My legs were weak, my body aching under the weight of fear, exhaustion, and the cruel choker that silenced my wolf. I could barely breathe. The room around me was filled with murmurs and whispers of men eager to own me, eager to take me as their prize. I hated it. I hated how helpless I felt, how powerless I was to stop any of it.
The announcer’s voice boomed through the hall, thick with excitement. "Next up is a rare gem, a virgin... who will take this precious gem back home? And bidding starts now!"
My heart stopped for a moment, then raced uncontrollably. This was it. This moment would decide the rest of my life. I felt sick. My gaze flickered over the crowd, trying to find something, someone, that could give me hope. For a fleeting second, I imagined the triplets appearing like knights in shining armor. But all I saw were hungry eyes, greedy smiles, and faces filled with lust.
The bidding began, and the air in the room seemed to thicken. Prices were thrown out carelessly, men shouting over one another to claim me. Each new bid sent a wave of fear crashing through me. How could they bid on a person ? Like I was something to be bought and sold?
"300,000!" one man yelled from the back of the room, and my stomach twisted.
"400,000!" another voice rang out, closer this time.
I felt my chest tightening as I heard the numbers climb higher and higher. I squeezed my eyes shut for a brief moment, trying to block it all out, but it didn’t help. My fate was slipping further and further from my grasp.
Ten men had already called their prices, and I could hardly breathe. I forced myself to look up, scanning the room again, searching for something—anything—that could give me strength. That’s when I saw him.
My breath caught in my throat as I locked eyes with a man sitting quietly in the corner of the room. His presence was overwhelming, even from a distance.
He didn’t look like the others—he wasn’t yelling or throwing out bids. He just sat there, his gaze never leaving me. It was unsettling but also strangely familiar, like I knew him from somewhere, but I couldn’t place it.
What shocked me the most was that he wasn’t bidding. His eyes were intense, like they were stripping away every layer of me, but they weren’t filled with the same lust as the others. His desire was different—more dangerous, more powerful—and yet, I couldn’t understand it.
As I stood there, helpless, a shiver ran down my spine. The man’s eyes never wavered, and for a moment, I thought I saw something flicker in them—something raw, something possessive.
His stare felt like a burden pressing down on me, making it hard to think, hard to breathe. And yet, I couldn’t look away.
Just then, someone approached him, leaning close to whisper in his ear. Even with the person whispering to him, his gaze didn’t leave me.
My heart was pounding so loudly in my chest that I thought he might be able to hear it from where he sat. But Why wasn’t he bidding like the others? I was surprisingly wanting him to bid.
I swallowed hard, trying to pull myself together. This wasn’t the time to get distracted. The bidding continued, the prices rising higher and higher.
"700,000!" a man shouted from the front, grinning as if he’d already won.
My breath hitched as the auctioneer’s voice rang out, "Going once... going twice..."
This was it. I was about to be sold. A wave of nausea rose in my throat as the hammer lifted, ready to seal my fate. I closed my eyes, bracing for the sound that would change my life forever.
But then, just as the auctioneer was about to slam the hammer down, a voice cut through the silence. A voice that made the room freeze.
My eyes snapped open in shock. The entire hall went silent, every head turning toward the source of the voice. I did, too, and suddenly, my breath hitched in my chest when I realized who the voice’s owner was.
It was him—the man with the piercing hazel eyes. He’d been so still, so quiet, and now... now he’d bid the highest. Higher than anyone could have imagined.
I stared at him, my heart racing, my head spinning. One million? That was more than I could ever imagine. Who was this man? Why had he waited so long and bid this much?
He hadn’t looked like he cared, hadn’t moved a muscle during the entire auction, and now he was willing to pay more than anyone else in the room combined.
The other men in the hall exchanged glances, some grumbling under their breath, others simply stunned. No one dared to outbid him. They couldn’t. It was over.
The auctioneer, clearly taken aback, stammered for a moment before finding his voice again. "One... one million... going once... going twice... sold!"
The sound of the hammer hitting the podium echoed through the room, but all I could hear was the pounding of my own heart. I’d been bought. I fucking belonged to him now.
The choker around my neck suddenly felt even tighter than before. My body felt weak, like I might collapse at any moment. I tried to steady myself, but my legs were shaking.
The man stood from his seat, and as he made his way toward the stage, the crowd parted for him like they were afraid to get too close.
He moved with a calm, controlled grace, his eyes still locked on me. Every step he took sent another wave of anxiety crashing through me.
When he finally reached me, I felt my breath catch in my throat again. Up close, he was even more intimidating, more tempting, more breathtaking.
Tall, broad-shouldered, with a presence that seemed to fill the entire room. His dark hair framed his face, but it was those Hazel eyes that held me captive.
He looked down at me, his expression unreadable. For a moment, neither of us said anything. The silence suffocated me, thick and heavy, until finally, he spoke.