Not A Small-Town Girl

Chapter 15-2

David hummed in acknowledgment as he stood in front of the floor-to-ceiling window, cutting an intimidating figure. The Crimson Lily was said to grow in the depths of volcanoes and was reputable for its ability to cure all sorts of poisons and ailments.

Suddenly, the smart screen lit up, and a voice from the system announced, "The auction will begin now." It started to introduce the first item, a diamond-studded crown with a total of three hundred carats of diamonds. The voice began to announce each bid that was placed.

Danielle had come to the auction solely for the Crimson Lily. She had zero interest in the other items.

Juniper struck up a conversation. "That sister of yours and David are trending online. Did you see it? I didn’t realize they had that kind of relationship," she said as she gazed at Danielle with interest.

"I didn’t know anything about that," came the bored reply of Danielle as she drank from her glass of water.

"You’ve only just reunited with your family, but she’s already playing all these little mind games. You should just kick her out already," Juniper ignored Danielle’s disinterest and continued.

"My parents have a strong bond with Audrey. After all, she’s been with them for over ten years. If I asked them to kick her out, they’d feel guilty. It’s better to just leave things as they are," Danielle explained.

know you don’t usually go to the party after the auction, but I think you should this time. Just

to signal her

crackled to life, announcing the final item of the auction: the Crimson Lily herb. It went on about its rare properties, the health benefits, and how exclusive it was-basically selling it like it was the

bid. The starting price was 3 million dollars, and each subsequent bid had to be at

the bid amount and the bidder’s room number. Once the bidding began, it was obvious that many of the attendees were keen to get

the bids jumped to 5 million dollars, then 6, then 6.5 million

on the screen jump steadily. "How

dollars to

that Auction Room 2 had the highest bid, and sure enough, the offers started to dry up. Everyone understood what a low-numbered auction room meant-it was basically a sign that the big players were

and Danielle thought they had it in the bag when they saw that

changed again. There was an additional increase of 3 million dollars, bringing the highest bid now

coming. They sprang to action,

one reciprocated by bidding an

one and two went back and