Page 8 of Auctioned Wolf Bride
My mouth dropped open, heat washing over my face. “What the hell does that have to do with anything?” I asked, my mouth dry. Because I had a sinking suspicion I knew exactly why he wanted to know. And if I was right, I was in more trouble than I thought.
I wanted to struggle and worm my way out of Viktor’s grip. But where would I go? I was still chained to the bars of the cage.
His smile vanished. I hissed as the knife pressed deeper. “Answer the question.”
I thought about lying. The lie was on the tip of my tongue. But the pain on my cheek and the pressure of the knife against my stomach made me think better of it. I couldn’t explain why, but I knew he would be able to tell if I lied, and he wouldn’t hesitate to cut his losses and gut me if he thought I would be more trouble than I was worth. I didn’t want to cooperate, not with these creeps, but I also knew it was the only way I might find a chance to escape.
Gritting my teeth, I bit out, “Yes.”
He smiled. “Excellent.” The pressure of the blade vanished. I breathed a bit easier, even though I could feel my hands trembling against my will.
“Now, Thea, here’s what’s going to happen,” Damien said conversationally. “In a few days, we’re going to have a little auction. You and the rest of these girls will be lucky enough to go home with the highest bidders.”
The words rang in my ears, my mouth dropping open as my stomach twisted in horror. I stared at him as he smirked down at me, the smile not reaching his hazel eyes. I opened my mouth to say something, but no words came out.
“You’re going to cooperate or face the consequences,” he hissed. “Do you understand?”
My breath went shallow as I looked from Damien to Viktor and back again. They weren’t joking, and there was nothing I could do about any of it.
Glaring, I nodded, knowing it was my only option even as my wolf snarled in protest and every ounce of self-preservation in my body screamed at me to fight back. But how the hell was I supposed to fight back like this?
“Good,” Damien said.
Viktor pushed me back into the cell, closing and locking it behind me. Damien strolled up to the bars.
“You have a few days to get used to the situation,” he said. “And trust me when I say that complying is your best option.” He turned and began walking away. “Until then, I suggest you get comfortable with your surroundings.”
I started laughing, causing Damien to stop in his tracks. He walked back to my cage and stood in front of it, frowning as he watched me laugh.
“Care to share what’s so funny?”
“Your guys fucked up,” I said. “If they had thought about it for one second, they would have asked where I was from before dragging me back here.”
Something like alarm flashed across Damien’s features, but otherwise his expression remained impassive.
“And where is it you’re from?” he asked.
“Brixton,” I said. “The Obsidian Pack.”
He went still.
“You know, the Obsidian Pack, where the Silver Wolves are from?” I asked. “Famous black-ops group? I should probably mention that one of them is my sister’s mate. My very protective sister. So out of everyone you could have grabbed, I was just about the worst option you could have picked.”
I watched with smug satisfaction as the color drained from Damien’s face.
“So you do know them,” I said, stepping forward. “They’re some of the best trackers in the world, and they know what they’re doing. The instant they realize I’m missing—which is probably going to be any minute now—they’ll be coming for me. You’ll be dead, if you’re lucky, and your little operation here disbanded.”
I got a savage satisfaction out of watching Damien’s face contort with panic and unease as he tried to get control of himself. He knew I was telling the truth, and he knew the danger. I didn’t expect him to let me go, but seeing him squirm made me feel a little better.
But then the horror vanished from his face.
“Very well,” he said. “I guess we’ll just have to expedite things.” He turned to Viktor. “We’ll have a special auction tomorrow. Her, only. Round up whoever you can get.”
Viktor nodded, and the two of them marched off, leaving me locked in a cage, marinating over those final words, realizing that I had just made things a lot worse for myself as fear gripped me.
An auction. Tomorrow.
I was going to be sold tomorrow.
