WARHAVEN

Fourteen

I had not realized how secluded this man seemed until I paid attention to it. He was seated at the very base of the stage, right in front of me. Him, and four other attendees were lined up in ornate chairs that seemed like toned down thrones. They were not seated at a table like everyone else.

I noticed a small line of black ink poked out from the sleeve of his immaculate black suit. The closer I looked the more I realized, the suit was not black, just like his eyes. It was the deepest of reds.

I was too busy staring at him to realize that he had spoken. To realize the magnitude of what had just happened.

"5 million." the man had said, I immediately froze. And so had the rest of the room. The two men who were bickering fell deathly silent. Even the moans and the screams went quiet.

The announcer had frozen on the stage, in what seemed to be shock, awe, or fear. Perhaps all of the above. Whoever this man was, he demanded power, and an insane amount of it. No one dared to move, no one dared to bet against him.

Without a word, he rose from his seat without breaking eye contact with me. When he finally did, I felt utterly cold.

He exited his private seating area and walked to the edge of the stage where every other woman had been picked up.

The auctioneer spoke then, "Yes...I—," He cleared his throat and tried again. "F-Female 150, our last offer of the night. SOLD to King Augustus Kensington, Ruler of WarHaven. Our deepest thanks, your highness." My blood ran cold.

What? What the fuck. What the fuck. I screamed in my head.

Oh course I had heard of him, everyone had.

He was the king, for Christ's sake. I had heard horrid tales about him. That he was the most ruthless ruler in all of history. That he slaughtered for fun. That if people
accidentally set foot on any place in his land unwelcome, they died that very second. He would kill them with his bare hands. And put their heads on spikes on the border, making an example of them.

I noted that Gerald did not touch me this time. He simply escorted me off the stage. We descended the stairs and approached the man.

Being this close to him, knowing who he was, I genuinely feared for my life. My hands were shaking, and I could not hide at this time. I held onto my flower with all my might. I did not dare look him in the eyes as I had before. I simply stared at his chest, which was level with me.

"Your female, your highness." Gerald spoke beside me, and bowed very deeply, keeping the bow for at least 8 seconds from what I counted. I didn't bow. I was squirming as I felt his eyes on me.

There was this extreme desire to bow, to submit. My bones wanted me to. I resisted it. It was a heavy weight on me, like my whole being was aware of the fact that he was there. My soul wanted to submit.

Of course I knew of him, but I had never interacted with any royalty in my life. I did not know any customs, I did not know what was respectful, and what was not.

It was probably a good idea that I stayed on his good side, considering he could end my life in one second. But I just stood there frozen, and my hands were shaking. My legs felt wobbly. Still, I stayed as quiet and as unnoticeable as possible.

"No more gall, hmm woman?" The King, Augustus spoke. Clearly to me. I jumped at his voice. Hearing it up close was profoundly overwhelming. He exuded such power. Was I meant to respond?

I cleared my throat and decided to test the waters, which could be very risky in a room full of his subjects. I met his eyes, slowly and out on a little show. I smirked and rocked on my heels.

"Oh, the gall never leaves, your Highness." A bit of surprise colored his handsome features and his jaw ticked a few times. He said nothing.

I chose to speak, his reaction wasn't necessarily bad, but it could've been much better. I was as terrified as I was attracted. I have never felt so small in my entire life. Not even Simon made me feel that way.

"A chain, Guard." Gerald reached on the wall to the left and picked up a chain. He passed it to the King, who grabbed both ends and brought it around my waist. He clasped it so that it was snug and he held the excess. Like I was a dog. I scoffed loudly as we started moving. A damn bitch.

He pulled us through the tables, everyone bowing their heads at him in passing. It was almost completely silent still. Everyone was stunned, and when I thought about it, I couldn't tell why. I'm sure I was not the only woman he had bought.

Everyone was acting like this was abnormal, but he had a front row seat to it. I was sure I was one of thousands.

We made it to the giant, double doors at the back of the ballroom, two guards opened them after bowing deeply. We entered a magnificent hallway that carried the same look as the one we walked through before meeting Victeria.

Gold accents, chandeliers, massive cream colored drapes framing floor to ceiling windows. It truly was beautiful. We made a left and I followed him as he pulled me along with my leash, almost causing me to stumble. I rolled my eyes and scoffed once more.

He stopped and I almost slammed into his back. He turned slowly and came face to face with me. "Look at me." I would not. He just bought me. Yes, he was a very attractive man, the most handsome I'd encountered, but he still bought me. Like a flower at the market. And I did not appreciate that. I had no real reason to respect him, besides his title. Men were the ones who were dogs. I still feared him though, I wasn't stupid, suicidal, yes.

He got even closer and gripped my chin roughly. The pure strength in his fingers was unfathomable. I couldn't imagine the strength in the bigger muscles on his massive body. He jerked my face toward him. "Look. At. Me. Now." He demanded. It was so difficult not to listen to him. My heart was beating out of my chest and I was sure he could hear it. "That's a command."

My eyes shot to his. Without thinking, my body betrayed me. Like him saying command, made it an order. An order my whole being and soul could not resist. Like he could tell me to jump from a cliff and I would obey without question. The power...

His dark red eyes bore into mine and his brows were furrowed. His lips set into a firm line before he spoke. "Do you have something to say?" He asked, turning his chin ever so slightly, like he was testing me. Seeing if I was dumb enough to challenge him.

"Yes." Was all I said.