60th Ashan, 718
By this time of night, she'd normally turned a sight more than two tricks but that was all she'd managed - and one of those was a regular. Tessa was worried and hungry, too. Benji had taken the money for food and that meant that she hadn't eaten anything to-trial either. That worried her, not for herself but she was feeding the babies and she'd heard about a working girl whose milk had dried up because she didn't eat. Tessa had to get enough tonight, she knew she did.
So, she took herself off to a different area than her usual. That was a dangerous thing to do, the young woman knew, because if there was already a girl working there, things could get nasty. Also, if the girl had a handler who tended to get territorial. But she needed to get more money so that Benji didn't get really angry. When he was really angry, Tessa thought that perhaps, one of these trials, he'd kill her. But then, she knew, that he'd take her to the edge, but not do that. It was the ultimate control.
Moving down the street, she took herself to a corner where people coming from the markets might conceivably walk past. That was good, she thought. She was wearing her high leather boots and a long skirt made from strips of material. Every time she moved, it showed a lot of leg. Hat firmly on her head, she rested her back against the wall and watched.
After a short while, she spotted a potential; a man, handsome and well built certainly. He walked like a warrior, Tessa thought and he was looking around. Why would anyone come here if they weren't looking for a girl? The fact that he seemed to be a warrior meant that he probably would like the bruises, she thought to herself and so, she waited. Pulling her hat down over her eyes for a moment, she waited until he was just about to walk past when she lifted it. "'ello there, 'an'some," her voice was unmistakably hers, yet the woman she had been would never drop letters so. Lifting her hat, brown eyes met his and there was absolutely no recognition there. "A'ya lost? Or were y'lookin' for me?" Tessa smiled at him and stepped forward to trace a single finger down his chest.
As she stepped closer, he could see the vivid, fresh purple bruises on her face, her collarbone and pretty much all over her. There were the fresh ones but they sat on top of old bruises, indicating a woman who was persistently abused. "D'ya wan' me t'show you that you were lookin' f'me? It's worth ev'ry silver." Leaning forward to whisper in his ear, she said "I am." Please, she thought, let this one want her.