Hers To Keep (Servite Academy #2)

Chapter 42

Chapter

Forty-Two

SCARLETT

T he first time I came to this vile place, it was under the pretense that Ace was keeping another secret from me. Wesley knew I had my suspicions and jealous insecurities. That I was unwilling to trust Ace, and he used it to his advantage. He used my reluctance to accept the authenticity of my relationship with Ace and planted a seed of doubt within me. It worked.

I came here that night to spy on Ace, coerced by his uncle to find out if he was doing something against him, but what I found was so much worse. What happened to me because of it I’ll never forget.

That’s what Wesley’s counting on, what he hopes will happen. Every day I’m here, I’ll be reminded of the events that transpired that night. I was drugged and kissed against my will. I’ll be reminded of who it was that put me here, who it is that holds all the power, and there is nothing I can do about it.

As I walk through the same metal door as that God awful night, down the same hollow hallway, I cringe at the memory, but I remind myself I need to focus on my goal. I can’t let my mind be consumed with horrible memories. Wesley might believe I have once again fallen victim to his futile threats and willingly accepted to come work for him, but that’s a lie. Franco Marchesi might also believe that his threat to expose the truth about Wesley being Ace’s father, and his threat to ruin him is the reason I’ve accepted to be his double agent, but that’s also a lie.

I’m here of my free will, and free will is what’s important. It is what they both threaten to take away from me. I won’t let them get away with it, because I swore to tear this world apart from the inside, and inside is exactly where I stand.

Mark my words, these devils will fall, fall from the highest peak of their ivory towers, and I will rise above the ashes of this place they once called home, the place I will burn to the ground, only to watch it turn to ash beneath my feet.

“Serena!” shouts a voice from behind me, startling me out of my daze. The familiar long corridor I walked through that first day looks exactly the same, buzzing with girls running back and forth getting ready for show time. I turn to see who it was that called me by the name I gave that night, my middle name Serena. Behind me I find Cruz, the guy who helped me get dressed and ready for the stage, rushing toward me.

“Serena?” my mother asks, appearing from behind him, an equally beguiling look covering her face. I knew she would be here but seeing her again so happy and carefree in her element, sends a wave of fury through me. There is no one more at fault for my misfortunes than her. I will make sure that she also pays for her sins and the pain she has caused me and those around me.

“Yes, this is Serena,” Cruz says, wrapping his arms around me in a tight hug. “She came in one night a few months back and caused a riot with her gorgeous face and that killer body. But I never saw or heard of her again. Where did you go, love?” he asks, directing his attention back to me .

“I was here by mistake,” I mutter, not explaining any further, unsure of what I’d say.

“Of course you were,” another familiar face, or two, says as they enter and stand beside my mother. “Serena here is actually Scarlett Steele, Wallace Servite’s current plaything,” Remi sneers, clearly upset at my being here. I met Remi and her sister Lexi that same night as well, when I was put into the same cage as them and left to hang over the crowd of vile men, like a piece of meat ready to be bought and devoured. After that I was taken to Macallan, and I never saw them again.

“Previous plaything, Remi,” I scoff, turning to the bolder one of the pair of gorgeous twins. She’s dressed in a black lace bodysuit, with a wired, under-bust corset around her middle. Her dark brown hair is half pinned up, half slick straight down her back. Her twin Lexi is not only identical to her but wearing the same outfit in white.

“I see he finally came to his senses,” Remi mocks, and fuck if she isn’t pissing me off. Who the fuck is this bitch, and why does she know so much about Ace and me?

I’m about to ask her just that when we’re interrupted by Cruz. “Wait, Scarlett Steele?” Cruz asks, looking between my mother and me. “As in…”

“Yes, Cruz,” my mother says, jumping into the conversation. “As in Scarlett here is my daughter, and she’s finally come to join her mother in her line of work.”

“Replace, but it’s all the same,” I scoff sarcastically, and Lilith is not amused. At least that’s a win for me. The group turns to face her, confused looks directed at her and my comment. I guess this is news to them.

“Yes, I will leave my position here at The Gallows moving permanently to some of the other establishments of more prestige,” my mother says, acting as if her demotion is something to be proud of, or at all her choice.

“Oh dear mother, just admit it. Wesley grew tired of the old version and has traded you in for a newer model.” My snide comment causes Cruz and the girls to chuckle but they’re quick to cover their mouths at my mother’s hateful reaction.

Today she’s dressed in a tight black, strapless corset dress, her breasts practically pushed up to sit right underneath her chin, while the skirt is skintight, ending just below her knees. Her hair is straightened and slick, darker than it was the other day, almost equally black as mine, and her eyes, darkened with a smokey eye shadow making the green color appear brighter. They shoot daggers in my direction, and I know I’ve struck a nerve.

“You’re going to The Calypsos?” Remi asks eagerly, turning to her and trying to cause a nip in the tension of the room.

Lilith tenderly caresses Remi’s cheek as she speaks to her. “Maybe one day, my dear, but he won’t let you leave here. Not until he finds your replacement.” A shock of envy flows through me as I watch my mother act motherly for the first time in her life.

“Why would you want to go there?” I ask, remembering the deplorable place we found my mother at.

“We turn eighteen soon, he has to let us move on,” Remi mutters, disappointment clear in her voice. She doesn’t exactly sound like someone who is here of her own free will like Wesley has made everyone believe.

“We’ll speak about this at a later time, for now I need to make sure my daughter is prepared for her first day of work.” She turns to face me, her green eyes darkening with a glimpse of hatred and disdain.

This is going to be interesting.

Two Weeks Later

This place is worse than I ever could have imagined. Night after night I stand up on this stage, watching the sordid men that come in through these doors, some daily, others once a week, but every one of them with vile thoughts and deep pockets. They are made to see me as his Queen, untouchable and forbidden. The new Mistress of the Night, which I’ve learned is the official title of my position. Every night I’m up here on this filthy stage dressed in a long, red silk gown, similar to the one he made me wear to the dinner at Servite Manor, with a black lace veil embroidered with red roses draped over my long dark hair, watching how these depraved men watch these young girls, practically salivating as they dance in cages like animals above them.

And then the bidding starts. Each one bought for a ridiculous amount of money, then taken back to a room like the one I was in, where they dance around a pole, give lap dances, or strip to nothing but pasties and thongs before the fuckers. I’m assured they can’t be touched, as if that makes it any better.

Apparently, Wesley has a strict rule of no contact with his underage dancers. I’m told that’s what The Calypsos are for—the underground sex clubs like the one I found my mother at the night of Ace’s birthday party at Torment.

Every night he forces me to watch. It’s why he wanted me here. There’s nothing in this world that turns Wesley on more than instilling fear in others, or showing off the endless power he holds, which in a sense is the same damn thing. He didn’t want me here to rule at his side. He wanted me here just to say he could. To show me what he’s capable of and remind me I have no power to stop him. To take something from Ace, just to show him who holds the actual power. It sickens me to know that he is Ace’s real father and yet doesn’t have a care in the world about his son.

Then again, that’s exactly how my mother feels about me.

“This keeps this world from falling apart,” he said to me the first night I was here. “Giving in to our deepest, darkest desires allows us to thrive in our everyday lives without breaking and letting our deviant needs consume us. To let loose and give in to our free will, our forbidden pleasures, with no shame, guilt, or judgment. ”

I once again find myself here, backstage, hiding behind a dark curtain, the music vibrating through the speakers around the room and ceilings, bright strobe lights flashing above. The club is just behind these curtains, and I refuse to believe his vile thoughts.

“Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to The Gallows,” shouts a voice blaring through the speakers above, visions of that first night I was here vivid in my mind.

The curtain lifts revealing the more than one-hundred men waiting like animals below, watching as the girls are raised up, hanging in their gilded cages. My heart races as it does every fucking night since I stepped foot on this stage. The familiar voice at the center of the stage continues to speak as I look around and see the six cages, like the one I once found myself in, all around the top floor of the club. I feel lightheaded with a sense of Déjà vu as I falter slightly, Cruz right beside me to hold me up. He mumbles something to me but a loud ringing in my ear blinds me.

“I’d like to present to you tonight’s entertainment. These are the ladies of The Gallows,” Luke says, as his eyes connect with mine. Luke Prescott has been a daunting presence here at The Gallows. My eerily dark shadow, a presence I cannot get rid of. I know Wesley has him watching my every move, since surprisingly he’s never here, but the way Luke watches me is fucking terrifying. “Here at The Gallows we believe in giving in to all our deepest, darkest desires. Temptation isn’t a sin but a way of life. This is a place where we can be our true unfiltered selves hiding away from the judgment and intolerance of the outside world. So please enjoy tonight’s entertainment and remember if anyone would like to place any orders, the bidding starts at ten thousand dollars.”

The microphone and lights at the center stage turn off, leaving only a bright spotlight on each of the six cages. Just like every single night since I first stepped foot here, I feel absolutely fucking sick to my stomach.