Yaru’s bubble car came to a slow stop outside a large sky-scraper, every surface glinting in the sunlight. He got out, holding a hand out to me to help me down onto the pavement. I hesitated, suddenly far more aware of my semi-nakedness than I had been before.“Come on, my dear. We don’t want to keep them waiting,” Yaru said, his words calm, as if he hadn’t noticed my reluctance, but his eyes said otherwise. At least he was an understanding mentor, even if he was likely to put himself first.After taking a deep breath, I gave him my hand and stepped out of the car. A red carpet stretched out before us, sheltered by the building’s awning until it led inside the doors. Men in uniforms stood either side of the door, glasses over their eyes hiding what they were looking at.I tried not to show my nerves as I walked beside Yaru, matching his slow pace. At first I wasn’t sure I managed it, but I caught sight of my reflection in the highly polished glass. My jaw dropped. I was a walking work
My mouth fell open. Tomichii chuckled as he supported me. We were stood on a balcony overlooking the edge of a large garden. The sound of a waterfall filled the air, providing a perfect background to the occasional rustle of leaves in the wind and birdsong from various trees. Some of the trees were so large they shaded areas of the balcony with their canopy.It would have been beautiful anywhere, but over forty stories high on top of a building, it was breathtaking.“Thank you,” I said, meaning every word. “I used to love walking among trees before I was frozen. It was one of the things I missed most when I had MND.”“You’re very welcome.” He smiled at me, our eyes meeting. His shone, genuinely pleased with my reaction.“How do you ever leave here?” I asked as a small bird fluttered onto the balcony railing not far from us.“Sometimes reluctantly, but there are times when the alternative has a beauty all of its own.” Tomichii looked at me, his eyes leaving my face to admire me, but not
After an entirely silent car journey I stood in another foyer. I couldn’t tell if Yaru was happy with how things had progressed that afternoon. And I wasn’t sure how I felt anymore. I didn’t even think I wanted to feel. I wanted to be back in the safe cocoon of a body that couldn’t move. Where no one expected anything of me.“Yaru. You didn’t tell me you had another new courtesan under your guidance,” a man said, sauntering over. “When you asked where I’d be I thought you were just coming to say hello. Maybe ask for a favour.”“No, no favour. This is Auralia. She’s a sweetheart, and I couldn’t refuse Daniel once I’d met her.”The man came over and stopped right in front of me. Taking my hands in his, he looked me over. Unlike some of the others, he appeared more fatherly, his eyes coming back to my face and lingering there the longest, searching my eyes.“The first day being introduced is a shocker, isn’t it?” he asked eventually. I found myself nodding, my shoulders sagging a little,
“I assume Yaru told you who I was,” Keaton said when I arrived at his table, saving me the trouble of trying to open the conversation myself. For a bachelor so young, he appeared to have plenty of confidence. Before I left my table, I didn’t take long to drink most of the drink, and now I could feel a warm fuzziness spreading through me. Perhaps relaxing a smidgen was exactly what I needed.“He might have,” I replied, stopping far enough away I could keep an eye on the other two women with him in my peripheral vision.“Either he did or he didn’t.” His eyes flicked with fire.I let a small smile flash across my face again, but didn’t answer.“Aren’t you going to introduce yourself?”I tilted my head to the side slightly, studying him as if I was considering his words and if I wanted to obey them.“Auralia,” I said, dragging the syllables out.“Well, Auralia, you’re bold.”“More… curious.”“Curiosity killed the cat.”“Haven’t you heard? I’m a resurrected.”He let out a barking laugh, his
As I walked over to the men, I did my best to look graceful, smiling at anyone who caught my eye, but I still felt strange. How had I gone from lifeless on a bed to strolling through a room full of people, wearing almost nothing but a form of advanced body paint?“Oh my, that’s an interesting look. Perhaps we could find somewhere a little more secluded and I could get a closer look at your flowers,” a man said, blindsiding me as he stepped out in front. My jaw dropped as he reached out a hand, ready to slip it around my waist. I couldn’t check my momentum in time, getting far closer than I wanted before I could stop.His fingers reached lower while my brain tried to catch up.“I’m sorry,” I said, sounding far smaller and more timid than I wanted. “I’m still veiled.”“Oh.” It was as if I’d slapped him. He recoiled, withdrawing his arms and putting distance between us. “I thought you were fair game. I apologise.”“That’s okay,” I replied, feeling my cheeks flush. This seemed to relax him
By the time we were back at Daniel's Court, I was exhausted. The sky was beginning to lighten, the night gone entirely. My feet hurt as I stepped out of Yaru’s bubble car, making me wince.“You’ll get used to it,” Yaru said as he followed me. “The long days get easier.”“I hope so,” I replied, desperate to be alone in my room. I wanted to cry, the tears already threatening to fall if I thought about my day too much, but I wasn’t safe yet. I wasn’t sheltered.I was inside before I remembered Daniel’s words the night before. He’d want to see me. I couldn’t run away and hide just yet.Yaru padded along beside me, neither of us speaking. There wasn’t anything else to say. We’d talked over my night in the car on the way back. He’d done nothing but praise me and give me some tips on how to keep Bernice at bay. I still had a lot of work to do to seduce enough men before my unveiling, however.Now I was about to find out what Daniel thought.Yaru stayed with me as we traipsed through the corri
Coming closer to the door revealed one of the courtesans I'd seen the day before. She was held backwards over the bottom of the stairs, her arms restrained by one of the security guards as the other gripped her thighs, his trousers and boxers pooled around his feet. Tears fell from her eyes as she was being used, evidently in pain both emotional and physical.Gulping, I froze to the spot. My heart broke for her as the guard sped up his thrusts, reaching his climax. As he rammed into her for the final time, she let out a small cry. I finally managed to tear myself away, my stomach threatening to expel what little food I'd eaten that day.“There, Belle,” I heard the guard say behind me. “Told you to just let me get on with it. Now hold still and Rich here can have his turn.”I stopped, horrified at what I'd just heard. Did I go back and try to help her? Was there anything I could even do? A scuffle made my decision for me.“Jeremy, you idiot, she's getting away,” another voice yelled. A
It turned out that the ‘not long’ Mhairi had told me about was still over two hours, a lotion needed to soak through the body paint and stop it adhering to the skin. It then had to be carefully covered in a sort of plastic substance and the whole lot peeled slowly off. When Mhairi was done there were over ten pieces of plastic, each labelled for the body part they related to, and I stood as naked and vulnerable as I'd begun the day.I let out yet another big yawn, more than ready to sleep, the day's ups and downs almost a hazy memory.“Remember to put the chair back once I'm gone,” Mhairi said, going to the door.“Do you really think they'll try again tonight?”“Oh, no, they'll have gone back to Belle. The other courtesans won't be happy, though.”“Right,” I said, wondering just how many threats a person could keep safe against.“They don't like the special treatment you're getting. Or that I'm the one Daniel asked to help you.”“Jealousy and insecurity. An ugly combination,” I replied