Pushed inside the carriage, Ariel was shaken. She rushed to open the carriage door only to find it tightly shut. Madam Ursula had taken a different carriage, thus leaving her sitting in front of Courtez who was still as calm as a still water.
"You should be thankful to your younger sister," said Courtez who was still watching Ariel who was hastily knocking on the carriage door.
Ariel yelled, "PLEASE LET ME GO!" She cried as she remembered her sister, "I can't leave Bella alone— please, help me convince them," she said, turning her pleading eyes at Courtez who simply stared back at her.
She frowned after a while and pulled Ariel back to her seat. As if annoyed, Courtez held her by the shoulder and forced her to sit down, "Keep your ears open. I don't warn people twice. You have seen your sister sacrificing herself for your sake. Don't you know how terrible your life would be if you became a slave to the castle? You won't even survive the first hour after you have been sent in. So shut up. If you don't want to be thrown out of this carriage and become one of those slaves and waste the sacrifice of your sister, you better shut that damn noisy mouth of yours."
Hiccups escaped one after another from Ariel's mouth as she stared wide at Courtez who had threatened her subtly, "But my sister.."
"She's dead. It would be better for your spirit if you think of her as dead," Courtez said before sitting down. She crossed her arms and refused to look outside the window as if knowing that seeing that would only break their spirit even further. "One person dying is better than both of you. Now you better use that second chance of your life to survive. Survive for your little sister's sake. Doesn't she tell you to do something more important than crying?"
Ariel could only break down in tears, praying for her sister as she tried to release herself from the carriage numerous times until she passed out from exhaustion. Away from the carriage that went opposite side of the wagon, Bella felt her head covered with a rough sack over her head. She didn't know the use of it but she could guess that these people didn't want the slaves to run away and escape. Closing her eyes and nose will allow for a foolproof plan so no slave could find their way back home.
She began to accept her fate. Although tears found itself to stream down her cheeks, Bella didn't want to sob. She could feel the other women's sobs on her skin but could only pray for his own safety. What happens to her after this will be a wonder that only God would know. So many things had happened and she was too exhausted but her body was still in a rush of energy, knowing that if she slept she would find herself at more disadvantage.
The castle was far.
Arabella noted that the distance from her village to Devon was far but it was even further from Devon's gate to the Castle. It took them almost one and a half days. She had taken small naps in between but woken up when the wagon moved recklessly which caused her wrist to be knocked to the wooden chair, making her groan from pain.
She felt a pang of pain shooting over her body and her breaths became more shallow. But more than this, a sense of fear caught her body. She was never alone. Although she was brave, she was only brave because she was with Ariel. Now she is alone, she was powerless. Without her sister, left to defend herself to death.
Arabella blamed the pain of her wrist which made her thoughts waver. She could have bonded with the other ladies who shared her fate. But forming a friendship in this situation will only lead her to more troubles, and she doesn't think they'll take it well befriending her when her face is covered by the sack.
It wasn't long after she had woken up for the fifth time that the wagon stopped. They were then dragged outside in a line. She felt a man's hand pulling her roughly and throwing her toward a place. She didn't know what was happening around her. She couldn't even see the faces she passed by or the places that she had entered. All she knew at one point was her bare feet that stepped over a more polished set of cobblestone.
A familiar face which she noted to belong to Mr Rueben echoed in the hallway, "The new slaves are here."
Another person spoke, "I see Minister Rueben, it must have been tiring to pick these slaves by yourself despite your busy schedule."
But Mister Rueben, the vampire with the fearsome red eyes didn't say a single word. He was a man with less than a sentence on his tongue.
"Where should we move the slaves, Minister Rueben?" Another man asked.
"For now, some are asked to be shown toward Lady Morgana. She would like it if some of these slaves can be used for other purposes," Minister Rueben said, lackluster tone, no emotion whatsoever. A vampire was a hard being for Bella to comprehend but their sinister attitude and their lack of humanity was quick for her to grasp as if it was her second nature.
"For certain, which slaves, Minister Rueben?" The man asked and suddenly Bella felt a strong grip on her shoulder. She shuddered as she didn't expect someone to touch her.
She flinched and swatted her hand only to hear a scoff.
"Anderickk was right about you. You are feisty," said Minister Rueben to her ears, confirming her fear that the man who had held her shoulder was Minister Rueben. The vampire suddenly bent and whispered, "That would cause your death."
Bella gulped. She didn't care anymore. She was going to survive no matter what. Whatever it is that she has to do, she needs to survive and find her sister Ariel. Once she had escaped his hell hole, she would make sure to live peacefully with her sister again. Despite the lack of hope, Bella kept herself strong. Minister Rueben had shoved her and she knew she had become one of the slaves that were going to be shown to "Lady Morgana". She didn't know the lady but felt that this wasn't a good thing.
She shoved Rueben's hands again which the vampire seemed to not mind. Another couple of hand pulled her by her wrist, making her to swallow the hard pain like the bitter reality of her future. Though she couldn't see, she could hear the loud movement of the metal gate that was being pulled. Her senses other than her eyes, smell, and touch felt the presence of some other women in front of her. After that, she was dragged away by a couple of pulls and felt the cobblestone that was so polished suddenly become a cold marbled stone. This told her everything she needed to know: the fact that she had entered the castle for good.
Someone cried in front of her praying underneath her breaths whispering, "No, god, not the vampire, I don't wish to die. Not the vampires. I don't want to be eaten..."
"Move!" Someone yelled and the sound of a hit echoed beside Bella's ears.
She snapped her eyes wide underneath the sack that covered her face. Through the small dotted threads, she could see the brightness that had increased from the amount of candles that were placed around. She was then stopped again as a wooden door was now pushed. The girls were again pushed forward, making sure that they were lined shoulders to shoulders again.
Then suddenly her eyes were blinded by a bright glare as the mask over her head had been pulled harshly from her face. Bella snapped her green eyes, blinking a couple of times, and finally saw a lady who was lazily sitting while half of her body was laid over the armrest. Maids gathered beside the woman, massaging her shoulders and calves.
She eyed each of them and while everyone eyed the floor, Bella stared straight at her which made Lady Morgana to frown. Immediately, Bella felt the ringing bell of warning on the back of her head and pushed her head to the floor. She couldn't attract more attention than she already did. Especially to this woman! Even if she was curious about the color of her eyes that she still hadn't caught for good, she didn't want to make the same mistake as garnering Anderickk's hatred, and Rueben's warning.
Her body stood up at once, her feet stepping on the ground as she slapped her folded fan to her left hand. Her steps made forward from the left side of the line which caused her lilac dress to drag across the floor. She then pushed the end of her folded fans to each of the girls.
"It is a good thing to gather all the young and gorgeous human girls at once. Feeding off your virgin blood will also allow me to remain younger than before," she sang her words to each woman's ears and Bella knew at once just by the sentence that she was indeed pushed to one hell after another. She recalled Minister Rueben's words before sending her off, realizing that he had already chosen her for Lady Morgana to feed off from.
"I especially think the more gorgeous a girl is, the better it would be for my nutrition," sang Lady Morgana.
Arabella's stomach churned when she saw the similar lilac fabric shoes stopping in front of her eyes. She saw the folded fan then arrive under her chin as the lady dragged her fan upward and stared directly into her green eyes. When she saw the woman's red gaze, the blood on her face dried at once.
"You. Yes. You are the prettiest in this room amongst the other human girls aren't you?"