The auctioneer is watching us closely, and when Ali Koskos drags his eyes off me and tilts his chin towards the skeletal man, the man smiles his gold, rat-like smile.
Relief slams into me.
He’s accepted my offer.
Chapter 4 - Georgie
My vision swims, and my body feels like it belongs to someone else.
Two men carry the chair I’m tied to and set it down on a stage. Bright, glaring lights pierce my eyes, and I want to hurl, but I have to fight it because there’s still duct tape over my mouth. They’ve kept it on for almost the entire time, only pulling it off occasionally to let me drink water or eat a piece of dry bread.
The rest of the time…I can barely remember anything. It’s a weird, blurry sludge in my mind. I can’t grab on to details because they slip away as soon as I focus on them.
And now that light is like someone shining a laser beam into my skull. It’s horrifying. I can hear men, a lot of men, talking around me.
I blink again, fighting against the drugs they’ve pumped into my system.
Through the red haze lighting the crowd, I can almost start to make out faces. Their features move in grotesque ways. I want to scream. I want to run. But even if I wasn’t tied to this chair, I’d probably fall flat on my face if I tried.
A man starts talking, announcing the sale of…of me.
Oh fuck. Oh fuck, what is this.
Someone shouts from the middle of the room, offering a yacht.
Am I really going to be sold in exchange for a yacht?
My heart beats faster, aching in my chest. I shift my wrists, the restraints cutting against my skin.
As my heart races, my blood pumps faster, and the drugs push deeper into my veins.
That’s when I see him.
With my vision fading again, I see Kristopher walk over to the man whose face I recognize. The man who apparently owns me in this trade.
Kristopher.
I’m seeing things. He can’t really be here.
None of this is real. I’m at home, in bed, exhausted and having a really, really, really terrible dream.
Kristopher is talking to the man in hushed tones. I can barely make out what he’s saying.
For a moment, I lose consciousness.
I’m standing in my best friend's living room, in her brother’s house.
It’s her birthday, and he’s hosting a party for her.
She’s out in the garden, dancing, and I’m staring up at the most beautiful man I’ve ever seen.
“I was just about to get more shots for the birthday girl. Do you want to help me?” he asks. I muse over the fact that there are a hundred waiters running around in tuxedos, and I’m convinced he’s just looking for an excuse to get me alone somewhere. So, of course, I wholeheartedly jump at the chance.
I’ve been daydreaming about this man since the first day Jess introduced me to him. Her brother, Kristopher Ilyin, a Bratva king.
I’ve playfully flirted, teasing, my heart racing when he flirted back. His relaxed banter only served to deepen theyearning in my heart. It felt dangerous, but somehow safe. Like he would never hurt me.
But it was all so subtle. Even the glances across the room, that crooked, mischievous smile he would give me, a brush against my dream of tasting his lips. One I thought would never come to life…but suddenly, tonight, things are changing.
