Chapter 2 Rhazien, the Dragon King

★ALTHEA★

The smirk on his face took me by surprise. It wasn't ugly or cruel. In fact, it made him look incredibly handsome.

Since he was just standing there looking at me, I took the opportunity to truly study him. We locked eyes in a silent staring contest. His hair was a bright, fiery red. It wasn't exactly a surprising colour; it made perfect sense, considering he was a dragon. His eyes were a deep, striking gold, and his lips were dark red. For a brief second, I found myself wondering how kissable those lips looked. I immediately scolded myself for such a foolish thought. I shifted my gaze downward, openly assessing the rest of him. His burnished bronze skin. He was broad-shouldered and heavily muscled beneath his expensive garments.

Rhazien dropped eye contact first. He turned his head toward Varro and the guards.

"Get her the hell out of that cage," he ordered. His voice was low and dangerous.

The guards didn't waste a second. They fumbled with the keys in a desperate hurry, their hands shaking as they unlocked the heavy iron door. The metal screeched loudly as it swung open. I stepped out of the cage, my bare feet meeting the cold stone floor.

Now that I was out, I found myself standing face to face with Rhazien. Up close, I realized just how tall he truly was. I was not short, yet the top of my head only reached the middle of his chest. I had to tilt my chin upward just to look at his face.

Rhazien lowered his golden eyes, taking a long look at the wet, see-through chemise I was wearing. His jaw tightened. He snapped his fingers sharply.

"Get the hell out of the room. All of you," he barked at Varro and the guards.

Varro looked like he wanted to say something, but one glance at Rhazien's expression made him shut his mouth. The guards and my vampire father scrambled out of the backstage area, slamming the door shut behind them.

The moment they left, the heavy tension in the air eased slightly. I finally let out a breath I hadn't realized I was holding. I braced myself, wondering what the Dragon King was going to do to me now that we were completely alone.

To my surprise, Rhazien reached up to his shoulders and unclasped his heavy outer robe. He pulled it off and draped it over my shivering shoulders. The fabric was thick, weighty, and incredibly warm. It instantly blocked out the chill clinging to my wet clothes.

"Thank you," I muttered softly.

He didn't respond. Instead, he reached out, grabbed my arm firmly but not roughly, and started leading me out of the backstage room.

He guided me through the rear exits and completely out of the auction house. As we passed through the heavy doors, the cool night air struck my face. I looked around, trying to figure out where we were, but I didn't recognize the area.

It was late evening. The sky was dark, and the moon already hung overhead. In the courtyard outside, I could see other wealthy buyers leaving the building. Some of those monsters were leading away the other girls who had been sold earlier. A few of the men were bald, potbellied, and looked incredibly greasy. I watched a young girl get shoved into a carriage by a cruel-looking vampire.

It felt incredibly selfish of me, but as I looked at the man holding my arm, I felt a small wave of relief. At least my monster wasn't bald, out of shape, or a disgusting vampire.

Rhazien led me toward a massive, luxurious carriage waiting near the edge of the courtyard. Two large, beautiful horses stood harnessed at the front, ready to carry its weight. I stopped walking for a second, completely awed by them. Their coats were sleek, and they looked so strong and peaceful compared to the monsters inside the auction house. A deep longing washed over me. I wanted to reach out and touch their soft noses, but I knew I couldn't. I was a slave now, and slaves didn't get to pause and pet horses.

As we stood there, a strange feeling came over me. Even though I had just been sold like a piece of meat, I felt a peculiar sense of freedom. I was away from Varro. That alone felt like a victory.

Varro had been a horrible father. He treated me like dirt every single day of my life. Even though he had multiple maids working in his sprawling household, he made me perform heavy servant duties on a completely empty stomach. He only allowed me to eat a single meal a day, leaving me weak and hungry most of the time. To make things worse, he used me as his personal blood bag whenever he wanted a snack, completely disregarding the fact that he had a wife who should have been handling his needs. He was a monster in every sense of the word. Being away from him was the best thing that could have happened to me, even if it meant belonging to a dragon.

Rhazien must have noticed that I had stopped. He looked down at me, following my gaze. He saw the mixture of longing and sadness on my face as I stared at the animals.

"Do you like horses?" he asked. His voice was flat, but the question caught me off guard.

I snapped out of my daze and quickly looked up at him. I gave him a small nod.

Rhazien nodded back. He looked away, as though he were speaking against his own will, and muttered, "You will see more of them at my estate."

He didn't wait for me to reply. He opened the carriage door and guided me inside.

The interior of the carriage was stunning. Everything gleamed with wealth. It was richly appointed in gold and cushioned with the softest velvet seats I had ever felt. It smelled of polished wood and expensiveness. Rhazien stepped in behind me and closed the door. He knocked on the front wall of the carriage, signaling the coachman that we were ready. A second later, the carriage jerked forward and began rolling down the uneven road.

We didn't sit directly across from each other. Instead, we sat on opposite sides, diagonal from one another. I chose the seat beside the right window, pressing myself into the corner so I could look outside at the passing trees. Rhazien sat by the opposite window, staring straight ahead.

The silence between us was palpable. The only sound was the steady clatter of the horses' hooves against the road.

"It is going to be a long journey," Rhazien said suddenly, breaking the silence. He didn't look at me when he spoke. "You can sleep if you want to."

"I am fine," I replied automatically. I kept my eyes fixed on the dark scenery beyond the glass. I didn't want to let my guard down around him. He was still a stranger, and he was still a king who had bought me.

But as the minutes ticked by, the warmth of his heavy robe began to work against me. The exhaustion from being drugged earlier started catching up with my body. My head felt heavy, and my eyelids became impossible to keep open. The gentle rocking motion of the carriage as it travelled down the long road didn't help either.

I tried to fight it, genuinely. I forced my eyes open several times, but the darkness outside offered nothing to keep me awake. My mind felt foggy, and the hunger brought on by my usual one-meal-a-day diet left me feeling even weaker.

Eventually, my head leaned back against the cushioned seat. My eyes closed completely, and I drifted into a deep, heavy sleep.