Read Online The Benders by Katie French - Free Book Online Page A

the walkie-talkie crackles to life. “Ben?” he says into it.
    “Who’re you calling?” I ask, my voice shrill with fear. I strain against my cuffs again.
    Doc says nothing. The walkie-talkie squawks in his hand. “Ben here. What d’you need? Over.”
    “Don’t,” I say, pleading. “Don’t tell them.”
    Doc pauses, the walkie-talkie close to his lips. “If I don’t tell them, they’ll kill me. I can’t hide something like this.”
    I shake my head, looking around the room for hope, for salvation. Instead I see handcuffs, rubber gloves, instruments of torture and captivity. I drop my head. How could I have been so stupid?
    “Nada said I could trust you,” I say, my voice pathetic. I hate it, but the walls inside me are crumbling. Whatever Lord Merek does with his women, it can’t be good.
    “What did you say?” Doc asks, lowering the walkie-talkie. “Nada?”
    I bite my lip, remembering I wasn’t supposed to speak her name. “No, I—”
    “You said Nada.” Doc takes a step toward me. “You know Nada?”
    I look into his face. Slowly, I nod. “I freed her from a trader.”
    Doc’s face contorts. He blows out a deep breath and sets the walkie-talkie down on the desk.
    A loud pounding on the doors makes us both jump. A guard’s voice yells from other side of the door. “What’s going on in there?”
    Doc jumps up and fumbles in his pocket. He produces keys that he uses to unlock my cuffs. When he’s close to me, he leans down and whispers frantically in my ear, “You have to choose and choose fast. I can tell them you’re a bender and we can try to keep this a secret. It’ll mean hard labor, but I can try to keep you safe.” His eyes find mine. They’re kind, soft. He means it.
    “What’s the other choice?” I ask.
    “I tell them you’re a woman. You might become one of Lord Merek’s wives. The life is easy compared to hard labor. But you’d have to do your wifely duty—”
    The guard pounds again. “Wrap it up!”
    “Do my wifely duty?” I ask, flicking my eyes to the door.
    Doc chews his lip, standing up and stashing the handcuffs. “Choose.”
    The door handle begins to turn. What should I do? Try to hide my gender and work on the line, or take my chances as a wife? I think of the gold ring around my neck, the weight of it. Clay. I can’t be someone else’s wife.
    “Bender,” I whisper as the knob opens, but I’m not sure Doc hears me. The guard stomps in, his baton out.
    “Thank God,” Doc says, frustration in his voice. “This one was giving me a hell of a time. Noncompliant.” He blows out a breath. “I tried calling you.”
    The guard blushes. “Was out back for a minute.”
    “Well, we’ll keep that between you and me if you do something for me.” Doc laces his fingers together and raises an eyebrow.
    The guard nods. “Sure. What is it?”
    “Teach this one a lesson,” he says waving a dismissive hand at me. “He thinks he’s special.”
    It feels like a slap. I turn to Doc, my jaw slack. What is he doing? The guard grabs my arm and yanks me toward him. “Okay,” he says, pulling out his baton. “How many you want? Ten? Twenty?”
    “Five should suffice,” Doc says, turning away from me. “Oh, and do it over the shirt. He needs to be able to work in the morning.”
    “Five lashes coming right up.” The guard tugs me away. I’m too stunned to fight back. Why is he doing this?
    “I thought we could trust you!” I scream as the guard drags me out the door. Doc says nothing. He doesn’t even look up as I’m dragged, kicking and screaming, out of the room.
    The other benders watch dully as I’m pulled past them. I flail and kick. As I’m pulled through the door, I lock eyes with Nada. I hope my look says, You were wrong . I hope it says, Don’t trust him .
    They throw me into the dirt face down. When I get up to my hands and knees, the first blow from the baton catches me just below the shoulder. It’s like one hundred tiny knives separating