Page 3 of Convincing His Little Bee (K!nktober #2)
THREE
Standing on the creaky, rotting stage as some over-caffeinated vampire went on and on about how rare fae were and how great it would be to “acquire him” for their “collections” made Cin want to throw up.
For the millionth time in his life, he cursed his inability to shift size at will.
There were all manner of creatures in the building, who knew what kind of strength or abilities they held.
Next to him, Parker trembled but held a brave, if unemotional face. Cin wanted to comfort the human but he didn’t dare move from the spot the big ogre corralled them into. The creatures in the room were loud. And smelled rancid. They hooted and hollered at Cin and Parker.
“Get ‘em naked!”
“Yeah! Let’s see the goods!”
Shouts rang out from the crowd, demanding the removal of their clothes so the creatures knew “what we’re payin’ for”.
Fucking yuck. Cin’s stomach churned at the calls. What reactions would these degenerate creatures have if they thought they were buying one thing…but instead discovered another?
“Ten thousand gold for the fae!” A booming voice overtook the cacophony. The crowd laughed and hollered at the offer before finally settling down.
“It seems the bidding has started!” The vampire walked in front of Parker and Cin on the stage. “Starting with our pretty fae. Do I hear ten five?”
Cin ignored the specific shouts, arguments, and number bids rising higher and higher. How am I going to get us out of this chuckle fuck disaster?
The roaring, booing, and clapping of the crowd tuned Cin back into the action around him. One of the ogre guards strode on the stage, grabbed Cin’s upper arm, and started yanking him away. Cin had to scurry forward on his tiptoes when the ogre walked so he wouldn’t end up on his face.
“Parker!” Cin yelled. The human spared him a glance but then looked back at the rough wooden floor.
Motherfuckface . He’s only a human. He would never survive any of these creatures.
Cin struggled in the grasp of the ogre but pollinator fae were not known for their strength.
He twisted, attempting to stomp on the man’s foot, bite his hand, knee him in the gonads maybe. Cin was not going down without a fight.
“Yer problem now, man. Good luck.” The ogre let him go with a hard shove.
Cin tumbled, landing ass up across the lap of…someone. The man’s legs were warm, thick, and powerful. The rod poking against Cin’s side was large and offensive as fuck. He squirmed in the creature’s lap, trying to break free but the chains on his wrists hindered his movements.
“Shit. Stop struggling!” The man’s hands settled on his waist and shifted him to sit on the man’s knee facing sideways within mere seconds.
Blinking out of a dizzy spell, the fae turned to glare at the chest of the man who now held him.
Tall, so tall . Cin peered up, and up, jolting slightly when he looked into the gold and red swirling eyes of the dark red demon that held him captive.
Presumably, this man had won the auction and purchased Cin.
The erection the demon sported was evidence enough of what the man had in mind for Cin.
Fuck that and fuck this twatwaffle. But not actually. Even if he was handsome. And clean. And didn’t smell like drugs or feces like the creatures around them. No .
“Fuck you, you twatwaffle!” Cin yelled, trying to stand. But secured in the hands of the man, his feet dangling due to the man’s long ass legs, the fae was rightly stuck in place.
The demon stood, immediately draping Cin over his shoulder.
“Let me down!” Cin kicked at the creature’s chest and stomach until the man banded his arm across Cin’s upper thighs, stilling his movements. Making for the door, his new owner ignored his yells, instead accepting congratulations and cheers from the creatures as they passed.
“Are we ready to start the bidding on our lovely human?” The voice of the vampire on stage broke through and Cin jerked harder.
“Let me down! Parker!” He yelled as loud as he could but it was no use. The demon didn’t break stride once on his way out the door. “Parker!” Cin yelled one more time before the door slammed behind them, the noises inside cutting off abruptly.
The quiet of the night jarred the fae. There must have been a spell on the building to dampen the noise. Cin’s ears buzzed, his head pounded as blood pooled toward it as he lay rag-dolled and upside down. “Put me down, you cocknose!”
“Not yet, little bee.” The demon patted his ass.
Cin squealed in outrage at the manhandling as well as the nickname. This asshole pervert who spent an excessive amount of gold on him did not have the right to give him a cute as hell nickname.
Cin kept still, trying to conserve energy. The demon has to put me down at some point right? Cin would be ready. To fight or run. Something to get out of this .
The demon walked through the dark forest for what felt like miles.
The occasional growl or rustle under a bush nearby gave Cin a start but the demon continued on as if no predator could touch him.
Cin refused to be impressed by the size of the man’s arms, or the way his shoulder flexed under the fae’s stomach. Shut up.
Cin wasn’t familiar with the flora or fauna of The Crimson Reaches. The large trees they passed, the creatures that snarled, and the bugs that lit up were a mystery to him. There wasn’t much light at night, the sky a deep, dark red without a moon in sight.
Finally, the demon slowed his pace, coming to a stop.
The man easily lifted Cin off his shoulder and placed the fae on the ground.
Shaking off the head rush, Cin kept the demon in his sight but peered around.
He couldn’t see anything remarkable about where they stopped.
A small field among the towering trees, but not any different than similar fields they’d passed through.
He turned back to the demon, not sure what to expect.
The man, he had to be at least six feet five inches, looked at Cin with an expectant look.
Why is this demon so attractive? He wore a leather vest, showing off his thick muscled arms. His pants were dark, still sporting a very obvious and large tent in the front.
The demon towered over the fae’s small frame… Cin felt like prey.
“I need to leave, now.” Cin puffed up his chest, trying to appear as tall and confident as he could.
“You don’t want to be with me?” The demon’s face melted, his shoulders hunched.
“Why the fuck would I want to be with you? You just trafficked me! Your dick has been hard this whole fucking time!” Cin took a step back, the chains on his wrists clanking with his movements.
“Hmm.” The demon frowned, running a hand through his black hair. “Maybe if I…” He seemed to be speaking to himself, then nodded as if coming to a conclusion. Cin waited to see if the demon would speak again but instead the creature began to undress.
What the fuck?!
No way was Cin sticking around for whatever the fuck this was. As the demon turned his head to discard his vest, Cin took his chance. The fae darted into the closest trees, jumping over a fallen branch.
“Shit!” The demon yelled. Cin picked up his pace, fluttering his wings open to keep his balance. He couldn’t fly due to the spelled cuffs but he could still move them enough to help as he dodged over branches, skirted bushes, leapt from rock to rock.
He didn’t hear the demon giving chase but he didn’t stop. Who knew what kind of magic the demon possessed? Maybe he could follow with no sound? Maybe he could summon Cin back to his side whenever he pleased?
It didn’t matter, Cin wouldn’t stop.
He didn’t notice the silence around him until he tripped on a rock and went down, landing just inside a meadow with a small pond. He panted, trying to catch his breath. Cin listened carefully.
All those bugs he had heard earlier during their trek, gone. The growls, snarls, and rustling of animals, gone. The only sound left in the forest seemed to be the soft wind in the trees.
Tempering his own breaths and trying to get a sense of direction, Cin heard the whisper of a new sound. Wings . Unmistakable and obvious. He looked toward the dark red sky.
A blood curdling roar broke the silence around him, setting Cin scrambling to his feet.
“Fuck knuckles!” He cursed as the shape of a drakonid blotted out the sky above him.