YOU ARE MY RUIN

Aria — Age 25 Vegas was a country built on contradiction. A desert that refused to stay empty. A nation surviving on people who arrived believing they could reinvent themselves—win big, disappear, become someone new. By day, the city felt almost abandoned. Too quiet. Too exposed. Like the streets were watching you instead of the other way around. But at night… Vegas came alive in all the wrong ways. Lights flooded every corner. Music bled from open balconies. Laughter echoed too loudly, too sharply, like everyone was trying to convince themselves they were happy. Nothing here was accidental. Every smile had a price attached to it. Every conversation was a transaction waiting to happen. To outsiders, Vegas was a spectacle. Glitter. Luxury. Excess. But if you stayed long enough, you realized the city kept score. And sooner or later, it always collected. God, I hated this place. I stood at the edge of the mansion’s ballroom, watching it pulse with noise and gold like a living creature starving for attention. Crystal chandeliers bathed the room in warm light while politicians, celebrities, and criminals blended together so seamlessly it was impossible to tell where one ended and the other began. People called this luxury. I called it theater. My heels clicked softly against the glass flooring as I swirled the whiskey in my hand, boredom settling deep in my bones. Every party felt the same. The fake laughter. The polished lies. The desperate need to impress people who could never truly be satisfied. And somehow, I was one of those people they tried so hard to please. Too bad I couldn’t care less. My gaze drifted toward my cousin across the room. The dim lighting darkened her blonde hair to honey gold as she endured yet another meaningless conversation with a group of overdressed social climbers. Unlike me, she actually knew how to survive these events. One of the many reasons she fit so naturally into the mafia world. I caught her eye briefly and motioned that I’d be back before slipping away from the crowd. The moment I stepped out of the ballroom, I exhaled. The silence of the terrace wrapped around me instantly, cool night air brushing against my skin. I kicked off the tension in my shoulders and leaned against the marble railing, staring out at the endless sea of neon lights below. For a second, I considered moving out of my apartment again. Not because of the wedding. Because of the shadows. The thought alone made my chest tighten. Strange things had been happening lately. Things my therapist kept trying to explain away with words like stress and hallucinations. But hallucinations didn’t leave bruises of fear behind. Hallucinations didn’t make your skin crawl in empty rooms. And yesterday… Yesterday, I could’ve sworn something was standing in my hallway. Watching me. I swallowed hard, forcing myself to breathe through the panic clawing at my ribs. Not here, Aria. Not tonight. Below me, the party continued in all its artificial glory. Diamonds glittered beneath chandelier light. Expensive gowns swept across marble floors. Men lied through perfect smiles while women pretended not to notice. Everyone dressed themselves in luxury as if money could bleach the ugliness out of who they really were. “Wife.” The voice behind me froze the blood in my veins. My heartbeat slammed painfully against my chest as I turned slowly. Dominic stood there like something carved out of darkness itself. Black tuxedo. Polished shoes. Perfect posture. A monster disguised as elegance. “You’re here,” I said softly, proud that my voice barely shook. “Yes,” he replied, closing the distance between us with terrifying calm. Every instinct in my body screamed at me to run. Instead, I stood still as he slipped a hand around my waist and pulled me against him. Pain flared where his fingers tightened. I smiled anyway. Because in our world, fear was weakness. And weakness got you buried. “We should head back inside,” I murmured carefully, struggling to keep my breathing steady. “Of course, wife,” he whispered near my ear. The word made my stomach twist. He finally loosened his grip, and I wasted no time slipping away from him. I descended the staircase quickly, pulse racing violently beneath my skin until I found my cousin exactly where I’d left her. Still entertaining parasites in designer suits. Without a word, I grabbed her wrist and dragged her toward the women’s restroom. “Aria—” she snapped behind me. “You better have a good reason for this. I was about to secure an important deal.” “Dominic is here.” She barely reacted. That terrified me more than anything. “So?” she asked flatly. I stared at her. Then understanding hit me like ice water. “You knew.” “Obviously,” she said with a shrug. “Mateo thought it’d be good for you two to spend time together before the wedding.” I let out a bitter laugh. “How thoughtful of him. Nothing says romance like bonding with a murderer.” Her expression hardened instantly. “If you keep talking about him like that,” she hissed, “you’ll end up dead before the wedding even happens.” Silence stretched between us. And the worst part? I knew she wasn’t joking. I rubbed my suddenly cold hands together. “How long is he staying?” She looked at me then—really looked at me—and irritation flashed through her eyes. She thought I was selfish. Weak. Too blind to understand what this marriage meant for our family. For the mafia. “Is that seriously the question you’re asking right now?” “What else am I supposed to ask?” Her jaw tightened. Then she delivered the words that shattered the air between us. “He isn’t leaving.” My breath caught. And at that exact moment— The lights went out. Darkness swallowed the room whole. A sharp scream echoed somewhere beyond the hallway. Then another. The building fell into chaos instantly, voices overlapping, footsteps pounding, glass shattering in the distance. My heart lurched violently as the emergency lights flickered once… twice… And for a single horrifying second, I saw it. A shadow standing at the far end of the restroom corridor. Tall. Still. Watching me. Then the red lights died completely. And something moved in the dark.