Chapter 1

CHAPTER ONE

VYA

Whoever said, "Life is what you make of it," was a liar. That or ignorant. My life wasn't what I'd made of it. In fact, part of me doubted this was my life at all.

I wiped the sweat and hair from my face. Even though the humid air made my effort pointless, the move gave me an excuse to touch the thick metal collar encircling my neck. It wasn't something I'd put on. I'd woken up with it. My fingers trembled over the device before I quickly dropped my hands to my sides.

The crude metal tub in front of me finished draining with a gurgle, and I hurried to use the sprayer to rinse out the last occupant's residual sludge. As soon as I inserted the plug into the drain, steaming water flowed from the holes near the tub's rim.

How many times had I done this now? I couldn't remember. Since waking, everything seemed to blur together. Nothing felt real. Not the collar around my neck. Not the weird tub or this room. My clothes were real, though. And so were the damn shocks I received from the collar whenever I moved too slow.

I retreated a step as I watched the water level rise in the large basin. The sick feeling in my stomach grew, and I wiped my hand on my damp pajama bottoms.

My gaze flicked between the door and the tub.

An inch before the water reached the top, the door rasped open. A small whimper escaped me at the sight of the thing that walked through. It didn't matter that this wasn't the first time I'd seen one. Terror still filled me.

The creature moved forward on its short legs, placing its claw-tipped hands on the floor to balance each step. While it moved like a gorilla, it looked nothing like it. The hard, dark-plated exterior undulated with the alien creature's movement.

The black orbs that made up its eyes shifted to me as it settled in the hot water with an exhale. Its long forked tongue slipped from its mouth, testing the air like a snake, and I shivered in response.

A jolt from the collar hit me like a train, locking my muscles to the point my jaw ached and my lungs froze. Just as quickly, it released me. My knees buckled, and I collapsed to the ground. Gulping each wheezing breath, I fought my way toward the tub, knowing that, if I didn't try to do what they wanted, the shocks would get worse.

Dragging myself up to the edge, I caught a glimpse of my reflection on the water's surface. One eye was blood-red now, making the blue of my iris stand out in vivid contrast. The patchwork of red and white covering my face didn't bode well. How many shocks could I take before I died?

The creature in the water held still as I grabbed a handful of powder from the nearby bucket and started scouring the surface of its upper back plate. I hurried, washing as quickly and briskly as possible to avoid another shock. The powder removed the black dust from the creature's plating until all that remained was its middle.

I thought of home as I reached into the water. My mind drifted to the planet I knew, disconnecting from the awful place in which I now existed. Because there was no way I was on Earth anymore.

The thing's hand left the edge of the tub and closed over mine, stopping my scrubbing.

I thought of my parents rather than the thin slithering bit of skin between its legs that it made me grip. The snake-like appendage refused to be ignored, though, and I shivered as it used my hand to stroke itself. I knew better than to jerk back. Instead, I forced myself to grasp the muscled length. The creature hissed in pleasure, and a moment later, a black, oily puddle appeared on the surface of the water.

It hissed and stood, leaving the room. I pulled the plug and watched the water drain.

Things could be worse , I told myself. At least, it's only a bath and a handjob.

I wiped my hand against the soft cotton of my shirt and fought not to cry. Despite the lies I was trying to tell myself, one truth was undeniable: I wasn't supposed to be here. I was supposed to be safe in my North American home until my number was randomly drawn in the monthly lottery.

My chances of ending up as alien-payment should have been one in over fifteen million. The odds of being abducted had never even crossed my mind. I shouldn't have woken up in this room after falling asleep in my bed. I should have been home, watching the news in rapt fascination with the rest of the world as more alien spacecraft meant to protect Earth's females from abduction appeared in Earth's orbit.

Abducted to work in an alien bathhouse? It shouldn't have happened. Yet, I stood in front of an alien tub.

My fingers drifted to my collar again.

I hated snakes. I hated baths. And I hated aliens.

The tub emptied with a gurgle. Using the sprayer, I rinsed out the last occupant's residual sludge then quickly restored the plug and watched steaming water refill the tub.

How many nasty aliens could one human bathe before passing out from exhaustion or electrocution?

Fifty-seven.

I hesitated too long on the last one and went down like a dropped bag of potatoes when the collar shocked me. Too much juice finally scrambled my brain because I heard my mom calling my name.

"Vya. Vya, wake up. It's time to go."

Her voice faded to nothing.

And so did I.

A hand on the oversensitive skin of my arm sent a jolt of pain through me. I groaned, disoriented and nauseous.

"Thank God you're not dead. Please wake up. I don't want to be alone here."

At the sound of the unfamiliar voice, I opened my eyes and discovered they couldn't focus. All I could see were light areas and brown areas. Then something big invaded my field of vision. The view of the blurry, pale face didn't clear as I blinked.

"Why can't I see?" I didn't sound like myself. My voice was barely a rasp, and it hurt to talk. I lifted my hand to my throat and touched a thick metal band.

"I think you took too many shocks. Your eyes don't look good. They're all bloody. Not bleeding, just all red instead of white."

It all came flooding back. The bathing room and the alien handjobs.

The girl's hands slid under me, and she tried lifting my shoulders.

"Stop. You're hurting me."

"You need to sit up. I don't know how much time we have."

"Time for what? What's going on? Why are we here?" Tears started to form, and I started shaking again because I couldn't see.

"Shut up and listen," the girl hissed, shoving me into a sitting position.

My joints protested. Everywhere she touched burned and tingled painfully.

"I think we work from whistle to whistle. That's what I heard just before the first alien walked out of the room after showing me what to do. And I heard it again just before the things stopped showing up for baths, and they dragged me back here. I don't know how long this break will last, but we need to eat then sleep." She shoved something into my hands. It felt like a bowl.

"What is it?"

"Just drink and keep listening. There are six of us in this room. We're the only two awake. One's still breathing, the other three aren't. They were already here when I was dragged in. They are wearing the same collars. They have burn marks under their collars, and their eyes are red like yours. Do you know what that means?"

I shook my head.

"You can't afford any more shocks. The other girl, the one who's still breathing, looks like you too. Burn marks on her neck and bloody eyes rolled back in her head when I checked her."

I lifted the bowl to my lips, fighting the urge to cry, and took a drink.

"They don't want us to die. They just want us to work. When the whistle blows again, you're going to stand up and follow the alien that leads you to your workroom. You're going to bathe those fuckers and jerk them off and rinse the tub and do it all fast because you can't get shocked again. Am I clear?"

The angry intensity in her voice vanished with her next words.

"I can't do this alone," she whispered.

"What's your name?" I asked.

"Mila. What's yours?"

"Vya."

"Finish drinking, Vya. Then go to sleep. I hope you wake up again."

I nodded and drank a chunky nasty broth. The tears freely trailing down my cheeks didn't help clear my vision, so I closed my eyes and focused on listening. I could hear Mila's breathing and how it hitched occasionally. She was either crying or close to it. Beyond that, I heard another person breathing.

Everything that Mila told me settled over my mind like a heavy blanket. It weighed down the panic and stopped the shaking.

This was my reality, and unless I wanted to be the next one to die, I needed to do exactly what she'd said.

I finished my bowl, set it to the side, then reached out my hand. Mila's fingers immediately closed over mine, and we curled together to sleep on the floor. It smelled bad wherever we were, and I was suddenly grateful that I couldn't see everything clearly. I closed my eyes and slept.

When the door opened and Mila jolted beside me, I scrambled to my feet. Still unable to see clearly, I did my best to follow the dark blob in front of me.

Steam enveloped me as I entered the bathing room. I didn't hesitate this time and hurried to the tub, able to see just enough to know where it was, but not enough to know if the tub had water in it. Remembering there hadn't been any in it the day before, I immediately leaned forward to place the plug and listened as the water started to flow.

The creature that led me to the room approached. I held still as it crowded into my space. The flat expanse of its face came dangerously close to mine. When it hissed, I felt the tip of its forked tongue against my skin. I didn't shiver. I didn't react. Instead, I thought of Mila, her desperation for me, and her warning that I couldn't afford another shock. Today, there could be no mistakes. No hesitation.

It hissed again, and I felt a claw at my throat just above my collar. My stomach dropped sickeningly. Was it threatening me? Did it know I couldn't see for shit?

I swallowed hard and listened to the water. It was almost full. The first alien would want its bath soon.