Chapter 2
Sam closed his eyes and held his breath. Exactly as he had hoped.
“It was nothing. Just a beating. I’ll be fine.”
“Just a beating?”
Sam snuggled tighter. He tried to ignore how good it felt to be held and focused on the fact that whilst he could push his face into Maurice’s chest, he didn’t have to look him in the eye. “Just a beating.” He didn’t need to tell him that it was the last beating that pushed him to the edge.
Maurice didn’t speak, he just carried on stroking his bruised body.
“I have to tell you something,” Sam said. It was now or never. “I have to tell you.”
The stroking stopped. “Tell me what?”
Sam took a deep breath. “Well, it might not matter terribly to you, but I am leaving Dante’s.” Dante’s was the name of the club that employed him as a prostitute. Dant
