After the horrible events on the lawn, the youngest of our group were ushered into the extraordinary palace. The hallways were cavernous with walls that had exquisite artwork, shining jewels, or what looked like gold sprinkled on them. My sisters’ mothers had been separated from our group, and we were led up a spiraling staircase. David and Lex remained on the lawn with Obi. I walked beside Karen, who was silently weeping. Anastacia was on her other side, directing her down the various hallways. I wanted to comfort my sister, but didn’t know how. At least I had the knowledge that Mom was alive. Granted, she was the captive of a Janton who happen to be the father of her baby. But at least she was alive. Meg had been ruthlessly killed right in front of her daughter. I didn’t think that someone could actually recover from something so horrible.
Once again, I found the energy to mentally berate myself. I had the power to change my father’s mind and didn’t use it. Why? That was because despite my hatred for him, I was still conditioned to obey. How many people would have to die before I mustered up the courage to intervene? How many lives had to be ruined until I found the strength to challenge the man? Something within me was broken, and I knew it.
“You can’t be serious,” Anastacia complained when we were led down a spiraling staircase. The further down we walked, the colder it became. I wasn’t shocked to see that our accommodations lacked the lavish fixings of the upper floors. The walls were a dull gray, and there was only one door in sight. One of father’s guards opened the door and gestured.
“Your quarters,” he announced. We filed in, no one uttering a single complaint. Father trained us well. As soon as the door closed, Karen collapsed on the floor and began shrieking, her mental anguish too much to handle. Anastacia knelt beside her and wrapped her arms around her. Lena’s dark eyes landed on me.
“Aren’t you going to put that girl out of her misery?” she asked. So Lena had knowledge of what I could do. I eyed Karen and slipped into her mind, her pain nearly shredding my soul.
“Sleep,” I mentally whispered to her, and she fell asleep. All was shockingly quiet, which gave me the opportunity to orient to the room. Seven full-size beds rested in a row, separated by three-drawer dressers. I spotted a large walk-in closet that had all of our clothes hanging in it.
“The beds have been chosen for us,” Nina said, pulling open the first drawer and fishing out a pair of granny underwear. Molly chuckled, which made Amy scowl.
“That would be mine. I sewed them,” Amy defended before plopping in the first bed. Nina opened the second drawer and pulled out a red thong. Judging by the fact that none of us conscious sisters claimed the sexy underwear, the bed obviously belonged to Karen. Anastacia lifted Karen with her telekinesis and dropped her onto the bed. We repeated the process until everyone found their beds. I was in the last bed, right beside Lena, who looked more amused than anything else.
“You knew that this was going to happen,” I mentally accused Lena. She nodded and shrugged.
“There’s a kitchen in here,” Amy said as she opened one of the doors. “It’s stocked with food.”
“Riches to rags,” Lena said. “Don’t you all wish that Jade were here?”
“She taught me how to cook. After someone helps me get Karen into her nightgown, I can cook dinner,” Nina offered. Anastacia sighed and assisted Nina with Karen. Molly was the first to strip out of her gown. That one wasn’t shy about being naked in front of everyone. I supposed that we were family.
The door flew open and a blonde woman ran in and tossed a knife at Molly’s back. I let out a scream as the knife slammed into Molly. Everyone stared as the nightgown she had just put on shimmered, and the knife fell to the ground. Molly quickly snatched up the weapon, but before she could throw it, Lena spoke.
“Don’t throw away a useful weapon, Molly,” Lena said. Then she eyed the blonde. “What, did Lia send you?”
“You need to learn your places,” the blonde hissed.
“Anastacia, can you do me a favor?” Lena inquired as she got to her feet.
“I guess. What do you need me to do?” Anastacia asked, her eyes wide.
“I need you to hold her still,” Lena directed. Anastacia grinned and restrained the blonde with her telekinesis. Lena walked over to Molly, and gestured.
“Molly, I think our lovely older sister needs a haircut,” Lena purred. Molly scowled and approached the woman, whose eyes were wide with shock. Molly quickly hacked at the woman’s ponytail with the knife and managed to cut it off her head. Then she wrapped the cut-off ponytail around the woman’s neck, and tied it like a bow.
“Gwen, compel her. Make her run through the palace butt-naked,” Lena ordered. I focused on the woman and implanted the thought in her mind. When I was finished, I nodded at Anastacia, and Molly’s would-be assassin ran from the room. Anastacia gestured to the door and it slammed shut. “Ladies, we did something that Father tried to get us not to do. We worked together. Forget about the stupid favorites and reject the hierarchy. We’re all captives here. We can survive if we play our cards right.”
“What do you mean by that?” Molly asked.
“I mean that we’ve got to stop fighting amongst ourselves,” Lena lectured. “It’s the seven of us versus the others who will be auctioned off. No matter how Dad dresses it up, it is an auction. He’s in debt, and this tedious event will bring him a lot of money.”
“Great, now we’re horses,” Amy hissed.
“Men will pay for us?” Nina asked as she walked toward the kitchen.
“Yes,” Lena said. “He does this crap every year. I think he’s actually going to go back next year and father more children.” The horror made the power inside me want to lash out. Earth was my home, and the earthlings needed to be protected from the depraved lord.
“How do we guarantee that we get good men?” Anastacia asked. Lena grinned in my direction.
“Well, Anastacia. We have a secret weapon. Our dear Gwen could mentally control who bids on us,” Lena pointed out.
“And how would I know who a good man was?” I asked.
“The day before the auction, father invites the hopefuls to the palace. Of course, he charges each one for what’s called an interview. He meets with them all, then decides who gets to sit in the bidding pit.”
“And you want me to sneak into the event and read a bunch of minds?” I inquired, unease filling my gut.
“What? You’re still loyal to Daddy dearest?” Lena taunted.
“No. Not since he cut my stepfather’s head off and left it for my mother to find,” I admitted. “I was just doing what I had to. I thought that if I obeyed, I’d keep my mother alive.”
“Lord Peirc didn’t really do anything mean to me. But I don’t know. He probably was nice to me because of my telekinesis,” Anastacia said.
“That evil bastard tricked your mother into sex, got her knocked up, then made her barren once you were born,” Molly snapped. “That was horrible. Didn’t you ever wonder if your mother wanted any more children?”
“No,” Anastacia softly said.
“My mother wanted more children,” I added. “It killed her that she couldn’t have children with Max.”
“If you can compel people, why not tell the evil lord to stop breathing?” Molly wondered.
“Because he told me that he could tell if I used my gift on him, and that Mom would be punished,” I responded.
“And I hope you guys know, if he dies, that means that Obi owns us. He resents us, so what do you think would happen to us?” Amy challenged.
Lena shrugged.
“If we don’t stay here long enough, it might not matter,” she said. “Now, let’s get some food in us. Gwen, Anastacia, Karen, and I have a lot of planning to do.”
“Karen?” I asked, unsure of the choice.
Lena n.
“She knows the most about our father, Gwen. It would be suicide to do this without her.” I supposed I could always compel Karen if she didn’t cooperate. But after the light show that I displayed in the flyer, I doubted that she would cross me. Besides, our father murdered her mother. Our father made her mother believe that she was someone special. When she bought into the hype, he punished her for it.