Tris's POV
My mother and I made our way through the bustling capital, the sound of wheels clattering against cobblestone echoing beneath the carriage as we neared Earl Prisk's estate.
And from the moment we arrived—stepping past the gates and being greeted by the guards—I felt it.
Something was wrong.
The air was heavy. It was stifling.
And then, I saw them—lined up in plain view were countless maids, more than I'd ever seen gathered in one place.
But that wasn't what made me freeze.
No... it was what they were wearing—or rather, what they weren't.
Nothing but thin undergarments clung to their bodies, their skin bared and exposed to the open air like livestock waiting to be chosen.
They were practically naked, and yet...
They didn't flinch.
They didn't try to hide.
None of them looked remotely embarrassed.
If anything, they looked... vacant.
Hollow.
As if every trace of resistance, shame, or disgust had long since been wrung out of them.
