Chapter 161 The Great Hero Will Come to Save Me
The men approached, tossing two pieces of bread into each cage.
"One per person. Fight for it or go hungry."
As soon as the bread hit the cages, the sound of desperate scrambling echoed throughout the hold.
The men laughed like they were watching an entertaining show.
They picked up water guns, aiming them at the cages.
At first, the people trapped inside didn't understand what the men intended with their water guns, thinking they were just being toyed with for amusement. Then one of the men spoke, "Miss the water, and you won't get any until tomorrow morning."
Grace understood—the guns contained water. If you wanted a drink, you had to press against the cage bars and catch whatever spray you could. Miss it, and you'd go thirsty.
A woman in the first cage cried out in panic, "Please give me more water! I'm so thirsty..."
She hadn't understood the "rules" and had missed her chance.
The man bared his yellowed teeth in a particularly sinister grin. "Didn't I tell you? Miss it, no water."
The woman pleaded desperately, "I didn't know the rules! I was wrong... I didn't know it was water..."
The man crouched down in front of her cage. Seeing she was somewhat attractive, he couldn't help but taunt her, "You're that thirsty? Want water that badly?"
The woman nodded frantically.
"Well then, you'd better catch this properly." The man stood up and suddenly began unbuckling his belt, dropping his pants.
Everyone understood what he intended.
The woman screamed, frozen in place, unable to dodge. The next second, she was drenched in his urine.
She shrieked in terror.
The other men burst into raucous laughter, delighted by her reaction. "You wanted water, didn't you? The boss is personally giving you a drink, and you're not showing proper gratitude!"
"Drink up! Drink! Wasn't this what you wanted?"
The woman didn't dare resist. These men carried whips and guns, and she'd already suffered enough beatings—her body was covered in wounds, and she couldn't endure more.
"Drink! Drink!"
No one in the other cages dared speak.
These organization members were inhuman monsters who would stop at nothing. They'd all witnessed it firsthand.
Soon, the group reached Grace's cage, tossing in two pieces of bread.
Grace caught the bread.
The man outside aimed his water gun at the cage.
The little girl was desperately thirsty and pressed against the bars, trying to catch the high-pressure spray. The force kept choking her, but she persisted.
Grace sat to one side, unmoving.
The man glanced at her, frowning. "Aren't you drinking?"
Grace replied, "I'm not thirsty. I don't want any."
The man snorted coldly, clearly angered by her indifferent attitude.
He suddenly opened the cage and dragged Grace out, gripping her jaw roughly.
Pain shot through her jaw joint.
Grace's mouth was forced open.
"Don't want to drink?! Ungrateful bitch!" The man shoved the water gun's nozzle against her lips, forcing it into her throat.
Then...
High-pressure water blasted down her throat.
Grace choked violently, water spraying from her nose and mouth as she retched.
Only then did the man withdraw the gun.
Grace collapsed to the floor, vomiting and gagging, utterly humiliated.
The man stared at her defiant yet beautiful face, desire stirring within him.
He glanced at her collar.
Number "19."
He remembered this product number well.
This woman had sold for eight million, setting a new record.
No wonder she commanded such a high price—she truly was extraordinarily beautiful.
So...
He felt a stirring of evil intent.
The man suddenly grabbed her hair, starting to drag her away.
Several of his subordinates quickly blocked his path. "Where are you taking her?"
The man mumbled evasively, "Just for some fun."
"Don't..." The subordinates looked uneasy. "That's against the rules."
The man argued stubbornly, "You don't say anything, I don't say anything—who else here would know? Relax, just some fun. I won't kill her."
Grace asked, "Where are you taking me?"
The man leered, "You're pretty. Want to keep me company tonight? I'll give you an extra piece of bread."
Grace replied, "I refuse."
The man slapped her hard across the face. "I don't think you've ever been truly hungry, have you? You know how many days this ship will be at sea? Twelve days. You can act tough today, but what about tomorrow? The day after? Ha! If you serve me well, forget bread—I can give you something better to eat!"
His subordinate interjected, "She's 'merchandise.' Can't be touched before delivery to the buyer. Those are the rules... Breaking the rules means execution."
Hearing this, the man hesitated.
Indeed, in this organization, breaking rules led to terrible consequences.
He didn't want to lose his life over one woman.
With money, what kind of beautiful woman couldn't he have?
He quickly regained his senses, kicking Grace back into the cage and locking it.
The men moved on to the next cage.
The little girl looked at Grace, having been too terrified to move during the confrontation.
Grace looked back at her. She picked up her fallen piece of bread. The little girl was clearly starving, but even though the bread had fallen within the cage, she hadn't grabbed it.
Grace tore her bread in half, giving the larger portion to the girl.
The little girl looked surprised.
People in these cages got only two pieces of bread per day. Going hungry was inevitable. Yet this beautiful woman was willing to share more of her own food.
Grace said gently, "You must be starving. It's okay, you eat more, I'll eat less."
The little girl hesitated to take it, afraid Grace would go hungry after sharing.
Grace lied kindly, "It's fine. I'm not very hungry."
Only then did the little girl accept the bread, shyly saying, "Thank you."
Grace smiled. "You're welcome."
The little girl devoured the bread ravenously, finishing both pieces in two minutes and licking every crumb from her hands.
Grace ate slowly and deliberately. Though she was also hungry, the bread was dirty, and her fastidious nature made her wipe it clean first.
The little girl asked, "Miss, aren't you scared?" She swallowed hard. "Those bad men kill people."
Grace replied, "Of course I'm scared."
Who could honestly say they weren't afraid of death?
But fear was useless.
Moreover, the more you showed your fear, the more these people would prey on you.
Besides, she believed Alexander would come for her.
Grace pulled the little girl into her arms, smiling as she said, "A hero is going to rescue me."