Chapter 39 Dax
Walking into the club an hour later, I still couldn’t believe I had managed to get Calliope to agree to the plan I came up with. She was mostly pissed that I didn’t allow her to come in swinging or shooting. Still, when we got stopped at the door, I could feel how tight her grip on my hand got. They were checking a list, and I knew that we weren’t on it. Not that it was a problem.
“Name?” The doorman asked.
“You won’t find it on there.”
“Then I am sorry, sir, but this is invite only.”
I rolled my eyes. “You might want to ask why I’m so sure your going to let us in.”
“If you aren’t on the list, I suggest you move aside.”
“What would Senator Grimes say if he knew you were refusing me admittance to his establishment?”
“I didn’t know he was sending you down tonight, forgive me.” He moved to the side to allow us through.
I brushed past him and swept into the room. It was divided into private boxes, each of them having one-way glass facing the stage and solid walls and roofs on them. Just inside the door, we were met with a man wearing a mask, he led us to one that was in the center of the room. Inside was a full bar, and a button with a keypad on the table in front of the glass. Seeing that, I knew immediately what this was.
“It’s an auction house,” Calliope whispered.
“Correct.”
She collapsed to the floor, and I went to her. Picking her up and carrying her to the seat. I sat carefully, setting her on my lap. My hands started to move in her hair, tucking it behind her ear so I could see her face. She was shaking in my arms, making me rage. I couldn’t stop the urge to hunt down whoever did this to her. None of that mattered as she broke down in my arms, clinging to me like I was her lifeline, and she was sinking. I was at a loss as to what to do.
She came back to herself as three knocks signaled from the door. It was our last chance to bow out before we were locked in until the auction was over. Her eyes were a little watery from her crying. “I’m okay.”
“You good to stay?”
“I’m good.”
Whatever she was about to say was cut off by the auctioneer’s voice. “Our first item up for bid has been quite a handful. She’s just about to go into her first heat.”
Calliope hissed at that. “No fucking way.”
“We start the bidding at say…ten thousand.” That started a flurry of bidding until the number reached one and a half million.
I moved up behind Calliope, “Reach over to the keypad and double the bid.”
She smiled as she did so and repeated the process until we had purchased all of the omegas. I wasn’t leaving a single one of them here. We sat there for long moments alone, waiting for someone to come and get us. Someone ran these auctions in buildings that my father provided. They were checking my connections, and I knew that.
I knew the moment they were about to enter, and I slid up beside Calliope. “Do everything I say and don’t show any fear.”
She didn’t have a chance to say anything before the door slid open. The same masked alpha from earlier was standing there. He moved to the side and pulled the door closed as soon as we passed. Pushing past me, he led us deeper into the warehouse space, past boxes and rooms into an office space where a man was sitting across a large table from us. Calliope wouldn’t look at him, I offered her my hand, and she took it, wrapping herself around my arm. I pulled her against me where I knew she would be safe. As far as I was concerned, she was the only safe person in this whole building.
“We have plans tonight, so can we do this quickly?” I snapped.
The man stood up from the table and came towards us. “And what does a senator’s son want with two dozen omegas?”
“Unless you want me and my money to disappear, I suggest you stop asking stupid questions.” That seemed to silence him.
A computer was presented, and I typed in the account numbers that Richie had provided to me. Minutes later, we were outside the club and back in the van with Richie. As soon as the door closed, I pulled Calliope into my arms. I felt awful for exposing her to that, had no idea what that might have brought up for her. I knew I had fucked up the moment she had a panic attack in that room. It had taken everything in me to not kill everyone in the building. That would have only made it worse… So much worse.
The feeling of her hand on my cheek made me look at her. “I’m okay, Alpha.”
“Promise?”
“I promise.” She turned to Richie with a smile. “We need to get home.”
“Why?”
“I have a plan.”