What Does He Mean?

"For a hybrid, she's not bad."

"Haha! I didn't even notice she was mixed blood. Those cherry lips could rival the hottest she-wolf in town!"

The two men worked slow, their adam's apple bobbing at the sight of the woman's translucent skin.

Their friend and employer, Nick Jackson, warned them to keep their hands to themselves. The woman was already sold to a powerful man, and he liked his goods clean. So they could only cop a feel here and there while unclasping her bra and pulling off her panties with red eyes.

When they were done stripping her, they subtly tugged at the pink buds on top of her firm mounds, and reluctantly stepped back to admire the view.

During the entire period of their ministration, the woman didn't whimper or squirm, apparently out cold from fright.

"Say, do you think she's a virgin?"

"With a body like that...it's hard to say."

She was thin, but slender, with curves they had only seen on magazine models. Her thick black mane went past her knees, and draped around her like a cape. Though her facial features couldn't be called stunning, they complemented her face.

Simply put, she was beautiful. As such, even though Nick claimed he never touched her, they didn't buy his words. What man could resist the temptation of beauty, when the said beauty was his wife for two years?

The two men exchanged understanding glances and quietly sniggered.

When Nick returned with the manacles, they assisted him in shackling her, and took the chance to touch her a few more times as they dumped her in the trunk of the car.

"Alright. You're free to go now. I'll wire your payment after getting paid!"

"No hurry, we can wait."

"Yes, just add a few more bucks, buddy!"

Slapping him on the back, they stepped back and watched him enter the car. Nick waved to his friends, started his engine, and backed out of the parking lot before setting on the road.

The drive wasn't long. Iblis Jabril sent his men to pick up his goods at the private garage of his casino. A squad of six men hopped out of a Mercedes Benz and moved towards him. Nick grew wary when he sensed the dangerous and dark vibe they gave off.

"Where's the woman?" A large man with a gruesome scar on his face stepped out from the group and coldly questioned him.

"In the trunk. She..."

"Then get her out. We don't have time to waste." 

"Yes, yes," Scampering to his car, Nick opened the trunk and displayed his prize. He held his breath as they scanned her in stifling silence. The scared man stared at the naked woman, then beckoned to his friends.

"Brothers, let's take her out."

"Yes."

"What an asshole. I heard she was his wife."

"He sold her. What else do you expect from such a man?"

"True..."

The squad of men in black tutted in disgust as they moved in sync and withdrew the woman. The scared man took off his coat and drooped it over her body, before stepping back and waving his team to move. Nick turned a deaf ear to their comments and approached the scared man.

"You have the woman. When will your boss clear my debt?"

"Our Master will check the goods. If she's clean, as you claimed, you'll receive a notice later in the day."

"Okay! Then thank your Master in advance for me!" Nick stepped back and waved excitedly. 

After a long horrid year of stress, he'll finally get those men off his back. He wasn't worried about Shamsiya Moore's purity, because he didn't sleep with her.

Not to mention her sticky, lost puppy eyes, her identity as a dirty hybrid was a major turnoff.

The men in black deposed their charge in the back of the Mercedes. Slamming the door shut, they hopped into another car on the side and drove out of the garage into the setting sun.

...

Shamsiya grew up in a conservative environment. The matron at their orphanage was strict with their education. She installed values of modesty and chastity in the orphan girls on the threat of starvation and beating, and at times, even making them spend the night out in the cold if they dressed indecently.

The matron claimed only pure girls were treasured by good men, and if they wanted to catch the attention of respectable men, they needed to maintain their purity.

During her high school years, Shamsiya kept two feet distance with her male teachers and never interacted with the boys for fear of accidently brushing skin.

When Nick proposed to her, she thought it was the reward of her good conduct.

How was she supposed to know his appearance in her life wasn't the start of a happily ever after, but the beginning of a nightmare?

"Let me go! I want to go home!"

"Miss, you can't leave the Jabril Palace without the Lord's permission. Please, stand still. We only have five minutes before Lord Jabril gets here."

"To hell with him! I want to go home!"

Shamsiya was scared. Hell. Scared was an understatement. She was terrified out of her mind! 

Standing in the center of a bedroom the size of a ballroom, two females with pointy ears and red eyes held her arms.

Pointy ears! Red eyes! 

She didn't need someone to spell it out for her to know they weren't humans or werewolves! If she were to go by description alone, then she was pretty sure she was now in the lair of the Demon Lord, Iblis Jabril.

Yes, demon. The brutal, ruthless, and savage kind told in churches and bedtime stories to scare off naughty kids. The only thing was...Iblis Jabril wasn't a character in bedtime stories, but a demon in the flesh!

Nick 'bastard' Jackson didn't sell her off to a random stranger. He sold her off to the fucking Demon Lord!

The two female demons ignored her struggles and forcefully stuffed her into a sleeveless nightgown. Coiling her black mane, they sprayed a bottle of perfume, lit a row of red candles, and strode out of the room.

With a deafening bang, they shut the red metal door that resembled a gate, right in her face.

"No! No! NO! Please, let me go home! I didn't take your Lord's money!"

Shamsiya banged on the metal door, crying and begging to be let out until her voice turned harsh and her legs lost strength. No one answered her plea. Feeling hopeless, she slid to the ground, wrapped her arms around her knees, and vacantly stared in space.

What was her fault? What sinful crime did she commit to end up in the hands of a demon? 

She hated her life. There was never anyone by her side. Even in a place like the orphanage, people avoided her like the plague. 

Shamsiya endured the loneliness and coped, or at least tried to cope, with the emptiness in her heart. She couldn't remember her parents' faces. Whether they died or abandoned her at birth was a mystery. As a hybrid, she didn't even have a wolf!

But even when she was at her worst, she never harmed anyone.

She wasn't a saint or an angel. So yes, when others weren't around, she silently cursed at those who bullied her behind their backs. But was that such a grave sin to condemn her to this hell?

The matron had said good women were treasured by good men. She tried to be good. She really did.

But no matter how good she was, no good man ever entered her life.

Bang!

Right at this moment, the giant crimson door was pushed inward. Still curled up with her arms wrapped around her knees, Shamsiya slid across the marble floor as the two metals yawned open. Her body tensed, and her heart burned with anxiety.

The muffled thuds of footsteps entered her ears and pounded with her heart until a pair of black leather boots paused at her feet.

"I don't have time. Take off your dress and get on the bed. Let's get this done as soon as possible."

Huh?

What...what does he mean by get on the bed!? Even if he wanted her body, he should at least give her some respect. She wasn't a prostitute, okay?