Chapter 6

The auction began. James led Kirsten to the front row, his arm possessively around her waist. He glanced back at me, a silent warning in his eyes. He was watching me, enjoying my humiliation.

I remembered a time when he would have moved mountains to protect me from a single unkind word. Now, he was the one orchestrating my public execution. That man was gone, replaced by this monster. It was over. All I wanted was for this night to end.

James bought Kirsten everything she pointed at, a lavish display of his wealth and devotion.

Then, a small, unassuming painting came up for bidding. Someone in the back row outbid James before he could even raise his paddle.

Kirsten pouted. "Oh, but I wanted that one, darling. It would look perfect in our bedroom."

After the auction, James sought out the buyer, a man named Marcus Thorne, a notorious tabloid photographer with a reputation for depraved tastes. James offered him double what he'd paid.

Thorne refused.

James's face hardened. He was not used to being told no.

Thorne smiled, a greasy, unpleasant smile. "I might be willing to trade, however."

I was standing in the shadows of a nearby hallway, trying to be invisible, when I overheard their conversation.

"I need a new subject," Thorne said, his eyes raking over me in a way that made my skin crawl. "Your wife. An exclusive photoshoot. Her, as my canvas."

James's jaw tightened. For a moment, a flicker of the old James, the protector, surfaced in his eyes. But it was gone as quickly as it appeared. He didn't say no.

My blood ran cold. I knew what kind of "photoshoots" Marcus Thorne was famous for. They were brutal, degrading, and often ended with his models psychologically broken.

I turned to leave, to run, but strong hands grabbed me from behind. A cloth was pressed over my mouth and nose, the sweet, cloying smell of chloroform filling my lungs.

My vision blurred. The world started to fade.

The last thing I heard was James's voice, a soft whisper in my ear.

"It'll all be over soon, Hannah. Then we can go back to how things were."