Free Naughty Bits Part IV: The Highest Bid by Joey W. Hill

stepped from the outer circle into the inner one, only the circle she was stepping into was essentially a circle of two. What she was leaving outside was all the others, all the wrong fit, the life she’d had.
    She shivered, caught between the fears that overlapped between fantasy and reality. Troy’s hand closed briefly over hers on the seat, strong and warm. He would try to comfort her, even if it wasn’t allowed. But it would be noticed.
    “We’ll be arriving at the auction house shortly.” Shale spoke sharply, and he withdrew. Her tone was capable of making a man’s testicles shrink back into his body. “Remember your training.”
    She wasn’t sure to whom Shale was speaking, until she continued. “You don’t speak or respond unless ordered to do so. You submit to anything required, whether pain or pleasure. Be a credit to your training. Understand?”
    “Yes, Mistress.”
    “When you are purchased, you will be turned over to your new Master or Mistress. From that moment on, you obey him or her only. You are no longer part of the Training House. Your absolute obedience and loyalty belong to your Master or Mistress.”
    The car came to a rolling stop. This time, Troy left the cape off. He guided her out of the car with a supporting hand on her elbow and a tug on the leash firm enough that it pulled against the collar. She inhaled oil, metal. Maybe a parking area? As they moved forward, her wearing nothing but the thong and her collar, she felt the touch of open air. She had to trust she was in an isolated place, right? Oddly, though, it mattered even less to her now, as if she was being pulled deeper into the spell. This was the auction site, where other slaves dressed just the same would be on display, paraded across the same open area. She was probably being looked at even now.
    A few minutes later, she sensed they’d entered a pavilion area, the air changing as curtains were pulled back, and sounds reflecting the echoing note they had when captured in an enclosed space. She stiffened as she heard voices, felt more air movement, as if her immediate surroundings contained people. Something like this would be held someplace private, unexpected, out of the way. Maybe a warehouse. As she was led further inside, though she was blindfolded, that darkness seemed to get even darker. Dim, murky. A place where people could move in shadows. A place of dark secrets and sinful desires. The oil and metal smell outside was replaced by an exotic incense, one that teased her nose, made her feel dizzier. Despite her wrists being pinioned to her sides, she stretched out her fingers and found she was able to grasp a tiny inch of the slacks Troy was wearing, a tight hold on that small piece of him.
    “Remember Alice?” he murmured, and gave her hip a single, reassuring caress.
    The reminder and touch helped. She didn’t want to get him in trouble, so she released him and followed his lead, a little steadier. Brighter, artificial light touched the edges of the blindfold, and she was taken up a set of steps, walked across planks. She was on a makeshift stage. The noise of people grew louder, the air movement denser, as if they were packed more closely around that display area. She was naked, in front of a group of strangers, here to assess her for purchase. Her pulse hammered up hard in her throat. Had she lost her mind? If her hands hadn’t been bound, she would have ripped the blindfold away, tried to find that cloak.
    She’d come to a stop, balked against Troy’s hold. There were too many people around, too many voices. She turned, bumped into Troy, pulled against the bindings. She’d freak out if someone she didn’t know did touch her. If that happened, she wouldn’t know if anything he’d told her could be trusted. She wasn’t ready for this. She’d lost her mind. All she had to do was say
Alice
. Right?
    “I was very clear when I spoke to the Training Mistress. She’s too shy for these coarse surroundings.