the auction
1579 Words
The sweet food. The bandaged wounds. The soft beds.
It was all a setup.
On the morning of the eighth day, we were awakened before dawn. A dozen guards stormed into our quarters, ordering us to stand in line. We were bathed—scrubbed like dishes until our skin turned red—and dressed in outfits even a prostitute would hesitate to wear. The fabric clung to every curve, leaving little to the imagination. Jewelry was placed on our necks and wrists like ornaments on display.
Something wasn’t right.
“Ava,” I whispered, as we were herded down a marble hallway. “What’s going on?”
Her red eyes flicked toward mine, but she didn’t answer.
The silence made my stomach twist.
We were led into a small but lavish building. Gold pillars. Velvet curtains. Perfumed air that reeked of illusion. At first, I thought it was a ballroom. Then I saw the elevated platform, the empty chairs arranged in a crescent, and the masked men and women sipping wine.
It wasn’t a ballroom.
It was a marketplace for souls.
An auction.
We’re being sold.
The realization hit like ice water.
We were led to a back room with iron bars separating us from the stage. The first girl was called out—Marcie, a timid fox-girl with soft ears and eyes full of dread. She stepped onto the platform and stood trembling under the spotlight.
The bidding began.
“Three hundred gold.”
“Four-fifty.”
“Seven hundred—look at those legs.”
Marcie was sold within minutes to a lecherous man who laughed as he signed the purchase contract.
Then came Ava’s turn.
The vampire girl strutted out with her chin high. She looked fearless. But I saw the tightness in her jaw.
“A thousand gold.”
“Fifteen hundred!”
“Two thousand! From the gentleman at the back.”
Sold.
To a brothel owner with powdered cheeks and a fan he fluttered like a cobra’s hood.
One by one, the girls were sold. Each one left the room with trembling steps and eyes filled with silent screams. And I—I kept hoping they would forget me. Overlook me. Pass me by.
But the guard's hand gripped my shoulder.
“You’re up.”
My legs felt like wet sand as I stepped onto the platform. Lights blinded me. Dozens of rich, powerful strangers stared, some with curiosity, others with hunger. Whispers rippled through the crowd.
“She looks sickly.”
“Is she a vampire or a werewolf?”
“Interesting mix. Might be useful in dark rituals.”
I kept my eyes on the floor, burning with humiliation.
“Starting bid: one hundred gold.”
Silence.
The host cleared his throat. “One hundred, going once…”
“Fifty,” someone scoffed. “She’s barely alive.”
“Sixty.”
“Seventy.”
The bids trickled in like pity.
And then…
“Three hundred,” a deep voice drawled from the far right.
Everyone turned. Even I did.
Seated lazily, legs crossed, was a young man who didn’t look like he belonged here. He was dressed in fine dark robes, a silver insignia pinned to his chest—a crescent moon surrounded by four stars. His silver hair fell past his shoulders, and a single fang peeked from his mouth as he smirked at the crowd’s reaction.
“Young Master Kael,” someone whispered. “The alpha’s heir…”
“Three hundred,” the host echoed, voice suddenly reverent. “Going once, going twice—sold!”
Cheers and murmurs echoed through the room. The guards escorted me away, back through the halls, into another carriage—but this one was different. Gilded, lined with silk cushions. The guard in front bowed low before closing the door.
I sat quietly across from the silver-haired man.
He watched me for a long moment, then yawned.
“You’re not much of a talker,” he muttered.
“You didn’t have to buy me,” I replied, my voice low and bitter.
“I didn’t want to go home empty-handed,” he said with a shrug. “Everyone else bought someone. You were the only one left.”
“So I’m a souvenir.”
“Exactly.”
I turned away, clenching my fists.
“Relax,” he added. “I’m not going to use you for anything… weird. You’ll be a maid. Maybe clean floors, fetch tea, chase chickens. Sound good?”
I didn’t answer.
I didn’t care what he said. I was still a slave.
---
Kael’s estate was enormous—more of a small city than a home. Forests, lakes, dozens of stone buildings, all protected by towering walls and armed guards.
They didn’t treat me cruelly. In fact, the head maid, an older wolf-woman named Nara, gave me a soft bed, clean clothes, and a job.
“You’re lucky,” she told me. “Young Master Kael isn’t like the other nobles. He won’t hurt you. Just stay out of trouble.”
I worked silently. Mopping floors. Washing linens. Serving meals to entitled guests who didn’t even look at me. I tried to keep my head down, to forget everything.
But forgetting wasn’t easy.
Not when my blood screamed every night. Not when I looked in the mirror and saw a stranger with haunted eyes.
---
One afternoon, a week after arriving, I was summoned to the inner courtyard. Kael stood by a fountain, tossing breadcrumbs to birds.
“You’re adapting well,” he said, not looking at me.
“I’m surviving.”
He smirked. “Good enough.”
Silence stretched between us.
“You’re wondering why I bought you,” he said finally.
“No. You already told me. You didn’t want to go home empty-handed.”
He chuckled. “True. But also… I was curious.”
“Curious?”
“I’ve never met someone like you before. A vampire-wolf hybrid. That’s rare. Illegal, even.”
“My existence is a crime,” I said flatly.
“Maybe. But I like rare things.”
I frowned. “I’m not a trinket.”
“Didn’t say you were. But you are interesting.”
He turned to face me fully, eyes glowing faintly gold.
“Do you know who I am?” he asked.
I hesitated. “The young master of a rich family.”
“Close. I’m the heir to the Black Fang Tribe. One of the largest werewolf clans in the northern territories. My father is the High Alpha.”
My stomach dropped.
He wasn’t just rich. He was powerful. Dangerous.
“So what now?” I asked. “Do you want me to thank you for buying me?”
“No.” He stepped closer. “I just want to understand you. Why are you still alive? Your kind is usually hunted on sight.”
“I ask myself that every day.”
Kael studied me for a long moment, then sighed. “Fine. Keep your secrets. Just don’t die too quickly. You’re… entertaining.”
He turned and walked away.
I stood there, unsure what just happened.
---
Days passed. Weeks. I worked, watched, listened. I learned the estate’s routines. Learned the way Kael would vanish for days and return with blood on his clothes. I saw the way his servants bowed deeply whenever he passed, how warriors from other tribes treated him with a mixture of awe and fear.
But despite the power and mystery around him… he was kind. Not soft. But kind.
When a servant boy broke a vase, Kael didn’t punish him—he laughed and told him to try juggling next time. When a trader tried to cheat one of the maids, Kael had him thrown off the property, calling him a “slimy little leech.”
He was unpredictable. But never cruel.
And little by little, I began to let my guard down.
---
One night, while cleaning the east wing, I stumbled upon a room filled with scrolls and maps. It looked like a war room. In the center was a map of the territory, marked with pins and colored symbols.
I stepped closer, curious.
“Lost?”
Kael’s voice made me jump.
He leaned against the doorway, arms crossed.
“I was just… cleaning.”
He raised a brow. “You don’t clean with your eyes.”
I looked down. “Sorry.”
He didn’t scold me. Instead, he walked over to the map.
“This is the future,” he said. “My father wants to unite the tribes under one rule. No more scattered packs. No more pointless blood feuds. One empire.”
“And you’ll be emperor?”
“Alpha,” he corrected with a grin. “But yes.”
I looked at him, really looked at him.
Behind the smirk and lazy attitude… was someone born for war.
“Why are you telling me this?”
He paused, then said, “Because you’re the only one who doesn’t lie to me.”
I blinked. “I’m a slave.”
“And still more honest than most nobles.”
He turned away and added, almost as an afterthought, “Don’t disappear. I might need you.”
Then he left.
I stood alone in the war room, my heart thudding.
For the first time, I realized something terrifying.
I wasn’t just surviving anymore.
I was becoming a part of this world.
And I wasn’t sure I hated it.
- Writer
