“Ten thousand.”
A voice cut across all the others, clear and crisp enough that even I could make it out. It cut through the haze of my sedation, and I managed to open my groggy eyes long enough to make out who had said it. And as soon as I laid my eyes on him, my heart stopped in my chest. Oh shit. Oh shit.
I knew that whoever had purchased me, it was going to be bad news. I wasn’t like the rest of the victims they paraded in and out of here; I was a representation of everything these guys hated the most, and I had no doubt that they wouldn’t hesitate to take that out on me if they got half a chance. But…had he known I was here? Because a coincidence of this size couldn’t have just happened.
I couldn’t fucking believe my eyes. God–fucking–dammit. Breaker Goldman.
I still hadn’t found out what his real name was, even after all the times I’d arrested and charged him for whatever bullshit he was attempting to pull off that week. Usually his crimes were petty enough that I never worked up the effort to actually hate him, but that didn’t matter. He was still a criminal, still someone who made my life and the life of the people living in this city substantially harder. I hadn’t tipped him for the kind of guy who would have out in a place like this, mind you; he always seemed too distracted with his own schemes to bother getting involved with someone this high up on the ladder. I reached out for the wall, looking for something to hold me up, and stumbled. The auctioneer reached out for me, and slipped a slimy arm around my waist. I shuddered at his touch. He reached over to the strap on the other side of my shoulder and eased it down my arm, letting it drop away till great swathes of my skin were exposed. I reached to pull it back up, but he slapped my hand away and turned me back towards the crowd.
“Are we sure no–one wants to bid any higher for this gorgeous piece of ass?”
I hated the way he was talking about me, as though I was nothing more than some object for these men to ogle at. Well, one of them would be doing a lot more than ogling soon enough. Even though I knew in the pit of my stomach what would come after I was sold, I was trying to ignore the creeping sense of dread that was overwhelming my system. I needed to keep my head straight, needed to stay in the game. I peered around the room, trying to make eye contact with one of the other dudes standing around and eyeing me. Maybe if I could flirt hard enough with one of them while I was standing here, they would outdo Breaker’s bid and take me instead. I knew whoever I ended up with would be the kind of monstrous asshole I did my best to keep off the streets, but Breaker…Breaker had a bone to pick with me. Several, in fact. And as my mind came back into consciousness, panic flooded my brain, lighting it up like a Christmas tree. I needed to find some way to make sure that he didn’t get his hands on me– and I had no idea how I was meant to do that.
“No–one wants to bid more than ten thousand?” The auctioneer sounded worried, for some reason– what, had they hoped to get more for me? I had no idea what a reasonable amount of money was to these people, and frankly, I had hoped never to find out. Well, not first–hand, at least.
“I think I won her, man,” Breaker met my gaze briefly, and a shiver passed over my spine as he did so. His expression was unreadable, but, knowing him, I could be almost damn certain that it wasn’t hearts and flowers going through his mind. If he wanted me, it wasn’t for anything good. Fuck, I was surprised he wasn’t just leaving me to my fate, abandoning me to this clusterfuck of awful people. That would have almost been worse. Almost. And he wouldn’t have had to spend all his money doing it.
Suddenly, someone else emerged from the shadows at the back of the room; I squinted through the haze of smoke and sedation to try and make out who it was. He was taller than Breaker, wider too, and looked at least a decade or two older. I had no idea who he was, but everyone in the room seemed to clam up as soon as he stepped forward. This guy had some serious sway in this place.
“I don’t think you can afford her, Breaker,” the man spoke firmly and coolly, but his tone was enough to tell me that he owned this place and he wasn’t about to back down over this.
“Count it,” Breaker gestured to the table in front of him, which I finally noticed was full to the brim with poker chips and cash. Of course, that’s what brought him here tonight, the chance to gamble. He had always been gambling in the cells when we had him in custody. The fact that I had turned up here as well was probably just a plus for him.
“Trust me, man, I don’t think you can afford her,” the man repeated, and his fists were clenched by his sides. Breaker waved his hand, dismissing him, and there was a murmur of surprise that travelled around the room in response to his blasé attitude.
“I know you might not want me to have her, Thad, but that’s not how this works,” Breaker stood up and stretched coolly, like a cat on a windowsill on a hot summer’s day. He seemed completely in control, and my eyes widened as he began to make his way towards me.