Page 20 of Given to the Fae
‘Only a few times when I was a child, mistress.’
‘But no times in between?’
‘No, mistress.’
The Pixie frowns. ‘Two Gate trips from here, two Circles away. Were you at The Barrack by any chance?’
I glance up at her in surprise. ‘Yes, mistress. From being small.’
Another hum passes her lips. ‘Eyes down unless I tell you. You did well to survive there for so many years if that’s true. Strip.’
I move to take off my dress, but Locke stops my fingers from unlacing the front. I look up in surprise and trepidation, but he isn’t looking at me.
‘Why does she need to disrobe for you to know if she’s Gate Sick?’
Why does he care?
‘She doesn’t,’ the pixie mutters, canting her head as she looks up at him, ‘but The Barrack is not known for its care of humans. If she was there for as long as she claims, I’d like to take a closer look at her condition.’
‘I noticed she is scarred,’ he says. ‘Is The Barrack the reason why?’
‘Possibly, but I’ll need to look to be sure.’
Fine,’ the fae mutters.
His warm fingers leave mine and I feel their loss in a way I don’t understand at all. Perhaps it’s because I’m so rarely touched at all. I let my dress fall to the stone floor.
The pixie wastes no time, checking my hair, ears, eyes, nose, and mouth. She asks me questions about the bandage on my arm and I tell her it’s two weeks old, not two days, so that shedoesn’t know I stole a healing potion at The Barrack. Maybe she wouldn’t care, but I have to be a good slave if I’m not Kismet. I’d hate to be beaten forthatjust because I hadn’t thought to lie.
But her demeanor changes at my untruthful words as if she knows, and she takes a step back. Her hand takes hold of my chin and she forces my head up, her gaze boring into me.
‘Eyes on me. I know when a slave is hiding things,’ she announces, her grip on me tightening painfully.
‘I didn’t,’ I whisper.
The pixie slaps my face hard and I cry out. ‘Last chance.’
She puts a hand up and I realize the fae are much closer to me than they were a moment ago. I don’t want to know why. Are they going to pounce on me when they hear I’ve stolen before?
‘I– I took a healing potion,’ I stammer. ‘I was afraid it wouldn’t close and I’d get chills and fever from it.’
She lets go of me with a snort and then grunts in pain as she hits the tips of her fingers on the side of the wooden table. ‘When was the last time you were released?’
I shake my head uncomprehendingly, rubbing my cheek where it stings, and realizing with relief that fate has retaliated when the healer clenches her hurt fingers with her other hand.
So far, it’s only these two fae who are with me now and Jak who have been spared fate’s wrath. Others are still being punished as normal. I’m a bit relieved. It isn’t ideal, but if it’s only these three... It could be worse. I must still be Kismet. For now.
‘When you’re rubbed between your legs to bring you to pleasure,’ the healer elaborates.
I blink, focusing on the pixie though I have no idea what she’s talking about. It must show in my countenance.
‘Never?’ She sounds incredulous.
‘I don’t think they did that at The Barrack,’ I say quietly, my cheeks heating.
It’s one thing to be bare in front of them all, but quite another to actually speak about these things in front of males who make my heart flutter and my stomach swoop however much I wish that weren’t the case.
The pixie steps back, folding her arms and leaning back with an assessing look on her small face.
