DRINK

KIRA

The auction was bubbly and lively as usual. Male and female vampires clad in expensive attire were seated at the foot of the podium waiting for their dinner to be served. Some slaves were being held by their collars and whisked away by their new masters while others like me were patiently waiting to be called behind the red curtain.

As I scanned the area, it dawned on me that this whole auction was a whole production, a scene straight out of The Great Gatsby. The dark room was illuminated by dim fluorescent lights. The curtains were draped in crimson red linen and pulled down to prevent the rays of sunlight. Vampires, according to what I heard, are allergic to sunlight. It burned their skin and caused them to age quickly, but it doesn’t kill them.

The walls were coated in gold, paintings of the various monarchs of the vampire realm hung on them, almost like humans never existed.  The window panels were stretched twelve feet to a plaster-medallioned ceiling along with lemon tapestries. In the back of the room was a golden fireplace, its content burning like embers.

There was a hierarchy among the vampires much like the human world before the takeover. There were the lower-class vampires who resided in the city and occupied the homes once inhabited by humans and the upper-class vampires known as the Purebloods who resided in castles. From the tales I’d heard from the girls at the shop, Purebloods are the original vampires and the first to ever walk the face of the earth. Not much is known about how they were formed but most of them are from royal bloodlines and are crueler than other vampires.

Austen walked to the podium with a pep in his step. “Good morning everyone and welcome to our annual auction,” he said cheerfully. “I hope you find our wonderful displays quite fascinating. We have blood types ranging from A to O and a delectably rare slave just out back.’’

Austen grinned at the unmoved crowd and continued. “Over at the concierge stand,” he gestured to a cart manned by a female vampire, “we have a fresh supply of blood, straight from the source for your delight.’’ The source being bleeding a human to death. ‘’While we offer wonderful packages, we expect our guests to follow the rules that have been stated in your handbook. You know we aim to please and serve,” he bowed dramatically, then flattened the non-existent crease on his two-piece suit.  

“Without further ado, I present to you Jordan Spence, an eighteen-year-old male with type A blood….’’

And so it began, the buying and selling of innocent humans for profit. A plethora of names was called out. Some were bought for an outrageous amount of money while others weren’t. I’ve been here for seven years and this is my third auction. Austen always made me dress up for them but he never called my name. I dare not ask why.

The girls and I were silent, for the most part, behind the curtain. I could feel their trepidation and dread. The future beyond the walls of the Pet Shop looked bleak much like my facial expression. If I got sold, I wouldn’t necessarily care. You’re damned if you stay in the shop and damned if you go outside.

I wasn’t particularly fond of forming any sort of emotional attachment with people, thus I made no friends here. It’s easier that way; emotions are a funny thing and they make us react to situations irrationally. Take, for example, the girl behind me sobbing softly as her friend, Trina is being sold to Lord Ashford Delafante of the Manilla coven.

The goal should be survival not forming attachments.

…………………

“Settle down, settle down,’’ Austen said into the microphone. “The second session is about to begin.’’

The vampires paused all talks and shuffled to find their seats, some bumping into each other in the process. ‘’Now that you’re all settled, we shall begin the second session. Please note that once the hammer falls, you would not be allowed to bid for a higher or lower price as that would automatically conclude the sale. We have a no refund policy so once you buy’em, you can’t bring ‘em back.’’

How lovely. “First, on the list, we have our very special breed, Kira Song.’’ I walked to the stage with a forced smile on my face and stood next to Austen whose lingering stare made me uncomfortable. “Kira is a five-foot-two, redhead with a blood type of Negative O.” Whispers and murmurs erupted from the guests. The Purebloods elongated their fangs as they looked at me with lust? Admiration?

Negative O-type blood was very rare. It was the only reason why I wasn’t killed alongside my family when vampires invaded our tent that night.

I volunteered to follow a group of men that I’d known from birth to hunt for wild deer in the cold Canadian mountains because the vampires had taken all our food supply. The irony of it all was they could survive on blood alone, but because they wanted to feed their already bloated ego, they hoarded the food in ‘vampire only’ stores and restaurants.

As we proceeded into the mountains, we heard shouts and cries coming from our tents. My heart sank in my stomach and the adrenaline kicked in as I ran back to our tents, ignoring the calls from my fellow hunters. As I inched closer towards the camp, a sickening feeling settled in because of the familiar metallic smell I could perceive. I prayed to the universe that my worst fears would not be a reality. I prayed that everyone in the camp was safe. I prayed for the safety of my parents.

My prayers fell on deaf ears.

“Father, mother, ‘’ I cried out. ‘’You can’t be dead.’’ I tore up the material on the hem of my skirt and wrapped it around their punctured necks in a feeble attempt to control the bleeding. Their bodies were cold as I hugged both of them to my chest, blood making its way to my clothing.

“N-no, it’s not fair. You can’t just leave me here all alone.’’

“Looks like we missed a human,’’ a voice called out. My eyes widened in fear as a woman stood before me. She was clad in a red camisole and aqua blue distressed jeans. Her chestnut coloured hair flowed behind her, making her look more like a model than a vampire.

“Aren’t you quite the young thing?’’ She squatted down to my height and gave me a sinister smirk.  “Tell me young one, what is your name?’’

“W-why should I tell you?’’ I answered with faux confidence. The air had gotten chillier but I was wrapped in the heat of fear.

“Let’s see,” she pretended to think. “If you tell me your name, I’d make your death painless, however, if you refuse, I’m afraid you’d end up like the rest of the bodies on the floor.’’

Her maroon-coated fingers held my chin up but I refused to let her see that her presence scared me. “It’s been a while since I’ve tasted teenage blood so I bet you’d taste….’’

“Stop fraternizing with the food, Coral.’’ A man with raven hair and red eyes said. He had blood dripping from his pale lips down to the white of his wife- beater as he eyed me with disgust.

“Don’t be like that, Zane,”  she said.  “I was just asking for a name, right little one?’’

“And who says a name is needed before you make a kill?’’

“I just like to get to know my food before I eat it, sue me.’’ Her fingers slipped from my chin to my neck and she dug her fingernails into my already sensitive skin, causing me to scream. She laughed and licked the blood off her nails. ‘’Zane, come taste her.’’

Her partner came close to me and licked the mark Coral created on my neck. Like clockwork, his eyes turned pitch black as he gripped my neck tightly. His fangs retracted from his gums, ready to attack and I knew what was coming next- death.

‘’Zane, stop,’’ the woman licked her finger. ‘’Her blood is something I’ve never tasted before.”

“She’s food,” Zane drawled. “They all taste the same.”

Coral shook her head. “Release her.”

He did as she instructed, albeit reluctantly. I fell to the ground pathetically, coughing and wheezing for air. Zane looked at me like I was dirt under his shoe, his eyes returning to their normal colour.

“There’s something off about this human. I can sense it.” She observed my face again, looking for answers that I didn’t have the answer to. Soft sobs escaped my lips as I crawled  to the limp bodies of my parents. At the time my mother was pregnant with my sibling , two months along.

And they killed them, they killed everyone.

“Don’t bother,” Zane said as if he anticipated my next actions. “They are dead.”

Coral continued. “Her blood is so sweet yet it has this awful aftertaste. I’m thinking we should sell her. She’s not much use to us now since we’ve had our fill.’’ Zane grunted in disagreement. “If we take her to Austen, he might know what to do with her and we’ll get paid so we can get out of North America for good. If the Prince found out we killed this many humans in one day, we’d be staked through the heart.’’

Coral held my shaky hands tightly, forcing me to depart from the only people I loved, and dragged me through the thick snow. Zane followed closely behind her. ‘’You’re coming with us.’’

That was seven years ago but the memory is still forever tattooed in my brain. I never forgot their names- Coral and Zane- and someday, in this life or the next, I would have my pound of flesh.

“From personal experience,’’ Austen continued. ‘’I can tell you that her blood tastes absolutely divine.’’ You almost killed me. ‘’Don’t be fooled by her beauty for she is very adamant. But with a little bit of training, she’d be the perfect little slave.’’

Go to hell, Austen.

‘’$25,000,’’ a woman with dark hair yelled.

Seriously?

‘$29,000,’’ another yelled.

‘’$50,000.’’

‘’$50,000 going once, going twice…’’

‘’$1,000,000,’’ a deep voice boomed.

Gasps and additional murmurs filled the room. Heck, I’m even shocked. Who has that kind of cash to spend on an ‘insignificant human?’

‘’Setting the bar high now, aren’t we?’’ Austen joked. “A million going once, going twice….’’

No one made another bid.

‘’Sold.’’

The hammer fell and that sealed my fate.

‘’Kira has been sold to our ruler, Prince Dante of the North American coven.’’

As fate would have it, Prince Dante became my new master.

I’m fucked.