The Cunning

7

Jase was buttering toast for the girls in the kitchen. They were holding a party in the evening. An event they referred to as a 'showing', potential customers and existing customers came to observe the merchandise.

The girls knew the house rules, and Madison would receive a full rundown about the evening from Lily, Adam's sister. Jase didn't particularly care for Lily, he only tolerated her because she was doing them a favour. Her role was to coax the new girls into a false sense of security with the promise of friendship. They listened to Lily, for the most part, and anything said to her was fed back to Jase and the others. Sometimes she was too sympathetic, trying to convince them to be nicer to the girls. It wasn't a job for compassionate people. Because of this, Jase didn't always trust her, nor did he like the sickly floral perfume that clung to the foundations of the house for hours after she left.

"You reckon she'll get some attention tonight? The new bird?" Sam asked from the round table behind Jase. Jase shrugged, placing the last slice of toast on a fourth plate.

"Probably. She's pretty." There was no probably about it. Madison was textbook pretty, the kind that made men double take. She was all deep brown almond eyes and thick blonde hair that cascaded past her shoulders. Under a ski slope nose any plastic surgeon would be proud of was a prominent cupid's bow drawing attention to her plush lips. Their customers weren't too fussy when it came to the face, but they wouldn't overlook her body. They'd be so engrossed in the perky breasts and the smooth curve of her arse they wouldn't even notice the high cheekbones or faint freckles dusted across the bridge of her nose. They definitely wouldn't care about how young she was.

The more Jase thought about how the men would respond to Madison, the less comfortable he was with her attending the party. She hadn't been there long enough to weaken, which meant there was a high chance she would behave aggressively. She had kicked off relentlessly in the bedroom for two hours without stopping last night, longer than any of the other girls. There was fight in her. However, Benny had insisted she was a part of it, and Jase couldn't think of any other reason to refuse. Not one he could tell Benny.

They had ways of making girls behave, but Jase was still trying to figure out how to make her keep her mouth shut. If they used brute force, it was likely she'd talk. He had a feeling that if she thought she was going down, she would say anything to lighten the blow or at least do some damage on her way.

Adam walked into the kitchen, running his bloody knuckles under the tap. Sam and Jase exchanged raised eyebrows.

"Is she still alive?" Jase asked. Adam picked up a cloth, drying his hands as he nodded.

"Yeah, but she's not going to be coming downstairs tonight."

"What happened?" Sam asked.

"I was going to lock Annabelle's door, and she's stood there in the hallway, talking to the new girl. Imagine breaking the easiest rule to follow? And for what?" He turned around and looked at the other two, who were not at all disconcerted by any of it.

Adam was a nasty fucker with a short temper. Him getting violent with the girls wasn't new, and it was no secret that he got kicks out of hurting them. Jase supposed that was probably why Lily was quick to snatch up her job. Keep your enemies close and everything, family or not. Her brother would cave his Nan's skull in to spice up a dull Tuesday.

Adam continued. "For that silly little teenage girl because she was thinking about doing a runner."

"What do you mean?" Jase asked. Adam shrugged, tossing the cloth down and taking out a cigarette. It bobbed between his lips as he spoke,

"She was at the top of the stairs. I heard Annabelle tell her not to be stupid," he paused to light the cigarette, "doesn't take a genius to work out what she was planning. I'll tell you what, the sooner we get rid of her, the better. She's going to be a pain in the neck. I can feel it."

He wasn't the only one that thought that, but unlike Adam, Jase didn't feel the urge to beat the living shit out of her over a 'feeling'. For whatever reason, Madison had already rubbed Adam the wrong way. It would only be a matter of time before he found an excuse to get his trigger happy hands on her.

Adam had a hankering for power he didn't get from his position in the house hierarchy. The girls cowering beneath his raised fists made him feel strong. If Madison weren't careful, she would be on the receiving end for nothing more than his ego, adding to the list of things Jase needed to be cautious of until he knew how to handle her.

He didn't tell Adam they would be idiots if they thought every girl brought in wouldn't at least try their luck at getting out if the opportunity presented itself. It was a waste of time. He was too hot-headed to understand how people worked and that threats weren't always enough to convince someone to give up their freedom forever.

Madison was sitting in the middle of the bed when Jase delivered her toast. Her wet hair soaked through the white t-shirt she'd put on. He recognised it as his from the wardrobe.

"Eat that," he told her. Her eyes went to the plate on the drawers, then back to him, frowning.

"No."

Adam would have a field day if she carried on, Jase thought.

"I'm not asking. I'm telling. There's a party later. You'll need the energy."

Having the girls pass out in front of customers was not a good look. Even those men wanted to convince themselves that whilst the situation wasn't ideal, the girls were at least looked after and fed.

"I don't care. I'm not eating that," she replied.

Jase rubbed the stubble along his jawline and stepped into the room, closing the door. Madison's hands clammed up. He leaned back against the edge of the drawers and folded his arms. His biceps strained against the material of his t-shirt.

"That girl, the one that spoke to you, slapped a customer yesterday. Remember the girl that was on the sofa when you got here?" Madison said nothing. There was no emotion in his words as he continued. "That was her after Adam injected 0.3 grams of heroin in her. She's built up a tolerance now because she keeps acting up. It's a fun game Adam likes to play. She misbehaves, he gets to decide how much he puts in her. Sometimes he doesn't give her any, and Annabelle is at the point now where that's worse. Do you know what heroin withdrawal is like, Madison?" She hesitantly shook her head. "Keep going the way you're going and you'll find out. Annabelle won't be around tonight because she's covered in cuts and bruises. One of our rules is no communication with the other girls. You aren't here to make friends. We don't care about your comfort or your feelings. How hard your life is here depends on how hard you want to make it. Do I make myself clear?"

Madison glared at him with an unholy amount of contempt, itching to attack him, to claw at his face and shred his eyelids with her nails. Jase raised a single brow, daring her to bite back, but she bit her tongue instead. He scoffed, speaking as he reached for the door handle, "Now eat your fucking toast."

He left, hoping he'd made a sufficient impact. She would feel partially responsible for Annabelle. If she wasn't about to behave to make her own life more manageable, she would at least get her shit together for the sake of the others. He'd learned a long time ago girls were always so bitchy to one another, but they teamed up when it came to them against men. For now, that unspoken feminist alliance would keep her in line. And if it didn't, they had a fresh set of needles in a tin box under the sofa.

*

Now you've seen a little more of the men, who do you hate most and why? Do you think Jase is full of empty threats in an attempt to get her in line before she gets him in trouble or do you think he's capable of following through on what he says?

Thanks for reading and don't forget to vote :)