Chapter One
1339 Words
ELARA’S POV
“This is our last chance, Elara…”
My father’s voice cracks on my name, and I flinch as if I've been touched. It hasn’t happened since the night my mother left, and she never came back. This feels worse. Like something inside him is already falling apart.
I lift my eyes from the contract in my hands.
He's pacing again, back and forth across the office. His shoes hit the marble floor in uneven rhythms. One hand drags over his face. The other pulls at his hair and neck like he can't get enough air.
Three lawyers sit across from me, watching in complete silence, all looking serious. They have barely moved since their arrival.
“Dad…” I keep my voice soft. “Please sit down.”
“I can’t sit,” he snaps immediately, then pauses himself as if he realises the word hurts him too. He exhales roughly. “I mean…” His hand presses to his forehead. “We don’t have time, Elara. If you don’t sign, they’ll take everything. The company, the accounts, the building… everything we have.”
My eyes drop back to the contract. The document is thick, too thick.
It is full of page after page of legal language that my brain can barely process. Every sentence sounds as if it were written to confuse people on purpose.
“Who is this from?” I ask.
“Virelli Holdings,” one of the lawyers says, adjusting his silver-framed glasses.
The name alone carries weight. Virelli Holdings.
I've heard it before. Everyone in business knows them. They don't rescue dying companies out of kindness. They are the kind that smell desperation from miles away, and when they come in… someone always loses something.
“Everything has already been discussed,” another lawyer adds smoothly. “This is simply the final agreement.”
My brow pulls together. “Discussed with who?” I ask. “Because no one discussed anything with me.”
My father doesn’t look at me.
That alone makes my chest tighten.
“Yes, yes…” he rushes out. “We talked about it. Everything is fine, Elara. Just sign it. Choose? It doesn’t feel fine. Every nerve in my body keeps screaming that something is wrong. I just can't explain what yet.
“And what exactly do they get from this?” I ask.
“Forty per cent stake,” my father answers quickly. “Standard acquisition terms.” He moves closer to me and then bends slightly over the table. His shadow falls over the papers. “Elara,” he calls softly. “Please.”
The way he says it scares me more than the contract does. I look up at him properly this time. His eyes are red and tired.
And underneath all of it… I see fear. Real fear. I have never seen my father afraid of anything in this life.
“Dad…” My voice lowers. “Are you sure about this?”
He grips my shoulders tightly. “I would never ask you if I had another choice,” he says. “If you don’t sign this contract, they will take everything.”
My chest aches, and I feel uneasy because it's not just business anymore. It's him, it's us. Also, when someone you trust looks at you like his entire life depends on you… You stop thinking clearly. You just react.
The room goes quiet except for the sound of the ticking clock on the wall. My hand moves before my brain catches up. I pick up the pen. My fingers curl around it, and then I sign.
The scratching sound of ink against paper could be heard loudly in the room. One signature. This is all it takes.
The lawyer with the narrow face pulls the contract towards himself in a swift motion. “Thank you,” a small smile touches his mouth.
My father lets out a long breath like he had been holding it for hours.
“It’s done,” I murmur. Then I look at him again. “Now tell me what’s going on.”
Before he can answer…
“Ahem.” The lawyer clears his throat. He adjusts his glasses and reaches into his folder. “There is an additional clause,” he says calmly. He slides a single sheet of paper to me.
I pick it up. My eyes scan the first line, then the second…I stopped. I read it again but slower this time.
THE SIGNEE, ELARA WYNN, AGREES TO ENTER INTO A ONE-YEAR CONTRACTUAL MARRIAGE TO A REPRESENTATIVE OF VIRELLI HOLDINGS. SAID AGREEMENT BECOMES LEGALLY BINDING UPON SIGNATURE OF THE PRIMARY ACQUISITION CONTRACT.
My breath catches.
No. No, that's not… I read it again. The words did not change.
“Dad…” My voice shakes. “What is this?”
He didn’t speak. He stares at the floor.
A lump forms in my throat. “You knew about this,” I whisper.
Still nothing.
My chair scrapes on the floor as I stand so fast it almost falls. “You knew?” My voice rises. “You let me sign this without telling me?”
“Elara…”
“No!” The word burst out of me. “Don’t do that. Don’t say my name like that! Don't act as though this is normal!” My hands tremble. “You stood there and watched me sign this?” I hold up the paper. “You want me to marry a stranger? That’s what this is?”
His shoulders sag. “I didn’t have a choice,” he says.
I laugh but it breaks halfway. “You didn’t have a choice… so you made the choice for me?”
The room suddenly feels hot and small. I was suffocating.
“What kind of father does this?” My voice cracks at the end.
He finally looks at me then and what I see in his eyes hurts more than the contract itself. Relief. As if a weight has been lifted off him.
The door opens. Heavy footsteps enter the room. The three lawyers stand immediately.
“Mr. Virelli,” one of them greets.
The man ignores them. He is tall. Has on a dark suit. He also has Mrrp features. His eyes hold no warmth in them.
He walks into the office like he owns the air inside it. Then direct his gaze at me, as if I already belong to him.
A cold shiver crawls down my spine.
“You’ve already signed,” he says. His voice is low and controlled.
“I signed a business contract,” I snap. “Not a marriage agreement.”
He tilts his head slightly, almost curious “It’s the same document.”
“I didn’t agree to this,” I say sharply. “You cannot force me into something I didn’t agree to.”
A faint smile touches his mouth. “You signed it,” he simply replies. “That was your agreement.”
My anger rises fast. “I’ll get a lawyer,” I say. “I’ll reverse this. You can’t make me marry you.”
He doesn't react. Not even a little. Instead, he reaches into his pocket and places a photograph on the table. I look down at it and freeze.
It’s my father and Cassian Virelli standing together. Smiling. Holding drinks like old friends do.
My stomach drops. I lift my head to face my father. “You planned this,” I whisper.
Silence.
I turn fully toward him now. “You planned this months ago,” I say, my voice shaking. “This was never about saving the company… was it?”
Still nothing. The same flash of relief again.
Pain spreads through my chest, and I find it hard to breathe.
I gaze at him for a long time before speaking again. “What did he give you and me?” I ask softly. My voice breaks on the last words.
“What did you sell me for?”
- Writer
