A Legacy of the Damned: Daughter of Astaroth

Chapter 3 - The Auction

"Auctioning what?" I crane my neck toward the low stage at the front for some clues. All I see is the singer in her sexy shimmering black dress and the band. "Are they auctioning off art? I don't see the preview anywhere." Normally, people show a preview of the items to be auctioned off before the bidding starts. I don't see paintings or sculptures anywhere in the room.

Deedee scoffs while Dante snatches a glass of champagne from one of the circulating servers and takes a slow sip. He leans in as if he's about to tell me a secret. His smile is definitely wicked when he says, "We're enjoying the preview now." He moves his hand about, indicating the whole room. Then he draws a circle, indicating Deedee, Juniper, and me. "You're one of the items being previewed. We're auctioning off...you."

I hear Juniper gasps. We fall into a shocked silence while Dante blissfully sips his champagne.

Now I'm seeing the way that men are eyeing the women with a new set of eyes. The way men are ogling us, measuring, appraising...now I understand why.

Not all the men here are young and good looking too. Some of them are quite repulsive.

I watch a man in a black tuxedo walk closely past, leering at us, clearly checking us out. His pale skin is flushed and his jowls are fleshy and droopy, making him look like a bulldog. On his arm is a beautiful woman who looks young enough to be his granddaughter. The bulldog gives me a suggestive smile and I turn away in disgust.

Trust Astaroth to organize something like this and to auction off his own daughters too. Am I truly shocked? No, not really. What do you expect of a demon?

"How does it work? Do we get to keep the money?" Darn Juniper! Instead of sounding mad or upset, she sounds excited. It's not like she needs the money. It's the demon of lust in her.

"I never agreed to be sold off," I snap before Dante gets to answer.

"Dear sis, you signed your fate as soon as you entered the room and you agreed when you let them put that bracelet around your wrist," replies my brother.

"Well...I didn't know!"

"Of course you didn't. But that doesn't matter, Danica," snaps Deedee. "You chose to come here, now you must bear the consequences. I swear, it's like you hate living. Sometimes I wonder how you manage to make it to the ripe old age of sixteen."

"Seventeen," I automatically correct her. I'll be seventeen in a few months. Yes, it's quite an accomplishment for me to manage to stay alive this long. I always get into trouble but the luck seems to be on my side so far.

When you're the daughter of Astaroth and you like to defy your father as much as I do, seventeen is a good number. It's like having a gold medal and I'll wear it proudly.

"Uuughh! I give up!" growls Deedee before she stomps off.

Dante grins as he watches our sister storms off. "I think you're the only one Deidra cares about," he comments.

I doubt it. Like all of us, Deedee only cares for herself and she only does something if it benefits her in any way.

Juniper clears her throat, trying to get our attention. "So...Ummm, the auction. How does it work exactly?"

"Well," says Dante, checking out a woman who's giving him a coy smile as she walks past. "All the women wearing the bracelets are available for men to place a bid on. A woman who is already bid on will have a choker around her neck."

I look around us, only now noticing that some of the women are wearing diamond chokers, including both my sisters. Some chokers are bigger than others.