Fawn

my eyes adjusted to the thin cracks of light around the doorframe.

ing grey light and the silhouette of

teen, began to sob quietly, clutching the rags she wore to her ches

ded silver wire, and it hissed as he cracked it against the stone floor inches from the girl's fee

sob and her hands fel

les that felt like needles, scrubbing us raw, scraping away the dirt and the grime and any lingering piece of who we had been. The lye soap burned, stripping away our individual s

everything that made us unique. In that moment of total dehumanization, as I saw my own reflection in the terrified eyes of the girl next to me, my fear did something strange.

smell of roasting meat, woodsmoke, and unwashed wolves. Guards lined the entrance, their eyes lingering on us with hungry, leer

ed, gesturing with h

l. The hall was filled with rogues, drinking and shouting, but a space had been cleared a

ra of absolute authority and predatory stillness that pressed in on me, making the air thick and hard to brea

low his head was nearly level with his waist. His voice,

. The finest stock, unto

line of seven women, his expression one of utter disinterest. It was the look of a man forc

eyes land

hey f

felt like a physical touch. The room, the other women, Baron Stone-it all fell away. There was only the weigh

ight. He moved with a liquid grace that was utterly at odds with his raw power. He walked directly tow

enough that I could smell him. Pine. Rain. And something darker und

was unexpectedly light. A single, cold finger came to rest under my chin, tilting my face up to

st slightly, his gaze still holding mine, and spoke to Baron Stone. His voice was low

take t

bly handsome, was all I could see. The world faded to the sound of Baron Stone's