The Devil's Bargain
788 Words
The words hang between us, thick and heavy.
"Then marry me."
The underground parking garage is eerily silent now, except for the distant wail of sirens. A bullet-riddled black sedan sits a few rows away, its windows shattered, smoke curling from the hood. Whoever attacked the shareholder meeting is either dead, captured, or gone. But the danger isn’t over.
Not for me.
Not for him.
I stare at Caius, his face unreadable in the dim light. He doesn’t look desperate. He doesn’t look afraid. He looks like a man making a calculated move.
And I’m the piece on the board he’s just claimed.
"No."
His head tilts slightly, dark eyes glinting. “That wasn’t a question, Zariah.”
I cross my arms, ignoring the way my pulse pounds. “Then you’ve wasted your breath.”
A slow, humorless smile tugs at his lips. “You think you have options?”
I do. Or at least, I want to believe I do.
But then I remember Valeria’s icy warning.
"The people who killed Leon? They will come for you next."
And the note slipped under my door.
"Leon’s death was only the beginning. You’re next."
I don’t trust Caius. But someone just tried to kill both of us. And if he has enemies powerful enough to pull a stunt like that inside Delacroix Tower, then he’s just as much a target as I am.
Which means he’s right.
I don’t have options.
But I refuse to let him see my fear.
I lift my chin. “Why would you marry me?”
Caius steps closer, close enough that I can smell the faint trace of gunpowder on his suit. Close enough that his presence fills the space between us, consuming all the air.
“Because,” he murmurs, voice low and dangerous, “you need to stay alive. And I need control.”
Control.
The word slithers through me like ice.
I should walk away. I should run.
But then he says something that seals my fate.
“Marry me, and I’ll tell you who really killed Leon.”
Twenty-four hours later, I’m standing in a penthouse that isn’t mine.
The room is massive floor-to-ceiling windows offering a breathtaking view of the city skyline, sleek black furniture polished to a cold perfection. A home for someone who thrives in shadows and silence.
Caius Wolfe’s home.
“You’ll stay here,” he says, shrugging off his bloodstained jacket. “For now.”
I glare at him. “I have my own place.”
His lips twitch. “Not anymore.”
My stomach twists. “What do you mean?”
He tosses a file onto the glass coffee table. “Page four.”
I grab it, flipping past the legal jargon, until..
My name. My apartment. My lease.
Terminated.
“Are you serious?” My voice rises.
Caius leans back against the couch, watching me with something close to amusement. “If they know where you live, it’s useless to you now.”
He’s right.
Again.
But that doesn’t mean I have to like it.
“Let me guess,” I snap, dropping the file. “This is my cage now?”
Caius stands, moving toward me with slow, deliberate steps.
“No, Zariah.” His voice is soft, almost a whisper. But there’s something far more dangerous beneath it.
“This is my cage.”
"And you just walked into it."
I sit across from Caius in his dimly lit study.
Between us, a crisp stack of papers.
A contract.
A marriage contract.
“This isn’t real,” I mutter, scanning the fine print. “This is business.”
Caius smirks. “Everything is business.”
My hands tighten around the document.
Clause 1: The marriage will last a minimum of one year.
Clause 2: Public appearances will be required.
Clause 3: Full control of Delacroix Corporation remains with Zariah Delacroix.
My head snaps up. “You’re not taking the company?”
“Not unless you hand it to me.”
I don’t believe him.
But this—this is the only leverage I have.
“So what do you get out of this?” I ask quietly.
Caius leans forward, forearms resting on his knees.
“I get access,” he says. “To the people who tried to kill me.”
A chill prickles down my spine.
“Leon was never the target, was he?” I whisper.
Caius doesn’t answer.
Instead, he slides a pen across the table.
“Sign it, Zariah.”
The weight of the moment crushes me.
This isn’t a marriage.
This is war.
And if I say yes, there’s no turning back.
I pick up the pen.
And I sign my soul away.
- Writer
