đAzuria.
~REID GAMBINO
I gripped the steering wheel tad tighter, the sound of the tires hitting the interlocked bricks echoed through the silence like a warning. The headlights cast eerie shadows on the trees lining the road, making them seem like twisted, skeletal sentinels guarding the entrance to a forbidden realm. The air was heavy with the scent of damp earth and I couldn't shake the feeling that I was driving into the very heart of madness.
'We're mafias, no one is to be trusted, not even our shadows' the weight of Gio's words still hung in my throat, forming a lump because it would be extremely hard to for me to stomach the betrayal if Gio's words about Dante came to pass.
The GPS had led Enzo and I down this 'shortcut' over an hour ago, and I was starting to think it was a clever ploy to get me lost in the middle of nowhere or worse, the Azurians territory where the shadows would swallow me seeing I wasn't with any of my men except Enzo. I continued driving as the trees seemed to twist and writhe in the darkness, their branches like arthritic fingers grasping for the sky, as if trying to claw their way out from the depths of hell.
"What in the Halloween is going on here?" Enzo muttered as I drove down along a stoney path that looked like a place vampires would consider holding their next meeting. "What's with this environment? And what type of auction is this?" He asked questions I had no answer to.
He reached out and turned up the radio, but the music was drowned out by the creaking and groaning of the trees, echoing like a chorus of the damned.
Suddenly, a fog bank rolled in, shrouding the road in an impenetrable veil of white. I slowed down the car, my eyes straining to see beyond the reach of the headlights. The fog seemed to writhe and twist, like living tendrils of smoke.
"I can feel fear rising up from the depths of my soul." Enzo spoke in mock fear, a small smirk tugging his lips as I focused on the trail, trying to navigate the pathway.
A sign loomed out of the fog, the words scrawled in what looked like dried blood: 'AUCTION HOUSE' I laughed, a harsh, mirthless sound. "I hope I get the opportunity to bid and to take home Fredy Krueger's head," I spoke because there was no way this was an artistic or jewelry auction. "It would look good in my office, no?"
"It would. Although, it might contrast to your other art collections." Enzo said and I hummed in reply. "Who needs a horror movie when you're driving down this road." He chuckled in amusement.
After a while of driving, we came across a streetlight which flickered, casting the road in a stroboscopic glow. I felt like I was driving into the very abyss of hell, with no escape from the horrors that lurked within the shadows and I enjoyed every second of it.
I laughed again, the sound manic, as I brought the car to a halt in front of a building which looked strange.
"Finally." Enzo sighed while unbuckling his seatbelt. We both exited the car and walked towards the entrance. "Seems like lots of rich fellas are out here tonight." Enzo continued which made me give the surrounding a quick scan and indeed, they were expensive cars parked in every corner of this space.
We walked towards the door with two big men stood in front, guarding it like their lives depended on the door. They looked like they lift 100 boulders as a warmup and eat a table for twelve food as one meal. I showed them the card Dante had given me and we were handed two face masks in return.
We made our way inside the house and the interior was surprisingly better than the exterior. Although, a little bit of changes could be done here and there but what do I know.
We took our seats in one of the farthest table from the podium so we wouldn't attract unwanted attention and by the looks of it, it seemed like we were late.
My eyes trailed up to the podium and I saw about 10 girls who were as white as they came. Whose Vampire auction was this? Their skin were so pale and it made me wonder if these girls have heard the word 'sunlight' before
They must be dance performers given the exposing dress they had on and the veil which covered half of their faces which matched with their dresses.
The vibration of my phone brought me out of my thoughts as I saw it was from my Father. He only calls for important reasons, hence, I should never skip his call not even when I'm on the brink of death.
M I stood up with Enzo standing up immediately after me. "It's fine, stay here and I'll go receive the call." I assured. "It's papa." I added making my way to one of the restrooms stalls.
I was walking so fast to an extent I didn't realize when my body collided with a smaller frame making them fall to the floor. I heard a soft "oomph" as the impact knocked the air out of them..
"Are you fucking blind-" My sentence got stuck in my throat as I stared at the figure who had managed to stand but she was bent as she adjusted her shoes.
She was dressed in a revealing purple dress which had cuts in the most revealing places, making her flawless pale skin glimmer underneath the artificial light that shone in this cave like space. 'She must be one of those dancers'
She slowly stood straight but her face was still glued to her feet and I managed to see that half her face which was wrapped in a purple veil which matched her dress, leaving only from her eyes upward, visible.
She stared up at me and I met her glossy eyes.
Those eyesâŠ.
'Beautiful, Artistic'
Her eyes were the most beautiful and artistic thing I have ever seen. The left one was brown which looked dull, hopeless, sorrowful, nothingness were filled behind those beautiful brown orb of hers.
While the right one was a vibrant green color, it held hope, promises, life was present in those ocean-green eye of hers.
So Artistic.
Staring up at me with a crease in between her eyebrow as if she was contemplating on what to say or do next. She eventually decided on rolling her eyes at me before walking away.
The action made my cock twitch in my pants. The only time I would prefer for her to roll those eyes of hers was when I was pounding into her and making her see the room from different angles. I shook my head from the perverted thoughts I was having before stepping into one of the bathroom stalls to receive my Fathers call which I had momentarily forgotten about.
I returned back to the bidding hall after a while with an anticipating look on Enzo's face. "Is everything okay." He asked.
"They caught a spy 2 miles away from our base." I explained and related the whole context to Enzo just as how Father had told me.
"Now I have an insane urge to go home." He groaned, dragging his left palm down his face.
With a smirk, I said; "Sadistic bastard."
"Learnt from the best." He returned my smirk.
I slumped further into the armchair, my eyes scanning the crowd with a mixture of disdain and disinterest. The auction was dragging on, the same tired faces, the same empty arguments, the same predictable bids. Well, at least I got to know that those girls weren't dancers, they were the 'arts' that was being sold tonight.
I let my gaze drift to the corner, where a young girl stood, her eyes downcast, her body trembling beneath the flimsiest of dresses. Another lost soul, another commodity to be bought and sold.
My mind began to wander, conjuring up images of the real art pieces I had bid on last week. The colors, the texture, the emotion. Now that was something worth getting excited about. Not this charade.
A soft gasp rippled through the crowd, and I was jerked back to the present. My gaze snapped to the podium, where the young girl eyes had flown open, revealing those beautiful orbs to me. For a fleeting moment, our gazes locked, and I felt...something tugged in my chest. A reminder that even in this wretched place, Art and beauty could still be found.
"20 thousand." The auctioneer spoke with uncertainty laced in her voice.
"why does she cost for less when the others were over a 100 grand?" Enzo muttered beside me as I continued to stare at the little piece of art which would be worth paying an hefty amount for. I scanned her from head to toe and I would be sick in the head to say she wasn't an attractive one. She has the most potential and was also the most artistic being in this room, so why was she being sold for less?
The auctioneer's voice rose, snapping me back to reality. I shifted in my seat, intrigued with what was before me. This little bird with her mismatched eyes, might just be worth bidding on.
"Boss this is a good deal," I heard a voice whispering in the table before me. "We could buy her and sell her for more, think about it." A wannabe husky voice spoke which sounded like a car in the early 1900s whose gears had been tampered with by a 6 year old.
"Are you blind, didn't you know the reason why she is being sold for less? Look at her eyes." Another groggy voice responded with an irritated tone to his voice which irked me up for some reason.
"I'm aware they are unearthly and weird but I'm sure the bigger men won't care while fucking her. I guess she'll either be blindfolded or would be in a backshot position all the time so she wouldn't bewitch or scare them away with those hideous eyes of hers." He paused as his eyes trailed towards the pale girl who had tears fighting to fall from those precious eyes.
"Apart from her eyes, she's a beauty and she has goods, look at those milky big boobs, they look so...heavenly." He lustfully whispered making my jaw tick. "Honestly, I would fuck her and I'm sure there are many men who would ignore the fact that her eyes looked....well, not too good." He finished, his words aggravating me but I kept my cool because I wouldn't want to cause a scene on the Azurian ground.
"Hmm, you do have a point Sivan. When did you get this smart?" He chuckled amusedly. "Remind me to give you an extra pay hm?" They both laughed at their words before the fat one decided to raise up his card. "20 thousand-"
"100." I interjected causing both men before me to turn their heads towards me. It was evident they both weren't happy with how high I raised the bidding. 80k was like a bottle of water in the ocean to me.
"What are you doing?" Enzo whispered beside me as he stared at me in shock.
"Auctioning an art piece." I replied with a bored expression as everybody's eyes in the room started to notice me. The urge to give them all third eyes in between their eyebrows was tempting but even though these people did nothing wrong to me, they were all here for the same reason 'trafficking girls' and using them as sex toys.
"100 thousand dollars. Do I hear 120?" The auctioneer was also stunned but quickly regained composure and proceeded with the auctioning.
"120 thousand." The horizontally 6'feet figure before me spoke. A mocking tone laced in his voice. I scoffed at his boisterous tone. I would've bought him as a play thing for Zeus if he was for sale. Or maybe I should kidnap him and actually gift him to Zeus.
"400." I calmly bid. "400 thousand dollars do I hear 450?" The auctioneer continued, her gaze zeroed to the back side of the hall where Enzo and I were sat.
"500 thousand dollars." The fatso spoke, as he turned his head to show me his accomplished grin which made him look like a figure a 4 year old would draw while being blindfolded.
"500 thousand dollars. Do I hear 600?"
"700." I spoke which made the grin falter from fatso's face. The insane urge to kidnap this man and watch him beg for his life while being toyed around by Zeus was inviting but I refrained from that thought.
Seconds passed and no one seemed to have an higher bidding price than me. "700 thousand. GoingâŠ.going-"
"800-"
"5 million." I bided.