Impure

by Kenna Bardot

  Unfortunately, my position meant that I stared directly at Charolais and the silver-eyed Descendant where they still sat at the table. As quickly as they'd stepped into my space, Ryle and the violet eyed Tempestas backed away. They went back to their positions, immediately dismissing me and resuming their flirtation with the female.

  Hollis grinned, stepping back too. He immediately took up his position to the female’s left, touching the bare skin of her thigh intimately. I hated the dark way he stared at me, the way he searched my face for a reaction.

  Even as rage rebuilt within me, dirty sensations replacing anything even remotely pleasurable I'd felt at his hands, I schooled my features into a mask of indifference. Perhaps I'd find a human to play with.

  But I dismissed the idea almost immediately. I wouldn't sink down to that level.

  "Mireyah Bolstad?" the human male who had opened the door for me said. Turning my eyes away from Hollis, I nodded. "Mr. Mann requires your presence to initiate you into the League of Attendants."

  I sighed and resisted the urge to cry. With another nod, I let him guide me out of the library. The eyes followed me. But the voices were worse.

  "What an idiot…” "Fool…”

  They whispered as I passed. Raising my head, I determined I wouldn't be the pet they thought they'd won.

  I would fight.

  Make them as miserable as they made me.

  Every step of the way.

  Chapter 6

  Mireyah

  Somehow, in just over a week of being in Godsvail, I'd been summoned by my boss twice in one day. It seemed more hilarious that it wasn’t even the same boss. That meant I probably deserved a prize of some sort.

  I would even dare say that I broke records. When the older gentleman stopped at a door, I knocked while those thoughts swirled in my brain.

  A gruff voice from inside told me to enter, and I opened the door with a hand that couldn't help but tremble.

  "Miss Bolstad," the voice, which belonged to a tall slim man with smooth, dark skin, addressed me the moment I took a step into the office. My head swiveled around to take in my surroundings - the office was much better looking than Odele's, which spoke to the hierarchy I'd heard the other humans speak of within the academy.

  "Take a seat," he ordered me even as he took his own chair behind the large onyx desk. I sat down without preamble, swallowing as I did so. My nerves threatened to choke me. The minutes passed in uncomfortable silence. Apparently, it was the skill of these people to intimidate through silence. Odele had done the same thing on that very first day.

  "I've heard things about you, Miss Bolstad. From Odele, from some Descendants and some other human servants. The reports have been, let's say, alarming." He leaned back against his big, black chair and regarded me with steely eyes. "Why do you think that is?"

  "I believe some of them have complained about me." I figured the best thing to do was to be honest. I was sure he knew the score anyway so there really was no point in lying or pretending I did not understand. This man struck me as someone who could easily cut through any bullshit then fling it back to its originator.

  "Quite right, Miss Bolstad. Quite right. But they haven't just been normal complaints. Oh no. They've been disturbing. Even more so given how long you've been in Godsvail. Would you care to tell me how long that has been?" He smiled at me, perfectly straight, stark white teeth against the dark skin.

  "A little over eight days, sir." Eight days, twelve hours, forty-eight minutes. Or at least that's what I could compute from the large white-faced clock that hung behind him.

  "Yes. Some of our servants who have been here eight years do not so much as warrant a visit to my office. But on your first day as an attendant, I've had to summon you. Do you know why?"

  "Because of the Svadeni?" I muttered with disgust.

  "You will call him Sir Hollis or Sir Svadeni. Show even a modicum of respect for the Descendant who has taken you from your miserable duty as a cleaning girl. For that honor alone you need to show your gratitude and respect! What we do not do is publicly embarrass him. I advise you to hope he doesn't punish you for this indiscretion!" He raised his voice without so much as a change in his outer demeanor. I flinched because I'd only just come from rejecting Hollis. How the fuck had this man known?

  "Gratitude? For what? Because he will want to fuck me until he throws me out like yesterday's garbage? I much preferred to clean after their disgusting messes than be granted with such an honor," I spat out, standing from my chair as I did so.

  He gestured me down with a careless wave of the hand, and I sat on the edge of my seat, back ramrod straight.

  "Oh, there we are in perfect agreement. I'd much rather cast you out of the League without a second thought. I've no doubt that you will bring me many headaches. But let us be clear, Miss Bolstad. You might have thought Odele Rushe was a strict bitch, but I assure you that I, Jacob Mann, could be much worse. Do nothing that will make me angry. Trust me you will regret it. It should be enough to show you just how much that barely half an hour from that scene in the library I already know that said scene occurred."

  He flicked his hand from beneath his desk and a moment later, a black projectile whirled its way towards me. "Now, get out of my office. Change into that and report to Hollis Svadeni’s quarters. I'd ask you to grovel, but I'm already sure you wouldn't. So at the very least do your job."

  I opened my mouth to ask a question but the look in his eyes had me retreating. I could be brave but today didn't feel like the day to cross that line into stupidity. I nodded and scurried out.

  Godsvail was a huge compound of snaking hallways and high staircases.

  How the fuck was I gonna find the Svadeni?

  ✽✽✽

  Fuck, fuck, fuck, just fuck my luck. I cursed under my breath even as I tugged the tight pencil skirt I'd just changed into as it rode above my thighs. It was in a clingy black material that left very little to the imagination.

  When my new boss had told me to report to Hollis Svadeni's quarters, he hadn't even told me where the fuck that was. I knew it was an intentional omission.

  So, fuck my luck.

  Screw the Gods and their cruel whims for landing me in the situation.

  I also blamed my mouth for getting me into trouble. If I had just been meek and subservient and…. Oh, who the fuck was I kidding? I'd been destined down this path since that moment Serenity handed me that blue-gray envelope.

  Because no way in Hell would I have been able to keep myself from saying what I wanted to say, when I wanted to say it. None of the humans I passed made eye contact with me. Most of them outright pretended I didn't exist.

  Was I a pariah or were they scared of me? Intimidated? Envious?

  If I was to believe what my new boss had just told me, to be an attendant was the biggest honor I could get while in Godsvail. So, it stood to reason that the humans who put stock into the hierarchy of humans in Godsvail would not talk to me for fear of being insulting.

  I made a disgusted sound as another cleaning girl scurried away from me. At this rate, I'd be lucky if I made it to the Svadeni's room before the sun set.

  "Lost?" I turned towards the voice and came face to face with a slim girl who wore the same outfit I did. The only difference was the stark belt in a white material she wore around her waist.

  My eyes widened at her. "Wait, are you talking to me?" I was probably hallucinating.

  She laughed, a tinkling sound, as she flipped her long, dark hair over the shoulder. "Sure, I am. How many others did you frighten today in that outfit?"

  My eyes narrowed at her, a dark look gracing my face. "I lost track."

  She gave me a big, bright smile and threaded an elbow through my arm. She led me down a long hallway to the right. "Oh, darling, you'll learn soon enough. They're all afraid of us. Well, we're friends with some kitchen people. But those that have been here a long while. But, anyway, the black is a sign of our superiority over them. You're the new one, a
ren't you?"

  "New to Godsvail or to this uniform?"

  "Both?" She smiled at me, eyes twinkling.

  "Both then. And yes, I am. Quite new." I held out my hand for her to shake - we made it a little awkward given that she held one of my arms still. "I'm Mireyah Bolstad."

  She gripped my hands with a small, slender hand. "Annalee Lawrence. Welcome to Godsvail, Mireyah Bolstad. Lucky little thing, aren't you? To be an attendant so young and so soon after you arrived."

  "Well, one could call it luck...." I trailed off, wincing when I realized I'd been about to say something again.

  "Oh!" She giggled. "Don't tell me. You didn't want to come here. Am I right?"

  I winced. Guess I wasn't very subtle at all. "You're not wrong."

  "Oh, how quaint? We don't get many of you. More often than not, the Gods choose humans who will throw themselves off a cliff for even just a whiff of a chance to come to Godsvail." She stopped walking and grabbed both my shoulders. "Let me look at you."

  She did just that, and I had to keep myself from shuffling my feet in embarrassment as she spoke, "Well, it's plain to see now. You're pretty, aren't you? Northerner?"

  "That's me." A breath whooshed out as soon as we resumed walking to our destination. I was never comfortable talking about my appearance. It reminded me too much of the pointed needling Talisha gave me.

  "Welcome to the South, Mireyah the Northerner. Or at least more South than where you came from. I assume we'll be spending a lot of time together, you and I." She fingered the belt that encircled her waist. "I've been serving Charolais Vide for a year now. He and Hollis Svadeni are good friends."

  The dark-skinned Descendant with stark white eyes and hair flashed to my mind. I shuddered, and she patted the back of my hand.

  "Their rooms actually all interconnect into a common area, where the five of them spend most of their time. You'll see that for yourself soon enough. And see that what one owns, the others have equal access to."

  "Okay." I felt positive I did not like the sound of that.

  “You’ll find what you need in the Easternmost tower at the door with the red sun. There are several others, but you’ll know which one it is, trust me. East tower, okay? They like the view.” She gestured towards a set of stairs.

  “East tower. The door with the red sun,” I repeated as I looked up at the staircase.

  “That’s right. Good luck, Mireyah Bolstad. I'll see you around." She said to my back as I started climbing.

  ✽✽✽

  Thank the Gods I'd run into Annalee with her bright and bubble looks. She reminded me of Corrine, that wealth of knowledge and understanding that could be unnerving at times. She'd shown me the way. And I was confident I could probably make it but as it stood, it was still easy to get lost.

  The towers where the older Descendants lived were a maze of halls and stairs, winding and difficult to ascend. Attendants ducked their heads with glares, darting into the less elaborate rooms at the ends of the hall when they saw me. Without Annalee's directions before she'd sent me on my way, I'd have had no chance of finding the Svadeni's quarters.

  None at all.

  The Eastern Tower offered some of the best views of Mt. Demiorgo in the distance. From the lower common levels of the Academy, the mountain was practically nonexistent. The valley and cliff sides surrounding it ensured that. But the Eastern tower had the luxury of seeing shit. Anywhere else, you'd be lucky if you spent all the effort and saw the base of the mountain.

  I couldn't imagine caring enough to try.

  In the middle of the hall, the door marked with the red sun stood out like a sore thumb. Marked with the mark of the house the Descendant lived in, it shouldn't have mattered. Every door was marked, and there were other Svadeni Descendants within the halls of Godsvail, but somehow my nerves understood that this one, this door was significant. Sir Hollis Svadeni liv

  ed there, and it was undoubtedly the place of my ruin. If he had any say in the matter.

  With a tentative hand, I reached up and knocked my knuckles against the wood as quietly as I could manage without sounding pathetic.

  I wouldn't be cowed. Wouldn't allow myself to look weak. Not in the face of the one who had promised that's what he wanted most of all.

  "You're late. I expected you immediately after your visit to your new boss," he said as he swung open the door. "I won't tolerate tardiness."

  I nodded, ignoring the way his eyes trailed over me in my black dress. The dress that marked me as owned, his to do with as he pleased. His eyes heated, deep embers of the flame that I knew would burn me. He backed away, allowing me to step into his private space.

  I wanted to turn away. Wanted to be anywhere but there.

  "You won't need to knock. If the door is not locked, you're free to enter. If the door is locked, I'm occupied and don't wish to be disturbed. I'm not shy, so that's not bound to happen often.”

  My jaw clenched, trying not to imagine the horrifying scenes I might walk in on unknowingly. "Shouldn't you be indisposed now? It seemed you and your friends would be rather occupied for at least a few hours, or are you a little disappointing for a Svadeni?" I chose snark instead of admitting my discomfort.

  "Jealous, pet?"

  I scoffed. "Don't be ridiculous." He stepped over to the bed, sitting on the edge and motioning me over with a beckon of his finger.

  I swallowed, holding my head high as I moved to stand in front of him. Seemingly unsatisfied with that concession, he grabbed my hand and pulled me into place until I fell into the cradle of his lap. I jolted, trying to stand immediately, but strong arms wrapped around my waist and held me in place.

  "Let me make one thing perfectly clear." His voice washed over me in a soft caress. "I own you. Not the other way around. You will not lead me around by the dick, so don't even bother to try."

  "I want nothing to do with your dick." I snarled, squirming against his hold. He leaned in, sniffing at my hair. He probably smelt my shampoo, and I had to admit that it was a pleasant smell. In the shop, it had been one of our best sellers. Made from the night lilies that grew through the ice on the lake as if by magic, the scent of addictively combined freshwater and light floral notes with a hint of vanilla. All from that one flower.

  It was a bitch to collect but worth it. At that moment, though, I regretted using it.

  "We'll see about that," he whispered, and his hand left my waist in favor of resting on my bare thigh where the stupid dress had ridden up because of my squirming. The sight of it only reminded me that only an hour prior, he'd had that same hand on a Descendant's thigh. I refused to be another notch on his belt, another toy to play with and toss aside.

  Another conquest.

  "There is one other matter we need to address," he murmured, and that hand moved to pushing my dress up. I ignored it, pretending his touch didn't make me shiver with inch it slithered closer to my center.

  "And what's that?" I whispered back, not trusting my voice if I spoke any louder. It felt shaky, felt like it might fail me.

  Like it wasn't mine any longer.

  "You said no to me. Humiliated me in a very, very public way, my pet. That must be punished."

  I froze, my breath quickening. "I've already been reprimanded by Jason."

  "Well, that’s good. But he's your supervisor, and that's different. I am your master, and I wouldn't be a very good one if I didn't deliver your punishment myself, would I?"

  "You'll prove yourself to be the monster I believe you are, then?" I struggled, but it went nowhere. He flipped me to my feet, turning me as he stood himself in a move so quick there was no denying the inherent speed and strength that their kind possessed. Before I even knew what had happened, I was face down on the bed, only my toes straining towards the floor in a desperate bid for control. I shoved myself up on my arms.

  "Shall we find out?" he asked, a hand at my back shoving me until I fell to the mattress once again. His hands grasped my wrists, making me cry out when the wire of m
y bracelet dug into the skin.

  "Hold still," he ordered. "I've no desire to bleed you." Transferring them both to hold in one of his strong hands, he wrenched my hands up behind my back until my shoulders ached. "This need not be quite this unpleasant. If you hold still, I need not restrain you."

  "Let go of me!" I panted, trying to fight despite the pain in my shoulders and desperately trying not to cry.

  "Will you stay still?" When I didn't answer, he chuckled. "I thought as much." His free hand shoved the tight skirt until warm air kissed my ass cheeks where the stupid mandatory thong left them open to the air.

  That free hand touched the flesh softly, almost like a husband might caress his wife's face after weeks of separation. That gentle touch quickly transformed, growing in harshness until he kneaded at the flesh hard enough to bruise.

  "Get your hands off me." To my surprise, his hand left, the air suddenly feeling cold in comparison. But the heat of his skin was nothing compared to the fire that welled in the wake of his hand crashing against me in a slap loud enough to make me scream, "Fuck!" He chuckled behind me, a pure and dark amusement in the sound. He repeated the motion to the other cheek, making me writhe as much as I could in pain. "Gods. Stop!"

  Another slap, only feeling worse and worse, the more and more abused my flesh got. I knew my skin must have been a patchwork of his handprints, and from the way he paused between strikes to stroke the overheated skin, it was something he enjoyed seeing.

  "What's wrong, Mireyah?" he purred, the low seduction in his voice making heat curl up in my core even as he lit my ass on fire. Another slap and a sob welled in my throat. "Has no one ever spanked this beautiful ass before?"

  "Fuck you." I sobbed, hating myself as much as him. I expected more strikes, but he stopped. I could feel his eyes on me, staring in fascination.