Page 9 of Out of Peril

My head hung, but the kids rallied beside me, each taking one of my hands and giving me a squeeze of encouragement.

“You aren't hideous, Lindsey,” Dante growled under his breath.

Before long the Collector moved on and soon, others came to look and gawk at us. This was normal for an open market auction such as this.

Some auctions were held in secret where we were put on display one at a time behind a thick glass wall. Even if the glass wasn't one sided, the lights shining in on us were always too bright to see anything beyond the confines of the box. We were instructed on what to do and, of course, to show our powers.

Before Dante and Maya came to be with me, I would often refuse, mostly because I was afraid that if I did, I wouldn't be able to regain control over the beast. That fear was always with me.

Now, I did whatever they asked as long as it was within reason. I didn't want to do or say anything that would jeopardize the children.

But here in Venezuela everything was very different.

I'd only gone through one open market auction before. There were only a few countries that would even allow it. But here, trafficking people was a common, every day occurrence. That saddened me more than anything.

The auction wasn't open to just anyone. Only the top elite would have invites, but the setting was extremely different, and things moved quickly once it began.

Prior to the auction, the Collectors were allowed to stroll through the lines of cages and examine the merchandise—I was the merchandise.

They could ask questions and insist we shift or show our gifts to them. I already knew that Anastasia was here, so if we refused, she would use her own powers to force compliancy.

“Do I look okay?” Maya asked. “Do you think they'll like me?”

My heart broke for her. This was our first auction as a unit. She didn't need to worry about the usual stuff. I'd be there to protect her and either ensure we got a good new placement or that we stayed put and didn't get bought at all.

A sly smirk crossed my face but was wiped away by Dante's gasp.

“What is it?”

“He's here,” he whispered pointing.

I followed the direction. The hair on my skin rose as I looked at the man he'd drawn just that morning. He was wearing sunglasses, so I couldn't see his eyes, but his hair was the same, and when he broke into a wide grin, I saw the dimples clearly. By Maya's sharp intake of breath, I knew she'd seen them too.

“What does he want? Why is he looking for you?” she whispered.

“I don't know, but I'm not sure we're going to stick around to find out. Stay close. One error and we're out of here, okay?”

“But how?” Dante asked.

“There's no getting away from here, Lindsey,” Maya insisted.

“I'm going to fly,” I told them. “And I'm not leaving the two of you behind, so be ready.”

Without another word, Maya went to the corner, picked up her backpack with all the possessions she had in the world, and put it on.

Dante nodded and retrieved his own bag.

Sadly, those kids had more than I. All I had now was these children. Nothing else mattered. I'd arrived with absolutely nothing, but I was leaving with my entire world on my back.

Now all we had to do was wait for the perfect moment.

A large cage, easily as big as my own, was wheeled next to us and the dark cover over it was removed. A man inside squinted and tried to shield his eyes from the sun. He looked like a normal man. A quick sniff told me he was a wolf. I just didn't understand why he required such a large cage. Then again, to see me in my skin, I had no doubt everyone was asking the same question.

“Hi,” I said to him.

He gave me a curt nod once his eyes adjusted to the light.

“What kind of auction is this?” he asked.

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