Page 101 of Embriagado
What a pity. I’d only just bought it.
“You’re tired.”
“What?” he snarled.
Looking up, I showed him my best smile.
“You had a long trip coming here, and therefore, you must be exhausted, Ambassador. Hence why I’m sure your hand just slipped. Am I right?”
He stared at me, eyes so ugly, the color of mold.
“What are you—”
“Unfortunately, we’re fully booked tonight; therefore, my men will escort you to a different hotel, where you’ll get your much-needed rest.”
His face reddened, and it looked like he was ready to hit me again. Fortunately, the men behind me grabbed him before he could, then escorted him out of the room to the sounds of his protest.
It was no surprise that a man like him didn’t take no for an answer.
To his kind, “no” was just another challenge, a word to ignore before the conquest. But for someone like me, or at least the someone I used to be, those two letters were all that he had left—the last resort before your body was violated and torn into shreds by scavengers.
I’d been there before, in a place where “no” served as an incentive and nothing more. It took me years to learn that instead of protecting, this one word was merely a double-edged sword. It satisfied a predator’s hunger, falling into their primitive desires while turning you into a body to defile with their cocks and their hands and their mouths.
In my previous life, I met men like the ambassador on a daily basis; Only they had no silk garments or expensive watches to hide behind. Their filth was out there for the world to see, and in a way, it was better, making it easier to avoid. But as I said, it was in another lifetime, and now, I had more than a meaningless word like “no” up my sleeve.
I had power.
Strength I’d fought tooth and nail to gain, and a man like the ambassador wouldn’t be the one to take it away. Still, an accident like today reminded me of the past more than I’d like to admit, enough to make me yearn for the loneliness of my office. But first, I had something to do, and so I walked over to the bedroom, where a young man was lying on the bed, his face a bloody mess. The second I walked into the room, he flinched, so I stayed put.
“I won’t hurt you,” I said, holding one hand before me. “I just wanted to check on you.”
His blue eyes, red from crying, met mine, and for a second, it was like staring into a mirror. However, I was never as docile as this boy was, with golden curls and rosy cheeks suited to an angel.
“W-will I-I get fired now?” he asked, voice wavering, while trying to cover his naked body with the blanket.
The poor guy was shaking like a leaf.
“Do you want me to fire you?”
Grasping the sheets tighter, he quickly shook his head and moved on the mattress to get closer to me.
“N-no, no, please. I-I need the money—”
Closing the distance between us, I took off one glove before I brushed my hand against his cheek.
“Tears in this world of ours are a valuable asset,” I said, voice soft. “Please do not waste yours. Especially not on scum like that pig.”
He nodded, then leaned into my touch almost desperately. And while he did, I remembered the first time I saw this boy at one of our parties, not even three months ago. I knew he wasn’t cut out for this business, and yet, he was so keen on making money that it was impossible to persuade him out of it. Or maybe I didn’t try enough. Either way, it was my fault he was here right now. My sin to bear until the day I died.
“You’ve had a rough night.” I moved my fingers through his soft locks of hair before sitting on the edge of the bed. “How about you close your eyes for a bit? I’ll stay with you.”
He smiled at me, a smile I didn’t at all deserve.
“T-thank you.”
Moving closer, he put his head in my lap while I continued to stroke his blond curls. He was too innocent for this world, too pure and soft. The longer he stayed in this hell, the more he’d suffer, until nothing would be left inside him, and those blue eyes of his would become an empty shell of the person he once was.
“I won’t t-tell anyone about w-what happened,” he muttered.
