I glance down the hallway instinctively.
But I can’t see them.
“Move,” the guard says, pushing me forward again.
And just like that—
I’m walking.
One step. Then another.
My body is moving on autopilot. My mind is racing too fast to keep up.
Toward the stage.
Toward whatever comes next.
Toward the moment my life stops being mine completely..
****
The stage is brighter than anything I’ve seen since I woke up.
I step onto it, heels clicking sharply against polished black tiles. Thank God it’s not my first time in heels—if it were, I’d have already collapsed face-first under the bright lights, pushed and shoved around by the guards like I’m nothing more than a ragdoll.
The host’s voice booms over the room, smooth and commanding, carrying over the hum of the crowd.
“And next,” he says, gesturing with a flourish toward the stage, “we have an exquisite piece. Fresh, eager, and ready for new ownership. Everyone, feast your eyes on…”
He pauses, letting the tension build.
“Harley Rutherford.”
The spotlight hits me fully, blinding. I raise my chin despite the spin in my head from the fear, from the drugs, from the sudden adrenaline surge coursing through my body.
He continues, his tone calm and precise, as if reciting a catalog entry:
“Age: twenty-one. Height: five seven.Weight: hundred and sixty-seven pounds. Build: lean, athletic, fully groomed. Personality: submissive, eager to please, and a power bottom.And yes…” He leans slightly forward, letting his words hang over the audience, “he measures five and a half inches.”
I swallow hard.
The crowd murmurs. Whistles. Shouts. I can hear their excitement, their anticipation.
The host lifts a hand, silencing them.
“Bidding will start at $250,000.”
Immediately, hands go up. A man near the front shouts, “$600,000!” Another, from the back, calls, “$1.3 million!”
My heart starts hammering. My knees shake slightly under the heels, though I force myself to stand tall, straight-backed.
The host begins to count down, “One… two…”
And then… a voice cuts through the room, calm and smooth.
“Ten million.”
The words hit me like a brick. My chest freezes.
