Devyn thought about it for a moment. “One at a time, but yes, I could do it.”
“Do it,” I said, the words lashing from me. “Now. Please.”
“No.”
“Please.”
“Where is the fun in that? I came all this way, wasted money and two warriors, and I expect a show guaranteed to amuse me.”
I bit my tongue until blood seeped down my throat.
“Welcome,” EenLi said, hushing our conversation. “Welcome, everyone. A.I.R. thought they could close us down, but here we are.”
Cheers erupted.
After a sufficient length of time, EenLi waved again for silence. “I am honored to have everyone here, especially such honored guests as the king of Morevv and the king of Targon.” His gaze paused on Devyn. “I see you brought your new slave, Devyn.”
The Targon nodded regally, his fingers stroking my hair. “That I did, but one can never have enough servants.”
“I hadn’t expected you to tame this one so quickly.”
“Who said she was tame?” Devyn winked.
The crowd laughed. I glared up at EenLi, not even trying to dampen the disgust and loathing in my eyes. His skin glowed a bright shade of blue and pink—he was enjoying himself.
“Ladies and gentlemen,” he said, returning his attention to the crowd. “You have a wide variety to choose from today. Are you ready to begin?”
Another round of cheers.
“Then so we shall.” EenLi stepped to the side as one of his new Targon guards brought forth the first victim, a young, pretty girl of no more than fifteen. Her body trembled, causing locks of her carmine hair to spill forward. Tears streamed down her cheeks, and she bit back a sob when EenLi parted her robe, revealing her still-developing nakedness to the onlookers. She didn’t fight. I doubted any of them would. They’d probably been threatened by unimaginable horrors if they so much as uttered a single protest.
“A virgin to tempt any man,” EenLi boasted.
And so the bidding began.
One by one, men and women were sold to the highest bidder. I wanted Devyn to buy them all, but he only bought the virgin, as well as the women who had been locked inside the cell with me. Perhaps because I’d squeezed his thigh until he’d hissed out a price.
Then, finally, Lucius’s turn arrived. He still slept peacefully.
“Look at this prime piece,” EenLi said. “He will be good for manual labor, as well as bedroom labor.”
“Buy him for me,” I whispered up to Devyn.
“I believe I’ve done quite enough for you,” he said, prim now.
“I’ll give you two nights instead of one, plus the two kisses I owe you.”
The king’s eyes swirled vivid amber, and he immediately placed his first bid. Someone else, a white-headed Arcadian female, countered. On and on they bickered. EenLi’s gaze remained narrowed on Devyn, as if he couldn’t quite figure out what was going on.
In the end, Devyn won the battle. He put the Arcadian to sleep, effectively ending her bidding. And so, the auction was over.
“Thank you for coming,” EenLi told everyone. “If you didn’t win or didn’t find what you were looking for, please contact me. I usually hold private auctions, but because of a recent upheaval we had to do things a little differently this time around.”
The people around me stood. “If you put everyone to sleep, I’ll give you three nights,” I said, desperate to keep anyone from leaving. I didn’t want a single “slave” to be dragged out that door. I would set them free—or die trying.
“I might be tired of you after two nights.” Devyn uttered a breezy yawn. “The heat in here is stifling. Should we collect your humans and leave?”
“You vowed to take me to my enemy.”
“And so I have. You see him, do you not?”
“What is it you want from me?” I asked, more desperate now than before.
“The same devotion you give your human. Your vow to eagerly accept me when I take you.”
“Done,” I said, though we both knew I lied.
His gaze darted to the warehouse’s only door. “No one seems to be leaving yet. They’re lingering.”
“So? Put them to sleep before they decide tostop lingering.”
“First I want to thank our host for a wonderful evening.”
Yes, I thought darkly. Let’s thank him properly, shall we? I should have protested, should have insisted Devyn do my bidding, yet the thought of finally, at long last, coming face-to-face with EenLi proved too intoxicating.
Devyn rose. When he moved past me, I followed behind him like a good little slave. We climbed the steps, me on my knees. My gaze lingered on Lucius’s sleeping form until I rammed into a large piece of splintered wood.
EenLi was in deep conversation with another Mec. When he noticed Devyn, he waved the Mec away. “I made quite a profit from you this evening,” he said with a grin.
“That you did,” Devyn responded.
I reached behind my back to slide my knife from the waist of my pants…only to realize my knife was gone. My blood ran like ice in my veins. How Devyn had removed it, I didn’t know. Bastard. He knew I’d been planning to kill EenLi, here and now. Why had he stopped me? Did he mean to betray me? No, I thought. Devyn wanted his nights with me; he wanted me willing. He’d given me his vow.
That meant…what?
“Eden, rest your head on my leg like a good little girl.”
I did so without hesitation, and he sifted his fingers through my hair.
“How did you train her so quickly?” EenLi’s white gaze raked over me, lingering on my br**sts, between my legs. “She’s a delectable little morsel, isn’t she? Perhaps I should have kept her for myself. I just didn’t expect her to be so docile so quickly.”
“I have the most…persuasive training techniques.”
The two men shared a hearty laugh.
“Thank you for the warriors.” EenLi said, all business now. “They are proving to be very useful already.”
“Excellent.” He paused. “There’s something I need to speak with you about. In private.”
“Now is not the time, I’m afraid.”
“Make the time.” Devyn’s tone was hard, promising retribution if his request wasn’t met.
EenLi’s skin glowed a light red, meaning he was only mildly perturbed. His white eyes narrowed. “Very well. Shall we adjourn to my office?”