THE DEVIL ARRIVES
1376 Words
DANGEROUS OBSESSION
Episode 3:
The ballroom was silent.
Dead silent.
No one dared to speak.
No one dared to move.
The powerful stranger stood at the entrance, his sharp gaze fixed entirely on Elena.
As though the hundreds of guests around them didn’t exist.
As though she was the only person in the room.
A chill ran down Elena’s spine.
She had never met this man before.
Yet something about the way he looked at her made her heart race.
Not from attraction.
From fear.
The dangerous kind of fear.
The kind that warned prey a predator had just entered the room.
Lucas swallowed hard.
The confidence that had filled his face moments ago was gone.
Vanished.
Replaced by panic.
Pure panic.
The stranger slowly adjusted the cuff of his black suit.
Every movement was calm.
Controlled.
Deadly.
One of the reporters suddenly gasped.
“Oh my God…”
Another reporter whispered.
“That’s Damien Blackwood.”
The name spread through the ballroom like wildfire.
Damien Blackwood.
Damien Blackwood.
Damien Blackwood.
The whispers grew louder.
Elena frowned.
She had heard that name before.
Everyone had.
The billionaire king.
The youngest business tycoon in the country.
Owner of Blackwood Holdings.
A man whose wealth was so vast that nobody knew its true value.
A man surrounded by rumors.
Stories.
Dark secrets.
Some people called him a genius.
Others called him a monster.
Most people simply feared him.
And right now…
That monster was staring directly at her.
Lucas forced a smile.
“Mr. Blackwood.”
His voice shook.
Slightly.
But Elena noticed.
Everyone noticed.
Damien’s expression remained cold.
Emotionless.
“Lucas Reed.”
The way he said the name made it sound like an insult.
Lucas laughed nervously.
“What a surprise.”
Damien took a step forward.
Then another.
The crowd immediately moved aside.
Creating a path for him.
Nobody wanted to stand in his way.
Nobody.
The expensive marble floor echoed beneath his footsteps.
Tap.
Tap.
Tap.
Each sound felt like a countdown to something terrible.
Lucas visibly tensed.
Damien finally stopped a few feet away.
His gaze never left Elena.
Not once.
Not even for a second.
Elena’s stomach tightened.
Why was he looking at her like that?
As if he knew her.
As if he owned her.
As if she belonged to him.
It was unsettling.
Dangerously unsettling.
Damien finally spoke.
“You seem to be enjoying yourself tonight.”
Lucas laughed awkwardly.
“It’s my engagement celebration.”
A corner of Damien’s mouth lifted.
The smile never reached his eyes.
“Was.”
The room inhaled sharply.
Lucas’s face darkened.
“What do you mean?”
Damien casually glanced around the ballroom.
At the reporters.
At the guests.
At the investors.
Then back to Lucas.
“I mean your engagement ended the moment you decided to betray her.”
The words struck like lightning.
Lucas froze.
Vanessa froze.
Elena froze.
Everyone froze.
Lucas quickly recovered.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Really?”
Damien’s voice was calm.
Too calm.
The calmness was terrifying.
He reached into his suit jacket.
Pulled out a thin black envelope.
And tossed it onto the nearest table.
The envelope slid across the polished surface.
Lucas stared at it.
His face instantly lost all color.
The room erupted into whispers.
“What is it?”
“What’s inside?”
“Why does Lucas look scared?”
Damien smiled faintly.
“Open it.”
Lucas didn’t move.
Sweat appeared on his forehead.
“Mr. Blackwood—”
“Open it.”
This time it wasn’t a request.
It was an order.
Lucas’s hands trembled.
Slowly.
Reluctantly.
He picked up the envelope.
Opened it.
And froze.
Completely froze.
His eyes widened.
Vanessa leaned closer.
Then she saw the contents.
Her face immediately turned white.
Elena’s heart pounded.
What was inside?
What could scare them this much?
Damien’s cold voice echoed through the room.
“Tell everyone what you’re holding.”
Lucas remained silent.
His breathing became uneven.
“Tell them.”
Still silence.
Damien’s smile disappeared.
And suddenly the temperature in the room seemed to drop.
“Or I will.”
Lucas looked terrified.
Actually terrified.
Elena had never seen him like this before.
Never.
Finally, Damien turned toward the crowd.
“If Mr. Reed is too embarrassed to speak…”
His voice echoed through the ballroom.
“…I’ll do it for him.”
He nodded toward one of his assistants.
The assistant immediately connected a tablet to the giant projector screen above the stage.
The screen flickered.
Then lit up.
The crowd gasped.
Photos appeared.
Hundreds of them.
Lucas and Vanessa.
Kissing.
Traveling together.
Entering luxury hotels.
Holding hands.
Embracing.
The evidence was undeniable.
The entire ballroom exploded.
“What?!”
“Oh my God!”
“They were having an affair!”
“The whole time?”
The reporters practically attacked their phones.
Taking screenshots.
Recording videos.
Documenting everything.
Lucas looked like he wanted the floor to swallow him.
Vanessa stood frozen.
Her face drained of all color.
Elena couldn’t breathe.
For a moment she simply stared at the screen.
Stared at the truth.
The truth she had discovered only hours ago.
The truth Damien had somehow collected for months.
Maybe years.
How?
Why?
Damien wasn’t finished.
Another image appeared.
Then another.
Then another.
Contracts.
Bank records.
Transfer documents.
Evidence of financial fraud.
Evidence of theft.
Evidence proving Lucas had manipulated company assets.
Evidence proving he had been stealing from Hart Industries.
The room exploded again.
This time even louder.
Lucas’s career was being destroyed in real time.
His empire collapsing before everyone’s eyes.
And there was nothing he could do.
Nothing.
Absolutely nothing.
Lucas finally snapped.
“You bastard!”
He charged toward Damien.
The crowd gasped.
Security moved instantly.
But before they could intervene—
Damien grabbed Lucas by the throat.
One hand.
One effortless hand.
The entire ballroom froze.
Lucas struggled.
But Damien didn’t even appear to be trying.
The difference in power was terrifying.
Damien leaned closer.
Close enough that only Lucas could hear.
But Elena caught a few words.
“If you ever…”
Damien’s grip tightened.
“…go near her again…”
Lucas’s face turned red.
“…I’ll bury you.”
The threat wasn’t loud.
It wasn’t dramatic.
It was worse.
Because everyone believed he meant it.
Including Lucas.
Damien released him.
Lucas stumbled backward.
Humiliated.
Broken.
Finished.
The king of the evening had become its biggest disgrace.
And Damien Blackwood had destroyed him in less than ten minutes.
Then Damien turned.
Toward Elena.
Again.
Always back to her.
His eyes softened.
Only slightly.
But Elena noticed.
The entire room noticed.
The contrast was terrifying.
He looked at everyone else like they were insects.
But he looked at her like she was something precious.
Something valuable.
Something he would kill to protect.
Damien stepped closer.
One step.
Then another.
Until he stood directly before her.
Elena’s pulse thundered.
“What do you want?” she whispered.
For the first time that night…
A genuine smile appeared on Damien’s face.
Dark.
Dangerous.
Possessive.
“I’ve waited a very long time to meet you, Elena.”
Elena’s breath caught.
Waited?
What did he mean?
Before she could ask another question—
A loud crash echoed outside the ballroom.
Everyone jumped.
Then came screams.
More screams.
Security guards rushed toward the entrance.
One of them burst through the doors.
Pale.
Terrified.
“Mr. Blackwood!”
Damien’s expression instantly hardened.
“What is it?”
The guard swallowed.
Hard.
Then delivered the shocking news.
“We found a body in the underground parking garage.”
The room went silent.
A body?
A murder?
The guard looked directly at Damien.
Then at Elena.
Fear filled his eyes.
“There was a message written beside the victim.”
Damien’s jaw tightened.
“What message?”
The guard hesitated.
Then spoke.
“The message says…”
His voice shook.
“‘Elena Hart belongs to us.’”
The blood drained from Elena’s face.
And for the first time…
Damien Blackwood looked genuinely worried.
TBC
Who murdered the victim in the parking garage, and why are they claiming ownership of Elena? More importantly… who are the mysterious enemies that can make even Damien Blackwood look concerned?
- Writer
