Patience Jones sighed and looked over herself in the mirror one last time. Long softly bouncing blond curls, warm browns and tans for makeup to highlight her blue eyes, and a lace dress that dipped in the back and floated gently around her knees. She was a vision. Too bad she was merely going to the slave market. With a heavy sigh, she turned away from the mirror and sat at the end of her bed to slip on a pair of diamond-encrusted heels.
While doing so, she glanced at her watch, standing obediently by her door. She gave him a slight smile. "Send for Zoƫ." She ordered with a flick of her wrist and watched him leave. Once he'd returned with the girl, Patience crossed to her vanity and lifted from it, a silver chain with a singer ruby teardrop dangling from it. She clipped it around her neck, allowing it to rest against her collarbones as she also reached for a pair of ruby teardrop earrings. "We're going to the slave market today Miss Brooks." She said, half excited, half dreading. She'd always enjoyed picking new slaves, but she'd never enjoyed the filth of the place. She wouldn't even have to go if that stupid brat hadn't stolen her sisters sapphire necklace. The thief had been one of Patience's bound and when she'd found out what she'd done, she hadn't wasted a second in having the girls hand cut off and beat. Unfortunately, little Evangelina had died of blood loss and unfortunately, her executioner grew ill after the beating and died as well, taking away both a Hunter and a Bound in a manner of four days. Now she had to find replacements the day before the ceremony.
Once fully ready, her and Zoƫ left the house and headed towards the market on foot. "Lovely day." She smiled, and Zoƫ merely nodded her agreement. Patience rarely left the house without a slave on-hand and Zoƫ was usually her first choice. The girl was soft spoken and pretty, giving the appearance that Patience wasn't too hard on her slaves, but not so pretty that she took the attention away from her master. Ever since her escape, she'd been the perfect slave. There were a few hints of rebellion left in her, but nothing that a beating couldn't fix every now and then. Patience had to admit, the girl knew how to survive.
Once they were at the market, she stopped and turned to Zoƫ, handing her a purse-full of money. "Take this and find a Hunter for me. I want to be out of here as soon as possible. If you even think about trying to escape, I'll have you dragged back home by your hair and this time, you wont survive the beating. Once you've got the Hunter, you're not to inform him of his fate. Simply walk him back to this spot and wait for me. I better not beat you here. I don't like to be kept waiting." And with that, Patience dismissed her and turned away towards one of the many bidding platforms.
Being brought out onto the platform was a small girl with startling green eyes and long black hair. She could use a good bath and a change of clothes, but other then that, the young girl was beautiful. She was also very frail and weak. That much was obvious. One of the guards had to hold her up while they listed off her strengths as a slave. Nothing but a serving girl. So would be perfect as a Bound. Glancing at the row of slaves behind the girl, Patience saw that there was a young Native American girl then a boy, then another girl. The Native American girl seemed delicate and might make a good Bound, but there was something different about the girl before her. Just looking at Ayra, she seemed much less likely to survive.
When the bidding started, Patience raised her fingers. Slowly the bidding raised, but Patience stayed persistent, keeping her face passive. About halfway through the bidding, a familiar face appeared and Patience cut through the crowd to stand beside the elegant form of her friend Angela. "One of my Bound and one of my Hunters died." She rolled her eyes in annoyance, lifting her fingers once more. "Now I need replacements."
Finally, the bidding stopped and Patience allowed herself a small smile in the direction of the girl, locking her blue eyes onto her green ones as they slid a "SOLD" sign around the girls neck and led her from the platform towards her. "She'll make a perfect Bound." Patience said evenly to her friend and glanced at the platform as the Native American girl was brought out.
Once her new slave had reached her, Miss Jones smiled a deceptivly sweet smile and grabbed the SOLD sign from her neck. "You wont be needing that," she spoke in a voice to match her smile before pulling a tiny necklace from her pocket with the smallest of diamonds hanging from it. The clasp on the back was engraved with the initials P.J and was impossible to open once closed, the chain impossible to break. She reached forward and clasped the necklace around the girls neck and sighed. "Alright. Let's be getting back. Goodbye Angela." She called to her friend over her shoulder as led the girl back towards the entrance. Zoƫ better be waiting there.
Zoƫ lay on her cot, hands behind her head as she stared at the ceiling of the little hut she shared with twelve other slaves. A knock at her doorway startled her into a sitting position. It was only James calling her for Miss Jones. With a sigh, Zoƫ stood and followed James outside, across the property, and into the house.
Miss Jones was at her vanity as usual. Sometimes Zoƫ wondered if there was anything else the woman did but stare at herself in the mirror. It must take her over four hours a day just to get ready. Though it certainly paid off. Zoƫ had been Miss Jone's faithful slave for two years now and still found herself gasping every time the woman looked at her with those blue eyes. She'd always wished to be a blue-eyed blonde and not a green-eyed brunette.
Miss Jones explained to her that they were to go to the slave market today, and once there, handed her a purse of money, telling her to look for a Hunter. For a moment, all Zoƫ could do was stand and stare at the little pouch in her hand there was certainly enough in it to get away. All she had to do was slip into the crowd and away. Forever. Easy freedom. Zoƫ raised her hand to the small diamond at her neck and fingered it. No. She'd never get away. All hope of that had been beat out of her after her first try.
Deciding to simply obey, Zoƫ turned into the crowd and headed for one of the bidding platforms. Being brought out was a boy. "Fredrick Walters." The auctioneer announced and Zoƫ looked him over. He certainly wasn't the typical Hunter type for he lacked muscle and brutality. He was perfect. Miss Jones had left Zoƫ in charge of her money, and though she'd lost most of her fight, she was more than happy to rebel in small ways. Getting Miss Jones a weak Hunter and giving the Bound a better chance would be perfect.
The bidding started and Zoƫ raised her hand. Instantly a man came over to her and loomed, hands on hips. "Who are you? Not a master. Either you scurry back to your master now or I drag you back to her."
Zoƫ shook her head and looked up at him."No!" She exclaimed, holding out Miss Jones's card. "I'm Zoƫ Brooks. Miss Jones sent me to do some bidding for her." As if to prove her point she lifted her left hand again, revealing the bird-shaped tattoo there as she did so. The man's eyes narrowed as he read the card, but nodded and sighed, handing it to her and turning away.
Once the bidding had ended, the guards brought the boy to her and Zoƫ gave him a slight smile, handing the card to the guards. "He's for Miss Jones." She explained briefly before removing the "SOLD" sign from his neck. "I'm Zoƫ Brooks." She told him. She knew that slaves weren't supposed to talk, but Zoƫ was a favorite of Miss Jones and telling her name couldn't hurt. "Fredrick Walters right?" She asked, country accent twinging her words.
Without really giving him time to answer, she simply turned and jerked her head towards the entrance. "Come on. My head's on the line if I keep Miss Jones waiting." At the entrance, Zoƫ let out a deep sigh to find that Miss Jones had not yet appeared and stopped to stand, waiting with Fredrick just behind her.
Vera hated the market. She'd been a slave for three years now, but either her master got tired of entertainment, or they couldn't handle her attitude so she was constantly being sold and resold. In the past three years, she'd been with twelve different families. And all of them gave her the same report: "Wild, unruly, refuses to follow directions, relentless." So far, she'd managed to dodge being Bound every year, but somehow she doubted her luck would hold out this year. Her bad reports had knocked her price way down, ironically, making her and easy sell and with the Bloodoath ceremony tomorrow Vera had already forced herself to accept that she didn't stand a chance of missing out again. The second she was bought, her new master would realize their mistake.
The market was pure torture. Nothing but stench, starvation, desperation, and probing eyes. Being sold like an animal was downright humiliating. They had a market similar to this one back in her tribe, but the goods had consisted of jewelry, valuables, handmade crafts, and animals. Not human beings. Her tribe would have never tied up a human like these people did. It was disgusting. There was nothing Vera wanted more to be back with her tribe. Home and safe where everyone called her by her tribe-given name Free Bird and she knew every single face. But they were dead. Dead or enslaved like herself.
Glancing down at herself, Vera knew what the buyers would see. First they would probably see her eyes, startling blue against her tanned face and deep black hair, then they would note her clothes, torn and dirty from sleeping in a cage for three days waiting to be sold. And finally they would notice the things about her that made her purely Native American like her long black hair, her evenly tanned skin, the beaded braclets decorating both arms, the seven piercings that ran up the edge of each ear, the sparkling ring in her belly, and her tattoos. One on her left shoulder, depicting her tribe name of Free Bird and one running up the back of her ankle in a pattern of tribal swirls. She was obviously not a native to their land, but then again, most of the slaves weren't.
Ahead of her, a small girl with black hair and bright green eyes was pushed roughly onto the platform, stumbling and tipping. Vera caught her eyes for a second and held them, feeling the fear there as though it were her own. She gave her a slight nod of encouragement and their gazes parted once more as the bidding began and the girl stood there, frail and small. No matter what, on her turn, Vera would not allow herself to look weak. They always chose the small ones to be Bound and she was already delicate looking enough. Playing the innocent role would only assure her a spot in the Bloodoath ceremony.
The girl before her was bought by a blonde woman in the crowd and Vera was shoved forward onto the platform as soon as the girl was gone. She stumbled once, but caught her footing instantly, standing as tall as she could with her small height of 5'6", raising her head and turning to give the guard who had pushed her a glare that could melt steel. The auctioneer began listing off her strengths: "Vera Free Bird Washington 98. Beautiful voice, great entertainer, good with cleaning, serving when not entertaining, not good with cooking, somewhat unruly." Somewhat. Vera let out a snort and turned her blue eyes on the crowd as the bidding began, not afraid in the least bit to meet the eyes of her takers.