Page 75 of Locked in Wonderland

But as the bidding continued, he didn’t move so much as a muscle. I tried to make out his expression, but there wasn’t enough light shining on his face. Was he looking at me? Angry? Frustrated? Resigned?

Had he given up? God, not that. Anything but that.

The bidding had become background noise..

“Two thousand…”

“Two thousand five hundred.”

“No?” The auctioneer’s voice cut through the haze.

I dragged my gaze away from Nico. One bidder had gone from nodding to shaking his head. He leaned back and lifted both hands in a gesture of surrender.

One down.

Two to go.

The woman dropped out a few rounds later at two thousand eight hundred.

A smirk appeared on the remaining bidder’s face—a smirk I didn’t much like the look of that said he was already making plans. Plans I wouldn’t enjoy.

I stared at him. My new owner. What would happen to me in his possession? Who would I become?

“Going once,” the auctioneer said.

I closed my eyes.

“Going twice.”

There was no gavel, but I could hear the last crack of it anyway.

“Going―”

“Four thousand.”

The voice rang out as clear as a bell.

My eyes snapped open as Nico stepped out of the shadows.

A collective gasp swept through the audience. People twisted in their seats to look at the man who’d waited until the last possible second.

Nico looked bored, as if this was inconvenient, as if he had somewhere better to be.

Even the auctioneer seemed stunned into silence.

Nico brushed a piece of lint off his sleeve. “Four thousand,” he repeated.

The auctioneer recovered quickly. “That’s a big jump, Mr. Ravenscar. Are you sure you wouldn’t like to dial it back? Perhaps three thousand?”

“Don’t make me repeat myself,” Nico said, a hint of irritation creeping into his voice.

Color leached into the auctioneer’s cheeks. “Of course not, sir.”

He turned to the remaining bidder. Time seemed frozen as we both awaited his response.

If the man outbid Nico…

Would Nico care?