002: SOLD

ARYA

The pit was hell itself. The stench of rot and dried blood hit me as I was shoved into the cell, the iron bars slamming shut behind me. My stomach churned in revulsion. There were blood stains on the floor, along with bloodied torture devices which held pieces of torn flesh. A shiver ran down my spine at the thought that I could end up in a worse state.

This place reeked of death and gore. It was a place reserved only for grievous offenders yet, there I was.

Huddled against the corner of the cell, tears welled up my eyes when I recalled that I'd been unable to save my mother. She must've suffered an excruciating pain.

"For the sake of your dead mother, I'll give you two days to confess your offense," Alpha Ronan said in an icy voice. A sob escaped my lips, a suffocating weight pressing down on my chest.

My mother was dead.

No. This can't be happening. She can't be gone.

"Let me out of here, please! I need to see my mother," I cried, crawling towards the bars of the cell. My fingernails scraped against concrete floor painfully but this pain was nothing compared to the bleeding wound in my heart.

"You killed your mother, you ungrateful child! Your sister is crippled because of you!" he yelled at me and I flinched, sobbing bitterly.

"No!" I whimpered. "I didn't.... I didn't do anything. You have to believe me," I cried and he narrowed his eyes at me.

"I can't help you. There's a witness who saw you," he droned and I shook my head in disbelief.

"It can't be true," I croaked, tears rolling down my cheeks.

"There's evidence as well," he continued and my stomach churned, nausea washing over me.

"No," I croaked. How could I have met with the culprit if I didn't even know who it was?

"You're still going to deny it?" Alpha Ronan demanded, casting a death glare on me. All of this felt like an awful nightmare, one I was trapped in.

"Come out here!" he suddenly called out and fear stirred inside of me at the sound of approaching footsteps.

When I finally saw the newcomer, my insides twisted into knots, rage and bitterness rearing up in my mind. I could recognize those mischievous brown eyes anywhere. Ember.

How could she do this to me?

Wasn't the bullying enough?

"I am the witness," she said with a blank look on her face. My vision went red and I lurched forward, slamming a hand on the bars. She flinched, refusing to look me in the eyes.

"Liar!" I screamed at her hoarsely.

"I saw you with him that night. I took a photo for evidence," she replied and I froze, my blood freezing over in my vein.

"What?" I croaked as realization slammed into me so hard, I felt sick.

If I had indeed met with the culprit, it could only be someone I had met recently... could it be? Does it mean that the stranger from the bar was—

"Look!" Ember said, showing me a photo on her phone. My heart went into overdrive and I felt faint the moment I recognized the stranger in the photo.

"You should reflect on what you have done. You will be taken to the council tomorrow morning and your punishment shall be decided then," Alpha Ronan stated and retreated with Ember.

I don't know how long I sat in the dark, hugging my knees to my chest, the cold seeping deep into my bones. My mother was gone, my sister....crippled. And I was being framed for something I couldn't understand.

Alpha Ronan had mentioned that the tribrid king had set the place on fire, but why?

Why would he kill my mother?

Why would he ruin my family?

What did I ever do to him?

The longer my thoughts spiraled, the more my anger burned brighter.

The heavy thud of boots yanked me from my haze of fury and frustration.

A feeling of foreboding flooded my senses and as if on cue, a number of heavily built men arrived at the door of the cell. Terrified, I scrambled backwards, hoping and praying that they hadn't come from me.

A cry escaped my lips as the door was ripped open.

The men immediately stormed in, reaching for me. In my panicked state, I attempted to fight them off, but they were too strong.

"No!" I screamed, thrashing around against their bruising grips. A fist collided with my cheek and pain exploded over my face before the world went black.

When I regained consciousness, I was lying in a different room with my feet and hands bound. This room wasn't as filthy as my prison cell but it wasn't clean either. The moment I attempted to sit up, the door swung open and two bulky men stepped in.

"You're awake, that's good," the first man said, cracking a creepy smile at me.

"What do you want from me?" I asked, my voice quivering.

"Where is the stone?" the second man demanded and frowned in confusion.

"What are you talking about?" I asked and they both exchanged bewildered glances.

"You're really going to play dumb, huh?" one of them said before turning towards the door.

"Bring her in!" He yelled and the door creaked open. My eyes widened as my sister was wheeled into the room.

"Arya!" Maya called out, tears filling her eyes. The fear in her voice made my heart squeeze.

"Are you ready to talk now?" one of the man stated and I swallowed hard, afraid of what they would do if I failed to give them what they wanted.

"Please don't hurt her," I croaked.

"Where. Is . The. Stone?" they demanded and I shook my head, trembling with fear.

"I swear I don't know what you're talking about. You can hear my heartbeat. I'm not lying, I swear!" I blurted out.

Silence ensured between us for a while. Then they shook their heads in disappointment.

"The both of you are no use to us, then. We'll just have to sell the both of you. That way, you will be useful to us," one of them said and started to move my sister out of the room.

"Wait!" I cried and he paused.

"I'll find it! You can sell me but not my sister," I said and he narrowed his eyes at me.

"Arya, no," Maya sobbed. I knew it was breaking her heart to see me do this, but I couldn't let her get exposed to something much worse than death.

"You don't even know what it is," our abductor hissed.

"I'll find it. I just need a description. There must be a reason you thought I would have it. Let me find it. Please," I pleaded.

"Fine. We won't sell your sister. But, you will do everything on our own terms," the other man finally said and I nodded, frantically, unaware that I might've just signed myself up for hell.

...

The next few hours dragged out in a blur. Numbly, I let them prepare me for the auction event. After which I was taken to the auction hall. It was really happening. I was about to be sold. It wasn't just me though. There were a couple of other unfortunate girls with me. We were led onto a platform, all clad in nothing but a thin transparent layer of material which left nothing to the imagination.

I could feel the hungry gazes of the men watching us from their seats.

"Let us begin the audition, gentlemen. Number 1 starts at five thousand dollars!"

I glanced at the girl who was tagged as number one, a sinking feeling in my chest. She was trembling from fear and was barely able to hold her head up.

"Ten thousand dollars!" a man yelled and I clenched my fists.

As the audition went on, I zoned out. I was beginning to feel faint.

"Number eight's bidding starts now!"

Right away, I was jerked back into reality because I was number eight after all.

"Fifteen thousand!"

"Twenty thousand!"

"A hundred thousand!"

A shiver went down my spine, nausea sweeping through me.

"At a hundred thousand dollars, number eight has—"

"Three hundred thousand."

The entire place went silent and I froze as my gaze locked with a pair of pale blue eyes that twinkled with mischief.

"Done! Number eight has been sold for three hundred thousand dollars!"

My fate was sealed.