Chapter 2: Purchased by a Prince
“Wow! This is a new record since these auctions have been up and running! Never has anything or anyone sold for this much before. Everyone, take a look! This girl is the most expensive slave. More expensive than any artwork or rare gem that has ever been auctioned here before!” a man’s voice announced loudly through the microphone.
The crowd’s cheer was deafeningly loud, and the auditorium echoed with the sound of their voices and their clapping.
The man grabbed the large chain connected to my wrists and yanked hard on it. I felt my body being pulled as I staggered towards him. I would have fallen over face first from the forceful way that he handled me had he not caught my arm in his large hand and pulled me up.
“Come here, girl. Your new master is waiting for you. You have no idea how lucky you are to be sold to a prince. You’ll get to live in a castle from now on. How wonderful is that?” he hissed, tauntingly close to my ear.
I could smell the reek of cigarettes from the man’s breath, and it made me want to gag with disgust.
“Mhmmm!” I let out a muffled scream as pain stung my wrists.
Tears stung my eyes as the pain intensified, and I knew that my wrists had been scuffed raw. My mouth was taped shut, and moaning in pain and protest was all that I could do. The metal chains and handcuffs attached to my wrists clinked together as my arms were roughly pulled forward. The weights weighing down my feet made it almost impossible for me to walk, and escape wasn’t a viable option.
I'm afraid that's not right. No one should be bought and sold this way. I had heard of slavery before the practice was abolished, so I had no idea that in a world where slavery was now illegal, people were still being auctioned off this way. Even if human trafficking and slavery still existed, I never imagined that I would get involved in something like this. Never, even in my wildest dreams, did I ever imagine ending up here.
How did I end up here? Why did things have to turn out like this?
After saving me from falling on my face, the man pushed me face-first down onto the ground. My eyes squeezed shut instinctively as I braced myself for the impact of my fall. I waited for the pain to tear into my face and hands, but the pain never arrived. Instead, something firm and warm enveloped me and broke my fall. The faint smell of roses filled my nostrils before my eyelids slowly fluttered open. The light shining from behind his head made his face appear as a dark black shadow as he stared down at my face from above.
My breath caught in my throat, and my legs felt like they had lost strength when icy blue eyes met and held mine intently. I had no idea how long I was captured and lost in the mesmerizing beauty of his eyes because, to me, it felt like time had stopped. It was as if time became an alien concept that no longer existed in my universe.
Suddenly, the man looked away from me, breaking the spell. Time seemed to resume, and I could hear the loud screaming of the people in the auditorium again. That was when I looked down and realized that I was still lying in his arms after he must have caught me to break my fall. I should thank him...