Alpha's Slave | 18

ng the year. Heavy dark clouds billowed in from the West, and with it came

ing into her friend sitting beside her on the wagon

m around her friend and pulling her close to her side. The nuzzled against ea

d soon came the drifting banter of children and adults as

he cold dull evening air. She was exhausted but kne

s born and raised within the middle and lower class w

e ages of eleven to nineteen being the olde

the barren crop land, dried out cor

er poor-ridden family. Despite the fear that leaped in her throat, there was relief

fast approaching all crops had been to ice over and her father had g

rs at the sight of her retreating, small wiry hands that had clutched at the hem of her skirt

she grit her teeth to p

be futile

and all that lay a

utched tightly together, so tight their knuckles paled ghost white. They automatic

ls all lined up outside. They wore their best outfits, and most seemed to be within the middle-class family range

amiliar body heat against her back. The figure remained silent. Inayah sti

ved upwards in a smile. "Oscar, " she spoke and the ha

her ear minutes later; "I will be ins

the line, much to her expectation, not that she was co

ve to thirty silver coins. As the line depletes so does the amount and by the time In

ore, tomboyish looks - swamp brown eyes, a cluster of sunburned freckles from toiling beneath the malevo

bronzed and littered with scars and dried scabs

thusiasm, "hails from the ziniat family." He gestures f

ah is vaguely aware

mouth twitches at the sight of Oscar standing by the door smiling wide at her. It did not matter who

he auctioneer was cut off

silver

he block as there were g

of forty silver co

et as the farmers all l

accep

had bade for her. It was a slender man dressed in all bl

g over the knee. The stranger was not a local, that much she could tell from the sharp angulari

nose held just enough authority without being too big. His chin was square enough to expose every clenc

th a dark grey shirt with the collar unbuttoned. He wore a casual black coat as if he'd shrugg

began to hamm

al

er lip and her palms began to grow clammy. She fidgeted on the step an

m. His eyes were still locked on hers, though his head had t

do nothing but cower despite the great distance be

r banged his gavel as the bag of

as perched on the stool and the next a hand was reaching for her wri

attention back to reality and she f

been c

le to find the right words. Anita embraced her then, press

to scrub at her glowing cheeks with the sleeve of her tat

d open, a man p

waits

other, wide-eyed. Words remained unspoken b

om the girl. The ache in her chest only increases with each step in

r small one, then with surprising gentleness he

es stand by the village's exit. Inayah squints through the darkness, se

arth as the servant gu

k rope and ties that to his saddle before mounting th

l be wa

last time, her stomach clenching as

last she saw