Chapter 9 Sold

“She was allergic to seafood?” Sebastian raised an eyebrow.

Nate nodded. “What do we do now?”

“It can’t be those Russian men. What does the hospital CCTV footage show?”

“Unfortunately, it had some defect and didn’t capture anything.”

Right when Sebastian was about to talk, his phone suddenly started ringing, making him stop and answer the call from an unfamiliar number. “Good morning, sunny boy! I hope you slept well last night in my vicinity.”

“Nikolai?” Sebastian furrowed his brows, and Nate’s ears perked up when he heard his name.

Sebastian heard him laughing. “Now that you know who this is, let's get right to the point. Your girlfriend is with me.”

Sebastian narrowed his eyes. “Girlfriend?”

“Yes. It was not a good idea to leave her alone in the hospital, especially since you know I snoop around everything you own. Oh, not owned. Passed on!”

Sebastian rounded a fist. “Nikolai, let's just sit down and talk. Leave Janet out of all of this. None of this has anything to do with her!”

“Really? She is the daughter of the man who killed my girlfriend! Revenge is best served cold. She became part of this as soon as she chose to be his daughter. And it’s gonna be so much fun toying with her. It’s like hitting two birds with one stone.”

Sebastian's eyes took on a slightly darker hue. “You served your girlfriend as a spy to gather intel on Genovese. She seduced Connor. You should be grateful we helped you get rid of your cheating girlfriend!”

“Shut up!” Nikolai snapped sharply.

“This is your final warning. Drop her off at my hotel and I would forget it ever happened.” Sebastian spoke threateningly in a deep voice. “If you dare lay a finger on her, I will make sure you meet your end before Connor gets to you.”

Nikolai burst into laughter, and the call suddenly disconnected.

***

“Any update about Sebastian? When is he coming back?” Taking a sip of her tea, Nina glanced up at her mother.

“You know about him more than me.” Picking up her tea from the center table, Serena let out a sigh. “He barely speaks to me.”

“I can't comprehend why you and Sebastian have such a tense relationship. Besides the marriage proposal with Larisa, I can't remember any significant arguments or conflicts between you two.”

“He was always aloof. I took him out when he was around six or seven years old. We got attacked. I had him by the waist and he saw me shoot a guy who was about to shoot him.”

“What?” Nina widened her eyes.

"He sees me as brutal, just like his grandfather." Serena chuckled, reminiscing about the past. “Yeah, I think that was the one moment that drew us apart. He thinks that all my actions for our family are absurd and unwarranted.”

Nina extended her hand and placed it on top of Serena's, causing the latter to smile as their eyes met. “And did you tell Nina that you exposed our son to guns, attacks, and blood when he was not maybe seven, but exactly seven years old? And that’s why he hates you?” Anton joined them.

A look of shock crossed Nina’s face. “What?” Her eyes shifted back to Serena. “Mom, why did you do that?”

Serena angrily glared at Anton as he calmly crossed his legs and patiently waited for her response. “Your dad thinks we are some billionaire family, where his son is going to be the CEO of his multibillion-dollar company.” She chuckled.

“My dear husband, I was getting our son ready for the worst-case scenario. Imagine if we had passed away, and he was left to handle everything on his own in a world where anyone could potentially be our adversary.”

The room fell silent as Connon's heavy footsteps echoed, his long face revealing his frustration as he demanded an explanation. “Why does Nikolai Siegel believe my daughter is Sebastian’s girlfriend?”

Everyone stood up, and Anton shifted his focus towards Connor. “What?” he gave a puzzled look.

“Janet is with him. I don’t know what he has done to her. She had blisters on her skin and was lying in the backseat of the car. I’ve been going crazy since his call and I want an answer now.” Connor rounded his fist. “Why is he under the impression that Sebastian and Janet are a couple when, in fact, they have yet to meet?”

“Gracious goodness! I knew it was a bad idea. Are you happy now?” Serena crossed her arms tightly across her chest, her expression fierce as she confronted Anton.

“What idea?” Connor asked.

“We sent Sebastian to rescue your stupid daughter that we never knew about. Sebastian rescued her from the clutches of the Russian Mafia, but now she finds herself captured by the rival Italian Mafia.”

Anton made a quick call to Sebastian, but there was no answer on the other end. Connor's silence was deafening as his anger towards Genovese reignited, fueling a disturbing fantasy of choking Serena to death.

“Connor, I’ll bring your daughter back! I promise you.” Anton walked past him.

“He will kill her till the time we reach there.”

Anton stopped in his tracks as soon as he heard Connor's words.

***

~ Janet ~

I attempted to move my hands but realized they were bound to the chair.

“She is waking up!”

I heard a female voice.

“Call the boss!”

I struggled to open my eyes, but they seemed weighed down and difficult to lift. I heard myself let out a groan because of the pain in the back of my head. It was as if someone hit me in the back. The commotion around me was loud as if I was in a salon. I could hear the sound of scissors, the fragrance of perfumes, and women sobbing.

Crying. I could hear someone crying, and it took all my strength to open my eyes forcefully, temporarily blinded by the intense lights. As I tried to regain focus, the room spun around me, disorienting my senses, and I felt myself losing my balance in the chair.

“Hey!” A hand held my shoulder, and I felt he saved me from falling. “Look at me,”

His rough hand cradled my face before he slapped me awake. I opened my eyes and met piercing grey eyes filled with power and danger. He wore a well-dressed black matte suit with his hair slicked back. He was gorgeous and in his early forties.

“Sei Bellissima,” He spoke deeply, staring into my eyes, and I blinked. He looked at someone behind me. “Her bidding starts at five million! She is gonna make me millions in one night!”

As he abruptly departed, my attention shifted to the mirror, which was adorned with lights, and I was captivated by the stunning reflection staring back at me.

“Wait, that’s me!” I screamed in my head.

I was star-struck by my appearance. The shimmering red dress I wore had a plunging neckline that exposed half of my breast, and when combined with the dark makeup, I couldn't help but feel like a clown.

My eyes were enhanced with a seductive, smoky eyeshadow, giving them a mysterious allure, while my lips were adorned with daring, crimson lipstick.

I found myself questioning how I ended up in this place and then remembered the incidents. I managed to flee the hospital while Sebastian's bodyguard accompanied the doctor. I aimlessly ran until I came across a kind-hearted person who offered his help in getting me home.

Flashback

To avoid causing any trouble for him, I requested him to park the car half a mile away from my house. The allergy medicine prescribed by the doctor was causing drowsiness.

Without thinking, I exited the car and hurried towards my house. However, I abruptly halted upon seeing my aunt carrying a sleeping Isabella and getting into a taxi.

Out of nowhere, a black car blocked my way, and a group of men got out, encircling me. Before I could make sense of the situation, a sudden, forceful blow struck the back of my head, plunging me into unconsciousness.

Flashback ends

The sound of the blow dryer caught me off guard, and I glanced at the hairstylist standing behind me in the mirror. I clenched my fists, attempting to escape.

“Stop it!” I saw the hairstylist looking at me in the mirror. “We have strict orders to get you ready before nine.”

I watched her as she skillfully curled the ends of my blonde hair. “What is the occasion?”

“Auction.”

I quickly looked around and saw a group of teenage girls, approximately fifteen or sixteen years old, crying inconsolably. I couldn’t understand what was going on.

As I surveyed the dimly lit room, adorned with black acoustic panels, I realized I had never set foot in a place like this during my entire twenty-one years living in New Orleans. “Who are they? And what do they want from me?”

“What type of auction?” I felt my throat constricted and instead of answering. She used a setting spray on my hair and covered my face with a black veil.

***

“Yes. Yes. Get me all the details! Come on! You have thirty minutes. Send me the location.” Sebastian hung up the phone and glanced over at Nate in the driver's seat of the car.

“We will find her!” He spoke, but Nate stayed lost in his own contemplation.

“If she knew she had a seafood allergy, why did she still eat the food?” He glanced at Sebastian.

“How do you know she knew? Should we talk about this now?” Sebastian arched his eyebrow.

“Did you speak to your father?”

Sebastian remembered the threat, not from Anton, but from Connor. “If I don’t see my daughter alive. The country will be bleeding.” And Sebastian knew Connor was capable of it because of the criminal connections that brought him both friends and enemies.

The ringing of his phone drove him out of his reverie, and it was a call from one of his informers.

***

Tears slipped silently from Janet's eyes, tracing a path down her cheeks. She had never felt so helpless before, and she couldn't help but pity herself.

All the lustful eyes sitting around the round table stared at her as if she was a commodity and she yearned to cover herself from their filthy eyes.

“For this beauty, we start at five million!” The presenter, who was standing next to Janet on the stage, made an announcement.

Janet witnessed a noisy disturbance among men dressed in suits, holding glasses of wine, and one of them raised their hand. “You’re asking for exorbitant money! What is so special about her?”

“Look at her! Isn't she a work of art handcrafted by God?” The announcer chuckled.

As a lone tear streamed down her cheek, she muttered curses under her breath. “What was this world that I never knew existed? Even though I knew about its presence, experiencing it myself and being in a situation where many girls had suffered was even more terrifying.” She trembled in fear.

“There is something more interesting about her!” Janet noticed a sparkle in the presenter's eyes. “She is the daughter of Connor Blair.”

“How does that make me more interesting, asshole?” As Janet pondered, the presence of the men in black suits before her helped her gather her thoughts.

“Six million!”

“Ten million!”

“Twelve million!”

Nikolai wore a sinister grin as he leisurely sipped his wine and observed the bidding on the screen in his office. As he focused on Janet's face and stopped, two thoughts crossed his mind.

One, fuck her and give her a brutal death, just like Connor killed his girlfriend. Two, sell her to one of the cruelest mobsters and strengthen ties to eliminate the existence of Genovese.

Janet parted her lips, watching the sudden increase in her demand just because she was Connor’s daughter. She could feel her heart racing inside her chest.

“Don’t think they want to buy you because you’re a princess. Your dear daddy has destroyed something or someone precious to them and they are blood-hungry to even the score. And what is more beautiful than you to destroy? One of them is going to ruin you, angel!”

Janet's face filled with terror as she watched the bidding reach a staggering nineteen million dollars on the screen behind her.

All of a sudden, there was complete silence in the hall. Janet's eyes remained locked on the floor as she witnessed a tear falling, concealing her strong, unspoken anger towards her father.

“Woah, twenty million dollars!” The presenter gasped. “The three-second timer is about up. FAST! Don’t let her go!”

“Thirty million!” The room fell silent as a powerful, booming voice commanded attention and silenced everyone's bidding. All eyes shifted towards the highest bidder, and a collective gasp filled the room as everyone stood up in awe of him.

“And sold!”

Janet closed her eyes in agony. “Janet Corrigan is sold."