Freedom?

Paige

I curled into the corner of the taxi seat and closed my eyes. The smell of exhaust leaked in through the windows, and desert heat pounded down on me. Despite the fact that I’d been through this a dozen times now, pointless tears spilled over.

The sun hurt my eyes, and every time I looked at the dark-haired bastard, Mr. Conti, something like disgust crossed his face. My skin burned from the double pressure of McKenna’s robe and the awful dress they’d given me.

McKenna. She would never know what happened to me. Neither would any of the others, but I’d learned a long time ago that you can only be friends with so many of the other girls. If the bastards start seeing you as some kind of ringleader, it was curtains for you.

As we pulled away from the palace, I committed McKenna’s face to memory. Short blonde hair, soft blue eyes, sharp chin. If I ever got away, I’d go to Manchester and tell her Ben what happened.

Not that I would get away. Mr. Conti dragged me out of Zahur’s palace an