I wiped my hands on my apron, my feet aching from the double shift at the small Italian restaurant where I worked. The dinner rush had been brutal, with tons of impatient customers and endless orders, and my boss, old Mr. Romano, had insisted I cover for someone who called in sick. I didn’t mind the hassle of the restaurant. Work was my escape from my complicated home. When I was finally done, I pulled the apron over my head, sighing in relief of a well-served day. Soon, it would be payday, and I could finally give Rosie that little notebook she’d been asking for. Rosie, my younger sister who was just nine, loved to draw. Her sketches had a way of bringing beauty to our messy life. I quickened my steps, eager to get home and see little Rosie and Mom. My relationship with Dad wasn’t great ever since I caught him cheating on Mom. His temper had been flaring more often lately, and I didn’t want him to lash out at me. Mom always thought I was at fault for hating my dad. She doesn't kn
Damien leaned back in his wheelchair, assessing me like a prize he'd just won. “I assume you understand why you’re here.” “My father owes you money, and I told your men I’d come with them if they left my sister alone,” I said, forcing myself to hold his intense gaze. I could see a faint smile tugged at the corner of his lips as soon as the words left my mouth. It was cute. Cuter than intended especially for a man so evil. “Foolish!" He snorted, audible enough for me to hear. I folded my hand into a fist “Look, I don’t care what you do to me. Just leave my family alone.” He raised an eyebrow, clearly amused at the audacity. “You’re willing to sacrifice yourself for them?” “I wouldn't be here if I wasn't,” I retorted. “Five days. That’s how long your father has to pay me back. If he fails…” His gaze darkened. “consider yourself dead. Do you understand?” “I understand.” I nodded, my heart pounding hard. “Good. For now, you’ll stay here. My men will show you to your roo
I paced the room anxiously, biting my nails. The hours were ticking by too quickly, and I had no escape plan in mind.Damien’s words replayed in my head: “There’s a party tonight, and I want you to get ready, you're tagging along.” He had meant it as an order, but all I heard was an opportunity.Maybe my only chance to run.I had just twenty-four hours left, and waiting for my father to show up with the money was pointless. A million dollars? He’d never come through. I couldn’t stay here anymore.I sighed, tugging at the hem of my plain black pants and simple white top. They weren’t formal, but they were the most comfortable clothes I could find from the small wardrobe Damien had given me.I glanced at myself in the mirror, running my fingers through my damp curls to push them out of my face. A knock sounded on the door, I froze, my heart leaping into my throat. For a moment, I thought about not answering, but I knew better. Damien wasn’t the type to be kept waiting.“I'm coming,” Da
Tracey's POV The ride back to the mansion was silent. Neither Damien or I had said a word to each other. I knew i had messed up, big time and he didn't look like he wanted to hear a word from me. Not like i had anything to say either. So, I sat there, frozen, with tears rolling down my face. My throat was hurting from trying to hold back the sobs, and my chest felt like it was being squeezed. I shut my eyes, hoping to block out everything, but all I could see was him. The Italian standowner, his terrified face as he lay in a pool of his own blood.... Damien's man had killed him right in front of me. Just like that, With no hesitation, no second thoughts. And now, I didn’t know what to feel. Should I be grateful that Damien saved me? Or sick from witnessing it all? The car jerked suddenly, pulling me from my thoughts. I shifted, trying to find some kind of comfort but, Damien noticed and his hand shot forward gripping my arm. “Don’t move,” he muttered coldly and I swallowed hard
Damien's POVI leaned back, trying to keep my temper in check. “If it were that simple, don’t you think I would’ve done it by now? And let’s not forget, Skylo, I asked you to get me her fucking father or my fucking money...not some fucking teen girl who can't control her damn emotions. What the fuck do you expect me to do with a fucking child, huh?” I groaned frustrated by it all.He chuckled, clearly enjoying himself. “She was fun and challenging, I thought she'd bring spice into your boring life, you know. And she's actually doing a great job stressing you nuts right now”“Shut up,” I snapped, running a hand through my hair. Skylo tilted his head, and he gave me a slightly serious expression “You can't keep her locked up forever, What's the plan here? Wait until Daddy dearest comes crawling back?”"I don't intend to.""Look, Damien. You’ve got options. Kill her and be done with it, or—”“Don’t test my patience,” I warned, getting infuriated by the thought of it. “Killing her is off
Tracey's POVTwo days! It has been two whole days since Damien had me locked up in here, and I was already getting suffocated without human contact. Well, except for Ann, the elderly maid who treated me like I was worse than trash whenever she was here.She’d come in to bark orders, shove food trays at me, and act like my very presence offended every bit of her. It was obvious she hated me. I could see it in her sharp glances, the way her lip curled into disdain when she looked at me was enough to tell me that I wasn’t welcome here—not by her, not by anyone else.And honestly? I didn’t blame them. I didn't want to be here either. I hated everything about it. Being confined under Damien's wrath was worse than death itself.I leaned against the wall, wrapping my arms around myself as tears welled up in my eyes. I hated crying. It made me feel weak, but I couldn’t stop. The pain I was feeling wouldn’t let me.The decision to escape had been the dumbest decision of my life. I didn't kno
Tracey's POVMy head throbbed, and my mouth tasted like something had crawled up in and died. I groaned and tried to move, but realized I was stiff.What the—?I blinked, adjusting my eyes to the ray of light seeping through the window. The first thing I saw was, the demon, Damien sitting pretty in his chair beside the bed. His arms were crossed, watching me like I was some particularly irritating puzzle he’d just solved.“You’ve got some nerve, little girl,” he said, his voice low and sharp, cutting through my grogginess.My stomach dropped.“The audacity to try and kill yourself,” Kill myself?? Oh, snap! He knew already.It all came rushing back—the guards talking about the poison, me sneaking into the medicine cabinet, and swallowing two pills before dragging myself into Damien's office. I’d thought I was dying when he told me to kneel. Honestly, I didn't expect to wake up at all. Not that I wanted to.But here I was, back to reality.I stared at him, my brain didn't even to sear
Damien's POVTracey was at it again and this time, she had stretched my nerve limit in every way possible. When she came into my office, standing there with her small figure looking timid, all teary and apologetic, I thought she had fucking realized her mistake, And when she started crying, hell yeah! I was convinced she was remorseful. Not until she fucking slumped on the cold floor of my fucking office, leaving me dazed for a second. That little drama queen had made me stand off my chair, picking her up on impulse, with her sweet vanilla scent flooding my nose, but I knew I had no time for that. I dashed out the door to the nearest room—Mine. I gritted my teeth as I stood over the window relaying my personal doctor's words. "Boss, She's alive. Just the effect of the drugs kicking it" He said, packing his bags to leave. W-what? What the fuck was he talking about?? As far as I was concerned, Tracey has been locked up in her room with no human contact just like I instructed. Well
Tracy's POVSitting on my bed, I could not help but realize something. It was more than obvious to me now. Damian was actually avoiding me. It had been over four days, and yet he had not come to check on me. He didn't even intervene in anything I had been doing. Normally, he would have done much worse than that. In short, he would have been in my head, forcing me to learn, forcing me to do everything possible. He would have been here waking me early and telling me not to be lazy. But he was nowhere to be found. It was like he vanished into thin air. Anytime I tried to see him, he was always not around. Even when I went to his office, he wasn't there. That was kind of frustrating for me because only when I had slowly started getting used to him did he have to vanish like this. I lay down on the bed, staring up at the ceiling. All I could imagine was what happened between the two of us, and it could not stop amusing me as I smiled and rolled on the bed, using my bed sheets to cover mys
Damien's POVSitting in my office, I felt so frustrated as I pondered whether my plan could really work or if I was just being intimidated because I was trying to avoid Tracy. It was a very bad plan, and what if we did not get William? Those thoughts filled my mind, leaving me confused. I did not know what to do, what to say, or even what to think anymore. As I sat alone in my office, I decided to call in Skylo. He rushed in and looked at me. “Are you still trying to decide?” he questioned as I nodded. “I have made my decision. We are not going with that plan of yours. Yes, it is a nice plan. It’s intimidating and well thought out, but it won't work, and a lot of problems could arise. Putting a price on him would mean that every enemy would know about the fight, and I don't want him to be publicized. I don’t want people to know. I just want to quietly find Tracy's father, and that is all,” I said firmly as he nodded. “I also thought about it. I knew you would not easily accept my i
Damien’s P.O.VWaking up at 5 a.m with my body stiff from the restless night. I Sat up in bed, my eyes scanning every corner of the room for anything suspicious. Cameras. Bugs. Anything Diego might use to spy on me.Deigo could not be trusted. Not after everything that has happened between us.Certain there was none, I stood up the bed and moved into the bathroom.The shower was lukewarm, barely doing anything to shake off the exhaustion I was feeling from everything. Last night was an aweful one. Trying to stay at alert, conscious of Deigo's not acting funny had led to a restless night for me.By the time I returned to the room, Marcus was already waiting for me. He stood stiffly by the door, his face blank, but I could see the tension in the way his hands rested at his sides.“Boss,” he greeted, his voice steady as he gave me a small bow.“Any information about the file?“ I asked, not wanting to ask the exact question bugging my mind.If Tracey had been found. “Nothing Boss, not ev
Damien's POVSitting in my office, I felt so frustrated as I pondered whether my plan could really work or if I was just being intimidated because I was trying to avoid Tracy. It was a very bad plan, and what if we did not get William? Those thoughts filled my mind, leaving me confused. I did not know what to do, what to say, or even what to think anymore. As I sat alone in my office, I decided to call in Skylo. He rushed in and looked at me. “Are you still trying to decide?” he questioned as I nodded. “I have made my decision. We are not going with that plan of yours. Yes, it is a nice plan. It’s intimidating and well thought out, but it won't work, and a lot of problems could arise. Putting a price on him would mean that every enemy would know about the fight, and I don't want him to be publicized. I don’t want people to know. I just want to quietly find Tracy's father, and that is all,” I said firmly as he nodded. “I also thought about it. I knew you would not easily accept my i
Tracy's POVSitting on my bed, I could not help but realize something. It was more than obvious to me now. Damian was actually avoiding me. It had been over four days, and yet he had not come to check on me. He didn't even intervene in anything I had been doing. Normally, he would have done much worse than that. In short, he would have been in my head, forcing me to learn, forcing me to do everything possible. He would have been here waking me early and telling me not to be lazy. But he was nowhere to be found. It was like he vanished into thin air. Anytime I tried to see him, he was always not around. Even when I went to his office, he wasn't there. That was kind of frustrating for me because only when I had slowly started getting used to him did he have to vanish like this. I lay down on the bed, staring up at the ceiling. All I could imagine was what happened between the two of us, and it could not stop amusing me as I smiled and rolled on the bed, using my bed sheets to cover my
Damien's POVI can't believe I have been avoiding Tracy for the past two days. I have just made sure not to come in contact with her, and now again I rushed to the office just because I don't want to see her. I sat down, staring at the piles of documents. On a normal day, I wouldn't want to go through all of this, but because I had an aim—and that was to avoid her in any way possible—I found this even more amusing and much better than actually seeing her and watching her smile at me because that was even more annoying than anything. As I went through all the documents, I became a bit tired, only for me to check the time and realize it was not even close to 20 minutes since I had started, and funnily enough, I had not even gone through up to three pages. I felt so frustrated that I groaned, slapping my hand on my forehead in frustration. What has gotten over me? I don't even know why I am doing this. I am not the kind of person who would find this cheering at all or even resort to do
DAMIEN’S P.O.V. The door creaked open, the sound of the door slicing through the whole area tension I didn’t look up to know who was that. My grip on the whiskey glass tightened. “Boss,” a voice said from behind. I exhaled sharply. Skylo. I clenched my jaw, resisting the urge to rub my temples. “You’re back.” “Surprise!” His voice was dripping with fake cheer which was fully visible. “Did you miss me?” I finally glanced up at him, my gaze locking onto the same cocky grin, the same lazy stance like he had all the time in the world. My eyes narrowed. “You didn’t tell me you were coming back sooner.” Skylo plopped onto the couch without any care, stretching out like he owned the whole Damned place. “Oops. My bad.” I folded my arms, irritation simmering beneath my skin. “Did you even know about the meeting with the Round Table men today?” Silence filled the whole room at once Then... Skylo’s eyes widened. “Shit.” I smirked. “Exactly.” He scratched the back of his head, look
TRACEY’S P.O.V. I stormed down the hallway, my heels clicking fast. My hands clenched into fists. My whole body still shivering from the past experience with him. Behind me, I felt Skylo’s stare. Cold. Judging. Calculating. I didn’t turn back to confirm my own gaze. He was there, he caught me with him in a romantic spot. And he did nothing, he didn't say any word to stop the action from going on. My heart pounded as I reached my room door. I pushed open the door and slammed it shut behind me. I pressed my back against the door breathing hard and sharp. The room was quiet. Too quiet and it make feel more safer to think. But my body wasn’t in that mood. My lips tingled at the past expression. I closed my eyes, the whole scene playing before my own eye. Damien. I still felt his kiss on my lip. His taste of sliva from his mouth. His hands gripping me, owning me. I should have pushed him away immediately. I should have slapped him and warned him never to do such thing again But
TRACEY'S P.O.V "No," I grumbled, my voice barely above a quick whisper. Was he fucking kidding me or joking with me? To feed him through my mouth through the whole meal?? My fingers curled into my lap, gripping the fabric of my dress so tightly my knuckles turned white, my whole body feeling kind of werid already. My heart hitting hard against my ribs, my body vibrating at his words. As much as I hated the whole thought of it… I think… I was enjoying the thrill of the idea. No. No, no, no. I was not enjoying it at all! I swallowed hard, my throat dry, as if a lump was forming already. It was enough that he had stolen my first kiss just like that… through mouth feeding, not even because we were in love. Not even because I wanted it. Not even because I wished for it. My lips still tingled from the last time. The memory of it playing like a inbuilt disc slate. The same feeling of how warm and demanding his mouth were, had sent a strange shiver down my spine. I blinked, realizing