An emotion that had been shoved to the background of my mind made a sudden resurgence. Fear. In the prior week I’d been good friends with anger and frustration, sadness and worry, hate and even relief. My emotions swirled in a constant maelstrom, but with the establishment of routine and structure, I had forgotten about fear. Most of the tasks put forth by Daeglan were not terribly cumbersome, so there was little struggle convincing myself to comply. This new demand made me terribly uncomfortable, but I did not want to risk punishment by disobeying. I had already earned one punishment since he arrived. With trembling hands, I lifted my gown over my head. Goosebumps perched on my exposed skin, and my shoulders curved inward as I crossed my arms over my naked breasts. I made no attempt to li
