The burly-looking man shoved Hermione hard against the ground. He saw the little girl whimper in pain, a hiss erupting from her lips as her arm scraped the rough ground.
Another yelp came from the side. Hermione was startled by the sound, she whipped her head to see Celeste who was thrown by another hefty man.
The girls scurried over to wrap themselves in their warm embrace, while the men sneered at them.
The men saw themselves out. Hermione and Celeste remained in the grand hall, but fortunately it was illuminated and they could observe clearly, unlike in the cell earlier.
"I wonder why they brought us here" Celeste mumbled, her violet eyes wandering around cautiously.
Shortly, a woman came out of nowhere, her polished shoe clanking against the ground as she approached them. She was a fine woman, dressed in an exquisite gown with a hat on her head. She seemed amiable, and her voice sounded fruity.
Her gentle gaze fell on the two girls, "Hello sweetlings" she acknowledged with a smile tugging at the corner of her lips.
"I am Madame Rhea Logan, and I shall be in charge of your well-being from now on"
Her eyes darted from the golden-brown-haired girl to the dark-haired one, she sensed the terror in their gazes. And she wondered why her amiable expression hadn't gotten to them yet.
"Thank you, but no" Celeste declined with a hardened gaze. She was sick to have heard the woman say so.
Hermione added, "O--our parents can take care of us... L---let us go" She returned the woman's smile with a frown.
Rhea chuckled. They were amusing. Not very different from what other girls have said. Some of them were happy to have been brought here, while some were devastated to have ended up in her hands. With a glance, she could discern that these two would fall in the category of the displeased ones.
She lowered herself to their level and reached for the most attractive one, who appeared frightened, despite attempting to conceal her fear.
Hermione shrugged off the woman's advances, glaring at her hands and moving to the back.
"I would take care of you two. And I want you to forget about going back home, this is your home now and you shall serve me" She uttered.
Celeste chipped in with rage in her eyes. She had caught a whiff of what was happening. The woman seemed to be a person who engaged in evil acts, employing children to carry out their evil deeds.
She had kidnapped and brought them here.
She wanted to lure them into their trap by offering them a good life but Celeste was no fool. There certainly wouldn't be a better place than her home.
"We refuse"
The soft look in Rhea's gaze transformed into something ugly. A grim expression appeared on her countenance and her lips curled into a smirk.
"I see how it is," She said, more to herself.
She rose to her feet and beckoned on her boys to grab hold of them once again. The men handled them roughly as they were led to another place.
Hermione and Celeste saw themselves in another room. Lavishly furnished and decorated in a way to catch their breaths.
In the room were other girls, chattering and laughing at each other.
While some remained on their beds and gazing at nothing in particular, delving deeper into their thoughts and wondering what fate had in store for them.
The room that was once loud has decreased in its volume when the girls caught sight of Hermione and Celeste standing at the entrance.
They stared at the beautiful girls and would return to murmur among themselves. There were those who were content with finding new people to join them, while others were envious, particularly of the princess wearing a yellow gown.
Feeling their intense gaze on her, Hermione's eyes lowered.
She then heard Celeste speak in a hushed tone, "If anyone asks for our names, we should not tell them our real names lest they exploit it to their advantage"
"I am Poppy and you are Eden" She instructed and Hermione nodded without questioning anything.
Just like she had suspected, one of the girls with curly hair advanced towards them, she was neither smiling nor frowning at them.
"You two must be new" She observed with narrowed eyes, glancing from Hermione to Celeste.
"I am Lavinia Torres and the head of this place. You are?"
"Poppy" Celeste answered.
"E-eden" Hermione responded, stuttering.
Hermione took a glance at Celeste who nodded briefly. She was pleased that Hermione was being obedient. They both had to take precautionary motives here to survive and return to where they belonged.
"Great" Lavinia commented, her cheeks puffing. She added, "The first thing to do is to make yourself presentable before Madame Rhea comes back to take one of you to the lords"
Curiously, Hermione asked, "W-why?"
Lavinia's blue orbs fell on her, "Everyone serves the lords. We are called 'Blood bags' for a reason" She let them know.
"Blood bags?" Celeste inquired and Lavinia nodded in response.
"The lords are purebred vampires and they love to feast on young maidens like us because our bloods are not polluted and taste heavenly to them" Lavinia explained to them, she swiveled on her heels and began to take slow steps to the center of the room.
She continued, "Madame Rhea is a popular figure to the vampires for her ability to supply an unlimited number of blood bags. She gets paid handsomely and takes care of us just the way we want. That is how her business has been going on for decades"
"Decades!?" Celeste was baffled.
Lavinia turned to face them while standing in the center of the room, "Yes"
"D-do you not ever want to leave?" Hermione inquired with a frown. This was unacceptable. The woman was exploiting them for her own gain, and she was certain that she was giving the children low out of what she was receiving.
"This is my home" Lavinia answered without a second thought.
They've been brainwashed! Celeste thought.
She wanted to get the ladies out of here. No one deserved this life. It wasn't fair.
"Listen" Celeste muttered, "We can all get out of here if we join forces. You'll get to see your family and friends again, don't you agree?" She spoke in a convincing voice.
The other bored girls began to gather as it was a topic that interested them, it spoke of their freedom and they could only want to participate.
Celeste looked at Lavinia hopefully. The latter glanced around, to see people concerned about what Celeste had said.
"There shall be no such thing!" Lavinia yelled, her voice was shrill. Sending shivers down the spine of many and they cringed.
She gritted her teeth, "Better prepare yourself before Madame Rhea comes in" She instructed in a warning tone.
"The Lords doesn't harm us," Another of the girls said, backing Lavinia up. From how it appeared, it seemed like they were friends.
"They do funny things to us and you'll certainly enjoy them. Just hope not to fall into the wrong hands and your stay in this place shall be worthwhile"
Hermione glared at the bastard.