The devil's mansion

Aria

The ride through New York was silent.

I sat in the backseat of the black Mercedes, my trembling hands clenched tightly in my lap. Raindrops raced down the tinted windows, blurring the city lights into streaks of gold and crimson. Across from me sat Lucian Devereux, his expression unreadable as he reviewed a stack of documents on his tablet. It was as though dragging me away from my own engagement party was nothing more than another business transaction.

Not once did he look at me.

Not once did he ask if I was alright.

The silence suffocated me.

"Where are you taking me?" I finally whispered.

His eyes never left the screen.

"Home."

"I don't belong to you."

His fingers paused for the briefest moment before he looked up. Those icy gray eyes locked onto mine, calm yet frighteningly powerful.

"You belong wherever I decide you belong."

Anger exploded inside me.

"I'm not some object you bought."

"No," he replied evenly. "You're something far more valuable."

The car came to a smooth stop before a pair of towering black iron gates. They slowly opened, revealing an enormous estate hidden behind ancient oak trees. A mansion stood in the distance, its dark stone walls illuminated by soft golden lights. It looked less like a home and more like a fortress.

As the car rolled to a stop beneath the grand entrance, dozens of servants lined the marble staircase.

Every one of them bowed.

"Welcome home, Mr. Devereux."

Lucian stepped out first before opening my door himself.

I refused to move.

He waited.

"I'm not getting out."

"Very well."

Before I could react, he bent down, slid one arm beneath my knees and the other around my waist, effortlessly lifting me into his arms.

"What are you doing?" I gasped, struggling against him.

"You said you wouldn't walk."

"I never asked you to carry me!"

"You didn't have to."

The servants lowered their heads even further as Lucian carried me through the massive entrance.

Humiliation burned my cheeks.

The mansion was breathtaking. Crystal chandeliers hung from impossibly high ceilings. Marble floors reflected the warm lights above, while priceless paintings decorated every wall. Everything screamed wealth.

Everything felt cold.

Lucian finally placed me on my feet inside an enormous living room.

"This will be your home."

"I'd rather die."

His expression didn't change.

"I expected that answer."

A middle-aged woman dressed in a neat black uniform stepped forward.

"Mr. Devereux."

"This is Mrs. Eleanor Hayes," Lucian said. "She manages the household."

Mrs. Hayes offered me a gentle smile, the first kindness I'd seen all night.

"If you need anything, Miss Romano, you may ask me."

"I need to leave."

Her smile faded with quiet sadness.

"I'm afraid that isn't possible."

I turned sharply toward Lucian.

"You've imprisoned me."

"I've protected what belongs to me."

"I'm not yours!"

For the first time, something dangerous flickered behind his calm eyes.

He crossed the room in slow, deliberate steps until only inches separated us.

"You will stop saying that."

"Or what?"

His gaze dropped briefly to my lips before meeting my eyes again.

"Or you'll make me forget my patience."

A shiver raced through my body.

Not because of desire.

Because of fear.

He stepped back as though nothing had happened.

"Dinner is served at eight. Your room is on the third floor. Everything you owned has already been moved here."

I stared at him in disbelief.

"You packed my things?"

"I had people do it."

"You planned this."

"I've planned it for years."

Those words struck harder than any slap.

Years.

This wasn't a decision made overnight.

It was revenge carefully crafted over time.

Lucian turned and walked toward the staircase.

Without looking back, he spoke one final sentence.

"You'll learn something very quickly, Aria."

I hated how calmly he said my name.

"In this house..."

His footsteps echoed through the silent mansion.

"...even the Devil gets what he wants."

The front doors closed behind him with a heavy thud.

Standing alone in the middle of the enormous mansion, surrounded by strangers and trapped inside a life I had never chosen, I realized escaping Lucian Devereux would be far more difficult than I had imagined.

And somehow...

The nightmare had only just begun.