Page 34 of Sold to the Alien Smugglers

Marcel sits at the center of the trio, and he slowly rises as I’m brought forward. His two battle-brothers remain seated, eyes vigilant.

I turn to Marcel – and gasp.

There’s a leash dangling from his wrist.

The other end of it, at the end of a long chain, is clipped to a band around his thick wrist. Marcel holds the leash like the owner of a dog might – expecting immediate obedience.

I shiver. Soon, I’ll be his little pet.

I can’t stop shivering despite the heat. Up close, with nothing but a few feet of air between us, Marcel is beyond intimidating. I once swore to never let a man make me nervous – but this looming Aurelian is no ordinary man.

Don’t think of me as weak for saying that – because I’m not. You can’t go up against the worst scum of the universe – Toad slavers, and pirate scum – and expect to get out alive if you’re easily intimidated.

But that was the old me – and the last time I truly felt like her feels like a lifetime ago.

So, I surrender. I allow myself to be dragged before a towering, seven-feet-tall mountain of coiled muscle and marble-white skin.

I gulp dryly as my eyes roam over his muscled physique. It’s as if there’s not an ounce of fat on him – just sinewy, deadly muscle.

Muscle that was almost unleashed on a murderous Bullfrog – a creature that wanted nothing except to give me a slow, painful death.

The scarred Bullfrog terrifies me. These Aurelians – well, I can’t help but be in awe of them. It’s like I’m slapped in the face by the sheerpowerof the Aurelian species up close.

I press my thighs together.

I’ve heard the rumors. I’ve listened to the myths. I’ve heard that the lusts of Aurelians are endless – that they’re shameless and insatiable.

I have a vision of my near-future. When they get me back to their room, they’ll lose themselves to the legendary mating frenzy of their species. They’ll become like animals, and I’ll cling on for dear life as they ravage me one by one, or all together.

I gulp at the thought of the three of them pressing me between them – making me feel so tiny and helpless as they claim every part of me. The thought of being Marcel’s little toy should make me revolted – but after nearly being sold to that murderous, vengeful Bullfrog, all I can think of is howsafeI am in comparison. As their property, I’m perhaps safer than I have been for years – surrounded by three looming examples of the deadliest species in the universe.

For a moment, it’s as if there’s nobody else there – just me, Marcel, and his two eagerly-observing battle-brothers. Then, reality comes back – and I realize the bulbous eyes of every Bullfrog in this room are staring at me.

I’m surrounded by all the other patrons of the auction – and the greedy Bullfrogs are staring at me hungrily, lusting after me not just because of my bare breasts, but because the Aurelians have given me artificial value by paying such a high premium for me.

It makes me wonder what caused that schism between the grotesque, scarred Bullfrog and the triad of warriors. While the Bullfrog lost his composure by snatching for his Orb-Axe, the three Aurelians weren’t quite as inscrutable as they’d thought they might have been. Something must have motivated them to double their bid for me – wildly above the price of the other captives.

As he towers over me, Marcel slowly unclips the collar of the leash – the one that will soon wrap around my neck and link me to him like his pet. When that happens, he’ll wear me like a prize, and the collar and leash will be an unspoken statement of his dominance over me. I’ll have to ask him to unclasp me from him if I want to do anything – even so much as to shower alone. Marcel can keep me at his feet with this leash, like a little puppy, knowing I can’t get away.

He hasn’t touched me yet – but Marcel looks me up and down and the heat of his gaze makes me shudder. I’m still soaking wet from being thrown into the auction pool – and even now, water is dripping down my bedraggled hair and rolling in beads down between my naked breasts.

For a second, I suddenly imagine Marcel reaching forward and touching me – curling his huge thumb and forefinger around my nipple. I gasp at the mere thought of the sensation.

I could try to fight it. I could try to run – but I know it would be futile.

I remember all the training Ling gave me – how she said sometimes, the best move in hand-to-hand combat, or any type of engagement, is not to push back.

Be like water, she’d say – and I embrace that survival technique now. I admit to myself that I’m better off throwing away the last shreds of my pride and focusing on doing what I need to do to make it through this.

I glance left and right, looking for some last, desperate way out…

…and that’s when Marcel clicks his tongue to get my attention.

Clicks his tongue? Like I’m a pet, or something!

“Bend your head forward,” Marcel murmurs, towering over me. “You areoursnow.”

His voice is deep and possessive. I sense that hefeelsthat he owns me – that he thinks I’m his, and no more to him than purchased property.

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