Our young Lady

“Are you kidding me?! You said you would give me 50 gold credits!”

“50 silver credits. I never mentioned Gold, ma'am.”

“She is worth at least ten times what we had agreed on!”

“Maybe, but I also know no one else will accept such a dangerous deal. So it's 50 silver credits, no more. Or good luck finding someone else who will accept the risk of taking a bullet.”

The beautiful woman looked down at the child, infuriated. She was obviously angry but still considering the man's proposition. The little girl didn't dare to make a sound, even as the scary woman was holding her skinny wrist painfully tight. The man sighed and crushed his cigarette under his foot.

“Come on, ma'am, I ain't got all day. Take it or leave it, 50 silver credits for that kid.”

“A hundred.”

“What?”

“I won't leave her for less than a hundred silver credits.”

The man sighed. This woman was a real pain in the ass… And this was risky. Even in a dark deserted alley, at dawn, he didn't feel too safe negotiating with this crazy woman. If it wasn't for the kid’s value… After an additional minute of consideration, he resigned himself and nodded. He could get a lot more once he got a hold of that girl anyway. The man took out a little pouch and reluctantly gave the exact amount to the woman. It was a short and silent transaction. 

The little girl, unaware of what was going on, was suddenly pushed rudely to the man's side, who grabbed her shoulder.

“Alright, you come with me.”

“But…”

“Shut up, brat!”

The greedy woman's yelling had her petrified. What was going on? A light rain started falling on them, but the woman only had eyes for her money. She didn't even look once at the little girl being pulled away.

Her bony little legs struggled to follow the man's big steps. But he was in a hurry and had no consideration for the child. Yanking her by the arm he dragged her across several deserted streets. Those were the kind of streets no respectable people would walk, especially on a foggy night like this. It was no place for a young 9-year-old girl.

The man dragged her into a large, imposing and shady building. From the outside, it looked abandoned. However, once they got inside, it was crawling with life. 

And it was a terrifying sight.

Cages. Dozens of metallic cages randomly packed with so many living creatures she didn’t know where to look at. There were animals, humans, and odd creatures she had never seen before. They came in all shapes and sizes, with fur, skin or scales. Some with claws, fangs, too. The ones she could discern in the dark seemed to have been the result of monstrous experiences. Mixes of animals, creatures unlike any others. But some were still loud and aggressive while others curled in a corner in accepting silence. She thought this was a prison, but one that might have jumped out of a nightmare. She stepped back, afraid, but the man suddenly grabbed her hair.

“You come here! Get in there!”

“Hey, easy on the merchandise. That one is expensive…”

And just with that, she was thrown savagely in one of the cages. The man was so brutal she even hit her head against one of the iron bars. Her eyes became teary as she struggled to get back on her knees. Where was she… The cage was so tiny she could only sit, and if she stretched her arms she could reach both sides. Moreover, she suddenly realized she wasn’t alone. Right next to her, a little cub was all curled up, trembling in fear just like her. One of its ears was even bleeding. 

Even if she was sad and scared, she felt even more sorry for the little wolf, as its silver-white fur was smeared with blood and debris. She tore a piece of the worn-out rags she was wearing, and tried to bandage it the best she could with her shaking hands.

“I’m sorry…” She murmured to the poor creature.

She didn’t even dare to speak out loud, although it was so noisy around them and probably no one else would have heard it. Screaming, barking, yelling, so many pitiful voices were echoing against the walls around them.

“Alright, we are behind on schedule so let’s get this moving! Put these first! Everyone is ready? We have a last-minute bonus so let’s get this s**t show going!”

The men kept yelling orders, and the little girl had already lost sight of the one who had brought her. They moved the cages one after the other, carrying or pulling them towards another room. The one she shared with the little wolf was one of the first to go. The little girl felt the cub’s claw gripping her, as if trying to hold on to her. Only then did she notice her little companion’s bright gold eyes. She had never seen such pretty and shiny eyes before.

“Next, next! Keep moving guys!”

Something was rolling under them, and other cages were suddenly bashed right next to theirs. The men were gathering all cages in large vehicles, storing them quickly one after another. She cried out in fear. Some of the creatures in those cages looked so scary she couldn’t bear to look. Scales, feathers, and eyes lurking in the middle of dark shapes she couldn’t figure out. A clawed hand suddenly came out of nowhere and grabbed her black hair. She cried in pain, and the cub jumped. Biting hard with its fangs, it finally managed to have the mysterious hand let go. Scared, the little girl held the puppy close, making sure the hand wouldn’t attack it next. Both of them were shaking against each other.

But suddenly, a large explosion deafened the girl. She whirled to see what was going on. Somewhere behind them, a large door had been blown away, and many people suddenly rushed in. She immediately thought those were soldiers, with their red coats and guns. Total chaos ensued. The men who had manipulated the cages were trying to flee in all directions. Someone was yelling orders. Gunshots were heard, dark smoke spread out the place.

“Here! Captain! I think I found her!”

One of the men in red coats had stopped right in front of her cage. Staring at her with eyes widened by surprise, he addressed her with a gentle voice despite the ruckus around them, his hand on one of the cage's metal bars.

“Everything will be alright, my Lady. Don’t be afraid.”

How could she not be afraid? So many people were running and yelling! She looked all around, panicked. Why were they all fighting? The soldiers quickly took control of the area, and two of them ran to bring keys to the one who was facing her. The door to her cage was opened, but she had no idea what to do, as the men were right in front. She was curled up at the very back of her cage, holding on to the silver wolf cub, frightened.

The gentle-looking young man reached out his hand to her, speaking softly.

“It’s alright, it’s alright. Could you come out? I don’t mean to scare you, my Lady. But we should leave, this is a very bad place for you to be.”

She was hesitant. She didn’t know this man, or why he called her a Lady, and she didn’t want to leave the little wolf. But she didn’t want to stay there either. That man was smiling, looked nice and patient. And that place was very scary…

Despite her fear, she slowly got out of her cage, carrying the little cub with her and grabbing the man’s hand after a few seconds. She looked down at the little wolf that didn’t dare to move an inch between her arms. It was shivering too. However, someone suddenly lifted the young lady up, carrying her in sturdy arms. An older soldier, with a white beard, comforted her, patting her back.

“Don’t worry, my Lady. I’ll take you home. You have been very brave, haven’t you?”

Just when he said those words, something broke inside her. As if she had been holding them all along, big tears suddenly started flowing endlessly. The man was gently patting her back while walking, headed outside. He covered her with his cloak, protecting her frail body from the smoke and the cold. The sound of the rain met them as they ventured out of the building. However, another soldier came, carrying a large umbrella that protected her before a single drop could reach her.

“My Lord, we found her!” Yelled the old soldier.

She heard the sound of steps running, and when she turned her head to see who was coming, someone grabbed her out of the soldier’s hands.

Without warning, she was faced with another man. He was so close, she could see herself reflected in his crimson, blood-red eyes. It was a scary man. His face was stone cold, with chiseled features, a straight nose, and thin lips. His jet-black hair added to the dark aura surrounding him. Actually, he was all dressed in black.

Yet, he was staring at her with an indecipherable expression. Like he was completely shaken and speechless. He stayed like this for a long while, scrutinizing her for so long she started blushing. He slowly brushed her cheek with his cold fingers.

Behind him, the young soldier came running and was panting, restless.

“It’s her, my Lord, isn’t it? It’s our young Lady?”

“...It’s her. It’s our Milena.”

With those few words, the cold and dark man suddenly hugged her without warning. She was scared, yet she found his embrace in the fur coat warm and didn’t fight it. She was held against his heart, a large hand caressing her hair. Then, he wrapped the little girl in a fold of his cloak and suddenly turned around to enter a carriage that had been waiting for them.

“Let’s go home. She is shivering.”

“Yes, my Lord.”

The carriage started moving. She was still held tightly by this man and didn’t dare to move. Actually, she was feeling a bit drowsy, with her head lying on his shoulder and the warm coat surrounding her. None of them was speaking. He only kept caressing her hair until she inevitably fell asleep...