Just the Five of Us

Four surefire steps to piss off Kristin:

Step One: Separate her from her friends and beloved crush

Step Two: Forcefully modify her body with various waxing products and piercing guns

Step Three: Tell her how you ruined your little brother’s life and other various ways you tore apart families and people

Step Four: Chain her to a bed with a guy she barely knows, kiss her cheek and tell her not to move while you plot to auction her off to the highest bidder

Congrats! You have successfully pissed off Kristin.

On the bright side, at least now I know I must be somewhat pretty, otherwise Nicandro wouldn’t be dealing me at all. He said he didn’t have time for ugly people.

But that wasn’t a very bright side. At this point, beauty was far, far, from my mind. No, right now I was worrying about this somewhat…compromising position that had been forced on Riel and me; that and the almost uncontrollable itch to rip heads off.

“Make them look…like a pair of fated lovers,” Nicandro had said to an expressionless Damon while he calmly filed his already sharp nails “Make it so that they look like they’re curled up together under the moon and stars. For some reason, tearing apart lovers seems to be the selling trend. I think it makes the buyers feel powerful.”

In the beginning I had fought, I don’t know why but Riel didn’t bother. His expression remained impassive as he was shoved around. I suppose he knew it would just save trouble. For being disobedient, my already burning face was attacked again.

Damon had done it in one fast swipe, but Nicandro slowly pressed his thumb into my already sore wound, digging his nails into my throbbing flesh singing “Pain, Pain Go Away” in tune to “Rain, Rain Go Away” until I was in tears.

I then limply allowed him to tie me against Riel’s shirtless chest.

Before the tying I was cleaned up and put in a simple black tank top and a pair of even shorter white shorts, so I didn’t have it as bad as Riel did. He was half naked and in the tightest pair of ripped exposing leather pants I had ever seen on a male. Needless to say, neither of us looked like a pair of fated lovers.

We both looked miserable and embarrassed.

I was trying really hard not to cry from fury and humiliation. My eyes burned and my nose felt runny and sore.

The room we were in was dark, but Nicandro had triumphantly pointed out that when the showcasing started lights would blare on and the people who would be bidding on us would see us on a big screen in the auction room.

Again, all I knew was that we were in a big house. I this time, I had watched the roads, I had watched signs, but we hadn’t seen anything at all except winding empty roads of country and forest. I wasn’t even sure if I was still in the U.S with the amount of trees there seemed to be.

I was doing my utmost best not to feel scared and worried, but I was miserably failing. Maybe Shean and them would never manage to find me. Maybe I would never go back to my semi-normal life again. Maybe I was doomed to be bought by some vampire overlord and used for the rest of my life.

“I hate my life,” I found myself whispering.

Riel shifted ever so slightly before murmuring in a calming voice, “Don’t hate you’re life, it’s only just begun. You’re only sixteen.”

I scowled hard, tears began to burn trials down my cheeks, “I don’t know about you,” I snapped bitterly, “But I’m about to be sold.”

Riel was silent. I let out a half strangled sob against my will as hopelessness that I had managed to hold back up until know began to blur my willpower. It was hopeless, wasn’t it? Shean thought I was in a motel, he didn’t know what state it was in, my mother probably thought I was still at summer camp, my father probably didn’t care, no human police could save…

“Bite me,” Riel murmured suddenly.

Silence…

I looked up, my eyes widening into disks as I tried to possibly perceive what the nut was saying. My response came out harsher and angrier than I knew I was capable of.

“Buy me dinner first,” I spat.

“No, no,” he whispered, his voice had that excitement in it that told you there was an escape plan cooking, “There is a mark on my neck, if you bite it Dejair will know where I am.”

“What?”

He sighed impatiently, squirming slightly, “Dejair is my demon. He is the only person allowed to touch the mark on my neck, if anyone else does he’ll feel it and know where I am.”

Demon… yet another creature to add to this rapidly expanding magical world. I didn’t know if the fact that my new addition was fucking demon made anything better. But a demon…what the hell did that mean? Some kickass monster? Did I even believe that?

“Bite yourself,” I hissed in a low voice. Despite my words, I was feeling excitement replace the hopelessness.

“I can’t. It doesn’t mean anything if I do it.” he fell silent for a moment before pointing out, “It’s on my neck, .”

I fell silent, my face burning with heat as Riel squirmed against me, lowering himself so I was level with his neck. Sure enough, just before his shoulder was a small design, like a rose except more intricate. It looked like a tattoo more than anything; I didn’t understand how this was going to work. Might I add, this was also humiliating.

Sensing my embarrassment, Riel spoke, “Think of it as chicken.”

“W-what if I hurt you?” I whispered.

“It’s either this or slavery, take your pick,” Was his blunt reply.

I swallowed, embarrassment burning through my veins like fire. I trusted magic; I was pretty open to anything now seeing as I was living a world that technically wasn’t supposed to exist. But a demon?! On top of that I felt like it was betraying Shean somehow.

Whether it worked or not, any hope at rescue was worth chasing. I didn’t want to be here.

So, I bit him. I bit him hard and good right on that rose.

A single shudder went through his entire body, and then that was it. Talk about anti-climactic. I don’t know what I was expecting, but when nothing happened I was disappointed.

“Now we wait…” he breathed.

There was a moment of silence; I opened my mouth to say something, anything to relieve the quiet when I was momentarily blinded.

The lights blared on, assaulting my eyes as they trained directly over me and Riel, exposing us to the faceless old dirt bags who called themselves men. We couldn’t see them, they were in the actuation room watching us over a big screen, but it felt like they were surrounding us. I really didn’t know who I hated more, Nicandro or the people who bought
the slaves.

Even though I couldn’t see who was watching us I had never felt more exposed in my life. I felt barer than I did when I was washed down by the Barbie vampires. The lights made me feel like some sort of caged animal at a zoo with so many unseen enemies all boring into me with their drill like eyes.

I didn’t know I could be such a rebel when I was pissed off. I don’t know why I did it, but I’m glad I did. I put on my best scowl for whatever idiots were watching. My arms were tied around Riel, but that didn’t stop me from curling my fists and sticking my middle fingers out as far as it would go.

I could almost hear Nicandro standing at an auctioneer’s podium with one of those wooden hammers in hand going: “Let’s start at ten dollars! Ten dollars, ten dollars, for this fine human female aged sixteen! Ten dollars, ten dollars—oh, we got someone going for fifteen! Fifteen, fifteen dollars…SOLD FOR FIFTEEN DOLLARS!”

I sincerely hoped that that little hammer would turn around and attack him.
I don’t know how long the lights blared down on us, I don’t really care. All I know is my middle fingers were numb and the scowl on face felt permanent when they finally flickered off. I relaxed myself, but my face felt all stiff and sore.

It felt like three seconds after the lights went off the door burst open and Nicandro’s hideous voice was echoing around the room.

“Two million dollars!” he whooped, switching on the regular lights. He swooped towards us, grinning like a maniac as he grabbed my chin and mercilessly jerked me up, “Did you hear that you worthless little human? Your little rebel act sold for two million dollars. How do you feel?”

I didn’t know what to feel. I could only imagine what type of person would spend two million dollars on me. The thought simply put raw terror into my veins.

“Don’t look so blue, Riel,” he chuckled, dropping me; “You sold well too, eight hundred thousand dollars.”

Riel’s face remained as impassive as a stone. He just looked blankly up at Nicandro as if he weren’t even there.

That didn’t deter the jubilant jackass. He dropped Riel, turning away from us too look up at the ceiling like he was a king, grinning madly.

“Damon!” he practically howled, “Fix them up! Their new owners will be around in about an hour!”

Damon slunk into the room looking even more defeated than I had ever seen him. He pulled out a pocket knife and cut the rope connecting me and Riel, before hauling me onto my feet. I didn’t struggle, not while Nicandro was in the room. Riel didn’t struggle either as he was jerked up roughly by the sneering vampire.

“I’ll bet you’re glad you don’t have to deal with me,” he was cooing evilly at Riel, “Well, your new master should…”

The ceiling exploded.

I kid you not. One moment I’m walking and the next I’m being thrown backwards by a skull splitting explosion that left my ears ringing and my jaw vibrating. I smashed into the ground, being rained on by shards of ceiling.

“Daaa-umn!”

A voice, a musical, familiar, hope bringing voice filled the room with a loud cry of insane delight.

“I just fucking love blowing things up!”