Forbidden (Blood Ties #7)

“Rise.” Kane commanded the Daughter still kneeling splayed out on the floor in front of him.

She did, pushing up to stand back in line, naked.

“You must learn to be obedient.” Kane glanced around the room, his gaze skimming past me. “You will enjoyanyattention your Master gives you. His requests are to be obeyed at all times. Any type of disobedience will bring consequences.”

His voice turned dark, and savage as he scanned the room, then started walking, moving between us. “Your body will react. The air will leave your lungs and won’t return. An ache will fill your entire body, one so constricting you won’t be able to move, giving you no choice but to comply with his demands.” I felt the weight of that stare as he moved past me. “Do you feel it now? That darkness, that waiting hunger?”

I closed my eyes as that tremble of fear grew inside me. I knew now without a doubt something terrible was going to happen to me with the whisper of one wordno.

Obey.

Control.

Release.

“Yes.” I whispered and all the Daughters repeated around me.

He sauntered. The soft brush of his fingers came against my hand. “That is why you will alwaysobey.”He murmured.

“Obey.” We repeated.

The morning seemed to blur. Countless times Kane walked amongst us, feeding that same fear inside us before he reinforced our obedience. Every time he passed, he touched me. A slight brush of my hand. His palm gently pressed against the small of my back. The touch drew me away from those murky thoughts inside my head, giving me something to hold on to.

We’re here, Trouble.Riven’s voice echoed.We’re right here.We were a vessel. Something for our Master’s entertainment. The wordnowasn’t the word we would use with our Master’s needs.

We were owned.

We were controlled.

We wereDaughter.

“That’s enough for today.” He finally said, slowly walking amongst us. “You’ll be escorted to the bathroom, then the cafeteria. Sleep well. Tomorrow, we push harder.”

I winced at the wordspush harder.My thoughts were already scrambled, even with the careful brush of Kane’s touch. Movement came from the edge of the room as one of Walker’s guards strode forward and handed Kane a red lace playsuit like the ones we wore.

Kane grabbed it and handed it to the still naked Daughter. “Get dressed.”

She obeyed instantly, pulled it on, and eased the straps into place.

“Walker.” Kane murmured. “They’re all yours.”

We drifted. My feet ached from standing in the one spot for so long. But as soon as the ache rose, it was swallowed with that foggy feeling in my head. My movements were slow as I followed the others out of the training room and into the hall.

Murmurs from the guards and the softthudof our bare feet were the only sounds as we shuffled into the bathroom, each one of us using a stall. The moment I pushed the playsuit down and sat on the cold seat, I closed my eyes.

I shouldn’t be here.

I winced and wrapped my arms around my middle.

I shouldn’t be anywhere near here. I need to get out. I need to—

Ryth.

Vivienne.

Their names stopped me cold and the memory of their faces surfaced. They were the reason I was here. The reason for it all.Remember your mission. Remember Hale.I clung to them as I wiped and rose, flushing the toilet. Careful glances came my way from the guard as I stepped out and headed for the sink.

They escorted us to the cafeteria in silence. Marched like soldiers to take a seat at the rows of tables. Staff neared, pouring a plastic cup of juice for each of us before sliding on. As dry as my mouth was, I didn’t reach for the fluid. Instead, I lifted my gaze to the doorway as more guards filed in.