Alexei had a lot to think about. He was starting to grow a soft spot for the girl who had snuck aboard his ship. He could sell her, and potentially make a lot of money, but there was no guarantee that whoever the buyer was wouldn't just kill him outright, whether to avoid having to pay for such a rare find, or to silence him, or both.
He dragged the recently re-blindfolded and gagged Sofiya to a bench, where he sat her down.
"Hold still. You were good for the doctor, so I'll make this a bit easier for you"
He undid the rope connecting her wrists and the neck loop, and re-tied it so that her hands, still tightly bound, had a bit more vertical freedom, letting her relax a bit from the strenuous position she had been in. He ruffled her hair a bit, then grabbed it, just hard enough to let her know she still wasn't off the hook, turning her relieved sigh into a scared chirp.
"I'm being nice, but you're not going to like what happens next. First off..." he ran her thick, wavy hair through his fingers. "Most of this is gonna have to go. I'm tired of you hiding from me behind it." he gave it a sharp tug, producing a squeal of protest "Plus, if I'm keeping you, and not selling you off to the highest bidder, I've got to give you some permanent reminders of who you belong to."
He gave her face a playful slap at that, enough to emphasize the point but not enough to leave a mark or do more than sting for a half minute, and opened a beer he had bought on the way.
"You want some, kid?" he loosened her gag and pulled it out of her mouth, holding the bottle up to her lips. She wrinkled her nose at the smell, but grudgingly took a sip.
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Zarina didn't like beer, but she hated the bit gag more, so she took a few sips of the bitter beverage grudgingly. The taste brought her back to sneaking out to party with her friends, before her family decided to emigrate to the stars. That was two... no. Twenty years ago. Right? It was supposed to be a twenty year hibernation.
The man started to pull the bottle back, but she grabbed it with her teeth. She needed this. She needed something to numb the nightmare her life had suddenly become. Iskakov laughed as she tried to guzzle as much of the beer as she could, coughing and spitting as it foamed out the corner of her mouth.
Her captor patted her on the head, almost tenderly, then she heard him stand up, and he gave a tug on the leash. Not wanting to risk the bit being put back in her mouth, she followed obediently, trying to nurse the buzz she had going.
They entered what was, judging by the smell and noise, a much more crowded area. She couldn't understand a thing being said, but she heard what must be at least a dozen different languages being spoken and argued in, and felt her bare skin brush against passersby as Iskakov led her through the crowd. She felt a slap and a grope on her ass, and cried out, then heard Iskakov yell angrily at the offender. Being paraded around nude was humiliating enough. Having her tormentor defend her was almost worse, in its own way. She felt very small and exposed, as the man hooked his finger through the loop in her collar and pulled her along more directly.
Soon, the smell of sweat and sea air gave way to the odor of burning incense, and she stopped feeling the sun on her skin.
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Alexei pushed aside the beaded curtain leading into the salon.
"Henri, is Madame Bounxouei in?"
The gene tailored young man at the desk, in a stylish collar of his own, took his sweet time before answering.
"Yes, Lyosha." The answer was cold. Alexei felt a pang of guilt.
"Look. I already apologized twice. I had a job, it was urgent..."
"Shut it. I'll get the madame." Henri looked over the blindfolded girl at Alexei's side "Poor thing. You gonna leave her in a hotel cuffed to the bed also?"
He swiveled in his seat.
"Mistress! Alexei Iskakov is here!"
A plump, middle aged woman in fine silks emerged from the back of the salon.
"Lyosha! It's been too long!" she soon caught sight of Sofiya and clicked her tongue disapprovingly "Were you dragging this poor thing through the street like this? Please tell me you're selling her to someone other than Pavel"
Alexei took the lady's hand from Sofiya's cheek and kissed it.
"I promise I'm not, Madame. I'm keeping this one... for now at least."
"Loosen her up! How long have you kept her trussed up like that?" The older woman felt Sofiya's hands for proper circulation. "And what would you like done with her?"
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Zarina felt the ropes being slowly unwound from her arms and wrists. She moved her hand to pull off the blindfold, but the slap in the face she got when she tried quickly discouraged her from that notion. Finally being free of the ropes was a relief, and she did her best to stretch while Iskakov led her to a surprisingly comfortable seat.
Before she could settle in however, she felt a padded band wrap around her neck, just above the collar. Iskakov and the man she had heard talking pushed her arms onto the armrests, and those too were strapped down. It was considerably more pleasant than the ropes she had been in earlier, but an ominous feeling was growing in her chest, pushed on by the electric buzz she heard beside her head.
Iskakov said something, running his fingers through her hair, and stopping at certain points and talking to the other man, with an elegant sounding older woman interjecting occasionally.
