Page 49 of He Will Come for Me

How had I forgotten that? Is it something I pushed out of my brain because it has to do with what my father did to me? Did he know then that my father would sell me eventually?

Crawling out of bed, I head into the hallway. Looking toward his upstairs office, I don’t see a light, so I walk downstairs and to the kitchen. I grab a glass of water before walking toward Phoenix’s downstairs office. Light is coming from under the door.

Stopping at the door, I raise my hand to knock when I hear his voice. He’s talking to someone. The door is cracked slightly, so I push it to open a few more inches.

“She’s not ready.” His voice holds no room for argument. My eyebrows draw down over my eyes as I try to figure out what he’s talking about. He runs a hand through his hair as he stares out the window.

“You don’t understand. She hasn’t been well, and she’s not ready.” His words are ripped out of his chest. I’m sure he’s talking about me.What am I not ready for?

“Well, we’ll have to skip it this year.” Skip what? “I know, goddammit!” I flinch at the anger in his voice.

“Fine. I’ll have Phillip plan for it. But she will not be in attendance.” His hands ball into fists and the muscles along his back are strung so tight his veins are popping out. He hangs his head in defeat.

“Jesus Christ. Okay. She’ll be there.” He finally gives in. Dread drops in my stomach like a boulder.What is he agreeing to on my behalf that he’s so pissed about it?He hangs up and slams the phone on his desk.

I step back slightly, so I’m not caught. “I know you’re there. You can come in.” His head lifts slowly, his gaze finding mine.

“Phoenix? What’s wrong?” The angst in his eyes makes the boulder in my stomach flip.

“We’re hosting an auction at our home in downtown Savannah this weekend and you’re expected to attend.”

Chapter 22

Abark of laughter erupts from my mouth, but he’s not smiling. He’s being serious. Closing my mouth, I grab on to the door so I don’t sink to the floor.

“Why would I do that?” My voice comes out calmer than I’m feeling. His face is the perfect picture of stone. It reminds me of when I first woke up and he didn’t show any emotion. Like he’s pushing it away, so he doesn’t have to feel.

“It’s part of our roles.”

I take a step forward. “I know you don’t like to give details without me asking you specifically, but I need you to elaborate.”

He sucks in a breath as the muscles in his neck tighten. “We joined The Society when we got married. Auctions are every three months and we are required to go to all of them and wehost an auction once a year. We got out of going to the last auction because you’ve been sick.”

“What about when I was kidnapped? Did they not know?”

He shakes his head. “No. They think you’ve been sick this entire time.”

My mouth opens and closes. I don’t know what to say or how to respond. “And this is something I agreed to?”

“It was your idea,” he replies.

I stare at him, waiting for him to tell me he’s lying or making this up. “Why would I want to do this?”

He runs a hand along his jaw. “So we could take them down from the inside.”

How the hell did I go from that shy girl at Brighton to what he’s describing now? I guess when your father sells you, it changes something inside of you drastically.

“And you don’t think I’m ready?” I take a step toward him.

He exhales slowly as the muscles in his neck and arms relax. “I learned a long time ago to never underestimate you.”

So, he’s underestimated me at some point. Honestly, I can understand why he’d do that. I was always so shy and easily intimidated. “What makes you hesitant about this?” I ask.

“There are a lot of things you don’t remember. What if a memory returns in the middle of it? What if someone asks you a question and you don’t know how to respond?” Those are valid concerns.

“And you don’t think we have enough time to prepare me for this?” He closes the distance between us and pulls me into his embrace. I cling to him as I try to process everything.

“I don’t know. We’ll try. There are ways we can avoid people, but there are things you need to know that I’ve avoided telling you.”

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