wrongfully owned by noah Zhang

chapter 3

Tuesday arrived within a blink of an eyes

No apology. No softness. No explanation for how her life had just turned upside down over night.

For Octavia, it felt like the world had simply stitched itself back together around her absence and pretended she had never been torn out of it.

She stood in front of the Zhang residence gate.

Tall. Black. Iron-wrought and imposing, stretching upward like it was designed to remind anyone approaching that they did not belong here. Cameras were tucked into the corners like watching eyes. Security guards moved in disciplined silence behind reinforced barriers.

Everything about it screamed wealth. Control. Power.

And danger.

Octavia adjusted the small duffel bag slung over her shoulder-the only thing she still owned that hadn't been taken from her. Her fingers tightened around the strap as a nervous habit, though her palms were already damp.

Two days.

Two days since the warehouse. Since the rope. Since the slap. Since the man in the charcoal suit had looked at her like she was already property.

That monster called Silas.

Her throat tightened at the memory.

A guard finally stepped forward from behind the gate. His gaze swept over her once, slow and assessing.

"You're late," he said flatly.

Octavia blinked. "It's... exactly the time I was told to come."

The guard didn't respond. He simply pressed a button on a small device.

The gate groaned as it began to open.

A deep mechanical sound echoed through the driveway, as if the estate itself was breathing her in.

"Inside," the guard ordered.

Octavia hesitated for half a second too long. Staring at him wondering why was he so rude.

That was enough for him to glare at her.

She moved. The moment she stepped through, the air changed.

It wasn't just the temperature-it was the feeling. Like crossing an invisible line where freedom starts and end

The gate closed behind her with a heavy sound.

Click.

Her chest tightened at the sound.

The driveway stretched ahead, long and polished, lined with trimmed hedges and expensive landscaping that looked too perfect to be natural. The mansion itself rose at the end like a statement rather than a home.

Octavia walked slowly, each step heavier than the last.

A part of her wanted to turn back.

To run. To pretend none of this had ever happened.

But there was nowhere left to run to. By the time she reached the front entrance, a man was waiting.

A uniformed staff supervisor stood near the marble steps, hands folded neatly in front of him, expression unreadable.

He looked her over once.

"You're the new hire," he said.

Octavia nodded slightly. "Yes."

He turned without another word. "Follow me ."

She did. She wonder why everyone here seemed so cold and unwelcoming.

As she stepped inside, the mansion swallowed her whole.

High ceilings. Cold marble. Silence that felt expensive. Staff moved in quiet precision, avoiding eye contact as if looking at her too long might be a mistake The supervisor led her down a side corridor away from the main hall. Less decorative. More functional. The air felt heavier, from the way everyone moved breathing here seemed hard..

They stopped in front of a plain door.

"This is the staff quarters," he said. "You'll sleep here. You'll eat here. You'll report here."

Octavia swallowed. "And my duties?"

He finally looked at her directly.

"Cleaning. Service. Anything assigned," he said flatly. "You don't question orders you do what you're told.."

Her fingers tightened slightly around her bag strap. "And my contract... where do I get my personal copy?"

The supervisor blinked once, as if the question was unusual, then shrugged slightly. "Paperwork is already processed."

Then he opened the door." Get settled. Training starts immediately."

Octavia stepped inside. The room was small. Too small compared to the rest of the mansion. A narrow bed. A locker. A single window that looked out into the side garden where guards occasionally passed.

At least it wasn't a prison. Even though it felt like one.

She placed her bag on the bed slowly, staring at it like it belonged to someone else.

Two days ago, she had been tied to a chair.

Today, she was inside a billionaire's residence she was about to kill his son as staff. If she dared back down she ends up dying like a chicken.

A knock suddenly came from the door.

She flinched slightly before realizing it was just the supervisor again.

"You're assigned to the east wing first floor," he said. "Start immediately."

Octavia nodded slowly. "Alright."

He turned to leave, then paused briefly. "One more thing."

She looked up. His expression was neutral, but his voice lowered slightly.

"Stay out of the main wing unless summoned."

Her stomach tightened. "Why?"

He didn't answer. He simply walked away.

Octavia stood there for a long moment after he left. Then she exhaled shakily, pushing herself into motion.

Work and get access to Noah Zhang. . That was all this was supposed to be.

How hard could it be.

But as she stepped back into the corridor, she couldn't shake the feeling that every hallway in this house had been designed to make you get missing if you don't know your way around.

Octavia had barely found her way to the east wing before she felt it-the shift in atmosphere.

The staff straightened. Conversations dropped. Even footsteps became quieter, as if the walls themselves had learned caution.

She paused mid-step, mop in hand, glancing around the long corridor.

"What is gong on..." she muttered under her breath.

A housekeeper nearby didn't look at her. "Head down," she said sharply.

Octavia frowned. "What?"

But the woman had already turned away, retreating quickly with a tray clutched too tightly.

Before Octavia could process it, she heard it.

Footsteps.

She turned slightly toward the far end of the hallway.

And saw him.

Noah Zhang.

. Black shirt, sleeves slightly rolled, expensive watch catching the light with every movement. His black hair slit backwards. Damn he sure his fine as hell. The pictures do him no justices.

But it wasn't his appearance that made her stomach tighten.

It was the silence he dragged with him.

Nobody dared to move as he stepped in. Octavia instinctively stepped closer to the wall, unsure why her body reacted before her mind did.

He didn't look at her at first.

Just kept walking.

But as he passed, his gaze shifted-briefly, sharply.

It landed on her. And stopped

Octavia froze.

For a second, it felt like everything else in the corridor disappeared.

His eyes were cold. Annoyed.

"Who let staff wander into this corridor?" he asked flatly.

The question wasn't directed at her.

But it hit her anyway.

A senior staff member rushed forward from behind her. "Sir, she's new-first day. She's assigned to east wing maintenance-"

Noah didn't even let him finish.

"I don't care what she's assigned to."

His gaze flicked back to Octavia.

That was when she felt it properly. The weight of being looked at by someone who didn't see her as a person worth anything .

"You," he said.

Just that one words.

Octavia swallowed, forcing her voice to work. "Yes?"

His eyes dragged over her once-quick, dismissive, like she was a a useless thing

"You lost?" he asked.

"I'm working," she replied carefully.

A faint scoff left him. That was it. His eyes landed on her coldly and unreadable

"You're in the wrong place," he said simply. "Staff corridors are that way."

Octavia blinked once. "I was told to clean this wing."

That earned her a longer look.

Like he was deciding whether she was incompetent or just stupid to talk back at him.

"I speak and you dare speak back interesting," he replied.

The senior staff member immediately bowed. "We'll correct it, sir."

Noah didn't acknowledge him.

Instead, his attention returned to Octavia... sharp again, colder now.

"If you want to keep this job of yours ," he said. "Try not to talk back when your boss is talking. You can't be that uncultured."

Her fingers tightened around the mop handle.

Anger flared in her chest..

How dare he look down on her.

"I'm just doing my job," she said quietly.

"You're doing it badly," he said his eyes still on her .

Octavia's jaw tightened. "It's my first day."

"And?" he replied.

Silence stretched.

Heavy. Uncomfortable.

Around them, staff didn't move. Didn't breathe too loudly. It was as if everyone understood any noise or breathing wrongly could get them introduce

Noah stepped slightly closer. Not enough to invading her space. But close enough for her to see the color of his eye

"You don't speak back in this house like we're equals," he said quietly. "I don't like to repeat myself and you made be do it three times now."

Her stomach tightened.

"Watch yourself Miss." His eyes looked down at the tag on her uniform Butler." He said staring at her for second then he walked off.