Sold Away

Lila couldn't stop looking at the man's crimson eyes. They glowed like fire in the dim basement light. She backed away until she hit the wall.

"Who are you?" she whispered.

The tall stranger smiled, showing teeth that looked too sharp to be normal. "You may call me Cyrus, though most know me as the Blood King." His voice was deep and smooth, like dark honey.

Victor shuffled nervously beside him. "The deal is done then? Our debt is cleared?"

The Blood King didn't look at Victor. His red eyes stayed fixed on Lila. "Yes. The debt is cleared." He reached into his coat and pulled out a thick envelope. "As promised, something extra for your... cooperation."

Victor grabbed the envelope and peeked inside. His eyes opened at what looked like a lot of money.

"Leave us," the Blood King ordered. "I wish to speak with Lila alone."

Victor practically ran up the stairs. Lila heard him call to Remy and Dominic, telling them to pack their things. They were going tonight.

Lila's heart pounded so hard she thought it might burst from her chest. "What do you want from me?"

The Blood King stepped closer, still holding her mother's notebook. "Your mother never told you the truth, did she?" He flipped through the pages. "About what you are? About your blood?"

"I don't know what you're talking about," Lila said, though something deep inside her whispered that she did.

"Your mother, Elena, was very special," he said. "And so are you." He stopped on a page and turned the book so Lila could see. It showed a drawing of a woman who looked just like her mother, standing next to a guy who looked like... him.

"That's impossible," Lila whispered. "This diary is old, but you look the same as in the drawing."

The Blood King smiled again. "Time works differently for my kind."

"Your kind?" Lila felt dizzy. This couldn't be happening.

A loud crash came from upstairs, followed by screams. The Blood King's head snapped up, his eyes sharpening.

"We need to leave. Now." He grabbed Lila's arm.

"What's happening?" Lila tried to pull away, but his grip was like iron.

"They found you." His voice was eager. "We must go before—"

The basement door burst open. A man with gray hair and cold blue eyes stood at the top of the stairs. Blood dripped from his hands.

"Darius," the Blood King growled. "You're too late. She's mine now."

Lila gasped as she saw what the silver-haired man was holding – Victor's body, limp and pale.

"Hello, old friend," the guy called Darius said with a cruel smile. "Fancy meeting you here." He tossed Victor's body down the stairs like it was trash. It fell with a sickening thud at Lila's feet.

Lila screamed. Victor's eyes were open but empty, and his neck had two small holes with blood around them.

"What did you do to him?" she cried, even though she had hated Victor.

"The same thing I'm going to do to you," Darius said, his teeth gleaming sharp and white. "Unless you come with me instead of him." He pointed at the Blood King.

The Blood King pushed Lila behind him. "Run!" he ordered her.

Lila didn't need to be told twice. She spotted a small door at the back of the basement that led to the garden. She ran for it as the two guys lunged at each other with inhuman speed.

The night air was cold as Lila burst out of the basement door. Rain poured down, soaking her quickly. She ran across the yard toward the woods, her only thought to get as far away as possible.

Behind her, crashes and roars came from the house. It sounded like two monsters fighting, not men. Glass broke. Wood split. The entire house seemed to shake.

Lila reached the edge of the woods when she heard Remy scream. She stopped and looked back. Despite everything, she couldn't leave them to die. She turned and saw Remy and Dominic running from the house.

"Run!" she shouted to them, waving her arms.

They saw her and changed direction, racing toward her. Behind them, flames began to lick at the windows of the house.

"What's happening?" Dominic gasped when they reached her.

"I don't know," Lila said. "But we need to—"

A figure blurred past them so fast it was just a streak in the rain. It grabbed Dominic by the throat and lifted him off the ground.

It was Darius, the silver-haired man. Blood smeared his face, and his eyes glowed an icy blue. "Where is she going?" he asked Dominic.

"I don't know!" Dominic choked out. "Please don't hurt me!"

Darius smiled, showing fangs where normal teeth should be. "Wrong answer." He bit down on Dominic's neck.

Remy screamed and ran into the woods. Lila stood frozen in fear as Dominic's body went limp.

Darius dropped him and turned to Lila. "Your turn, little witch."

Before he could reach her, something big and dark slammed into him, sending them both crashing into a tree. It was the Blood King. His expensive coat was torn, and blood ran from a cut on his face, but his red eyes blazed with anger.

"Run, Lila!" he yelled as he grappled with Darius. "The black car at the end of the road! Go!"

This time, Lila ran. She raced down the long path, rain and tears blinding her. Behind her, inhuman snarls and crashes rang through the night.

A sleek black car sat at the end of the driveway, its engine going. The driver's door opened as she approached, and a tall man with dark skin and bright eyes stepped out.

"Get in!" he called to her. "I'm with Cyrus!"

Lila paused. Could she trust him? But what choice did she have?

A terrible scream cut through the night – not human, but filled with pain. The house was now fully covered in flames, lighting up the sky with an orange glow.

"Now!" the golden-eyed man shouted.

Lila jumped into the back seat. The man got behind the wheel and slammed the car into drive.

"What about the Blood King?" Lila asked, looking back at the burning house.

"He'll find us," the man said sadly. "If he survives."

The car sped away from the only home Lila had ever known. She watched through the rear window as the flames reached higher. Then she saw movement – a figure limping away from the fire.

"Stop!" she cried. "I think it's him!"

The driver cursed and spun the car around. He drove back toward the burning house and stopped. The Blood King stumbled toward them, his clothes torn and bloody.

The driver leaped out and helped him into the back seat beside Lila. The Blood King fell, breathing hard.

"Drive, Kael," he ordered. "The Citadel. Quickly."

The car sped away into the night. Lila looked at the Blood King, who was bleeding from several wounds.

"You're hurt," she said.

"I'll heal," he answered, his red eyes finding hers in the darkness. "But Darius will be back. He knows what you are now."

"What am I?" Lila demanded. "Why did he call me a witch? Why did you both want me? Why did people have to die tonight?"

The Blood King sighed. "Your mother tried to protect you by hiding you among people. But your blood calls to our kind. It sings with power."

"Our kind? What are you?"

The Blood King leaned closer. In the flashes of lightning, his face looked inhuman – beautiful but frightening.

"I think you know, Lila," he whispered. "Deep down, you've always known."

Lila's mother's stories came flooding back – tales she'd thought were just to scare her as a kid. Stories of animals that drank blood and lived forever.

"Vampire," she whispered.

The Blood King nodded. "And now you belong to me."

"I don't belong to anyone!" Lila said fiercely. "Take me back!"

"Back where?" he asked coldly. "Your home is ash. Your family is dead. And Darius will never stop hunting you now."

Lila looked out the window. They were on a highway now, speeding through the night. Away from everything she had ever known.

"Where are you taking me?" she asked, her voice small.

"To the Ebon Citadel," the Blood King said. "My kingdom."

"And what happens to me there?"

The Blood King's eyes glowed brighter in the dark car. "You fulfill your fate, Lila. The fate your mother tried to hide from you."

He took her hand. His skin was cold. "In one week, when the blood moon rises, you will become my bride."

Lila tried to pull her hand away, but he held tight. "Never!" she spat.

The Blood King smiled, showing the tips of his fangs. "It's not a wish, my dear. It's your fate. Written in blood centuries ago."

Suddenly, the car swerved fiercely. Kael swore from the front seat.

"He's found us already!" he shouted.

Lila looked out the window and screamed. Running alongside the car, moving faster than any person could, was Darius. His face was burned and twisted with anger, but his blue eyes locked onto hers through the glass.

He smiled, showing bloody fangs, and mouthed two words that chilled Lila to her core: "Mine soon."