Slave market

Elaina went through everything in a blur though she remembered to keep her right eye closed and covered with some of her hair. The vampire took her back to the tank to get her cleaned but she didn't know when the water hit her. After that, he took her to the tent where she had to change the gown and she took it off without a word of protest.

Her right eye didn't twitch from being closed either. Normally, she would struggle to keep it closed but right now, she was tired, both mentally and physically. From seeing her loved ones die, to getting kidnapped, to almost getting violated by her family's killer and almost getting killed by a burning zombie, everything took a great toll on her mind, it crushed her spirit.

Walking out of the tent after changing the gown, she met a little commotion outside.

"NO!" Little Athena screamed when a vampire tried to touch her. She held her hands to her chest and shook her head. The nice lady wasn't in the van so she was scared, she didn't know what to do without her. Her eyes traveled around again, trying to find her and she did. She stood outside the tent watching her.

Athena dropped her hands to her side and looked down, she wasn't afraid anymore. The nice lady who reminded her of her elder sister was here now, she had nothing to be afraid of.

The vampire sighed in annoyance. The other slaves were already in the van just this brat that had been compliant at first until something snapped in her head? He didn't know what caused all this but his patience had reached its limit. He raised his hand in an attempt to hit her but the vampire in charge, Theo, held his hand.

"Don't hit her, give me the rope," he took the rope from his hands and walked to the little girl who seemed calm now. He took her hands to her back and tied them without any act of protest from the little one. The knots on his forehead loosened after he finished tying her. Finally, they could get going!

They guided the last two slaves which were Elaina and Athena, into the van and closed the doors. Theo went to sit in the shotgun seat, "Let's go," he said to the driver after closing the door and the van drove away from their little establishment.

°°°

Elaina rested her head on the iron wall of the van, Its continuous shaking made her feel worse so she raised it back. Added to her mental and physical fatigue, she was also feeling the heat from her awakening. It came and went since the time in the forest.

It wasn't too hot but it was uncomfortable, a mild layer of sweat had formed on her skin. She sighed internally and rested her head back on the van. The timing couldn't be more disastrous but she didn't know how to control it.

All she could do was plead for it to go away. After a few minutes, she fell asleep and drifted into a darkness deeper than the one the blindfold created.

°°°

Elaina woke up next with tears falling from her eyes and wetting the blindfold. She had a nice dream, one where her family was still alive and happy. They were in a sunflower field, enjoying the warmth and the beauty of nature. The dream ended with them smiling at her before fading into the distance which broke her heart. It would have been better if it had been a nightmare that would have reminded her of reality instead of a sweet and deceptive dream.

She noticed that the van was no longer shaking which meant they were on the highway. She now understood the use of the mouth covers, it was to prevent them from making noises that would attract attention to them.

Some time passed and the van started to slow down before stopping fully. Elaina heard the door of the van open and close, implying that they had gotten to their destination.

The doors to the back of the van opened after some seconds and a hand grabbed her arm as she was the closest to the door and pulled her out. The force at which he pulled her wasn't gentle and she would have fallen but was caught by another.

The blindfold loosened so she closed her right eye. It came off her face, and then the cloth around her mouth came off too. More people came out of the building they were at and one of them grabbed Elaina by the arm and pulled her inside before she could make anything out of the darkness.

They walked through a dark hallway and then down a long set of stairs and into a dimly lit room. There was a small set of stairs at the opposite side of the room leading to an exit covered by curtains. The man took her to the stairs and at the same time, someone pushed the curtains aside and entered the room.

He held a microphone in his hand and there was an evident frown on his face until his eyes fell on Elaina. His eyes roamed her body then moved behind her to the line of slaves already forming. A smile curved up his lips, "You have never disappointed me, Theo," he said to the vampire who just entered the room, "But what took you so long?" he frowned.

"We ran into some complications," he answered as he walked to the front of the room.

"I believe they are all unbranded?" he asked for confirmation.

"Yes," came Theo's answer.

"Alright then," he turned around and disappeared behind the curtains.

Elaina saw a large floor area when the man pushed the curtains aside. Realization dawned on her and her heartbeat quickened. That was the stage! She already knew that this was going to happen but somewhere she had hoped that someone would come to save her and so she hadn't really pondered over the severity of the situation she was in.

She had taken light of the situation and thought that whatever happened to her didn't matter anymore but now that she was minutes away from being sold, reality hit her hard in the face. This was no fairytale.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, we are sorry for the little delay. The items have now arrived," she heard from the announcer. Fear coursed through her veins, she should have tried to escape when they still held her captive. It wasn't too late, her feet were free so she could run. She took a step back but the grip on her arm tightened.

She slowly looked at the man who held her arm firmly, "Don't try anything funny," he warned.

"Our special unbranded items," they heard the announcer and the man started to walk up the stairs while pulling Elaina with him. She tried to resist but he was strong. He pulled her up to the curtain and her heart stopped when she heard,

"We have item one,"

Her breathing turned heavier and she tried her hardest to pull her arm out of the man's grip but he pushed the curtains aside and dragged her onto the stage.