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The guard slammed the iron door, drowning the small cell in darkness. Perhaps I should feel relief. At least here, no one else would hurt me. I stayed still, lying on the stone floor, savoring its cold touch. It turned the bruised spots on my skin numb. The numb spots hurt less. Too bad I couldn’t use the same method for my mind. It would have been a blessing to forget that I would soon die.
A bitter laugh bubbled in my throat. Partially, this was a moment I had been waiting for. The poison had finally left my veins, and my wolf spirit was slowly waking up. Had I still been in Bretomosa’s castle, this would have been the right moment to escape. Unfortunately, I was now locked in a well–guarded cell, and I would most likely be dead before my body fully recovered. I wished my healing powers helped me regenerate faster, but I could never heal myself using them.
I huffed out a dry laugh, and the pain in my ribs exploded. I had lost count of how many times the imperial guards had kicked me and punched me. They’d called it an interrogation. They must have believed that the pain would make me confess. Well, I hadn’t confessed to anything, and yet, I was still sentenced to death. Surely, Uncle Cyril would be thrilled upon hearing the news…
“I’m sorry, Bea,” I whispered, staring at the small window. “It looks like I won’t be able to keep our promise…”
A sound of footsteps echoed through the corridor, and I flinched. Grinding my teeth, I forced my aching body to move and cautiously crawled to the opposite corner of my cell.
“How did you learn that she is here?” a man’s–probably the guard’s–voice sounded.
“I have my sources,” another man crooned. “Just tell me, is she as pretty as they say?”
My breath caught in my throat. They were talking about me, weren’t they? What the hell did they want from
me?
The guard sighed. “Don’t know if she’s pretty or not. They beat her up badly. She’s got nice tits, though.”
I cringed and quickly grabbed the remains of the sheer nightgown I’d still had on me. Those bastards had refused to give me even a piece of cloth to cover myself. I pulled the two half–torn parts and tied them around my cleavage. A heartbeat later, the door of my cell opened.
Two men appeared on a threshold. As I expected, one of them was a prison guard. The other one wore a bycocket hat and a long embroidered jacket. His eyes landed on me, and he stepped into my cell, bringing a lantern toward me. After hours of sitting in the darkness, I lifted my hand to cover my eyes from the candlelight, but the man clicked his tongue, then grabbed my hand and pushed it away.
I didn’t move as he crouched beside me or when his eyes assessed my barely covered body in silence. My heart began to thunder. My instincts screamed I should use that moment to flee, but I knew better than to submit to them. Considering all the broken ribs, countless bruises, and the bulky guard blocking my way out, my chances were minimal.
I watched as a wicked smile curved the man’s lips, at least two golden teeth gleaming in his disgusting mouth. He nodded and hummed while stroking his long, reddish beard. Finally, he stood up straight and turned to the guards. “I’ll give you three pieces of gold for this one.”
My stomach roiled. A slave merchant. That man was trying to buy me. My mouth turned dry. I knew better
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than to consider it luck. Should the guard agree, I might avoid execution only to meet a fate far worse than
death.
The guard chuckled and shook his head. “You’re kidding me, right?” He huffed, crossing his arms over his broad chest. “Do you know how troublesome it will be to find someone resembling her for the execution?”
The merchant gave him a look. “Spare me. Just put any beat–up she–wolf there and say she died in the cell. Accidents during interrogations happen all the time, right?”
The guard scratched his chin. “Supposedly, I could do that… but why would I give her away for three pieces when she will earn you more than a hundred?”
The merchant’s brows rose. “A hundred?” He shook his head and laughed. “She’s pretty, but—”
“I heard she’s unspoiled goods.”
Every muscle in my body tensed as the merchant inched toward me. “Is that so?” he purred. “Then maybe she truly might be worth more…”
“Don’t forget she killed Alpha Varian,” the guard grunted. “No one knows how she did it, but she obviously must be stronger than she looks.”
The merchant snorted. “I heard that Varian was killed with one of his own swords. He should know better than to play with sharp objects.”
The guard sighed. “I’m only saying that you shouldn’t underestimate this one.” He pointed his finger at me and smirked. “Keep an eye on her.”
The merchant glared at him. “I know how to handle my merchandise.”
“I’m not an object.” My words laced with anger slipped free before I could stop them, and I knew my mistake as soon as the guard’s and the merchant’s eyes landed on me. I couldn’t put up a fight. I couldn’t even raise my voice. And yet, I couldn’t just sit there and endure.
Before I could draw another breath, the merchant grabbed my chin, lifting my head until I met his gaze. “Word of advice, bitch. Don’t speak or even breathe until I allow it. I don’t like to use a whip on women since it ruins their skin, but I won’t hesitate if I hear one more word from you.”
I swallowed and pressed my lips together. I heard my wolf growl within me, but I had no intention of being whipped. The merchant seemed pleased with my reaction since he glanced at the guard and chuckled. “See? The bitch can be tamed.” He finally released me from his grip. “I’ll give you twenty pieces of gold.”
The guard shook his head. “Fifty.”
“That’s absurd!” the merchant snarled.
The guard smirked. “I can find another buyer.”
The merchant stepped toward him, his hands fisting. “Thirty. That’s my final offer.”
A cold smile stretched across the guard’s lips. “Make it thirty–five. Five for my silence.”
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The merchant bared his teeth, his eyes blazing, but then his gaze shifted to me again, and he sighed. “Fine. Hold her. It’ll take a moment.”
A shudder rushed through me. Before I could comprehend what was happening, the guard pulled me up to my feet and restrained my hands behind my back. My breath quickened, my heart hammering. The merchant pulled out a vial with some powder and poured it over a piece of cloth.
A scream began to form within me, but the merchant didn’t let it erupt. Forcefully, he pressed the cloth against my mouth and nose. “Breathe,” he ordered.
I didn’t want to. I knew it had to be some kind of drug. But my resistance was useless. The first weak inhale caused my head to spin. The second made my body numb. The third took away my consciousness….
***
The constant creak of the wheels pulled me awake. Slowly, I opened my eyes and blinked, adjusting them to the blinding daylight. My body was sore, but most of my injuries had already healed. Now the ache was caused by lying on the hard floor in one position for far too long. I was wearing a long linen tunic, and despite the nauseating thought that someone must have stripped me naked, I considered my current clothing a better option. At least most of my body was covered…
Gritting my teeth, I rose to sit, realizing I was inside a cage resembling those used to trap large, wild animals. My cage was placed on a wagon, moving in a long caravan surrounded by horse–riding warriors. I grabbed the bars of my cage, trying to see where I was.
The warrior’s chuckle drew my attention. “Oy! Look who’s finally woken up!” The bulky man with curly, auburn hair pulled the reins and lined up his horse with my wagon. His eyes roamed up and down my body, and a cold smirk pulled at his lips. “About damn time. A few of us bet you wouldn’t wake up in time for the
auction.”
An icy shiver coursed through my body. “What…auction?”
He pointed at the sandy road and the vaguely visible shapes of the city walls and buildings in the far distance. “We’ve just entered the territory of the Sand Storm Pack. We’ll reach Anorevale in a few hours. The auction will start at midnight.”
Bile rose in my throat. The Sand Storm Pack was known to be brutal and merciless, and Anorevale was a city of all kinds of shady businesses. My insides twisted as I imagined what kind of people would attend such an
auction…
“B–but… I can’t be auctioned,” I choked out as panic within me rose. “The imperial guards aren’t stupid… They will know I was abducted from my prison cell.”
The warrior burst into laughter, “Oh, you’re a funny one, princess. But if you worry about imperial guards, you should know one thing…” He pulled the reins, inching closer to the bars of my cage. “They do not care about bitches like you. They needed a body, so they got one. According to the official news, Orelia Solamen was executed this morning.” A dark chuckle escaped him. “You see, no one will chase after a ghost, and for the Lumeria Empire, you are dead.”
