Page 39 of Taken to the Shadow Realm

“Just because you didn’t think to find someone who was compatible with it doesn’t mean it was a dud. And you just stealing what I rightfully purchased is going against your own rules! Aren’t you ashamed?”

She threw her head back and let out a laugh.

“Maybe if you had added some type of disclaimer, this wouldn’t have happened,” she said. “You think everyone on this plane knows the ins and outs of soul spheres? It’s your fault it didn’t work out, and therefore I should be able to call on your faulty payment.”

“If you don’t want to accept the truth,” I growled and took a step forward. “Then why are you here? To mock me?”

She clicked her tongue.

“To think I was doing you a favor by telling you your little pet will be put up for auction,” she said with a sigh. “I guess I should have known that someone who tried to trick me wouldn’t be grateful for a second chance.”

Ice cold fear was injected straight into my veins. It chilled all the rage and cleared the haze in my mind.

She is being put back up for auction.

“No,” I choked out. “Give me some time. I’ll make you another. I’ll make you five! Just please don’t?—”

“See, that’s the reaction I was waiting for,” she said and turned as if wanting to leave. “But instead, you lectured me. Blamed me for your fault.”

“It’s mine,” I agreed and staggered forward, my clawed hand reaching out to grab her. “Please. It’s my fault. I didn’t mean?—”

She jerked away just as my hand came into contact with her shoulder.

That wicked fucking smile was plastered back on her face.

“You’re welcome,” she said. “It’ll be twenty hours from now. Let’s hope your little pet can bring in a good price. After all, she is second-hand. Maybe I’ll even sell her at a discount to make up for it.”

I opened my mouth to protest, but before the words could be forced out, she sent me a wink and disappeared in a burst of bright light.

No. No. No.

I fell to my knees. Unable to breathe. Unable to move. My claws dug into the dirt. The demon’s words ran through my head again and again.

She’s going to be auctioned off.

She’s going to be sold.

My fault. My fault. My fault!

Iris

Just like before, all the demons were staring at me, bloodlust in their eyes.

Their growls, jeers, and laughter echoed through my mind.

I couldn’t understand how it had come to this.

How one moment I was enjoying the warmth of Yien’s embrace and then… nothing. My dreamy reality had been violently ripped from my hands, and I was placed right back where I started.

How? How can the world be so cruel? Haven’t I already suffered my fair share?

Maybe this is my fault. My fault for letting myself enjoy it too much. For forgetting what my true purpose was in life.

I had been too enamored with this fantastical world. A world that led me to finally be free… even if I was a demon’s pet.

But the thing was, I knew that wasn't all that I was to Yien.

My shadows accepted you as one of their own, she said.

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