“What? Why?”
“I called the sea police, Indigo.”
My eyes widen. “I don’t…I don’t understand.”
“I can’t let him do this to you, and the longer you’re out on that ocean, the less chance you have of escaping.”
“But…how…”
She leans in close. “I told him this afternoon that we needed some more medical supplies. With the storm season upon us, he didn’t even think twice about it. He trusts me. He knows I have no reason to betray him…so when he handed me the phone and walked out, I made the call. I knew where we were, I made a point of listening to the co-ordinations of this island when they were talking…”
“Jess,” I gasp. “That’s dangerous…”
“It’s the only way. He’s never going to dock with you on the ship - he is too worried you will escape. I overheard him talking, and the swap will be done out at sea. You can’t possibly escape out in that ocean, there’s nowhere to run to.”
“Hendrix will kill them, Jess. You know he will.”
“It’s worth the risk.”
“What if they kill him?” I whisper.
Her face tightens. “I told them to come to the north of the island. I’ll make sure you and Eric are at opposite ends to the pirates. If for some reason he figures it out, you should be too far gone by the time they get to this side.”
I feel my heart begin to thump. “Jess, if he finds out it was you…”
She grips my hand, squeezing it hard. “I can’t let you be sold, honey.”
I tremble, and rub my arms. Is this it? Is this really going to be my freedom? I repeat Hendrix’s words in my head, and I know that my attempts at making him change his mind are just that: attempts. I am the only one with growing feelings; he made it clear that he has none. If I stay, it will only hurt more when the moment comes for me to leave him. It will break me, and I can’t live with that.
I turn to Jess. “Come with me,” I plead, gripping her hands.
“You know I can’t, my life is here. I have nothing but a life of running on the land.”
She looks sad, her green eyes empty. She really has no way out.
“You don’t want it to be here, though, do you?”
She looks away. “What I want and what I have are two different things, but it doesn’t mean I’m not grateful.”
“Well you’re a better woman than me.”
“Jess?”
I stiffen when I hear the sound of Hendrix’s voice coming up from behind us. We both turn, and see Hendrix, fully clothed now, standing and staring down at us. Jess turns to me, and mouths “one hour,” and then she stands. She’s risking her life for me, I don’t know why, but I know I’ll be forever grateful to her for it. When she disappears into the trees, Hendrix walks over and then drops down beside me. He’s got a first aid kit in his hands. It’s clear he didn’t hear us, as he’s acting far too casual.
“You need to clean your foot.”
I stare out at the ocean. The water is clearing now, that soft haze is disappearing and showing the aqua water that is just stunning.
“Indi?”
I turn, and meet Hendrix’s gaze. “Why are you here?”
He shakes his head in confusion. “To clean your foot.”
“Why? We both know I’m no more than a sale to you. So stop pretending my life actually matters.”
He growls, and takes my foot, tugging it towards him. I lost the shirt he wrapped around it last night, and I can see the deep gash in my foot now. It’s kind of dirty, and I’m ashamed that I didn’t clean it up sooner. No, instead I let Hendrix seduce me…again. I was never in control. Never. Hendrix opens the kit, and begins cleaning it up. A sharp sting shoots up my leg, and I grit my teeth to stop from crying out.
“I’m not going to let you sit in pain.”
I shake my head. “What?”
“You think you’re no more than a sale, but I’m not going to let you suffer.”
“Did that truly mean nothing to you before?” I whisper. “Is it really that easy to just fuck someone and walk away?”
He stiffens, and he lifts his gaze to mine. “I told you what it meant.”
“And I’m asking if it was a lie?” I scream suddenly, feeling my hands shake.
He puts a bandage on my foot, and drops it. I need to know. If I’m about to run, and never see him again, I need to know. I have to hear his answer, because a big part of me is hoping he will say it meant something and he doesn’t want to sell me, because a tiny part of me wants to stay here with him, and I don’t understand it. I need a reason to go…I just can’t do it on my own.
“It’s beside the point.”
“Just answer me one thing then,” I snarl, getting to my feet. “Are you even reconsidering selling me after that? Was there even a goddamned moment where you thought about changing your mind?”
He stiffens, and his eyes search my face. “Don’t go there, Indigo.”
“Just answer me goddammit, fucking answer me you gutless pig! The least you can fucking do is give it to me straight.”
“No,” he bellows. “I am not reconsidering selling you, because you’re nothing more to me than a moment of fun.”
My entire face drains of blood, and my knees wobble. Everything in my world spins. He…he feels nothing. Nothing at all. I’ve been living in a fantasy. I’ve been fooling myself, thinking that he would ever see me as anything more than a debt payment. My entire body is shaking, to the point where my teeth are clattering together. I open my mouth, but nothing comes out. Nothing but a rasping hiss. I turn slowly, feeling like I’m going to collapse at any second.