Page 8 of Taken to the Deadlands

“I have enough money for one or two rounds, but not more.”

“Too bad they don’t take that god-awful glitter that falls out of your ass,” Oros commented.

Yien’s eyes narrowed toward the twins. I let out a sigh.

Yien and I were as close as I was with the twins. Meaning not at all. But unlike the twins’ massive pile of cash, Yien lived in the Shadow Realm, where the need for money was nonexistent. They lived off their powers and rarely came to auctions like these unless they were desperate.

“Why do you need a human all of a sudden?” I asked.

Yien’s eyes looked back down at me. I couldn’t glean any information from her expression. Maybe that was a good thing. I feared for the day that she showedactualemotion.

“I want a companion.”

Oros let out a laugh that caused a few of the demons in the room to look over at us once more.

It angered me. I didn’t like that the demon was being made fun of. I too knew what it was like to be chained up in a realm with no warmth but my own.

“If you want a companion so badly, just fetch one of those demons your estate employs. I’m sure they’d jump at the chance to get a mouth full of?—“

“Once you run out of money, let me know,” I found myself saying. My better judgment was telling me to stay out of it, but I couldn’t help but feel for the demon.

“Thank you,” Yien whispered and took a step back into the shadows. She didn’t cover herself fully, just enough for us to still be able to see her face and clawed hands. It would be enough for me to know when to take over.

Damn, between Yien and myself, just how much money am I going to drop today?

It wasn’t every day the four of us showed up in one place. To bet on humans, no less.

The crowd roared to life when lights flooded the stage. A small, winged demon with brilliant white hair and red horns took center stage.

No one knew her name. We all just called her Madam. She had been in charge of this auction house for as long as I could remember, and she specialized in bringing the tastiest humans to the Demon Realm.

“Who’s ready to purchase some humans?” she asked, a wicked smile spreading across her face, showing off all her sharp teeth.

Here we go. I will buy the human. Take her home.

And when all is said and done, I will finally be able to move on from the hellish life I have been living.

Chapter 4

Mia

They forced us out of our beds and dragged us away, kicking and screaming, in the middle of the night.

Or at least I thought it was the middle of the night. Not that our cage had any sunlight or windows to prove it. And as nice as it was, there was no denying that it was anything other than a prison. Though, if you asked me, I could have probably spent a few more days there without complaint.

The demons that barged in to get us were all wearing the same black uniform, and many of them looked human, save for the horns, claws, and sharp teeth. At least it wasn’t that creepy fucked-up thing from before.

Iris allowed them to take her without much fight, giving up almost as soon as her feet touched the hallway outside our room.

Eve and I, on the other hand…

“Get your hands off me, you fucker!”

I tried to break out of the guards’ hold, but both of them were quickly on me, forcing my arms to my side. One of them was already fed up with my screaming and forced a hand over my mouth. I tried to bite it, but the skin was so hard it probably hurt me more than it hurt them.

At least Eve was giving them hell. She screamed, kicked, and slapped them. Too wild of an animal for them to contain.

It wasn’t much use though. We were still dragged down the dark hallway and into an even darker room, where we were pushed to the ground. As soon as the demons’ hands were off me, I pushed myself up and tried to get to the door before they closed it, but some kind of force knocked me down.

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