The Auction (13 page)

“I’ll be fine.”

“You don’t have to do this alone. I’ll help you.”

“No. I can’t get you involved in this.”

“But I want to.”

“Dare, if I need your help I’ll ask for it.”

Dare held up his hands. “Okay, fine. But if you need me, just ask.”

Foster was already in deep and the deeper he went the more dangerous it was. He had to do this on his own because as Dare had pointed out, this time there may be no coming back.

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Tori threw herself on her bed and cried in frustration. This was the worst thing that could happen. The reason why she’d participated in The Run was so her sisters didn’t have to.
And she’d failed in that mission.

Tori had spent most of her life trying to protect her siblings
, so learning about her sister’s disappearance was devastating.
What was worse, out of all her
brothers and sisters
, Macy was the most fragile. Her sweet, loving younger sister was the sensitive one. She didn’t eat meat or even kill bugs because she valued all life. She was the one who took their mother’s death the hardest. She was the one who nurtured their younger sibling
s
while Tori
took different
jobs to earn money for their family.

Macy even had a soft spot for their good-for-nothing father. She overlooked his alcoholism and slovenly ways, making excuses for him because in her heart she didn’t want to see him for the bum that he was. Macy saw the good in every situation and every person. The thought of Macy suffering the same fate
Tori had
gone through
,
tore at
her
insides. She blamed herself
for not being there for Macy
.

A knock on her door alerted her to someone waiting on the other side. She wasn’t in the mood for company. It was probably Foster and she didn’t want to see him. Besides, she was still confused about why seeing him with Aya had made her feel so uncomfortable.

“Tori, are you in there?” It was Aya.

She quickly sat up and wiped away her tears. What did the other woman want? “Yes?”

“May I come in?”

Tori slid off the bed. She didn’t want to be rude, after all, Aya was someone who had and still cared about her sister. “Sure.”

The door opened and Aya
walked
inside. “I’m sorry to intrude
again
but I just wanted to check in on you. I notice you looked upset and it’s understandable. Macy is very special.”

Tori nodded. “She is. I had no idea
she and Foster
were friends.”

“Yes, he’s looked out for her. He’s sending money to your family so they don’t have to worry about food
or any other necessities
.”

Tori raised a brow, surprised by this news.
“Really?”

“Yes.
You look like you don’t believe me
.”

“No, it’s not that. You have no reason to lie to me, but I guess the Foster you’re talking about isn’t the one I know.”

“I haven’t known him for very long but he’s become a good friend to me as well. The Foster I know may pretend like he doesn’t have a care in the world, but I suspect it’s just a façade. He’s a good guy.”

“If you say so.”

Aya crinkled her nose.
“I’m sorry, but can I ask you something?”

Tori shrugged. “I can’t stop you from asking me anything.”

Aya furrowed her brow. “There’s that attitude again. Have I done something to offend you?”

Tori sat down on her bed with an exaggerated flop. She realized she was being unfair to
Aya
who had been nothing but polite toward her but she didn’t want to admit the reason. “I’m sorry, Aya. I guess I’m just feeling a little stressed. Hearing about my sister’s abduction doesn’t really help matters.”

“I bet. Just for the record, Foster and I are just friends. And that really overprotective Neanderthal who burst into the living room is my boyfriend. I became friends with Foster through Dare. They’re best friends.”

Tori shrugged with a nonchalance she didn’t feel. “Oh, well that doesn’t have anything to do with me.”

Aya raised a brow. “Are you sure about that? I know this is none of my business but I noticed how the two of you were s
taring
at each other.”

“You’re right, it’s none of your business.” The second Tori said it she regretted it. “I’m sorry. I’m being a total bitch right now, but bottom line is there can never be anything between me and Foster. The two of us do have a history together but not in the way you think. The first time we met was through The Run. He played games with my head
and just when I’d fallen for him,
he got rid of me. And this time around, I’m only here because he was the highest bidder in that stupid auction.”

Aya didn’t reply right away.

Tori bowed her head and folded her hands in her lap. She’d probably said too much. “Now I suppose you’ll run to Foster and tell him what I said.”

“No. What’s said in this room stays here. And I mean that. Look you’re painting a completely different picture of the Foster I know but I’m not going to defend him. What I will say is right now Foster is completely focused on getting Macy back and I don
’t think he’ll rest until he does
. In the meantime, whatever grievance you have with him I think the two of you need to talk it out.”

“You make it seem like I’m talking about some lovers’ quarrel. He bought me at an auction and now he won’t let me go home. How exactly can I work anything out with someone who’s holding me captive, let alone someone who’s hurt me as badly as he did?”

“I understand how you feel.”

“You couldn’t possibly know.”

“Well, I’ve
been a volunteer in The Run. It wasn’t exactly fun and the one who caught me was not only a patron, but was the owner of the entire game.”

“You’re here, so he let you go.”

“Yes and no. He’s actually downstairs with Foster now.”

Tori frowned. “Wait a minute. He released you from your contract and you stayed with him.”

Aya nodded.
“I fell in love. Yes, he can be a bit brutish but when the two of us are together, it’s different. How we started out wasn’t ideal but we’ve managed to make it work so far. I’m telling you this to say that I’ve seen how Foster looks at you, and I can’t imagine why he’d have you here unless he cared. I don’t condone whatever he did to hurt you, but as far as bidding on you in the auction, I know he probably went there to see if there was a way to get Macy back. He probably could have bid on any number of women but he bid on you.
I’m sure he has
his reasons.”

Though she didn’t want to give Foster any credit, Aya had a point. Why did Foster bid on her? “Maybe so, but there’s nothing to work out.”

“Well, that’s your decision but in the meantime, if you need someone to talk to, you’re always free to call me. I’ll give you the coordinates.”

“Why?” Tori asked. “I mean, I haven’t exactly been that friendly toward you.”

Aya reached over and patted
Tori
on the hand. “Considering the circumstances, I understand.”

“Thank you, Aya. And I’m sorry for being
rude
. You’ve been very kind.”

“No problem. When I needed a friend, Macy was one to me so the least I can do is return the favor to her sister.”

Tori was suddenly overcome with emotion and started sobbing. This time she couldn’t stop. Aya wrapped her arms around
Tori
. “It’s going to be okay. Things will work out. Foster will find Macy.”

Tori sniffled, trying to compose herself enough to get the words out. “It’s n-not just that. You’re the first person who’s been nice to me in a very long time.”

A
ya rocked her back and forth. “I’m not doing anything special, just being there for a friend and I do hope we can be friends, Tori. I know things bleak right now, but everything will work out. You have to believe that
.”

For the first time in a long time, Tori felt an emotion she didn’t think she’d ever feel again.

Hope.

Chapter Fourteen

Long after Aya and Dare had left, Tori couldn’t stop worrying about Macy. She wanted to believe that
her sister would
be brought back safely, but Tori couldn’t
stop thinking about all the things that could go wrong. But
if Foster did find Macy as he’d promised, what conditi
on would she be in?
Tori knew how the Elite
s
worked. They toyed with people from disadvantaged classes like hers for their own amusement because they could. There was little to no consequences for their actions. All they had to do was throw their money around to make their problems go away.

Unable to stay cooped up in her room, Tori found herself wandering around the house, heading in no particular direction. She finally ended up in the living room only to see
Foster
staring at some documents on his holopad. He wore a ferocious frown and he seemed to be intensely focused.

She still had trouble reconciling Foster to the man who’d
broken her heart with
the caring protector he apparently was
to
Macy. It was as if the man had two personalities, one she despised
the other that
intrigued her.

Tori slowly backed away from the room so that he wouldn’t notice her, but she was too late.
Foster raised his head and once their eyes locked, Tori couldn’t move. What was it about this man that gave him such a hold on her?
She resented the hell out of the fact that she couldn’t simply turn off her feelings at will.

“You don’t have to run off. I’m surprised you’re up this late. I thought you’d be asleep by now.”

“Who can
sleep
after learning what I did?”

Foster swiped away the
document
holograms
and put his holopad down. He stood up and walked toward her but abruptly halted. He stuffed his hands into his pocket. “Yes. But like I said, I’ll find
her
.”

Tori had tensed when Foster approached her, but then a keen feeling a disappointment swept through her when he stopped. She couldn’t figure out what the hell was wrong with her and why she continued to
experience
these conflicting emotions around him. She shook her head to rid herself of all thought
s
about the two of them. That was the past and all that mattered
now
was finding her sister. “So those documents you were staring at when I walked in, do they have anything to do with your search?”

“Actually they do.
They’re just
some financial transactions I’ve been trying to cipher through for the past few hours.”

“You really do care for my sister don’t you?”

“Of course I do. She’s very special to me.”

“Was there
…anything between the two of you besides friendship?”
Tori hated herself for
asking but she couldn’t help herself
.

Foster sighed. “I know you have a low opinion of my Victoria, but I wouldn’t stoop so low as to take advantage of a woman who was clearly broken and in need of lots of medical attention.

“I’m sorry. It’s just—”

He rubbed his temples. “I know. You’re worried about her but believe me, nothing happened between me and Macy.
Look, I’m running on about an hour of sleep so I’m going to turn in because I need to get up early to conduct a few business meeting
s
.”

Tori had hurt him and it bothered her that she even cared. When he would have walked past her, she grabbed him by the arm. “Wait. I’m sorry for asking.”

He shrugged. “I understand why you would. You care about your sister and I don’t have the best track record.”

“It’s not just that. Ever since our mom died, I’ve basically been in charge of my siblings. My father was never the best provider but he completely fell apart when
she was killed because a rich man’s son decided to
plow down a bunch of Dregs in his new car
.
We were all broken up over not only that she died, but how it happened. We got no justice because her killer’s family paid off the city official. It nearly tore our family apart. My father
took up drinking and picked up all kinds of nasty habits. He and I were never
really that close but he became
verbally abusive and mean, especially toward me because I wouldn’t let him direct his ire to
ward
my younger siblings. I’ve been their protector and watched out for them. I love all my brothers and sisters but Macy has a special place in my heart. I’m not sure if it’s her sweet nature or the fact that she looks the most like mom out of all of us. But knowing that someone else had to look out for her because I was
n’t
around
makes me feel bad. I should have been there for them.
”