Sophia’s P.O.V

The lights in the auction room dimmed ever so slightly, a single spotlight sweeping across the room and landing right where they were about to unveil her. I held my breath. And there she was—The Phoenix Reborn. My heart skipped. It was like watching a piece of my soul being laid bare before a sea of calculating eyes. There were murmurs all around, the kind that you can feel under your skin rather than hear, and then, gasps.

Real, stunned gasps as the velvet ...