The master suite in Vane Estate didn't look like a bedroom at all; it
looked like a temple dedicated to power. It was a large expanse of black
marble and a large fireplace that was big enough to incinerate a man's
sins.
Lucian stood by the side. He had rolled up his white shirt sleeves to
reveal his forearms, which were corded with muscles, veins, and on
them were dark, cryptic tattoos.
He stood still and looked at me, who was standing at the door like a
predator who had finally dragged his prey home, while I stood by the
door side with my $5,000 wedding gown stained with blood.
"Take it off," he commanded. The command was calm, but I felt it at the
soles of my feet.
"Well, I am not a stripper, Lucian," I retorted, my voice shaking even
with the guts I had. "And I am not your sort of plaything. You can buy
my father's debt but not my dignity."
Lucian turned to face me. The firelight glistened on his face, especially
his eyes, making them glow with so much anger. He picked up agarment of heavy liquid silk, the Vane family crest with a silver falcon
clutching a broken crown embroidered on it.
"Really? You're speaking of dignity when you wear the rag of a dead
life."
Lucian said softly, but somehow sounded like a threat. He slowly kept
moving till he was closer to me. "This dress you're putting on smells of
your father's greed, Philip's cowardice. And every minute it's on your
body, you're clinging to a lie. Burn it!" he said.
He tossed the robe, and it fell to my feet. "I won't," I said fearlessly.
"This is the only thing I chose for myself, so I won't let you take it away,
too."
Lucian just walked around the room calmly without doing anything, but
his movement made me shift to the door, and my back felt the cold oak
of the door.
He leaned closer to me, using his finger to shift the delicate lace on my
shoulder.I gasped, my eyes completely in shock as I felt the cold air of the room
hit my skin.
"You owe nothing, Bianca, or have you forgotten? Every single thing
you brought into this house is completely mine now," he said, bringing
his face closer to mine. "Your breath, your body, your defiance. Now
take it off yourself, or I'll shred it into pieces till there's nothing left to
cover you. Choose now!" he commanded
With tears on my cheek and shaking hands, I began to undress, began to
remove the Vera Wang gown, the one I thought would lead to a beautiful
and peaceful life, but now a pile of white rags stained and dropped on
the cold floor.
I took the silk robe that he gave me and wore it. I felt cold with it. It had
no buttons, just a sash I tied tightly around my waist. There were no
undergarments, nothing between, but rather a thin layer of Vane silk.
"That's good," Lucian said. He lifted the wedding dress and threw it into
the fire.
I watched in pain as the flames burned down my wedding gown."Can I speak with my father?" I asked. "At least I need to hear one last
word from the man who sold me."
Lucian looked into the fire for a while before dipping his hand inside his
pocket to pull out a sleek, encrypted smartphone and gave it to me.
"Here! Do what you wish, Bianca, but always remember the truth is not
what it always turns out to be."
I took the phone, my hands shaking while dialing the number I had
always remembered and memorized since childhood. I thought maybe
he's in a cell, or hiding, or maybe making a plan to save me.
The phone rang three times before someone finally picked it up.
"Hello, who's calling?"
"Dad, it's me, I am with Lucian, he took me to his estate, Dad, you have
to call the police, come and save me, Dad..." I said"Bianca?" My father said. I felt a change in his voice, but it wasn't fear
at all, but a cold annoyance. "So why are you calling me? Don't you
know the arrangements?" he said
My body was completely pale. "Arrangement?"
"You were used to clear off the debt, now we have everything back, the
Rossi name is safe now, and shipping routes are okay. You have fulfilled
your role in the family. Now stop with the drama, and make sure you're a
good wife to Lucian.
Lucian is more powerful and richer and can treat you better than Philip
could ever do," he said. From the noise in the back, I could tell he was
having the moment of his life, like he's in a bar with glasses of wine and
loud music. He was drinking and celebrating.
"He turned one of my happiest days into my worst nightmare; he killed a
lot at my wedding without a single conscience, Dad!" I cried on the
phone.
"He had to do it, to claim you," my father said. "Please let this be the last
time you ever call this line again. I have started a new life in Monaco.
The Rossi empire is now Lucian's problem, and so are you," he said as
he cut the call, shattering my heart into pieces.The phone slipped from my hand and fell onto the floor. My dad had
given me out as a gamble. He had handed me over and moved on with
his life.
Then a pair of strong, warm hands rested on my shoulders, which
brought me to reality.
"Bianca," Lucian said. "Everyone is gone, your father, your fiancé, it's
just you... And me"
I turned to face him, my eyes searching his face for a lie, but I only saw
a dark, obsessive truth. "Why?" I asked. "Why do you desire me this
much? I mean, you could have any woman in the city. Why me?"
"I don't want any woman, Bianca," he said, gently touching the back of
my neck. "I watched you grow from a girl into a queen. I have been so
patient. I have waited through every concert, every dance, and every
pathetic touch you received from other men. You're the only treasure I
haven't gotten... up until today.
He then carried me up effortlessly, my silk dress crawling on the ground
as he took me towards the big black canopied bed in the centre of the
roomMy heart hit his chest, and I felt a mix of fear and dark heat I didn't want
to admit. He lay me softly on the bed and stood close to me
I thought he would remove my robe and touch me, but instead, he stood
at the edge of the bed.
He started touching my hair gently. "Sleep, Bianca," he commanded, his
voice low but possessive
"Are you sleeping here?" I asked with a shaking voice.
"I have spent 10 years watching you on the screen," he said as both our
eyes looked into each other. "Tonight I am going to watch you sleep.
Now close your eyes, my wife. I will keep the nightmares away."
He sat there, without moving, like a dark god guiding his prize. As the
nights grew darker, I began to feel a darkening of my mood.
I saw myself feeling safer with the monster who stole me than my father,
who sold me out.