The Sculpture And The Sculpted

Chapter 29

How swiftly the auction had been put together sent Hannibal's mind whirling. He hadn't had an inkling of a chance to come up with a plan to help his friends or himself before he had been unceremoniously ripped from his bed and dragged out into the chilled morning air.

His hands were bound with rope that cut into his wrists with how rough it was. He was certain that once he was cut free, his wrists would be rubbed raw and bloody. But for now, he found his attention far more occupied with the amount of men that had gathered in the open field by the cliffside.

Each was more put together than the last. Some wore fabrics of richness that Hannibal had never touched, even as a child. Reds, blues, greens and purples. Jewels sat on fingers and at throats with the same extravagance. Men of his equal status and men who could confront Will's own station, if Hannibal had to guess.

His friends were brought to stand beside him and guards held to their shoulders, just as one held to him. The imprudent men came to them each in turn, poking and prodding. Hannibal did his best to stand tall despite the discomfort of being touched without his consent. Several of the men demanded to see the state of his teeth and humiliation flooded through him as he opened his mouth and fought the urge to bite men's fingers that got too close.

"This one is educated," the guard explained as someone looked over one of the other men curiously. "This one can read and write." Hannibal struggled to understand how they could possibly know, unless they had a ship log and knew who each of them were, or if one of his crew had spoken out last night without knowledge of the damage they were doing. "And this one is special." Hannibal met the savage gaze of the guard who wore a toothy smirk. "He might be as well educated as the duke himself. He will cost a pretty penny more."

Out of the corner of his eye, Hannibal caught a handful of coins being passed to a guard. The guard counted the coins and motioned for the man to take Thomas. Hannibal couldn't be sure that the others hadn't realized what was happening or if it had taken this long for it to sink in, but the moment Thomas' arm was seized up, the brittle morning snapped.

"Please!" he begged, fighting against the hands that now held him. "I have a wife and a daughter! I work for the king! Please!" Thomas' voice yanked at Hannibal's heart and he swallowed at the lump in his throat, his mind drawing a blank when he ordered it to find a solution to the predicament.

"The king will never hear of this.. He will not care if you are missing," the guard collecting the payment stated coldly.

Hannibal blinked and looked down at his feet. Sanford was dead. What had happened? When had it happened? Was Will alright? Was Beverly and everyone else in the castle? Had there been an attack? What about the wedding? Had Mason done something to the royal family?

Hannibal's mind raced through the millions of questions and scenarios until the jingling of a coin purse woke him from his thoughts. His attention snapped up to find the guard fingering open the bag that had been plopped into his hand and Hannibal's mouth went dry as hands snatched him up.

He could find no words. His mouth had glued itself shut. His mind stuttered as he was dragged away from his other men, men he would never see again, men he had saved from the depths of the ocean to only get them sold away. And he could do nothing. His strength failed him. His anger failed him. His mind failed him.

He was shoved back through the forest, past trees and glanced around to find other servants following after the well dressed man who kept a good few steps ahead of him. The servants kept their faces down, eyes refusing to meet him. Not even the man holding him dared to meet his gaze. Hannibal was shoved towards a clearing that gave way to a dirt road. Several carriages and carts were positioned on it, waiting for their owners and their newly bought prizes to return to them.