For one heartbeat I thought I'd actually scared them. Then the bald man's palm cracked across my face and I hit the ground.
His boot came down on my chest, pressing until I couldn't breathe.
"Using the young heir's name to lure women here is the oldest trick in the trafficker playbook."
"You women are all the same. You hear about our gold mines and come running with your tongues hanging out."
"Since you won't pick, tonight we all get a turn."
"We'll show you what Crowe men are made of."
Before I could scream, he grabbed me like a rag doll and slung me over his shoulder.
"My boyfriend isn't a trafficker! His name is Declan Crowe. He IS your young heir. Just bring him here and ask him!"
I beat my fists against the bald man's back, thrashing, desperate to break free.
"You dare speak our young heir's name out loud? You must be tired of living!"
He hurled me off his shoulder. I slammed into the ground chest-first, and white-hot pain tore through my ribs.
"Where did an outsider woman even hear our young heir's name? Speaking it is a punishable offense. Did nobody tell you that?"
"Today I'm going to teach you how things work in the Crowe Tribe!"
The man yanked the belt from his waist and brought it down across my body, again and again.
Every strike sent tremors through me. My chest still throbbed from being thrown to the ground earlier, each breath shallow and ragged, my body so weak I couldn't even form words.
"Barrett, take it easy. Don't kill her."
"Yeah, we paid the trafficker half a pound of gold for this one."
Their conversation hit me like ice water, and my mind snapped to Jeanette's boyfriend.
When I'd gotten into the car, I'd heard him on the phone the entire time, telling whoever was on the other end that he'd deliver the goods on schedule.
The goods. He'd been talking about me.
I never imagined my cousin had gotten involved with someone like that.
I didn't even know if Jeanette herself was okay.
"If you don't believe me, call Declan and ask him. I have photos of us together on my phone..."
From the way they talked, I could tell Declan held real weight in their world. If I could just prove our relationship, they'd have to let me go.
But before I could finish my sentence, another hand cracked across my face.
"She dares call the young master by his first name? I'll smash her mouth in!"
"This one's crafty. She just wants to get her hands on a phone so she can call the cops."