Abused and Bought

Chosen

As the young vampire scanned the pen, there was silence, eyeing the trembling teenagers. The ones at the gate went ignored, pouting with furrowed brows.

Grace watched, also confused as to why he wasn't staring at the willing pets, the ones who would jump across a flaming field to be the pet of such a handsome young man. Instead, he continued to scan. Grace ducked behind the curtain when his eyes flitted towards her, sucking in a breath. She hoped he hadn't seen her.

When she peered around the curtain again, one of the desperate girls slipped her hand through the bars, tugging at his pant leg. Grace glanced up at his face. Her lips were puckered into a pout, eyes fluttering.

He shook off the girl's hand. The girl gaped at his response. On his lips was a scowl, his eyebrows creased in annoyance instead of amusement.

The Shop Owner rushed over, seeming to come out of a stupor. His face was red, the tips of his ears tinted.

"Sir, this is your last warning!" He snapped. Grace rolled her eyes. Vampires were such prideful creatures. Shop Owner didn't want a foolish young adult ruining his reputation as an 'orderly store.' "Leave and wait for your turn before I--"

"Those pets don't look very taken care of." The young vampire mumbled, tsking angrily when another girl grabbed at his pant leg. He shook her off harshly. "Knock it off!" He snapped, the girls flinching away. He huffed. "These pets aren't trained very well, are you even licensed to sell them?"

Grace gawked. No one had ever talked to Shop Owner like that or anyone she's seen. Shop Owner's face flushed scarlet, sputtering. The vampire ignored him, continuing to scan the pen. His eyes snapped to Grace's curtain, where she immediately ducked a second too late.

"Hey, old man." Grace gawked again, her eyebrows shooting to her forehead. "Are you hiding pets or something? Who was that?"

A breath hitched in her throat, her chest clenching.

"Now that I mention it, those pets seem to like that curtain..." The vampire hummed. Grace swallowed, heart hammering. "Whatever, I am going to buy." Her shoulders sagged in relief.

"No!" Shop Owner snapped. "This is your final warning, sir! Leave now and wait for your turn, or else I will--"

"Isn't it bad for business to say 'no' to a paying customer?" The vampire hummed, his voice tinted with smugness. "Besides, you're causing a scene." Grace didn't have to peek past her curtain to know that Shop Owner was fuming.

The only sound left was Shop Owner's snarling before he huffed. Grace scoffed. He had given up.

"Fine." Shop Owner snapped. "Which would you like to buy?"

Another moment of silence.

"That one. The blonde."

Grace snapped her head toward the tiny blonde. The poor girl was traumatized. With skin a deathly shade of white, her eyes bulged nearly out of their sockets. Tremors racked her body as tears threatened to spill down her cheeks.

The Shop Owner huffed. "Very well." He grumbled. He twisted his head towards a nearby employee, startling the poor worker with his glare. "You! Go get a leash and collar!"

The worker scrambled off. The Shop Owner also trudged away, snarling under his breath about disrespectful teenagers. The young vampire never moved. His eyes trained on the shivering girl.
Sobs flew past her lips, eyes wet with crocodile tears. Heart throbbing, Grace watched. The need to protect the poor girl was intense, screaming for Grace to move. She didn't. She couldn't risk getting noticed by either the vampire or demons standing confused around the shop. Sneaking a peek at the vampire, her throat bobbed.