Chapter 35 Tasha
\[Lilia\]
I stare at the strange woman, not exactly knowing how I would address her statement.
King? Who the hell is king? Does she mean Kael? Why would she call Kael king? King of what? King of this wretched place?
Not wanting to look like an oblivious fool, I just thrust my arms towards her for a handshake, introducing my name. “Hi, I’m Lilia. Nice to meet you, and you are?” I asked, keeping the smile plastered on my face.
However, instead of taking my hand, she only looked down at my extended arm, completely ignoring me as she proceeded toward the sink, opening the faucet. The water gushes, the splashing sound hitting the ceramic sink reverberating between us. She washed her hand, pumping on the liquid soap, and then rinsed off the clean.
I just stood there, slowly putting down my disregarded hand and staring in wonderment at her.
Should I go, or should I let her finish what she was doing?
After rinsing off her hand, she pulls a good amount of paper towels from the dispenser fixed on the wall, crumpling it, and throws it directly right through the bin.
I’ve been standing there like a fool for far too long, watching her do her things creepily.
“Okay,” I broke the awkward atmosphere, clearing my throat and forcing my feet to move slowly in backward motion towards the door, “I should go, enjoy the rest of the day.”
That’s all I said, and as I was about to turn around, she spoke suddenly before my hand could grip the doorknob.
“You must really consider yourself lucky.” She stated firmly, causing me to immediately pirouette on my heels, my face flushed with surprise.
“I’m sorry?”
I could feel my brows peaking to the highest point of my forehead. How can she say that to me? Lucky? In what way could I be lucky?
She tore her gaze away from her reflection in the mirror and faced me. “Dear, he’s a fine man and very impressive in bed. Everyone would want to be in your place.”
“I don’t think I’m getting what you’re talking about.” I slowly shake my head, differing from her statement. I could hardly consider myself lucky. If only she knew what I’ve been through, she would have been thinking the otherwise. None in this situation that I am in is ever considered lucky. In fact, my life just plummeted right beneath my feet.
Moreover, how did she know Kael’s performance in bed? Had the two of them gone intimate with each other?
The thought of it suddenly sent a sharp pang lancing across my chest. The image of Kael having his hands around another woman suddenly made me feel uneasy, but I immediately ignored it.
“Lilia, was it?” she asked, confirming my name, though I didn’t respond and let her finish her statement. She inclined her arm on the sink, skimming her stare on my body, then fixing my face. “You’re beautiful and looking so innocent. If you would stand right along the wall and not moved, I would have mistaken you for a life-size кукла (kukla). That must be why he wanted you.”
“I should really get going,” I said once again, moving backward and searching for the doorknob blindly. She crept me up, and I didn’t think I should stay here longer than necessary, but then I halted in my tracks soon as her gaze landed on my shoulders.
“But the king hasn’t been so gentle to a fragile little thing.”
She keeps addressing Kael as a king, and I have no idea what she meant by it. She's speaking in puzzles, and I'm not very adept at putting two things together. I glance at her appearance, knowing precisely that she wasn’t like the other pet. She didn't have a collar or a leash around her neck, but the way she was dressed reminded me of myself.
“May I know your name?” So, I asked instead of leaving. Perhaps, knowing someone in this place will help right in the future.
A frown immediately painted her face. “I have no name. I have already forgotten who I am, but everyone calls me Tasha.”
Tasha, that’s honestly a pretty name for a handsome woman just like her, but I couldn’t help feeling a little bit unnerved by the way she speaks to me.
“Are you a pet too?” I prodded, letting my hands go from the handle. Curiosity had gotten the best of me, and my mind flew at the thought that I was taking too long inside the comfort room, talking to a stranger.
“I was, but my master died,” she answered back, turning around and pulling another sheet of paper towel, rubbing the liners of her eyes.
Her response got me thinking. So, that means she’s free, right? But, what is she doing here still?
“Why are you still in this place? Aren’t you supposed to be free if he died?”
“Correction, she,” she throws me a sideways glance first as she continues. “My master is a woman. Actually, she and her husband, but she’s the one who purchased me.” she folded the paper towel in half and rubbed her other eyes. “And to answer your question, no, my Dear. There is no way out in this life that we live in.”
My brain caught the sensation of surprise, but I kept it to myself and kept my face devoid of any expression of bemusement. I know I'm not the type to pass judgment on others, but let me just say that she...having an affair with both a woman and a man, a married couple, just blows my mind.
“Her husband...”
“He died along with her, ambushed—both killed right in front of me.”
My mouth hangs open, not knowing what is going to happen next in this discourse. If both of her masters have passed away, then who is she currently working for? Tasha also appeared to have casually discussed the death of her masters, which was surprising given that she had witnessed how they were murdered.
I witnessed my father being murdered, and even today, when I think about it, I still get a ghostly shudder running down my spine at the thought of it. Yet, she said it so nonchalantly.
“So why are you still here?” I probed out in perplexity. If I were here, I’d be long gone.
“The organization took me back, but I can not be put back to the auction, so I’ve been hanging around here.”
Organization? What organization is she talking about? This place had an organization? That surprised me. If this place had such a thing of orders, then there should have been a restriction of something. And not this lawless environment.
Howbeit, it still confuses me why she is still here. Suppose the organization took her back and could not put her back to an auction. She must be serving something.
“What do you do then?”
“What do you think?” she retorted, raising one of her brows and cocking her head to the side to solicit feedback.
I looked at her once more from head to toe, and I didn’t need to say aloud what she does for a living in this place.
“Master Kael, he has treated you differently. You are not leashed. You've sat right next to his feet and are dressed properly,” She said, shifting the subject to me. “No one else had that kind of privilege.”
My face suddenly grimaced, scoffing at her poor conclusion. “I suffered too. If you only had seen how he humiliated me in front of everybody.”
But instead, she just laughs at me as though what I said was a joke of some sort. “That wasn’t a humiliation, dear. That was called protection.”
My brows pinched together as I snorted in disapproval at her statements.
“Do you have no intention of running away? Leave this place and start a new life?”
“Start where? The organization will only find me in a matter of days if ever I escape. As so were you if you dare to try.” She pointed out. Still, amusement lingered on her features.
She perplexed me. I had never seen someone in this place stay so mirthful as her. Most of the pets I’ve seen were devoid of any life. As if all of their expectations for the future had been dashed. Hence, Tasha still finds a way to laugh despite all the things she’s been through.
I am new to this place, yet I even find it hard for myself being able to laugh like her as though it doesn’t concern her what the future holds for the likes of them.
But, the thing is, who owns this place? Why does she keep on mentioning the organization?
“What is that organization you’re talking about? Who runs it? Isn’t this place illegal?” I queried out, wanting to clear one piece of the puzzle out of my head.
Yet, instead of answering me directly, she moved closer to me, and I just noticed she was a head taller than my height. Tasha tipped my chin upwards and leaned her face to mine.
“You should ask the right people, not me. I am just a mere stripper.”
However, what baffled me next was when she pressed a quick kiss against my lips without warning. I was stoned in my place, and my feet nailed to the floor and my eyes wide in surprise.
Never in my entire life have I ever thought of a woman kissing me, much less consider myself a lesbian. But…
“I got to go. I have a client waiting for me.” Tasha patted the top of my head and then slid right beside me, opening the door.
“Bye, Lilia. For now.”
What the hell was that?