CHAPTER 1: USED ON THE LADDER

SEIKA’S POVThe Nordian palace always smells like sex and danger.

I've been here long enough to stop noticing. Long enough that the scent clings to my skin, my hair, seeps into my pores until I can't tell where the palace ends and I begin.

My name is Seika. I’m twenty-three, and for five years, my world has been this: a conquered Earth, a lavish palace, and my purpose.

I am a Comfort-Maid. My body is not my own. It’s a vessel, a plaything, a living, breathing instrument for the pleasure of Earth’s new rulers. And they are… gods.

The Nordians are tall, most of...