Outfoxed (The Fox Witch #1) - R.J. Blain Page 0,67
exactly nobody, but beyond a few disgruntled looks my way while I dripped all over the bar and grill’s nice, clean floors, I escaped notice. With my check and freedom from rent, I decided to treat myself, ordering two foods I hadn’t been able to enjoy in years: steak and salad.
Most salads came from greenhouses located in the questionable safety of Inner Tulsa and cost a fortune. I had no idea where the steak came from, but I ordered mine rare fringing on raw.
The fox in me deserved a treat, too.
Like me, Anna showed up early, she sat across from me, and without missing a beat, she ordered dinner for herself, taking a page from my book.
Since I could guess what she thought about me ordering such an expensive dinner, I said, “I got paid today.”
“And you’re free and clear of rent, although you lost your landlord. Sorry about that. A lot of dead folk, lately. No judgment from me, little vixen. Enjoy your supper.”
Right. I could work with that, and I perked my ears forward. “I figured if you were going to slip me a note, you weren’t going to be trying to corner me this time.”
“Right you are. Here’s the deal. You have a huge live bounty out for you, and they want to take you to the East. I only vetted it so far, but if I can snag you and bag you, I will. Business, and frankly, you’re better off there. I’ve done some talking with most of the other bounty hunters in the area, and because you help out so much, we want to give you a two-day grace, to make sure you have your prized possessions with you. Those stay yours, per the bounty, but you only get to keep what goes with you. You’ve helped others, so we’re helping you. Starting on the morning of the seventh, you’re fair game.”
“I don’t suppose you’d care to clue a woman in on what’s going on, would you? One day, I’m minding my own business, and the next, you’re jumping me like a fresh steak nobody has claimed.”
Thanks to Noah and Sandro, I had a good idea of what was going on, but I wanted to know what Anna thought—or what she may have learned that men would’ve discounted as important.
“You’re a first generation fox with a good pedigree, and a family in the East wants you to be their uncontested courtesan, specifically for the heir of the family. The family name is sealed, but you’ll be sent to one of the more exclusive auctions. Normally, up to ten women and men are auctioned off at a time, and these auctions send half the proceeds to charity, the other half goes to the woman to begin her empire with her new family. Sometimes, the woman gets the entire bid amount and the auction house sets a base fee, half of which they’ll contribute to charity. There are a few other auction types, too, but all of them funnel money to one charity or another. Participation is restricted. Vixens like you are considered to be the cream of the crop, and the auction is less about figuring out which family gets you and more about forcing that family to demonstrate how badly they want you in the line.”
I questioned how I went from generally disliked by most for being different to a desirable among the wealthy and influential. I wouldn’t blame Sandro for his interest. Some men liked when women challenged them, and I’d done the equivalent of smack him upside the head with a gauntlet with my disappearing trick. “Has everyone forgotten most people don’t even like vixens?”
“That was before people realized just how versatile you hybrids are. Yes, it was a rather unexpected development. People don’t tend to like what is different from them.”
I believed that. “And this somehow turned into me having a big bounty how?”
“You’re a first generation vixen, you have a good reputation, you’ve been evading bounty hunters for years, although for a much smaller sum. Between your looks and pedigree, you caught someone’s attention. You’ll become the new matron of the household once the current family heads step down. This is where things get sketchy, and where it stops being a good deal for you. You have to make serious effort to provide the family with at least one child, but afterwards, you’re no longer required to maintain sexual relations with your husband. The entire point of the auction is to