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With a deep, steadying breath, I pull back slightly to meet Katie’s frightened gaze. “It’s going to be okay,” I tell her again, willing my voice to sound confident and reassuring. “I won’t let them hurt you, I promise. We’re going to get out of this, and I’ll make sure you get back to your mom and dad, okay?”
Katie nods shakily, her small hand gripping mine. I know I’ll do whatever it takes to protect her—even if it means going up against the full force of The Brotherhood itself.
They’ve made this personal, and I’ll show them the true meaning of a mother’s wrath.
The door suddenly bursts open, a Brotherhood soldier standing there with a gun in hand. “Line up, all of you!” he barks, his voice laced with menace.
Katie clings to me, her small body trembling with undisguised terror. I wrap a protective arm around her as the women slowly file out, herded toward a brightly lit stage at the front of the room.
As we take our places, I strain to make out the faces in the darkened audience, my heart pounding. There, in the front row, I spot Scarlett’s cruel smirk and the vicious glint in Emma’s eyes.
This is the revenge Emma has been waiting for.
A booming voice echoes through the hall, and I turn to see a slick-looking man step up to the podium. “Welcome, ladies and gentlemen, to our exclusive auction tonight!” he declares, his tone dripping with false charm. “We have a wonderful selection of merchandise for you, all ready to be claimed by the highest bidder. Let’s start the auction with Lot 1.”
My stomach churns as women are brought out one by one, paraded like cattle as the auctioneer rattles off their “attributes” in a sickening display. White bidder cards flash as prospective ‘owners’ bid on the woman of their choosing.
I watch in horror as the women are sold off, each woman’s future now in the hands of a stranger. Katie and I are the only two left.
When Lot 44 is called, a Brotherhood soldier moves toward Katie. She screams and turns to me, her fingers scrabbling against my body as if I’m her lifeline, her eyes wide with terror.
Be the wolf.
White-hot anger roars through me, and I can’t stop myself from lunging forward, using some of the self-defense techniques Edo taught me to land a solid blow. As the man grabs me from behind the waist, I quickly and brutally jab my elbow into his nose.
A sickening crunch fills the room as the man screams and lets me go, clutching his nose as blood runs down his face. The audience murmurs, all interested eyes turned in our direction, watching me fight off this soldier as if we are a spectator sport.
Two other Brotherhood soldiers swarm me. I do my best to fight them off, but they’re stronger and quickly overpower me, dragging me to the stage as I fight and claw at them, doing everything I can to defend myself.
Hopefully, any prospective buyer will see that I’m not some docile woman who will do whatever he or she wants. The old Alexis would have done that, but she’s gone now.
The new Alexis is a fighter, and I will not submit to anyone. I will not bow.
It doesn’t even occur to me that some spirit—some fight—is exactly what some buyers are looking for, that breaking someone brings them delight.
“Well, well, what do we have here?” the auctioneer says, his beady eyes glinting with malice as his gaze roams my body. He turns back to the audience.
“Ladies and gentlemen, what a treat we have for you! As you can see, she is a feisty one and you will have an excellent time breaking her in.”
Rough hands grab my waist and force me to turn around, showcasing my body to the interested crowds.
“Look at how well-proportioned she is, ladies and gentlemen! Long legs, perky breasts. Look at the curls on her, too!”
I glare at the audience, willing them to see my defiance even as panic claws my throat.
Damian, please hurry. I need you.
“Lot 45 is an extra-special artifact,” the auctioneer says, lowering his voice theatrically. “As such, we will start the bidding at one million dollars. Not only is she from good breeding stock if that’s what you’re into, but if you’ve been recently fucked over by Invicta, just know you’ll be the proud owner of Bobby Shields’s daughter.”
32
DAMIAN
Ipace back and forth in my office, glancing repeatedly at my phone. I have been waiting days for Invicta to reach out, but so far, there’s been nothing but silence.
“Where the hell are they?” I growl, running a hand through my hair in frustration. Alexis went missing over a week ago, and Bobby promised to be in touch when they got a lead. But if Invicta couldn’t even bother to follow up, this might all be for naught.
“You need to be patient, Damian. Invicta knows what they’re doing.”
