Chapter 8
Caged in Gold
Mary’s POV
I woke up to the scent of expensive cologne and fresh linen. For a moment, I forgot where I was. The soft sheets, the high ceiling, the silk curtains swaying with the morning breeze, it was a setting fit for royalty. But the second I turned my head and saw the tall, floor-to-ceiling windows locked from the outside, reality hit me like a brick.
I wasn’t in my apartment.
I was in the De La Cruz mansion.
And I was trapped.
Sitting up, I brushed my fingers through my hair, my mind sluggish from exhaustion. The events of last night replayed in my head—the tense dinner, the cold stares, the unspoken threats. Isabella’s voice echoed in my mind:
"Marriage is war. And in this family, the weak do not survive."
I swallowed hard.
I wasn’t weak.
I wouldn’t
