room and when I finally had the guts to raise my head, I saw guards completely surrounding us with huge guns pointed directly at us. But my gaze flickered away from them immediately and focused on the huge figure who's eyes were locked on mine. "Logan," I breathed, gawking up at him.

"Hey darling," he said with a small, half smile. I jumped up to my feet, taking a step forward only to be halted when a hand curled around my arm, crushing my bone and sending me hurtling backwards. I tried to pull out of the tight grip but the man was too strong.

Logan took one long, threatening step forward, towering over the group of men who looked between him and his guards with concern written across their faces. "I recommend letting go," he growled.

Reluctantly, my new owner dropped my arm and I went stumbling towards Logan with tears dripping from my face. "Logan," I whispered, collapsing into his arms. He felt so warm and I sunk into him, feeling his strong arms wrap around me, making me feel safe for the first time in weeks. His scent engulfed me as he nuzzled his face against my neck.

"It's ok," he said, pecking my forehead softly, "I've got you." He squeezed me so tightly and for a moment, the rest of the world fell away. All the dangerous men in the room no longer mattered, it was just me and him, wrapped in each other's arms. "You're safe."

Hestarted to pull away and I shivered, feeling the cold air brush over my skin.Logan frowned and immediately pulled his jacket off and draped it over myshoulders. His gaze snapped to the left of me. "Eyes down," he growled to his guards, doing up the buttons on his jacket.

"I don't know who you are," David said, taking a long step forward, "but she's sold."

Logan chuckled humourlessly, keeping his hardened eyes focused on me while he tucked a piece of hair behind my ear and then moved to unclip the collar that had been placed around my neck. "That's better," he muttered before tossing the heavy chunk of leather to the floor. He moved me carefully to one side, towards the wall of soldiers lining the room.

"Are you ok?" Gavin asked with a friendly smile and I sunk into his arms, tears streaming down my face.

The rest of the soldiers kept their eyes fixedon Logan who stepped closer to the group of men. "She was never yours to sell," he growled out.

"We found her on the streets," David countered as though it was a reasonable argument for kidnapping someone.

The man that had purchased me stepped forward, snatching the collar off the floor, scowling in Logan's direction. "I paid a lot of money for her," he growled out. "I'm either leaving here with her or with my money back."

David shook his head. "No refunds, but don't worry, the girl is yours." His eyes narrowed as he glared up at Logan defiantly and I felt my stomach turn.

Again, Logan laughed a deep, humourless laugh that had his guards standing straighter. "That girl is mine," he stated possessively and I frowned while he eyed my angry looking 'owner'. "And you don't need to worry, you won't be leaving here at all." Without any word of warning, Logan pulled a gun from his side and pulled the trigger, sending the bullet straight into the mans heart. I stared in terrified shock as his body jolted and then dropped to the floor.

He smirked down at the body for a moment before raising his head, a triumphant look on his face when the rest of the men cowered away. "Now then," he said, a twinkle in his eye. He turned to his right where a cluster of guards stood, guns raised. "Go out to the front and send away any men that are here to collect their girls," he ordered and the group of men scurried away.

"You can't do that!" David snapped before recoiling.

None of the men were small, reaching a similar height to Logan and yet, he managed to look down on them with sheer fury in his eyes. "I can do whatever I like," he stated, a promise to his tone that sent a shiver down my spine. It had been a while since I had seen him like this and unlike previously when I found it petrifying, now I found him extremely sexy. "That-," he said, kicking the body that lay at his feet, "-was a warning. Since he wasn't the one to actually take her from me, I thought I should let him off lightly."

Jace held up his shaking hands. "What do you want?" He asked, fear drenching his features.

Logan considered his question for a minute and then raised an eyebrow. "You to pay," he stated before the booming sound of a shot echoed through the room.