Bound To The Devil's Empire

Chapter 2: The Devil's Contract

Elenia stared at the man standing in front of her.

Damien De Luca.

The name alone had terrified her long before she ever saw his face.

Now he was standing only a few feet away, watching her as though he had already decided her fate.

"I am not yours."

Her voice trembled, but she forced herself not to look away.

Damien's expression didn't change.

"Your foster father disagrees."

"My foster father doesn't own me."

"You're right."

Damien stepped closer.

"He doesn't."

For one strange second, hope flickered inside Elenia.

Then Damien continued.

"But he owed me twenty million dollars."

Her hope disappeared.

"And he paid that debt with me?"

"Not exactly."

Damien's eyes moved to the house behind her.

"Your foster parents signed a debt contract. You will work within my empire until the debt is cleared."

Elenia laughed bitterly.

"So I'm a slave."

"No."

His answer came immediately.

"You're a debt worker."

"What difference does that make?"

"A considerable one."

Damien turned toward his men.

"She receives the same contract as everyone else."

Elenia frowned.

Everyone else?

She had expected him to treat her like some special possession, but there was nothing in his expression that suggested interest.

He wasn't looking at her like a woman.

He was looking at her like a problem that needed to be handled.

One of the bodyguards handed him a black folder.

Damien opened it.

"Your debt is twenty million dollars."

"I didn't borrow twenty million."

"I know."

"Then why should I pay it?"

"Because your foster parents signed the agreement."

"I never signed anything."

"Your signature isn't required."

Elenia's stomach twisted.

"So you can just take someone's life because their family owes you money?"

Damien finally looked directly into her eyes.

"In my world, people who make promises keep them."

"And if they can't?"

"They pay the consequences."

His voice was so calm that it frightened her more than shouting would have.

Elenia clenched her fists.

"I won't work for you."

Damien closed the folder.

"You already are."

She stared at him.

"What if I refuse?"

"Then your debt continues to grow."

"How?"

"Food. Housing. Security. Transportation. Medical expenses."

He paused.

"And every day you refuse to work adds another day to your contract."

Elenia's jaw tightened.

He had thought of everything.

Damien handed the folder to his bodyguard.

"Take her."

Elenia stepped backward.

"No."

Two guards moved toward her.

She immediately raised her hands.

"I can walk."

Damien glanced at her.

"Good."

She looked toward the mansion one last time.

The windows were dark.

No one came outside.

Not Steve.

Not Evelyn.

Not even Alexandros.

Her chest tightened.

They had really done it.

They had sold her.

She climbed into the SUV.

Damien entered after her.

The door closed.

The mansion disappeared behind them as the vehicle moved into the night.

For several minutes, neither of them spoke.

Elenia sat as far away from Damien as possible.

She stared through the window.

Rain streaked the glass.

Finally, she asked,

"How long?"

Damien didn't look at her.

"How long what?"

"How long do I have to work?"

"Until the debt is cleared."

"How long will that take?"

"That's up to you."

She turned toward him.

"What does that mean?"

"You'll be assigned work according to your abilities. Perform well, and you'll earn more toward the debt. Fail, and you'll remain where you are."

"So we're all earning money?"

"Yes."

"How much?"

"Enough to make your freedom possible."

Elenia blinked.

That wasn't what she expected.

Damien noticed her expression.

"Did you expect me to keep you locked in a basement?"

She looked away.

"Yes."

A faint smirk appeared on his face.

"You're free to leave my property whenever you want."

Her head snapped toward him.

"What?"

"You heard me."

"Then why am I going to your house?"

"Because your debt doesn't disappear because you leave."

She fell silent.

That was the problem.

She had nowhere to go.

No money.

No family.

No home.

And now she owed a man twenty million dollars she had never borrowed.

The SUV continued through the city.

Eventually, the buildings became fewer.

Huge iron gates appeared ahead.

They opened before the vehicle even stopped.

Elenia stared.

Beyond the gates stood an enormous black estate surrounded by towering walls, armed guards, and cameras.

This wasn't a mansion.

It was a fortress.

The vehicle stopped.

Damien stepped out first.

Elenia followed.

A woman in a dark uniform approached them.

"Mr. De Luca."

"She's the new debt worker."

The woman's eyes moved over Elenia.

"Which unit?"

"General household until her abilities are assessed."

Elenia looked at Damien.

"You mean I'm going to clean?"

"If that's what you're qualified for."

She glared at him.

"I can do more than clean."

For the first time, something resembling interest flickered in his eyes.

"Then prove it."

He turned and walked away.

Elenia watched him disappear into the mansion.

She hated him.

She hated Steve.

She hated Evelyn.

And most of all, she hated the helplessness that had brought her here.

The woman beside her handed her a plain black uniform.

"Put this on tomorrow morning."

Elenia looked at it.

"Where do I sleep?"

"Second floor. Room 27."

"And the other workers?"

"Room 28 onward."

Elenia nodded slowly.

She wasn't special.

She wasn't Damien's favorite.

She wasn't even worth noticing.

She was simply another person working to repay a debt.

At least...

That's what she believed.

---

Later that night, Elenia entered her room.

It was small.

A bed.

A desk.

A wardrobe.

One window.

Nothing luxurious.

She placed her bag on the floor and sat on the edge of the bed.

For the first time since leaving the Romano mansion, she allowed herself to cry.

She reached into her bag.

Her fingers touched the old photograph of Alexandros.

She stared at it.

"Why didn't you come after me?"

Her voice broke.

She didn't know that, at that exact moment, Alexandros was standing in the rain outside the Romano mansion.

And he wasn't alone.

His hands were clenched into fists.

His eyes were fixed on the empty road where Damien's vehicles had disappeared.

"You're going to regret this," he whispered.

Behind him, Steve stepped onto the porch.

"Alexandros, come inside."

Alexandros turned slowly.

For the first time in his life, he looked at his father without fear.

"You sold her."

Steve's expression hardened.

"I saved this family."

"No."

Alexandros stepped closer.

"You sacrificed her."

Steve said nothing.

Alexandros's jaw tightened.

"If anything happens to Elenia..."

He paused.

"...I'll make sure this family loses everything."

Back at the De Luca estate, Elenia knew none of this.

She closed her eyes.

Tomorrow, she would begin paying a debt that wasn't hers.

She didn't know what Damien's empire expected from her.

She didn't know how long she'd remain there.

And she certainly didn't know that the man she believed had just destroyed her life...

Would eventually become the man willing to destroy his entire empire to protect her.