Married to the Devil

          life was a game for arrow tyrone. either you win or you lose, the moment you lose, you will end up dead. that was how dangerously he was living. for the whole world to see, he was young, successful, and up in his golden ladder. no one knows anything about him, even his family, his history, everything was shrouded by masks of mystery, just like his infamous masquerade balls. another thing no one knows about him was how rich he is, but everyone already concluded that he is rich beyond reason just because of the lavish balls he throw, which happens every now and then, only handpicked people were invited and not a soul knows what goes inside the closed door. there were many rumours, everything arrow shrugged off. honestly he stopped keeping tabs on the rumours about his party when he heard some web article stating that one 'insider' said that its a large orgy party. but this mystery and unanswered questions protected him in a way, those present in the ballroom knows that he was a dangerous man, unapproachable, but no one knows who he really is, and that he is among them wearing a mask and enjoying the ball like another normal person before the room is going to be thrown into chaos.          he pressed the cold glass of red wine against his lips, his eyes roaming over the crowd. the hall was crowded but not too crowded considering the amount of people who wanted to get in the party he hosted. things will go crazy once he announce that the real party is going to start but till then he is going to stay out of everyones way and hide who he is behind the silly mask and enjoy a bit. he did turn some heads to his direction, its something he can't help himself. arrow tyrone made a fine sight, standing there in his pristine tuxedo and the mask that brings out the startling blue of his eyes, he is really a sight which soothe the sore eyes. and him standing there casually leaning against a pillar with a glass in his hands completes a perfect image of a narcissist, he know what an image he was serving everyone and he was enjoying it.          arrow looked to the side to see his bodyguards there. they know better than not to bother him but arrow let a small sigh before tipping up the glass and drinking up the wine. he put everything in the party, a premium room and premium wine and the security is no joke, there are so many reporters and journalists wanting to sneak a look at the party of the century but alas they are no match for tyrone's security. on the surface he is a very young ceo who found success at such a young age and have everyone bowing before him at the age of 24 but there is another dark and twisted part of him where he is involved in all sort of crimes like human trafficking and weapons smuggling and killing and torturing, it have got no limit and no one knows how far he have went. but those who were invited to the party knows what they are up against, in fact majority of the people here are there to buy young girls as their personal toy, and some to sell them. why, even some ministers were so eager to sell off their daughters in disguise of 'marriage' just to get enough money which would help them keep the power. its cruel but it doesn't matter, arrow gets the profit and that is all he ever cares about.            maybe, just maybe, this whole mission of hers that she was on was a completely horrendous idea. there was a reason she didn't tell a single soul about her whereabouts before she left for the infamous masquerade ball. she knew they would only question her methods of obtaining an invitation. which, quite frankly, wasn't too difficult to pull all in all. one pre-party and several drinks later, she'd somehow managed to swipe herself an invitation from an all too trusting couple. of course, she contemplated the severity of her actions. but, well, it was too late to turn back now, considering she now stood in the midst of masked partygoers.                 dressed to the nines in an elegant silk dress, complemented by a mask that brought out the vibrant green hues in her eyes, she fit in perfectly. save for the fact that she quite literally had no acquaintances within a ten mile radius. not to mention, there wasn't much she was able to gather currently. dare she say, this masquerade ball didn't much differ from the ones that she was used to. still, she was convinced the real demons would come out to play eventually. otherwise, the event wouldn't be so damn exclusive in the first place. so, no matter how out of place she felt, she had to try and blend in. she wouldn't leave the event until she got what she came for. there was absolutely no way the notorious arrow tyrone was as successful as he was at the mere age of twenty-four. at least, without some kind of help. whatever that may be, she was going to uncover it. as somewhat of an heiress herself, tessa also wanted to leave her mark on this world and she was going to take all the help she could get.            his eyes slowly darted from one person to another, they all look comfortable, excited even. they all have been here before, even those who are newly invited was accompanied by one of his regular customer so everyone was totally at ease. but then his eyes fell on someone else, who looked totally out of place. surely, with her clothes and mask, she could fit right in, but perhaps its the nervous vibe she was giving, and she happens to be alone. arrow's eyes narrowed slightly, now, this does not add up very well. started walking his way towards her, call it curiosity. it was his job to make his guests feel at ease. he grabbed another glass of wine from a passing tray as he reached her. "may i offer you some wine?" he asked the girl, holding the glass of wine towards her with a friendly smile on his face. now, who the hell is she?        she supposed she could at least get something to drink. that way, she wouldn't be singled out. luckily for her, help prevailed. though perhaps, not the kind of help she was expecting. for, it was the host himself who had so effortlessly drawn her in for a conversation. even with his features concealed by the mask that he donned, those blue eyes of his were easily distinguishable. in fact, she could recognize them anywhere. though, she had to admit that the magazine covers made him out to be more of a brooding character. there was this inviting element to his smile, something that couldn't possibly be captured in photographs, and it seemed to catch her off guard as she froze for a moment or two on the spot.         tessa quickly regained her composure, however, as she cleared her throat nonchalantly and returned a faint courteous smile of her own, "how can i say no?" with that, she reached for the glass of wine that was held out to her and briefly motioned it towards him, "cheers." almost instinctively, she proceeded to take a sip out of it. though admittedly, she was definitely going to need a lot more than one sip if she was to do this. sure, she'd always been a good liar -- she'd gotten away with many, many things over the years -- but perhaps, she finally met her match on this fair evening. if the male before her eyes was where he was today, it certainly wasn't because he was easily fooled. as a matter of fact, it was risky to remain, but tessa couldn't leave either. not when the answers she sought quite literally stood in front of her -- in a dashing tux, if she might add.         her fingernails -- a glossy dark red manicure -- toyed with the stem of her delicate wine glass as she glanced around momentarily. "tell me," she began, a little smile tugging at the corner of her crimson lips as her attention was redirected towards her male companion. "how desperately did i look in need of company?" she laughed gently, "god, i knew i should've gone with something a little less flashy, drawn less attention to myself." she supposed she might as well try to loosen things up a bit. she found the method worked best when it came to weaseling one's way into another's good graces. and though the man before her was much of an enigma, there was a chance her little tricks might also just work on him. she just had to remain long enough to find out for herself. "but now that you're here, don't you agree that this party lacks some flare?" she continued with a curious tilt of the head. perhaps, if she prodded around a little, she could get somewhere.