Chapter 2 (Deonna) – Marlon Roessler

I was awakened by the clattering and shaking of the transport cart. The chains that bound my wrists were cutting circulation and making marks on my tanned skin. They placed chains around my neck and feet, which weighed down my light weighted body. They kept these chains on us per orders of the King and Queen as safety precautions.

The transport cart was filled with other black and grey-furred beauties much like me. What terrifies me more is I could find Kamala. I saw other faces staring around at each other with fear. Despite knowing the names of the nobles, we were going to, I don’t think any of us really knew where we were going. Nobody knew exactly what was in store for us.

I was only at the slave farm for a couple of years, but a lot of them have been there for most of their lives. I was there long enough to know that I don’t want the next generation to suffer as we have. Nobody deserved this, regardless of their fur color.

My chains were tugged, yanking me out of the cart, along with the others. It was difficult to maintain my stance; my bare feet digging into the hard dirt beneath me. Sharp rocks cut into the palms of my toes. I winced in pain as I tried to stretch my back. I’ve been cramped in such a small space for hours.

They had tents set up to which I, and the others, were forced inside the biggest tent in the center. The other tents appeared to be sleeping tents, whereas this tent was the medical examination tent. There was a bunch of medical equipment set up and medical beds stained with blood. The inside of the tent smelled of rotting flesh and death, making me feel queasy.

One of the guards pulled me towards a woman’s station. Sitting on the examination bed, I couldn’t help but stare at the woman in awe.

The woman grabbed onto my arm, her fingernails practically digging into my flesh. I winced as the woman shoved a needle into my vein. She was drawing out blood; and a lot of it from the looks of it. I watched as the needle began draining me. The wooziness came quickly; much quicker than I had expected.

“This will keep basic infections out of your body,” the woman explained. “Keep you semi-healthy.”

Soon, I was being pulled out of the tent and back towards the transport cart.

…

After what felt like another hour, the cart comes to another stop. I winced at the sounds of the doors unlatching and swinging open. The same guards as before stood there and stared amongst us. Eventually, their eyes landed on me. Their top lip curled up in disgust as they examined my features and looked around my body.

I felt my body grow tense as they forced me outside and onto my feet.

The air felt a bit colder than it had at the medical station. As I got out of the cart, my feet were met with the cold pavement. I noticed a silver archway, equipped with a large gate and guards on both sides.

As we approached the gates, one of the guards unlatched the lock and pushed it open for us to enter. I fumbled awkwardly as my chains were still being tugged and I was being forced to walk. A large cobblestone walkway lead from the gates and spiraled up to the leafy green grass surrounding the Roessler Estate.

The manor was bigger than any building that I had ever seen. It was made up of beautiful pillars of white and gold. It had an endless number of windows and doors and seemed to wrap around a huge courtyard. It probably costs more to maintain the estate in a day than many families could earn in a lifetime.

We didn’t get far behind the gates before being stopped by two of the most extravagant-looking men.  They looked young and they were obviously twins; one of them must have been Marlon Roessler. I couldn’t figure out which one though. During my time in the commoner’s village and reading a little about Marlon Roessler, it never said anything about him having a brother. Let alone a twin brother.

They looked almost identical, one of them kept his hair a bit longer and wilder and the other kept his shorter and neatly trimmed in a professional manner. Both had hair that was so light that it was practically silvery-white. They were strongly built men with faces that were so beautiful that not even the best painters could describe their beauty.

“Where is she going to live?” The one with the longer hair asked, staring at me with an almost hungry gaze in his eyes.

“The holding shack in the gardens for now. At least until father returns and says otherwise,” the other told his twin brother. His eyes showed more curiosity than anything.

Until their father returns? So that meant neither of them was Marlon Roessler.

“When does father return?” The longer-haired one asked.

“Very late.”

They were talking about me as if I wasn’t there. I felt pain coursing through my body once again, from my chest. I had to stifle to keep from tumbling over in agony; they would have me killed right away if they knew I was sick. I bit the bottom of my lip until I could taste the blood oozing onto my tongue. My fingers trembled within the chains that bound them together.

I took an unsteady step backward, only to be stopped by the guard that stood behind me. The gentlemen continued to assess me, curiously. They were looking at me like I was some kind of plaything. Sent to them for their own enjoyment.

Sweat began piling on my forehead again and I don’t think it was because of a fever this time. I wished more than anything that Kamala could be here with me.

One of the guards stepped forward, toward the boys and handed them a small manila folder.

“Medical records and background,” the guard told them.

They took the manila folder without even glancing at the inside; the one with the long hair was grinning at me and there was something in his eyes that I didn’t recognize.

I felt uneasy but I knew better than to speak, knowing it would cause me to be put to death. The guard turned to me as he handed the chains over to the men.

“Bob Roessler,” he pointed to the man with the long hair. “Alex Roessler,” he pointed to his twin brother.  “You will go with them and do as they say. You belong to them now.”

“So, are we going to have some fun?” Bob asked, a smile twitching at the corner of his lips. I swallowed hard, not knowing what he was meaning by the word “fun”. 

“If you dare touch a black wolf slave, father will strangle you with his bare hands,” Alex warned, his voice filled with dismay.

Bob rolled his eyes.

Suddenly, there is some strange noise.

“It’s dad,” Alex said, urgently. “He’s home.”

Bob released me and I fell to the ground, defeated. I tried to gather my thoughts as the men ran around frantically.

They were terrified.

“I thought he wasn’t supposed to be home till late,” Bob said, scrambling to fix his appearance.

I looked over at the rags that were torn from my body, knowing they were too ruined to put back on.

“Well, he’s home now,” Alex hissed. “You bastard! You tore her clothing. How are we supposed to cover her?” He asked in a panic. 

Looking around, Bob was trying to find a place for me to hide. I could see how frightened both boys were. They were struggling to figure out what to do and by the sounds of the quickly approaching carriage, their time was running out.

As they scrambled around frantically, I managed to pull myself back onto my feet. Staring at the unguarded doorway, I knew it was now or never. I had to take the opportunity to run. I was weak and I knew I couldn’t run fast, I wasn’t even sure where I was running to, but I had to get away from these monsters.

I ran through the stable stall and made my way through the entrance. However, I didn’t get far before I ran into a hard object, knocking me off my feet, and landed with a thud on the ground. The impact caused me to become dizzy. But I could hear the sharp inhale of the twins behind me, which told me that whatever it was I ran into, it wasn’t good.

I blinked a few times to adjust my vision; I realized we were no longer alone.

In front of me stood a man with long and light hair of white and silver, close to his waist, meticulously teased behind his ears. Like Alex and Bob, he was strongly built and had a face so beautiful that it nearly took my breath away. He was dressed in extravagant, clean, and white clothing with gold armored around him.

Marlon Roessler.