No Right

Alexandra could barely hear the words over the phone, probably because the overwhelming sadness she was feeling drowned them out. In just one day, it felt as though the world had turned its back on her.

Her sister got sick mysteriously, her boyfriend cheated on her with her best friend, she got duped by her father, and now she was owing a shit-ton of debt that she couldn’t even pay up even in her dreams.

It was all too much for her. She didn’t even have time to grieve for her sister or process the end of her relationship. Everything was happening too fast, and she couldn’t keep up.

A knock on the door broke her thoughts. She sniffed, wiping her nose. It was probably that rich guy from earlier. He’d asked for her address, and she was too heartbroken to question it. She gave it to him anyway.

When she opened the door, she was met with a pair of dark, smoldering eyes that seemed to peer right into her soul. She quickly turned her gaze away as she opened the door wider to let him in.

He wasn’t alone. A taller man, one of the men who had approached her that night—Dario, or so she thought—stood beside him.

“Um, you look terrible,” Arthur noticed as he drew nearer to her; instinctively, she hid her face with her hair. “And your place is way smaller than I imagined...” he trailed off, noticing that every single piece of furniture was in ruins. “What happened here?”

“I need your help,” she said desperately, suddenly grabbing his arm. Arthur’s eyes followed her quick movement, and Dario was about to stop her but hesitated. Arthur didn’t like being touched, yet surprisingly, he didn’t pull away.

“I’ll do anything you want. I’ll beg you, just like you want. Please, let me marry you.” Her voice cracked, and she dropped her gaze, too embarrassed to meet his eyes. “I didn’t think I’d need money this urgently, and it was wrong of me to turn down your offer without thinking it through. Please forgive me.”

Arthur chuckled softly. The proposal sounded strange coming from her, but it was in a way that could almost be considered cute.

He gently cupped her chin, tilting her face upward. Her red hair cascaded in waves around her delicate features—features that no longer looked delicate, because it had bruises and blood

Arthur's eyes narrowed as he regarded the injury as if it were an abomination. He softly brushed her hair away from her face to get a clearer look.

“Who did this?” he asked, his tone shifting. He ran a finger across the broken skin of her lips, and she hissed in pain. The blood was still fresh, and a strange emotion stirred within him, one he couldn’t quite identify or understand.

He felt a sudden stiff anger coursing through his veins; the more he looked at her bruised face, the angrier he got. With this much anger, he felt as though he could tear down a building with his fist.

“I asked you—who did this?” His voice was more demanding now.

“L-Loan sharks…” she whispered, her breath catching as her eyes welled up again, unable to hold back the tears under Arthur’s penetrating gaze.

“Did you take out a loan from them and refuse to pay?” he asked, his voice colder.

“No,” she muttered, shaking her head. “My father did. And now they’re looking everywhere for him. If they can’t find him... then I’ll be—”

He interrupted her,

“Your father took out a loan from them, refused to pay, and they came here looking for him, found you, and did this?” He needed confirmation, and she nodded. “They must have given you the contract, the one with their details. Did they?”

She nodded quickly, remembering the small piece of paper the scarred man had thrown in her face before leaving.

“Boss, I think this is it,” Dario’s voice cut through the tension as he returned with the paper. He handed it to Arthur, who scanned it, his lips curling into a small, satisfied smirk.

“Blood Fang Credit Group? And the CEO is Viktor Rossi?” Arthur muttered to himself, his fingers quickly typing on his phone.

“Are you going to pay? Just like that?” she asked, her eyes wide with confusion. She felt as if she should explain more, but all Arthur seemed focused on was his phone.

No,” he answered, his voice shattering the little fantasy she had created in her head. “I’m making sure Blood Fang Credit Group gets shut down, and Viktor Rossi will never be able to establish anything anywhere in this country for as long as he lives. Both his name and his business will be blacklisted.”

Her eyes widened in shock. He wasn’t just paying them off—he was going to bring the entire company down.

“B-But why?” she stammered in confusion.

“No one,” He declared, his voice even more precise “No one has the right to touch what belongs to me. And that bastard did more than just touch.”