Luna of the Alphas

Chapter 5

Chapter 5

The Alpha looked at me again. As my heart beat like a hammer against my chest, each thump made me feel dizzy more than the last.

Five hundred was the answer from the Alpha. When he snapped his fingers, his guard came forward holding a bag of coins.

I took a deep breath.

A man from Alpha's group came up to me and offered to help me get up from my chair. As I stood, I swayed because my legs felt numb and weak.

The shop looked very different as soon as they had the coin in their hands. They looked at each other with big, happy smiles on their faces. "Thank you so much, my Alpha. Yes, you're right—she is a very special girl. You won't find anyone else like her. Have fun!"

It looked like Aunt Harper was going to pass out just a moment ago, but all of a sudden she felt better. She flew in front of him and pointed to a big list of "tools" that were used to keep slaves in line. Things like collars, cuffs, whips, and different kinds of toys, some of which I knew what they were for and some of which were just questions on the wall.

When I thought about any of those things being used on me, I got chills.

The Alpha looked back at me for a moment. He smiled just a little as he said, "No need, thank you." His lips were slightly tilted in a smirk.

Something turned in my stomach.

Not necessary? Did he have his own tools already?

The Aunts led us out while they were gushing over the Alpha. If they had trumpets, they would be blowing them into the market to celebrate making such a good a sale.

My hands were cuffed and my feet were chained with a new pair of cuffs. We stopped at the doors. As soon as we were bought, the shiny new metal binds that were taken out of their packaging and put around our wrists and ankles felt like gifts.

As I left the shop with the Alpha, one of his wolves kept a tight grip on my arm, as if I were going to try to get away.

He was as smart as he seemed if he thought I could run with these tight ankle bands around my legs. It was hard for me to walk on flat ground.

As soon as we walked outside, the bright sun hit me hard. I hadn't seen the outside world in a very long time. The sun was pins in my eyes and fire on my skin.

I passed by the top of the Alpha’s guards who was waiting out front. His gaze stuck on me narrowly. I could tell he did not favor me, nor did he understand the Alpha’s choice to purchase me.

I couldn’t blame him. I didn’t understand it, either.

I watched the Alpha’s back as we walked, trying with all I had to stay calm.

As I walked, I started to remember the area around us. The last time I had seen this place was the day I was transported here to the shop. The streets were too narrow for cars, so slaves were unloaded from a van and walked on foot like cattle.

The sun had been as bright back then as it was today and I hated it.

The sun made me hopeful. And hope was unrealistic.

Back then, the thought of escaping had flickered to mind. The shops didn’t have strict security the way the Cell did. The walk down the strip could have been my only chance at freedom.

Grace laughed at me when I told her this. “You’re dumber than you look if you think that will work,” she’d said. She had been my only friend, Grace Grace.

I thought maybe it was because Grace had flaws like me—a big ugly scar on her belly that looked a lot like the mark on my neck. Or maybe it was because we both had dreams of freedom.

“How are you going to make a living?” Grace had asked me as we shuffled in one, long, slow line toward the slave shop. “Even if you do get out of here, how will you survive on your own?"

“My father taught me to survive for weeks on my own in the wilderness,” I told her. “As long as I can find water, I’ll live.”

Grace laughed at me, as if we weren’t marching straight toward our doom. “This isn’t reality TV, love. I mean, you don’t really know where we are, do you? This place is a desert. No forests, no lakes, not even bugs could survive out there. It’s called the Demilitarized Zone for a reason. You know what’s out there waiting for you?"

“I know,” I groaned, hoping it would be the end of her lecture.

Grace ignored my reply. “Werewolves, vampires, dragons—creatures we probably don’t even know exist. They’re all out there, hungry and looking for a little girl like you to walk right into their nest. And out there, they can do whatever they want to you. Chances are, before you even find a source of water, you’ll be ripped up by a rogue wolf or drained by a starved vampire—or if you’re lucky enough, you might be captured as an ambulatory uterus by one of those dragons you always hear tales about.”

I was shocked and a little sickened by how much she knew of the Demilitarization Zone. “Where did you get all this information?” I asked.

Grace grinned. She was always smiling in the darkest of times. “Where do you think I got these?” she said, flashing the scars on her belly.

Even now, as I walked in the Alpha’s shadow, I saw the ghost of Grace trotting in her shackles toward the slave shop. I shut my eyes and took a deep breath. Every time I thought of her, it was like a knife going through my ribs.

I didn’t know if she was dead or alive.

All I knew was that Grace was purchased by an old wolf during the high season a year ago. A horrible older man with jagged scars on his face and a look of terrible intention in his eyes. A veteran of the war. A man who knew how to hurt.

Even that day, as she was led out of the shop in her shackles, Grace smiled back at me.

Tears pricked my eyes.

Grace. I couldn’t help Grace and I couldn’t help myself. For so long, we dreamed of freedom together. We fantasized about running away—about the moments we reached the islands and started our new lives.

And yet we met the same fate. Our lives would never be our own.

Suddenly, the Alpha stopped.

I bumped into his back, not realizing he’d come to a halt. Quickly, I scurried back, bowing my head in apology. The Alpha turned to look at me, and I felt a shudder run down my spine at the thought of what his intentions might be.

Surely, he hadn’t purchased me for the same reason the old wolf had purchased Grace. Grace was beautiful, even with her scars.

For a long time, he stared at me in silence. My heart ticked in my throat like the hands of a clock. Then the Alpha said, “Chad, give her your coat.”

One of the guards complied, though I didn’t look up to see who. Suddenly, a warm fabric was throne over my shoulders. I wrapped myself in the jacket and looked up slowly to see the Alpha leaning in close to get a good look at me.

He took the lapels of the jacket and tugged them around my neck. “Much better,” he muttered, as if he didn’t want the others to hear. “Your lips were turning blue.”

I felt like a startled rabbit, my heart stammering endlessly in my chest. I tucked my head down. I didn’t know how to react—didn’t know what to say. They had taught us how to behave with masters, not Alphas.

I wanted to utter a thank you, but I feared talking at all. I remained silent and held the jacket tight around me.

He was so strange, this young Alpha. Why was he so considerate of a simple slave?

Why had he taken me at all?