Chapter 4

Everyone in the auction house knew my face. As long as someone took off my mask, I would be saved. But the people passing by were in a hurry. No one cared about an item that was about to be auctioned.

After the countdown, I was placed on a huge tray and pushed out. "The third lot is now onstage. The starting bid is one dollar."

When the buyers below heard this, they began whispering to each other. "One dollar? Are they insulting us?"

"This has to be the cheapest lot in the auction's history, right?"

The price stunned even me, and a wave of humiliation surged through my chest. Lander was humiliating me! He wanted me to know that without Jillian, I would be worthless!

Under Lander's manipulation, my price quickly rose to three hundred thousand dollars.

I thrashed around desperately, and the sight of me writhing made the whole hall burst into laughter.

Suddenly, my eyes met Jillian's. She stared at me in shock, rubbed her eyes, and kept staring at me.

I knew she had recognized me.

'Jillian! It's me, Firo! Save me!'

I kept trying to call for help, but all I could make was more muffled sounds.

"Lander, that's Firo!" She froze, then climbed down from Lander's lap in a panic. Then she stared blankly at me. "Why... Why is he being auctioned?"

Lander had not expected Jillian to recognize me with my face covered. Viciousness flashed through his eyes before he answered. "You must have made a mistake. How could Firo be onstage?"

"Impossible! I wouldn't mistake him! Firo has a red birthmark on his neck! It's definitely him!" Jillian shot to her feet, but after noticing the looks from around the room, she quietly sat back down and asked, "What exactly is going on?!"

Lander gently calmed Jillian down, then put on a show by calling a staff member over to ask a few questions. After that, he looked toward me on the stage. "The staff said he got on the auction stage voluntarily... and they also said..."

Jillian pressed him, and he answered slowly, "They said he's a regular at the underground casino. He owed too much gambling debt and couldn't pay it back, so he had no choice but to do this..."

'Lies! Jillian, don't believe his nonsense!'

If looks could kill, Lander would already have been torn to pieces. Unfortunately, everything went against me, and Jillian readily believed Lander's story. Her eyes no longer held any warmth as only sneers remained as she said, "I thought he was a decent, respectable man. I didn't expect to be fooled for three years…"

I wanted to argue back, but all I could do was watch helplessly as I was bought for five hundred thousand dollars.

Lander sounded as though he were testing Jillian as he casually slung an arm around her shoulders.

"Jillian, the woman who bought Firo, is famous for playing with men. I heard not a single person has ever come out of her house in one piece. Are you sure you want to watch him fall into her hands?"

Even I was holding my breath as I waited for Jillian's answer.

In the end, I only heard her laughing mockingly before she sent me to my doom. "I thought he was pure. I got my money's worth after three years anyway."

Tears rolled from the corners of my eyes, and I finally gave up on that relationship.

Just as the staff were about to take me off the stage, the doors of the hall were suddenly pushed open. A man wearing a classic suit walked in as everyone greeted him fawningly.

"Boss, you're here!"

My eyes widened, as if I had grabbed a lifeline.