Chapter 2

I had no choice but to sit down with Christopher. The auction commenced shortly after. Christopher kept his fingers interlaced with mine throughout, occasionally leaning in to whisper in my ear, mimicking the intimacy of a truly close couple. He even went as far as signaling an unlimited bid to secure a full set of sapphire jewelry for me. It was worth a staggering nine figures. In an instant, the entire auction hall erupted in uproar. "Has Mr. Reed lost his mind? He's throwing away that much money for someone like her?" "Well, you've got to admire her tricks, don't you? Haven't you seen those photos? With that body and those skills of hers, which man could resist? You should all take notes!" Their crude comments drilled into my ears no matter how tightly I covered them. Christopher, however, remained completely unperturbed, as if he hadn't heard a thing. He even made a big deal out of waving a server over, just to ask for a blanket for me. "My fiancee gets cold easily," he said, gently caressing my hand. In the past, I would have mistaken this for a gesture of love. But now, I finally understood that his exaggerated display was only meant to make me the center of ridicule once again. Humiliating me was his true intention. A wave of nausea rose again. My nails dug into my palm as I forced myself to endure it, waiting desperately for the auction to end. Finally, the last item was brought out. But I didn't even have the chance to let out a breath of relief. The moment I had a clear look at the item on display, I instantly felt stripped bare and thrown into an icy pit. The item up for auction was clearly photos of me being assaulted! Although the most explicit parts had been blurred out, everyone could tell who the woman in the pictures was. It was me. Those were photos taken after I was violated. But how did these photos end up here? I instinctively glanced at Christopher. He didn't look the least bit surprised. In fact, he didn't even blink. But of course, he was the esteemed scion of the Reed family, and I was his fiancee. No one would dare display these photos here without his permission. It would be a direct insult to him otherwise. Every male guest in the room turned to look at me. Their gazes were oily and degrading. "As expected of a ballerina! You'd need at least 20 years of training to pull off a pose like that!" "Damn it! The censoring makes it even more tempting!" "You find it tempting, do you? Well, if you're tempted, then bid for it! She might belong to Mr. Reed now, but you can still take the photos home and put them by your bedside. Have some fun with them, you know?" "You've got a point there! I'll bid five million!" "Five and a half!" "Six million!" The bids roared in my ears, a relentless torrent. A loud buzzing filled my head, my vision dimmed, and everything went black as I passed out on the spot.