Chapter Six

Jade was waiting in Nata’s room and immediately started in when she entered. “Nata, something is going on, and I need to know what. I realize we haven’t known each other very long, but one thing everyone learns about me quickly is that I despise being left in the dark. You know I won’t tell anyone if it’s something that needs to be kept from Cress.”

"Nothing is kept from Cress, you know that. He's listening to us right now." Nata moved past her into the bathroom, not exactly sure she wanted to talk to her at the moment. She didn't know if it would make things worse for her with Cress.

“I need to know,” Jade insisted, following behind her. “This is serious. I can tell. You wouldn’t have run to Cress if it wasn’t.”

"It's really none of your business, Jade." Nata snapped, closing the door to the bathroom and leaning against the wall inside.

Jade wasn’t giving up so easily, knowing that the closer she got to the reason for Nata’s sudden bad attitude, the closer she would be to the best lead she’d had yet. “Maybe it isn’t,” she admitted. “Then again, if this has something to do with our jobs here, it is my business. You tell me, Nata. Is this going to affect me? I get the feeling it will.”

Sighing, Nata opened the door again and walked over to her bed. "You know he's listening, right? You know me telling you isn't going to help anything."

“You’d be surprised,” Jade said mysteriously. When Nata said nothing else, Jade simply rolled her eyes. “Yes, he’s listening. I get it. Good ole omniscient Cress. I’m sure he pops a boner every time he thinks about his powers of observation. Just tell me.”

"I don't really know how to start all this off..." Nata sat down on her bed and grabbed a towel that was hanging over the edge. She wiped the make up off her leg to show the huge bruise that was there. "Remember Chandar?"

Jade crouched down in front of her and eyed the spot, aghast at how dark and discolored it was. “He did this?” she asked softly, gazing up at her.

Nata nodded. "Yeah, and a lot more. This is why I didn't want you to take him. He's abusive. Always has been. I have marks all over me, though none as bad as this."

Jade touched the spot gently as she began to shake her head. “You shouldn’t have done that. I told you I could handle him, and I wasn’t lying. Next time, it won’t happen like this, I promise.”

"There won’t be a next time, Jade," Nata said softly, pulling her legs under herself and resting her back against the headboard.

Jade furrowed her brow and stood again, taking cautious steps toward the nearest chair. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

"I've been sold to Chandar. I saw Annette in the hall before our dance, and she told me. I went to Cress afterward, and he confirmed it. I have six days before Chandar picks me up."

Jade plopped down into the chair at her back and stared at Nata. “Sold you? He can’t do that. It’s slavery. The Republic has very strict laws… The audacity of it. In the middle of Coruscant…”

She shook her head with disbelief. It was a heinous crime in Jade’s mind, one she knew others had been subject to outside of the Republic’s jurisdiction. Her head was spinning with what to do. Use her emergency signal to contact Obi-Wan? Not yet… She had six days, at least. That was more than enough time, or so she hoped.

"No one knows it's going on. Only select costumers. The girl you're replacing, Lathe; she was sold just a few days before you came in." Nata gave Jade a sad look. "Cress wants me to spend the rest of the time I have here training you. He wants you in his bed in a couple of days."

Jade was hit with a new wave of anger and fear, doing her best to release these negative emotions into the Force and failing mostly. “I see,” was all she said, being more careful about what she said concerning him as they were already discussing taboo subjects. She was certain her revulsion showed in her expression. “Nata, I…” She wanted to reassure her, tell her that they would both be far from the Head Rush before any of this could take place, but giving away her plan in front of a recording device would help no one. “I’m sorry,” she finished lamely.

"Don't be. It's not your fault, and there is nothing you can do. But that’s not all the bad news I have." Nata glanced around the room, knowing that what she was about to say may get her sent to Chandar earlier then she wanted, but it had to be said. "Cress is after your boyfriend. He mentioned something about not allowing him to live. He's also not sure how he got in with out a membership card, and I know he's reviewing tapes. Your boyfriend needs to get off this planet. He won’t be safe," Nata warned. "Cress doesn't like men who get free time with his girls."

Jade paled, feeling her hands tremble lightly. She knew Obi-Wan could find his way out any trap and had battled bounty hunters and assassins and even Sith… But she couldn’t help the fear that stole over her. Slowly, she calmed, watching as her hands stilled bit by bit.

“It’s not Ben who should be scared,” she said when she felt her voice was even enough. Then she lifted her head to smirk.

"I hope you're right." Nata gave a small smile. "I never thought this would happen. I never thought that Cress would actually sell me. This has been going on for many years, but I never thought I would be victim to it."

“How long?” Jade asked, perking up. She was falling into her original mode of investigator.

"A couple of years, I guess. At least that’s when I remember girls disappearing," Nata sighed.

Jade clenched her jaw and nodded. This was indeed worse than even the Council had foreseen. “We’ll deal with all of this, Nata. For tonight, just relax. And trust me.”

"I'll try to, but I'm not sure if Cress will keep me here for six days like he said. He may change his mind and send me off and have Annette finish your training." Nata leaned forward so that she was closer to Jade. "You should watch yourself. Keep your door locked."

Jade nodded, her features going hard at the idea of Annette training her. That would not go over well for either of them. Not only that, but Jade saw Nata as her friend, and losing her would be losing more than just a temporary guide to the underworld. She pulled Nata into her arms and held her for a long moment.

“We’ll be all right,” she murmured, not entirely certain who she was trying to convince.

* * * * *

The following night, Jade and Nata danced separately. Jade was surprised at how easy it was to toss her clothes into the crowd, especially with her mind soundly occupied. Even while her body moved sensuously with the rhythm and she licked her lips suggestively, she was elsewhere contemplating her next course of action. Nata’s news had left her head spinning, and she had very little time. She would have to take a risk tonight regardless of the safety of it.

The music ended, and the lights went down. Jade moved backstage in time to see men flood in.

“Fuck,” she grunted. “This is what I get for going on last…”

Jade felt a tap on her shoulder and turned to see a rather short, squat man standing behind her. He looked up at her with hungry eyes.

"I've got dibs on you for the night, sweetheart," he purred, practically licking his lips.

Jade tried not to wince and cringe in the opposite direction. She grabbed a nearby robe to shield the man’s eyes from her and took a minute to brace herself. When she turned back, her body language held a feline slink.

“Well…” she said in a low, sultry voice. “Lucky me.”

She turned away, curling a finger for him to follow, her mind screaming against what was happening here. The man did a little hop-skip as he clapped his hands together and jogged after Jade, patting her butt when he caught up to her. Jade jumped, then laughed, barely restraining herself from popping his arm out of the socket. She ushered him into her room and shut the door behind them, turning to offer him a gentle smile.

"Come on, girl, let’s get going." He smiled at her, revealing a nearly toothless mouth.

“Now, now,” she giggled. “I’m still a mess. All that moving around and the stage lights… Lemme freshen up. Won’t take a moment, I promise.” She pouted and batted her eyelashes becomingly.

"Better not," he panted as she moved into the bathroom. When the door closed, he quickly removed the rest of his shirt, along with his pants, leaving himself in only his underwear. He laid himself out across the bed and stared at the door.

Within the bathroom, Jade turned on the shower and rinsed herself off quickly for appearances. When this was done, she began rifling through her things. She slipped a pill between her fingers, then stood to apply lipstick, noting that her hand shook. She recapped the lipstick and stared at her reflection for a long moment before pulling a pink nightie over her head. Stalling any longer would only make him angry and ruin her one chance of getting away.

She balked at the door when it whooshed open, making a slightly horrified noise at the mostly naked man sprawled out on her bed. He had no muscle to speak of, being all lumpy flab. In the spots where he was hairy, it was coarse and overabundant. In the smooth spots, the skin appeared clammy. He was wiggling his eyebrows at her, and Jade could hardly stand the horrendous look.

“So… what’s your name?” she asked, hoping knowing this thing had a name would put her a tad more at ease.

"Lort," he grunted. "Come on now. I haven't had anything in over a month, and I can't wait much longer, girl. Get over here."

Nope, that didn’t help at all, she thought wearily. Even his name seemed disgusting.

“Hold your horses,” she chuckled at him. “Let’s have a drink, hmm?”

She quickly turned to the minibar in the wall and began stirring a concoction, surreptitiously dropping a pill into the liquor. She turned back to Lort with a drink hand and pressed it into his hand, taking a sip of her own as she did so.

He chugged the entire thing down in one gulp and burped loudly. "Alright, enough of this. Get your clothes off and get on this damn bed."

Jade watched him for a long moment, her friendly façade falling when he appeared unaffected by the drug she’d slipped him. That pill had been her only failsafe way out of this. Finally, she nodded to him and crept up beside the bed, sliding her nightie off her shoulders.

Her thoughts went out to Obi-Wan, tears forming in her eyes as she pictured his beautiful face. Had she ever doubted his handsomeness before, even for a moment? This creature on her bed, salivating at her nakedness, reminded her of how lucky she had been. She took a seat on the edge of the bed, delaying the inevitable for at least another few seconds.

Lort wiped his hand across his mouth, clearing the drool that was forming there as he shoved Jade down onto the bed and flung himself on top of her. He ran his hands down her sides and quickly to her legs as he grinned. A weird look passed over his face as he fell onto her breasts, his body going totally limp as the drug finally took effect.

Jade laid beneath him, wide-eyed and still. She quickly came back to herself, shoving him aside so roughly that he fell to the floor. She ran her hands over herself, then pulled her knees up to her chest and grasped them for dear life. Tears threatened to spill, but she bit her cheek hard enough to bleed, fighting them with all her power. She rubbed her pink necklace between her finger and thumb, working to steady her breathing.

Control was beginning to be a fleeting, watery thing that continuously slipped through her fingers, but Jade managed to seek it out and take hold of it again. She sprang up and yanked her nightie on along with a robe, then moved to her door and peeked out. As soon as she was sure all was clear, she moved silently down the hallway, using the Force to misdirect anyone who came too close.

She soon found Cress’ office and sighed at the abandoned desk and chair. She hurriedly glanced over his paperwork, finding a duplicate to Nata’s selling order and stuffing it into her nightgown. She then pulled her robe closed over it and readied herself to flee. A male throat being cleared made her freeze, and the hand that lighted on her shoulder caused her to spin. She gazed stupidly into Cress’ questioning, hardened face and fumbled for a moment.

“There’s a guy,” she managed at last. “Lort. He’s unconscious in my room. I don’t know what to do. I think he just drank too much.”

Cress stared at her, past her. “I’ll send one of the bouncers down.”

“Thank you,” she grinned. “I’m sorry I acted like a fool just now. I was just at a loss. I thought he was dead at first.” She laughed a bit, putting a hand to her forehead.

“It’s all right,” Cress said. “You’re pretty shaken up, it seems. Do you want to sit?”

“Oh… thanks,” Jade said, making herself comfortable in the chair across from his desk. “I don’t usually panic like that.”

“I understand,” he said. “The men that come here often let themselves go too far with things like that. You’d be surprised how many of them don’t even make it to bed, just like yours tonight.”

Jade laughed lightly. “I’m a little relieved. He wasn’t exactly… attractive. Then again, there goes a night’s work.”

Cress smiled lopsidedly. “There’s always tomorrow.”

Jade nodded, looking down at her lap. “Sure…”

“Jade, I think we need to have a more serious talk, you and I.” Cress leaned back in his chair casually. “This is nice and all, but there are some things that have been on my mind, and now is as good a time as any.”

“Oh?” Jade asked, feeling her stomach flip. “Like?”

“You know by now that I have eyes and ears all over this club,” he began. “Nothing gets past my radar.”

“I’ve gathered as much,” she replied.

“I hear you and Nata, talking shit,” he said. “I see you with your boyfriend, who did not pay for admission here. I notice you acting differently with me than you do with others.”

Jade swallowed uneasily. “I… I don’t know what to say.”

“You don’t have to say anything,” Cress purred. “You don’t even have to apologize.” He leaned forward and put his elbows on his desk. “You’re going to make up for all of it.”

“Am I?” Jade asked, her voice breaking.

“You and I are going to go out to dinner,” he smiled. “Two nights from now. I want you to dress nice, all right?”

“Okay,” Jade replied. “I--”

“No,” Cress ordered, pointing a finger at her with his stern facing glaring behind it. “Go back to your room and wait for the bouncer.”

Jade nodded, stood, and walked stiffly out. She cradled the paper against her stomach, her mind spinning. Two more days was all she had…

* * * * *

The next morning Nata knocked gently on Jade's door. "Jade? It's Nata. Are you awake?"

Jade was reluctant to let her in, reluctant to speak of what had happened the night before. Then again, Jade had been relentless when Nata had wished to remain silent, and turnabout was fair play. She moved to the door and let her in, her eyelids drooping with her lack of sleep.

Nata closed the door behind her and looked at Jade, tilting her head when she saw the black circles under Jade's eyes.

"Are you alright? You look like you haven't slept at all."

“That’s because I haven’t,” Jade replied. “Rough night. And not how you think either.”

"What happened?" Nata asked, sitting down in one of the nearby chairs.

Jade slid onto the bed and sighed. “Some guy named Lort ‘reserved’ me, but he passed out before anything could happen. I ran to find Cress, and he confronted me about Ben and you… He wants me with him tomorrow night.”

Nata closed her eyes and sighed, "I knew this would come... I thought he would give you a little more time than that, but I guess not." Nata sighed again and looked up at Jade. "You might still be able to get out of here, Jade. Before he takes you, before he decides to sell you." Nata stood. "If we hurry, I'm sure I can help you get out. I still have a few friends among the bouncers."

“I can’t do that,” Jade nearly growled. “I can’t run.”

"Jade, you don't want Cress to take you. You don't want to be sold, to be beaten every night. It's what happens. It will happen to you. Please, I don't want this for you," Nata snapped, trying to hold her tears back.

“Nata, I…” Jade looked away. “I can’t explain why, but I can’t leave. It has to be this way. You’ll understand eventually, I know.”

"Damn it, Jade!" Nata yelled. "You're as stupid as a bantha. You HAVE to leave. You can't fight them. You may think you can, but you can't. Cress has too strong of a hold on this. You have to leave."

Jade jumped up and grasped Nata’s arms. “Calm down,” she soothed. “Just be still.” She gazed levelly at the other, softening at Nata’s tears. “Go get ready. You, Ben, and I are going out again.”

"Going out? What?" Nata shook her head, brushing her tears back. "We can't just waltz out of here."

“Hush,” Jade said. “Go get ready. Meet me back here in five minutes. Don’t waste even a second.”

Nata stared at Jade for a moment then raced back down the hall. She threw on some decent clothing and ran back to Jade's room, wondering how on earth she was planning to get out of there.

Jade took Nata’s hand and led her through the halls and toward the front entrance. She breezed past the bouncers, waving her hand gently at her side and whispering, “we’ll be back later.”

“You’ll be back later,” the bouncers dutifully repeated.

Nata had so many questions running through her mind, but she kept quiet, just following Jade at nearly a run as they raced down the street.

* * * * *

Cress watched the scene take place between one of his most trusted, level-headed bouncers and Ben. He shook his head as Ben was let through without hardly any interrogation at all by submitting a blank card. Cress perked up when Annette sauntered in.

Annette smiled gently at Cress and seated herself on the edge of his desk, making sure her legs were ever so slightly spread.

"What are you looking at, Cress?" she purred, bending to peer at the screen he was watching.

“Mmm,” he murmured, glancing at her short skirt. “Eh… Recording. It’s Jade’s boyfriend sneaking in. I can’t really figure it out, although I do have a theory.”

Moving her legs apart a little farther, Annette leaned towards Cress, pressing her arms into the sides of her breasts as she did so. "And what exactly is your theory?"

Cress raised an eyebrow at her obvious come-ons, and rewound the recording a few seconds. He paused it and pointed to the screen. “Watch this,” he told her, hitting the play button again.

In the recorded image, Ben showed the blank card with a winning smile, and Cress pointed, drawing Annette’s attention to Ben’s free hand. His fingers twirled gently, then the bouncer let him pass. Cress paused the recording again and squinted at her. “What would you call that?”

Annette shrugged and twirled one of her blond curls, sliding off the desk and into Cress' lap. "Honestly? I'd call it a Jedi mind trick, but what would a Jedi be doing in here?"

Cress shut his eyes with a luxurious smile, holding Annette’s hips. “I somehow thought you’d say that. And what we do here isn’t exactly legal, what with the whole buying and selling people. We may be looking at a bust.” He chuckled at how close his face was to Annette’s bosoms when he said this.

Annette giggled along with Cress, shaking her chest slightly so her breasts waggled from side to side. "If they have caught us, what are we going to do?"

“They don’t have us yet,” he said. “I’m supposed to screw the little liar tomorrow night. She won’t want her cover blown, I’m sure. We’ll just see what happens, but I have a feeling little Jadey won’t be walking away from this one.”

In a swift movement that would have caught anyone off guard, he rose from his chair, still holding onto Annette, and swept everything off of his desk. He then laid her across it and tore her skirt away, grinning wickedly down at her.

“How does that sound, babe?” he asked. “No more redheaded bitch. You gotta be getting excited just thinking about it.”

Annette giggled, rolling her head back on the desk as she grinned. "Oh yes, no more redheaded bitch. Can I help you take her out?" Annette grabbed his hand and pulled him over her.

“I may keep you somewhere nearby,” he said. “Just in case. I don’t want that Jedi slut hurting daddy’s best seller.” He rolled his hips against hers. “They don’t call you ‘Annette’ for nothing.”

"But of course," Annette purred. "And I'm glad you're finally getting rid of that little goody-goody Nata. I've been after you to sell her for ages." She pushed his button-down shirt open and ran her hands over the exposed flesh there.

Cress shrugged. “She had outgrown her usefulness… And now, knowing she’s been helping out those Jedi… Just makes me feel better about it.” He leaned over her, licking a trail from her cleavage to her ear, pausing to nibble on her earlobe.

Annette took a deep breath, moving her hands to the top of Cress' pants, running her fingers around the edges. "Besides, she'd never be as good as me in bed, no matter how many times you went after her."

Cress paused and grew distant suddenly, remembering his relentless pursuit and constant rejection. “Yeah… Yeah, you’re right, baby.” He descended on her then, probably being more rough than he should have, but Cress was not one to hold back.

Chapter Seven

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