li

the room everything

this cold, dark cell, I closed my eyes, sh

a sack was pulled over my head. Befor

ed and cried until

med to last f

eep only to wake up here, in

home? Was I even in the city?

mother, my entire life was upended. She

had cried long enough to know that there was n

gathered in my chest. How could I

like a n

recognized what it was. The door to my cell

ootsteps. Suddenly hands gripped me and dragged m

g to adjust to t

ust as scared and helpless as I did. It took a few moments for it to

d those words ring through the curt

auction. A h

as part

and horror and nausea washed ov

g me only added to my horror. I co

ling me that it wasn't. Shutting my eyes tightly I mustered

an order that was drawing nearer to me. Ev

s my

the podium right as

Brought in recently, this is Julienne W

roar and my guy sank even lowe

in the crowd, all of them old as they leered at me openly.

going to

t the final bid fo

mill

else it echoed through the room. I whipped m

ending in with the shadows. His face was hidden

r a moment, my mind went blank, t

wa

o have shifted. The crowd was completely silent, all the rowdiness from before gone. Their faces

as goi

out before I heard the gavel sound b

ains being unlocked, my mind raced with questions. W

ooked up to find a burly man staring

neered, "You don't know what kind of me

h

sneer transfor

famous Don Demonio, the ruthless Mafi

idea of who it was, but I knew enough

mo

er participated in these auctions befo

our lucky day, or the

nk and fear

as d

es. They were dangerous and ruthles

me? What was he

ht of the outside couldn't stop my dre

ead the closer we got to the car where

o my new 'owner'. When I was finally there, my gaz

man called out right before I w

di

osity got the better of me. As

ff in a mixture of s

I knew w

him from the pictures my stepfather kept. Pictu

n Medici, my stepfather's es

nto mine, and a smirk

t my lovely