Chapter 1

It had been ten years since Bennett Pierce took me in. Today, he finally ran out of patience and put me on the auction block for his wealthy friends.

When the red velvet curtain rose, someone let out a low whistle. Their smiles were oily and suggestive.

"I heard she's a mute. Playing with a girl who can't scream must have a special kind of flavor."

"But Bennett, you've raised this girl for a decade. Are you really okay with giving her away?"

"Why wouldn't I be? She's not actually mute. She can talk; she's just faking it to get attention."

Bennett spoke coldly as he walked onto the stage. He gripped my chin, forcing me to look at him through my tears.

"I'm giving you one last chance."

"If you want me to bid and keep you, then open your mouth. Beg me. Say the words."

I tried to use sign language, but my hands were tied tightly to the chair. I could only shake my head helplessly, silently pleading with him.

There was no sound. The stage was eerily quiet.

It seemed to confirm the rumors that Bennett had a twisted hobby of collecting broken people.

Below the stage, his childhood sweetheart, Ivy Sterling, looked disgusted. She had just returned from abroad and couldn't stand the sight. She turned and walked out.

Bennett immediately dropped my chin and chased after her without a second glance.

Soon, the hammer fell three times. I was sold to a stranger for less than the price of a single cocktail.

But I really couldn't speak...

After the auction ended, I was thrown into a cold, unfamiliar hotel room.

The man who bought me held up his phone. He looked thrilled as he recorded my desperate struggles.

"Bennett Pierce sold you to me. Where do you think you're going?"

"Besides, he's too busy making out with his lover to care about you."

"Other girls can scream, but can you, little mute?"

He slapped my face hard a few times, mocking me.

The image of Bennett's retreating back flashed in my mind again. Suddenly, I lost all strength to fight.

Tears rolled down my cheeks. I went limp as he started tearing at my collar.

Bang!

The door was suddenly kicked open. The man on top of me screamed as he was sent flying off the bed.

Bennett kicked him several more times, roaring at him to get the hell out.

Once the man scrambled away, Bennett looked at my disheveled clothes and messy hair. His gaze darkened with rage.

The next second, his hand was around my throat.

"Is saying one word going to kill you? I don't get it, Anya Sullivan."

"Or maybe... you just don't care who sleeps with you anymore."

He leaned in close, his eyes full of pure contempt.

Ever since he took me in, rumors had spread that he had a fetish for the disabled. Those rumors had reached Ivy's ears.

He had waited for Ivy for years. Now that she was back, he couldn't stand her thinking he was some kind of freak.

If he could just force me to speak, the rumors would die.

He loosened the ropes on my wrists. I instinctively tried to sign a response, but he grabbed my hands and squeezed them tight.

"Speak! I told you to speak!"

He couldn't handle my silence. His grip on my throat tightened until the world started to blur.

I squeezed my eyes shut in pain. But my throat remained a frozen wasteland, unable to produce a single note.

Just as my face turned purple and I gasped for air, he let go.

He tossed a pen in front of me.

"Won't speak? Fine. If you're so committed to the act, pick up that pen with your teeth and write it out."

He shoved his hands into his pockets and looked down at me. His eyes were like ice.

I opened my mouth, but only a hollow ache filled my chest.

He was the one who had learned sign language for me. He was the one who told me he'd understand me even if I never said a word.

Now, he acted like those memories never existed.

The click of high heels echoed at the door. Ivy Sterling walked in.

She was wearing a pair of designer heels that Bennett had bought for ten times their value right before the auction.

She walked over and frowned slightly when she saw me on the bed.

Bennett immediately pulled her into his arms. He whispered promises to her, soothing her ego.

He told her he would prove I wasn't a mute.

When he turned back to me, his eyes were even colder.

He picked up a nearby bottle of red wine and said darkly, "Someone bought you for the price of a glass of wine. You were willing to sleep with him for that."

"I'll pay a whole bottle just to hear you say a word. That's a fair deal, right?"

He grabbed my jaw and forced the neck of the bottle into my mouth.

The wine poured down my throat. I choked and thrashed, the liquid burning as it went down the wrong way.

"Cough! Cough!"

I curled into a ball, coughing violently. A mangled sound finally escaped my throat.

Bennett finally let go of me. I looked like a drowned rat.

When I reached out to grab his sleeve, Ivy noticed. She took the bottle from Bennett's hand.

With a flick of her wrist, she dumped the rest of the wine over my head.

For a moment, I couldn't breathe.

The wine soaked through my skin. Almost instantly, my body began to itch and turn bright red. My vision grew fuzzy.

But Bennett only had eyes for Ivy.

"I guess I misunderstood you," Ivy said softly.