I tore through my drawers like my life depended on it—because it did.
My hands shook so badly I could barely grip anything as I yanked out files, clothes, envelopes—anything that might hide what I needed.
My passport.
It had to be here. My only way out. The only proof I still had a right to leave, a right to choose where my life went next.
But the drawer was empty.
And the lock box I kept it in? Broken. Forced open. The metal latch bent as if someone had crushed it out of pure spite.
“No…” I whispered, my throat tightening as panic crawled up my chest.
I searched again anyway, desperate enough to believe it might magically appear if I just looked harder. I threw papers across the floor, scattering them like fallen leaves. I checked under stacks, behind folders, even inside shoes.
Nothing.
Then a sharp, bitter smell drifted through the window.
Smoke.
My breath caught. I rushed to the glass and shoved it open.
Down in the yard, flames danced wildly, licking at a pile of fabric. My stomach twisted.
Clothes. My mother’s clothes.
I bolted down the stairs, nearly tripping over my own feet. The heat hit my face immediately, but I didn’t think. I didn’t even breathe. I just ran.
And there it was.
Her shawl. Her nightgowns. The soft sweaters I folded carefully every week, the only thing I could still do for her while she lay trapped in a hospital bed.
All of it burning. Turning to ash.
My lungs refused to work. My chest seized.
Beside the fire stood Valeria, arms crossed, smirking as if this was a show she had been waiting for.
“What are you doing?!” I screamed, charging forward.
A maid grabbed my wrist, holding me back.
“Ma’am—please!” she whispered urgently, eyes darting like she was terrified of being caught. “It was Valeria’s order. She said this room is hers now. She doesn’t want any of your things left. She… said you wouldn’t care, because you’re useless.”
Useless.
Even now, after everything, that word landed like a slap.
I turned to Valeria, fury ripping through me, vision blurring. “You had no right! Those were my mother’s things! How dare you!”
Valeria only shrugged, as if I were throwing a tantrum over something trivial. She tilted her head, amused.
“Relax,” she said lazily. “This house needs renovations. Your clutter was ruining it. Honestly, you should thank me. Once this becomes my room, everything will finally look perfect.”
My hands curled into fists. I took a step toward her, but before I could speak, her fingers tangled in my hair.
Then she yanked.
Pain exploded through my scalp, a cry ripping from me.
“You still think you can stand against me?” she hissed, hot and venomous against my ear. “You should’ve died the moment your mother fell into that coma. At least then Darian wouldn’t have wasted years pretending with you.”
My blood boiled. I lifted my hand, ready to strike—
But a shadow fell over us.
Darian.
His eyes were sharp, blazing with anger.
For the first time, hope sparked. He saw it. He finally saw what she was doing.
But the fire in his gaze wasn’t for her. It was for me.
“What the hell do you think you’re doing?” he snapped.
“She started it!” I cried, voice cracking. “She burned my mother’s clothes! She—”
He didn’t let me finish. His hand clamped around my arm, hard enough to bruise. Then he shoved me so violently I stumbled back into the wall.
“You never learn,” he growled, dragging me back into the house like I was nothing but a problem to put away. He slammed the bedroom door shut behind us, locking it with a sharp click.
Then his palm cracked across my face. The slap was so hard my head snapped sideways. My cheek burned instantly.
“You are not leaving this room unless I say so,” he said coldly. “And you will finish the designs for tomorrow.”
Tears filled my eyes—not from pain, but from humiliation.
“Darian… I—”
“If you try anything stupid,” he cut in, voice like ice, “your family dies.”
I froze.
His eyes darkened as he leaned closer. “Your mother. Your brother. Gone. Do you hear me?”
My whole body went numb. I couldn’t breathe. Couldn’t think. All I could do was nod.
Satisfied, he stepped back. “Good.”
Then he left.
The sound of the lock echoed in my skull like a prison bell.
I slid down the wall, trembling. My cheek throbbed. My throat burned. I wrapped my arms around myself, trying not to fall apart.
Hours passed.
Then my phone vibrated weakly against the floor. Unknown number. My heart lurched.
I stared at it before answering with shaking fingers.
“Vivienne.”
My body froze. That voice.
“Inigo?” I whispered.
“Yes. It’s me.” His voice was rushed but steady. “I got out. Inigo helped. We’re moving Mother tonight. She’ll be safe.”
Relief slammed into me so hard I almost sobbed.
“Oh my God… Inigo—please, get me out. I can’t stay here.”
“I will. Tomorrow. Hang on until then. Just survive.”
“I’ll wait,” I whispered.
The call ended.
I wiped my face and forced myself to stand.
If Darian wanted designs, fine. I would give them. But not my future.
I went to the desk and opened every file. Every sketch. Every blueprint. Everything he’d forced me to create. My fingers moved fast, copying, saving.
Not just designs. Proof. Evidence. Every stolen transaction. Every forged signature. Every illegal deal he’d hidden behind my work.
I transferred it all to a flash drive. Then I sent everything to Inigo. Along with one message: Expose him. End him.
After that, I called the investors myself. My voice came out calm even though my hands shook.
“Cancel tomorrow’s signing. You’ll receive proof soon.”
The night dragged on. Hunger meant nothing. At one point, I slipped quietly into the hallway, hoping for food or water.
Instead, I heard it.
Moaning. Soft laughter.
Valeria. Darian.
My stomach twisted. Bile rose in my throat. I backed away, skin crawling, returning to my room. I clutched the flash drive and stared at the clock, praying for midnight.
When Darian finally returned, tie loose, expression smug, he found me at the desk.
“Who told you to get up?” he demanded. “Are you done?”
“Yes,” I said evenly. I handed him a flash drive. A copy.
“Good. Tomorrow, you’ll present it yourself. Convince them. If you fail, everything collapses.”
The next morning, I woke before dawn, heart racing. Maybe Inigo would get me out before Darian noticed.
But Darian forced me into the same car as him.
“There’s a private meeting before tonight’s signing. Top shareholders. Yacht. You’re coming.”
My chest tightened. “Can’t you go alone?”
“No. We leave together so I know you won’t run.”
I texted Inigo quickly: Change of plans. They’re taking me on the yacht first. Please… help.
The yacht gleamed under the sun. I stood by the railing, gripping the metal until my knuckles turned white. The sea stretched endlessly. Free. Vast. Unreachable.
“Thinking of jumping?”
Valeria.
“What do you want?” I asked tightly.
She leaned closer. “Just reminding you… after today, you disappear. Understand?”
I turned to her, anger burning so hot it hurt. “Why? You already have everything. My father’s dead. My mother is helpless. My brother went to jail. You even have Darian. You ruined my life. What more do you want? My death?”
Valeria tilted her head, eyes glittering with cruel amusement. “Honestly? Now that you mention it… maybe that’s not a bad idea.”
My blood turned to ice.
She smiled wider. “I’m the one he’s loved since we were kids. You were a placeholder. Darian will always protect me. You can’t win. Time to say goodbye.”
Before I could move—she shoved me.
The railing slipped. My body lurched forward. The world tilted. The sea rose to swallow me whole.
The wind screamed past my ears. Cold water wrapped around me, dragging me down into darkness.
I closed my eyes. Finally.
As I sank deeper, I triggered the emergency signal.
A slow smile curved my lips even underwater.
Because I knew I had done it.
Soon, I would be free.
Soon, I would escape this place filled with darkness, control… and betrayal.
