Read Pawn for Free Online

Now c’mon, they’re waiting.”
    Taking me by the arm, Marion led me down the narrow corridor until we reached a velvet curtain. Behind it I could hear the buzz of conversation and laughter, and warm light spilled out from underneath.
    “You don’t have to say anything,” she said. “I’ll handle the bidding, and after it’s over, I’ll escort you to the room. It’s simple.”
    There was nothing simple about any of this. As I wiped my sweaty palms on my dress, all I could think of was Benjy. He might hate me for this. He might never look at me the same way. But this would give him a chance at a real future, and it was worth it.
    When I stepped through the curtain, the crowd quieted, and a hundred pairs of eyes focused on me. Marion nudged me forward onto the small stage, and above us, a blinding light warmed my skin.
    “Good evening, my loves,” she said, and the sea of people in front of me clapped and hooted. “You’ve all been waiting so patiently for this very special moment, and as promised, one of you lucky gentlemen will be richly rewarded. For those of you who are interested—and don’t be coy, we know you all are—tonight’s bidding will start at one thousand gold pieces.”
    The air whooshed out of my lungs. One thousand gold pieces was more than I would have made in ten years as a III. There was nothing about me that made one night in my bed worth that much money. Maybe I was right—maybe no one would want to bid for me. Maybe this would be a bust, and I’d have to go back to the group home, or Tabs’s place, and I’d get to apologize to Benjy and—
    “One thousand gold pieces!” a booming voice from the back of the room called, and I closed my eyes, fighting the urge to be sick.
    Over the next few minutes, the bids steadily climbed into absurdly high amounts, and eventually it came down to two men: a mustached whale in the front near the stage, and another who was too far back to see. By then the sum was astronomical, and when the number hit thirty thousand gold pieces, the mustached bidder in the front backed down, leaving my fate to the man whose face I couldn’t see.
    Wild applause filled the club, and Marion took me by the arm again, trembling with excitement as she led me through the curtain. “No one has ever outbid Minister Bradley before,” she said, stunned. “Thirty thousand—I’ve never—can you believe—and for you, of all people—”
    For me, of all people. I wanted to be offended, but she was right. “How much of that is mine?” I said, my voice shaking.
    “Half. I’ve never had a girl make that much her first year, let alone her first night.” She stopped in the hallway and faced me, her nose an inch from mine. “You will treat the winner with the respect that kind of money deserves, do you understand me? You will give him whatever he wants, and you will make sure you do it with a smile on your face. He paid for something special, and you will give him something special.”
    I nodded, my mouth dry. The full impact of what this meant hadn’t hit me until now, and my insides clenched uncomfortably as I followed her upstairs. This was really happening, and there was no backing out now.
    Marion escorted me to a luxurious bedroom with a four-poster bed so wide there was barely enough space to walk beside it. Just like the dressing room, there were no windows, and the only door was the one she closed behind me. Once again I had to wait.
    I sat on the edge of the bed and drew my knees to my chin, and I tried to pretend I was somewhere else. At home with Benjy, curled up underneath a quilt as he read to me. Sitting in front of him at school as he tossed me drawings, our way of passing notes. Even walking through the rancid sewers, so long as he was with me and I wasn’t in this room, waiting for a stranger to do whatever he wanted to me.
    I took a deep breath and tried to calm my racing heart. It would be all right. Tabs did this all the time, and she was fine.