ACHE
The catacombs were a winding network of ancient dungeons that the Nunnery had filled with shiny new things. Torchlight charred crumbling bricks while crystal chandeliers glittered from the ceilings. Uneven floors made of dirt and stones were accented with fancy carpets. It was the perfect example of what the Nunnery was; a jail for humans all made up to look like something good.
The immortals slid into the room, all wearing expensive looking outfits, waiting for the auction to begin. They eyed us, the humans, appraisingly as we stood side-by-side on a low stage in the center of the floor.
I shook as my mouth watered. I'd never been this close to so many of Their Kind at once. I lost my balance and swayed a little as I felt that desperate, self-betraying need start to overwhelm me.
As quickly as I could, I took a deep breath, clenched my fists and tried to hold steady, but it was too late. Every immortal snapped their head towards me as hunger turned their eyes pitch black.
It was like being surrounded by a pack of wolves, knowing for certain you were going to die, and wondering exactly which one was going to eat you.
"Usually we save the best for last," Jules' voice snatched my attention. She wrapped her sharp, red fingernails around the banister as she looked down from a balcony on the far wall, "but we can't save this one for last, now can we? Not this human with perfect blood who hasn't been fed in two years. With him in the room, how could you think about anyone else?"
She grinned and beckoned with one red fingertip, "Will you step forward, Gabriel?"
When she said my name, my knees buckled, but I managed to make it to the front of the stage.
"-The bidding starts at ten." Jules announced the opening offer.
And just like that, I was officially up for auction.
I stared up at one of the chandeliers. The whole floor was in a frenzy. I couldn't look at all of them.
The bids rose higher and higher.
"Twenty thousand," I heard a voice say, and heard his confidence grow as he bid more and more, until finally, his competitors fell silent.
"-Forty thousand."
I jerked. I knew that voice. Out of nowhere, Aryl appeared in the crowd.
We locked eyes and I felt sick. He was smirking, enjoying the terrified look on my face.
"Fifty grand."
"Sixty." Aryl's voice was calm and smooth.
"Eighty thousand dollars!"
Aryl turned to face Jules, "Twenty grand more than whatever he bids for the rest of the night." He cocked his head to the side and waited.
The vampire glared at Aryl, then stared at me. He looked defeated.
"Be grateful you lost." Aryl smiled, "You wouldn't have had a good time with him anyway. He's addicted to my blood."
"-It's done, Aryl," Jules scolded, "Take him."
Aryl focused on me, then moved slowly towards me through the crowd, which glowered at him as he passed. He stepped onto the stage and pulled me close, lifting me to his chest with one arm.
"See what happened?" he put his lips against my ear, "See what you caused here? Every one of Our Kind in this room was willing to pay a fortune for you, and still, I'm the only one with the means to call you 'Blood Slave'.
No matter who has you for the night, no matter who you loved before you came here, you will always belong to me. So act like it. I'm not going to beg for you, Gabriel. Begging is your job."
He dropped me and moved away.
"-Jules, on second thought," he adjusted his suit coat and turned his back to me. "I'm in the mood for something different." He pointed to Dylan. "Of course I'll pay the same price to make up for your trouble."
"Of course you will." Jules said, "Now, I've let you make your point. Let me get on with my business."
"Gladly," Aryl left the room without even looking back.
Dylan winked at me as he followed closely behind.
I tried to hold myself together, but my stomach flipped over as the crowd started shouting out bids for me again.
"No. The bidding on this one is done for the night," Jules announced. "He's worth no less than what Aryl was willing to pay. Get your affairs in order and you can bid on him next time. Tonight, Josi, take him away."
Josi appeared, then scooped me up like a bag over his shoulder and carried me out of the room. It felt like he was saving my life.
He tried to set me down, but he couldn't. My legs folded beneath me. He pulled me close as I broke. I sobbed.
"-He still owns me." I was shaking so hard I could barely say the words. "I hate him so much and he owns me, no matter how bad I want to get away."
"He doesn't own you." Josi put his hands on my shoulders. "You were right there next to him. He was trying to break you and you didn't fall apart. You were strong."
"-Excuse me," a voice interrupted. A nun I'd never seen before was standing a few feet away. "Gabriel, would you follow me? You have an appointment. One of Their Kind is waiting for you."
It felt like the moment before you get in a car accident, just a sudden rush of fear that sears its way through your body. Panic burned through my skin, all the way down to the bones.
"No." Josi shook his head as he held on to me, shielding me from her, "He wasn't auctioned. No one bought him tonight."
"I'm sorry." The nun held her hands out apologetically, "Jules made other arrangements."
"Why would she do this!" He banged his fist against the wall. "What's the point of torturing him? It's never happened like this before. It's like she's trying to break him!"
"Josi, please?" She whispered, "You know there's no choice when Jules is involved. If you try to stop this, it'll be bad for you."
"I don't care! This isn't right! You tell her to come here and tell me to my face."
"No." I shook my head as I pushed gently away from Josi. I took a couple of wobbly steps. "I don't care what I have to do I'll do it.
If I don't she'll hurt you, and Aryl will hurt my boyfriend, and my friends." I fought to stand up straight. "And I'm not letting them hurt any of you guys. They took everything else. I can't let them take you guys from me."
His brow creased as he stared down at me. I could see how worried he was, but he nodded like he understood. "When it's over, you come right back home. I'll be there, okay?"
I felt my lip tremble, "Please, be there."
His calico eyes glinted as he nodded, "I promise."
BLED
A man was sitting on the bed, facing away from me. In the firelight, he was only a dark figure, sitting perfectly still.
"-They said your blood was perfect." His voice was soft but I could tell he was speaking through clenched teeth. "I thought I understood, but now you're here and… you're so much more than 'perfect'."
The raw need bleeding just beneath the whispered words was terrifying. Staying in the room was excruciating. All I wanted to do was run.
"You're scared." He said, and I could hear the guilt in his voice. I wondered if he could hear the panic in my heartbeat, hear the sound of me trying not to lose my breath.
"Please," he said quietly, "I'm not here to hurt you. I wouldn't hurt you."
"-I'm not afraid." I could barely tell the lie.
He nodded slowly, "Can I ask you to come closer?"
I inched forward. Every step I took closer to him felt like the last step off a cliff.
Finally I was standing behind him, but I couldn't bring myself to round the corner, to see his face.
He waited a moment, then silently turned towards me.
The second I saw what he looked like, I started coming apart.
I was staring into eyes that I'd never seen before, the glowing, predatory gaze of an Immortal.
But the person behind them was mine.
"Lux." I clamped my hands over my mouth, shuddering as my heart broke. "Please tell me you're not here. You can't be here…"
"Gabriel," he winced, "It's me."
"No, no, no…" I choked through tears I couldn't fight anymore. Somehow, the darkest part of my life had changed Lux forever.
He moved away, hiding himself in the shadows. "I promised I'd bring you home and this was my only chance." His voice cracked as he confessed. "I knew you might not be able to love me once you saw what I am now, but-"
I threw myself towards him, kissing him hard and hating myself for letting him think he was anything less than the love of my life. Caught up in all my fears, I'd completely missed what mattered most.
He pressed himself against me and growled softly. I could feel how badly he wanted my blood.
Suddenly, he breathed out hard, moving away so quickly that I felt cold without him.
"-I have to get away from you."
I reached for him.
"-Kill you." He choked out the words and I froze. "Jules said I could kill you by mistake. Because I'm new."
I tried to keep my voice steady. I could see the pain and hunger in his eyes and I knew that if he gave into it too quickly, I'd be dead in his arms in seconds. "She's right. Sometimes when you're new you can't hold back, but I know you can. If you couldn't, you would've already hurt me.
As long as I have your blood first, we'll be fine. Trust me?"
He shook his head. "Can't risk it. Can risk hurting you." Red tears were running down his beautiful face. He looked desperate and terrified. "Run."
"Never." I said, and I meant it. I would've rather died instead. "I know you're scared to bleed me, but you need to. I need you to."
"Need," he breathed the word, closing the distance between us instantly, and pulling me in. "I love you so much," he shook as he slid his tongue across his fangs hard enough to draw blood, then wrapped his hand around my neck and kissed me.
'Jolt.' 'Burn.' 'Love.' 'Need.' 'Thirst.' I couldn't think one complete sentence. My emotions were on overdrive. He felt so good it hurt.
"Now?" I begged, and the second the word left my lips his fangs were buried deep.
Immediately, I was lost in everything I'd ever wanted. Somehow, after all of the pain and all of the darkness, I was being bled by the love of my life.
I finally belonged to him.
