. "The CEO’s Cursed Bride"

Act 1: The Blood Contract Chapter 1: The Price of a Life "Your brother has three months left to live." The words fell like a sword through my chest. Dr. Emeka's voice was calm, but my heartbeat wasn't. I sat frozen in the hard hospital chair, clutching the bill in my trembling hand. "There has to be a way. A donor, a trial, anything." I pleaded. "There is one option," he said quietly, looking at the door instead of me. "But it’s not medical." I didn’t understand. Until I got home and saw the letter. A white envelope with a black wax seal lay on our kitchen table. Inside was a note: If you wish to save your brother, come to Rosehill Manor. Midnight. Do not be late. --- Chapter 2: The Devil in a Suit Rosehill Manor stood like a phantom on the hill, its iron gates creaking open as if expecting me. I walked through, heart pounding. Midnight fog curled around my ankles like mist with a mind of its own. Inside, the house was dark—until a fire lit in the hearth by itself. And then, he stepped out of the shadows. Tall. Perfectly dressed. Eyes like frozen glass. "You're late," he said. His voice was sharp enough to slice the air. "Who are you?" "Sebastian Vane. CEO of Vane Corp." He tilted his head. "And your future husband." I stared. "What kind of joke—" "Sign the contract," he interrupted, placing a blood-red paper in front of me. "Or your brother dies." --- Chapter 3: The Curse and the Bride I signed it. Because that’s what love does. Three days later, I moved into Rosehill Manor as Sebastian's bride. No wedding, no ceremony. Just a ring and silence. The staff avoided eye contact. The east wing was locked. And every night, I swore I heard whispering from the halls. "Three wives before you," said Anna, the cook, one night. "They all died within a year." I laughed. Until she handed me a newspaper clipping. CEO’s Wife Dies in Fire. Another Bride of Vane Corp Gone. Unsolved Death at Rosehill. I wasn’t laughing anymore. --- Chapter 4: Cold Fire Sebastian ignored me during the day. But at night, I’d wake to find him standing at the foot of my bed, watching me. "You're not like the others," he said once. "What happened to them?" His jaw clenched. "They fell in love." "And that’s a bad thing?" "It kills them." --- Chapter 5: A Scratch in the Mirror One morning, I noticed a scratch across my mirror. I wiped it. It bled. Something in this house was alive. And it wasn’t human. I began researching, secretly. Wives. Contracts. Family curses. And I found a photograph. A girl who looked just like me… from 1899. My great-grandmother. She married a man named Vane. --- Chapter 6: Blood and Roses Sebastian finally told me the truth. "The first Vane angered a witch," he said, pouring red wine that smelled like rust. "She cursed our bloodline. If any Vane falls in love... their bride dies." "And if the bride falls in love first?" He looked at me slowly. "Then she dies faster." --- End of ACT 1: To Be Continued...