I signed the contract with trembling fingers, my vision blurry from tears and the bright chandelier above.

“Do it, or your brother dies,” the man in the dark suit had said. His voice was ice, his eyes colder.

And I did it.

I signed my life away to the Knight family—the most dangerous mafia dynasty on the eastern coast. The deal was simple: marry the heir, save my brother.

But they gave me the wrong heir.

When the church doors opened, the man waiting for me wasn’t soft-eyed Elijah Knight, the cousin I was promised.

It was Aiden Knight.

Deadly. Merciless. Cold.

Wearing a black suit like war armor, he didn’t blink as I walked toward him in white. I wanted to run, scream, ask where Elijah was. But my brother’s life hung in the balance.

So I said nothing.

We exchanged vows written in blood instead of love.

His kiss didn’t land on my lips. It landed on my cheek—like a warning.

By the time the ceremony ended, I wasn’t his bride.

I was his property.

---

Hours later, in the backseat of a bulletproof car, he finally spoke.

“You were supposed to marry Elijah,” he said without looking at me. “But now you're mine.”

“I didn’t ask for this,” I whispered.

His eyes met mine—sharp, silver, unreadable.

“No one asks for hell. But we all end up here somehow.”

---

The mansion was silent, filled with shadows and secrets.

The bedroom wasn’t romantic. It was a prison with silk sheets.

He locked the door from the outside.

He didn’t want a wife.

He wanted a hostage.

But Aiden Knight made one mistake.

He thought I’d break.

He doesn’t know I’ve been broken before.

The morning after my wedding felt like waking up inside a stranger’s nightmare.

White silk sheets. A marble floor so cold it bit into my bare feet. A closet full of clothes that weren’t mine. Dresses too tight. Jewelry too heavy.

The cage was beautiful, but still a cage.

I stood in front of the mirror, brushing out my hair with fingers that wouldn’t stop shaking. Last night, Aiden hadn’t touched me. He didn’t need to.

His silence had already branded me.

A knock at the door made me jump.

It wasn’t Aiden. A housemaid entered quietly, eyes low. “Mr. Knight requests your presence in the east wing. Now.”

East wing?

I nodded, not speaking. I didn’t want to sound as broken as I felt.

When I stepped into the hallway, guards in black suits tracked my every move. No smiles. No warmth. Just shadows with guns.

The east wing was colder. Like it hadn’t been touched in years.

Then I saw him.

Aiden sat at a long glass table, one hand holding a glass of water, the other flipping through files. He didn’t look up.

“You’re early,” he said flatly.

“You said now.”

He finally met my eyes. “You listen better than your brother.”

My stomach dropped. “What does Adam have to do with this?”

Aiden smiled—but it wasn’t kind. “Everything.”

He tossed a file across the table. It slid to me like a knife.

I opened it—and froze.

There were photos of my brother… bruised. Hooked up to machines. Tied to a chair.

My throat burned. “You said you saved him.”

“I did. He’s alive. For now.” His voice was like smoke—calm and deadly. “But he remains alive as long as you obey.”

Tears blurred my sight, but I refused to let them fall. “Why punish me? I did what you asked. I married you.”

“You married Elijah.”

“No—I married you. I stood in front of you.”

He slammed his glass down. “That was never the plan. Elijah was supposed to take over the eastern trade. I was never supposed to marry anyone. But then your little signature changed everything.”

I stared at him, confused. “What do you mean?”

He walked closer, eyes dark. “The contract you signed? It wasn’t a marriage contract.”

I backed away. “Then what was it?”

He stopped inches from me. “It was a blood bond. You’re not my wife, sweetheart. You’re my leverage.”

I felt the ground tilt under me.

“You made a deal with the devil,” he said quietly. “Now burn with me.”

My room on the top floor had everything a girl could want.

A view of the sea. Imported sheets. Designer dresses. Diamonds in the drawers.

And a lock on the outside.

Every luxury whispered the same truth:

You’re not a wife.

You’re a possession.

I stood by the floor-length window, staring at the endless ocean. It was mocking me—so wide and free while I was trapped in silk and stone.

There were guards in the hallway. Cameras in the corners. Even the bathroom had a soft buzz—probably wired.

Freedom didn’t exist here.

Only him.

Aiden Knight.

I still didn’t know what I’d done to deserve him. Or what his family wanted with mine. My brother Adam had never told me the full story. Only that we were in danger.

Now I was in deeper than danger—I was in Aiden’s world.

---

That evening, dinner was served in silence.

He sat at the other end of the long table, slicing steak like it was a living thing. He didn’t look at me. Just chewed slowly, thoughtfully, like he was waiting for me to snap.

I didn’t.

“I want to see Adam,” I said quietly.

“No.”

I clenched my fists. “Then I want answers.”

He glanced up, amused. “You want a lot for someone in a cage.”

“I’m not your prisoner.”

He leaned back, wine glass in hand. “You’re not? Look around.”

I did. Marble walls. Velvet drapes. One exit. Two guards.

My voice was shaking. “Why marry me if you hate me?”

He smiled—dark and dangerous. “Because you were never meant to love me. You were meant to suffer.”

I stood up, rage bubbling beneath my skin. “Then let me go.”

“You think it’s about you?” he said, rising slowly. “You think I locked you in this mansion because I care?”

He came closer. I backed up.

“You’re not the prize, Aurora. You’re the punishment.”

---

That night, I cried in the shower.

Not because I was weak.

But because I had to remember what I was fighting for:

My brother.

My freedom.

And the truth behind this twisted marriage.

I stared at my reflection in the mirror. Pale. Hollow-eyed. But still breathing.

They thought they’d broken me.

But they hadn’t seen the fire yet.

---

The next morning, something changed.

I found a note slipped under my pillow.

“If you want to know the truth, check the locked drawer in the study. Don’t let him catch you.”

No name. No handwriting I recognized.

My heart pounded.

Someone was helping me.

Maybe Aiden wasn’t the only one keeping secrets.

The study door creaked open.

The guard at the end of the hall had just turned his back. I counted to five—then slipped inside like a shadow.

I didn’t belong here. That was obvious from the thick, wood-paneled walls and the dustless perfection of the bookshelves. But the note under my pillow told me something important was hidden inside.

The drawer.

I crouched behind the desk, heart pounding, and pulled.

Locked.

Of course.

My hands trembled as I scanned the room. No key in sight. I was about to give up—until I noticed a black chess piece out of place on the shelf.

I pulled it gently. Click.

The drawer popped open.

Inside were two things:

A torn envelope, and a small USB drive.

I grabbed both, shoved them into my pocket, and backed away—but a voice behind me froze my spine.

“Looking for something?”

Aiden.

I turned slowly.

He stood in the doorway, arms folded, expression unreadable. That mocking calm was more dangerous than shouting.

My mouth went dry. “I got lost.”

He walked forward, eyes locked on mine. “Lost… in a locked room?”

I didn’t answer.

He closed the distance, stopping just inches away. His cologne—spice, smoke, something expensive—wrapped around me like a trap.

He glanced at the drawer behind me. “What did you take?”

“Nothing.”

“Lying to me already, wife?”

The word wife dripped with venom. Like he was daring me to believe it meant something.

I straightened my spine. “I don’t answer to you.”

His eyes darkened. “You do. Whether you like it or not.”

He turned away. But just before walking out, he spoke again—without looking at me.

“There are three rules in this house, Aurora. Break them, and I won’t be so gentle next time.”

I swallowed. “What rules?”

He held up a finger. “One: Never enter a room without permission.”

“Two: Never lie to my face.”

“And three…” He turned, eyes glinting. “Never forget whose name you wear now.”

With that, he vanished into the hallway.

I stood alone in the study, hands still clenched around the USB drive in my pocket.

So he knew.

Or at least suspected.

---

That night, I stared at the ceiling in my dark room, replaying his words.

I wasn’t afraid of him. Not completely.

But I was afraid of what I didn’t know.

What was on that drive?

Who left the note?

And why did he care so much that I married him instead of Elijah?

I would find answers.

Even if I had to burn through every secret Aiden Knight buried.

And maybe… just maybe…

I'd find a way to burn him too.