All Chapters of Switched at the Mafia Auction: Chapter 121 - Chapter 130

~ Avelyn ~The descent to the bowl of water came next. It was deliberate. The technicians lowered me slowly so that when I released the pole I entered the air like something sliding off a blade. The water bowl waited like a stage prop enlarged into reality revealing a transparent, semi-circular basin large enough for a person to be entirely submerged beneath and yet visible from every seat. The lights under it glowed faintly, and a murmur moved through the crowd as my dress hit the water and the red began to bleed and smear into the clear.Underwater, everything was muffled and strange. Sound turned to a pressure I couldn’t parse. My lashes fanned like small black wings. The red clouded up around me, but then, because of the choreography and because of the precise temperature and density of the liquid they had used, the color sank fast. I moved slowly, floating, body loose and limber and completely under control. Time dilated. In that silence, the panic pressed against my ribcage li

~ Avelyn ~Darkness didn’t come gently, it crashed into me.When I came back to myself, the first thing I felt was softness beneath my fingers. Not the cold marble of the garden. Not the rough grip from earlier. This was… fabric. Thick cushioned and expensive.My lashes fluttered.The ceiling above me wasn’t the sterile white of a clinic or the dim gold of Xander’s rooms. It was carved wood, detailed and old, with a chandelier that looked like it had no business existing in this century. Warm light spilled from it, soft and steady.For a second, I thought I’d lost my mind. Yes, that must be it. I’m imagining a scene from one of my fantasy movies but then a shadow leaned into my line of sight.“Avelyn?”The voice hit first and my chest tightened before my brain caught up.Kyle.No—That couldn’t be Kyle.I blinked slowly, my head pounding, my body heavy like I was waking from anesthesia. The man hovering over me had Kyle’s eyes. Kyle’s voice. Kyle’s hands reaching out tentatively towa

~Avelyn ~I didn’t think—I just ran.The second Kyle’s body jerked forward from the bullet, something inside me snapped loose. The three men who were supposed to guide me out barely reacted in time. I slipped right past them like my bones had forgotten I was supposed to be protected. All I saw was Kyle stumbling, Xander’s men spreading out, Kyle’s men shouting in Romanian, and the crack of gunfire echoing off the walls.It felt like the whole world went sideways.I heard one of the men behind me yell for me to stop, but none of them even came close to catching me. Apparently, survival instincts meant nothing when the person bleeding out in front of me was Kyle.Chaos erupted immediately. Someone shouted “sniper,” and suddenly everyone started firing in random directions. I barely registered it, because Kyle lifted his arm, his good one to stop his own men from retaliating. And that was the only reason I wasn’t dead three steps later.But I heard something else, a sharp voice calling s

~Avelyn ~“Come to my room.”There was no warmth, no mockery or teasing edge in his tone. Just command.I stood there for a second longer than necessary, my body lagging behind my mind like it didn’t want to cooperate anymore. Everything in me was tired. My feet hurt. My head throbbed. My chest felt raw, like I’d been scraped open and left to breathe.I followed anyway.Of course I did, what else was I going to do? Run?His room was dimmer than the rest of the house as usual with heavy curtains drawn tight like he didn’t want the outside world reminding him it existed. The smell of iron hit me immediately. Blood. His blood suddenly filling my nostrils. He didn’t sit and didn’t tell me to sit. I just wondered what he had to say that he couldn’t have said in the car and allow me some peace to rest. Since the performance I haven’t had personal time, it was one ordeal or the other. He loosened his jacket instead, movements controlled but not careless. The fabric peeled back just enough

~ Xander ~After stating my piece I tossed the toy on the bed, I’m sure she knew what that meant. And then I leaned into my seat, getting ready to be entertained. Would I enjoy it, or regret not taking her here and now?I was curious to find out what kind of face she’d make when she lose. She approached the bed and I spoke, stopping her in her tracks. “Don’t tell me you’re planning on keeping your clothes on.”Her chin lifted slowly, defiant even now, even when cornered. I found it entertaining.Her eyes were glassy, angry, wet with exhaustion she refused to admit to. Good. I wanted her tired.She didn’t speak again and undid her clothes, I watched her lose the pajamas, only Kyle would’ve given her. It looked cheap like his taste. Such fabric could’ve have come from me. Her pale skin shone in front of me and I had no reservations with how much I let my eyes roam. She didn’t have a single scare in sight, except the faint glow of bruises I recognized perfectly. My lips stretched