MARRIAGE CONTRACT WITH THE MONSTER

CHAPTER SEVEN: THE FINAL MOVE

The house was darker than usual that night.

The lights from the chandeliers just did not seem that bright. The chandeliers looked really dim.

The air was thick. Heavy. Dangerous.

Elara walked through the hall. Marco was walking right next to her. She had Elaras back then and Elara felt safe with Marco by her side. Elara liked having Marco because Marco was a good person to be with.

Her hands were shaking over but her eyes were really sharp. She had a look in her eyes. Her hands shook. Those eyes of hers were sharp.

She knew the house well. She was familiar with every corner of it. The house had a lot of shadows. She knew all of them. The house also had a lot of secrets. She had learned every one of them.

Marco whispered "Are you really sure about this?"

Elara looked at him. "I have to do this, " she said. The monster will win if Elara does not do it. Elara's family will lose if the monster wins. Elara cannot let that happen to her family.

Marco nodded slowly. He said "Remember Marco is saying that the man watches everything that Marco does. If Marco makes one mistake then it is over, for Marco."

Elara's stomach felt really bad. She said "I know."

They got to Dante's office. The door was really tall. It was black. It was closed. The door looked heavy. It felt cold. It was, like the rest of the house, which was also cold. Dante's office had a door that was pretty intimidating.

Marco asked if we were ready to face him. He wanted to know if we were ready for this. Marco was talking about facing him. He needed to know if we were prepared. Are we really ready to face him Marco was asking.

Elara took a deep breath. She said "I have no choice" to herself. Elara felt like she really had no choice at all.

The door opened slowly. It was like the door was taking its time to open. The door just kept opening and opening until it was all the way open.

Dante was sitting at his desk looking very calm. He was cold. He was dangerous just like he always was.. Tonight something was different about Dante. Dante's eyes were sharper, than usual watching everything and waiting for something to happen.

Dante said you are late. He said it very quietly.

Elara said I am not late. She is here now. Elara is standing in front of us. Elara wants us to know that Elara is on time.

Dante looked at Marco. He told Marco to step. Marco said okay. I walked over to the door. Dante's eyes were still on Marco. Marco was now standing by the door.

Elara's hands were shaking badly. The thing that was happening was making her heart beat fast. Elara's heart was pounding in her chest.

Dante said to me "You have learned a lot of things. You made it through the tests. You saw some secrets. You met the people who're important to me, my people."

"Yes, " Elara said. Elaras voice was steady. Elaras chest felt really heavy. "I have learned about this, " Elara said. "And I am ready for it now, " Elara said.

Dante asked what they were ready for. He leaned back. Said "Are we ready to fail or are we ready to leave this house alive?"

Elara said that she is ready. She is not afraid of anything anymore. Elara feels that she can do this now. Elara is not scared like she used to be.

Dante looked at her. He asked "Are you not afraid?"

"No, " she said. "I am scared.. I will not let fear control me. I know the rules now. I know the games you play.. I know what your weakness is. The rules and the games you play will not scare me. I know them now. Your weakness is something I'm aware of.

Dante's eyes got really small. He said "What do you mean by weakness?"

"Yes, " Elara said. She took a step closer to him. Your heart is the thing that makes you weak. You try to hide it and lock it away. You think that is what makes you strong.. The truth is, you are not invincible. You have feelings Elara told him. You love people. That is something you have always done. And I will not let your love hurt me Elara said.

Dante's lips did this move. It was not a smile. It was not anger either. It was something. You could see a bit of surprise on his face like a shadow.

He looked at me. Said "You think you can stand in front of me and speak like that?" His voice was really low. It sounded dangerous. The man's voice was low. It was clear he was not happy with what I had to say. His voice was dangerous.

Elara said I do. I have to survive. That means I need to know the monster. I need to know the monster, then the monster knows me. I have to know the monster well so that I can beat the monster at the monster's own game.

Dante stood up. He was a tall guy.. He looked super dangerous. There were shadows moving around behind him. He said "You are really bold." Most people die before they even get a chance to say anything. Most people die before they even know what is going on. You are different. Dante said "You are clever." He was talking about you. Dante thought you were clever.

Elara took a breath. "I do not want to fight you, " she said. "My goal is to put an end to this situation. The contract is finishing tonight. The war is finishing tonight.. I get to decide what happens after that. The contract and the war are finally going to be over tonight. I am the one who decides what happens next, with the contract and the war.

Dante's eyes got really dark. He said "You get to decide?"

She said yes. This is because the woman survived something. The woman learned from it.. The woman knows this person's secret.

Dante stepped closer, to the person. "What is the secret you are talking about?"

Elara held up the photograph of her sister. "This one, " she said. "You loved Elara's sister. You became a person because you lost Elara's sister.. That means you can be different now. You can forgive yourself for what you did. You are not the person that everyone thinks you are. Not completely, because you loved Elara's sister much.

Dante's hands were clenched into fists. His jaw was really tight. Dante looked like he was about to smash the desk with one hand. Dante was clearly very upset.

The man told him that he is a person. He asked if the dangerous person understands what that means. The man wanted to know if the dangerous person really gets it.

"I do, " Elara said.. I am also someone now. The person who taught me was you. You were the one who tested me. You were the one who pushed Elara to the edge.. Elara is still standing. Elara is not something to be used. Elara is not something to be given up on. Elara is me, Elara.

Dante's eyes got a little softer. He said in a voice "You are, like my sister". Dante thought that the woman was strong, the woman was clever, and the woman was brave.

Then stop hiding behind fear Elara said. You need to stop pretending that this marriage contract is about being in charge. It is really about making a decision.. I have made my decision. I want the life I have. I want to be with my family. I want the future I see for myself. I will have these things with you. I will have them without you.

Dante looked at her for a time. The room was really quiet. You could hear nothing. The lights hanging from the ceiling and the chandeliers were flickering on and off. This made the shadows move around on the walls. The shadows from the chandeliers danced on the walls.

The man finally nodded. It was a heavy movement. He said " well". He told me that the contract was no longer needed. I had survived. The contract was not necessary anymore because I had proven myself. I had seen the truth about the contract and about everything. The man said that I was free now. The contract did not apply to me anymore. I was free from the contract.

Elara's heart jumped really high. "Is it really free?"

Dante said yes. The war is finally over. Our families are safe now. We do not owe anyone anything anymore. The blood that was owed is paid.. You are not a pawn in someone else's game anymore. You are not a price that someone has to pay. You made it through the monster. The war with the monster is over.. Because you survived the monster you survived your own self.

Tears ran down Elara's face. She felt relieved. She felt fear. She felt triumph. Elara said "I cannot believe Elara is actually saying this”. No, Elara said "I cannot believe it". Elara was really surprised.

Dante said you should do it. He told me that it was not about being scared. It was about being strong. Survival is what it is really about.. You have strength and you have survival skills. You have a lot more of these skills than I thought you did.

Elara stepped closer to them. ". You?" she asked in a voice. "Will you actually change?"

Dante's eyes got really dark. He said in a voice "I will try". He thought about this for a moment. Dante said "I cannot change what happened before.. I can decide what I do next.. Maybe someone like you can help me remember what it is like to be a person again. Dante felt like he needed this. Someone, like you, can help Dante be human again.

Elara nodded slowly. "Then maybe we can both make it through this thing. Survive."

Dante's lips moved a bit. It was not a smile. It was not anger either. It was something. It was like he felt hopeful, about something. Dante's lips did that because he had a feeling of hope.

The mansion felt really different that night. It was quieter and softer. The whole place did not feel as heavy as it usually did. The shadows were still moving around. The fear that I felt had changed. The mansion still had shadows. These shadows were still moving, but my fear of the mansion had shifted.

Elara looked around the room. She checked every corner. She looked at every door. She even glanced at every shadow. Elara was being very careful. She did not want to miss anything. She looked at everything in the room. Every door. Every corner. Every shadow.

The woman had made it through. She had survived.

The woman had learned all the rules. She knew what the rules were and she had learned them. The rules were something she had learned. Now she knew them very well. The rules were learned by her.

The woman had seen the monster. The monster was really scary. She had faced the monster. It was a very bad experience. The monster was huge. It looked at her with angry eyes. She had faced the monster. She did not know what to do.

And she was free.

This was the moment when she finally felt like she could really breathe. She knew it for the time. The feeling of being able to breathe was something for her.

Dante Russo, the man people called the monster, was different now. He was not the person anymore. Dante Russo had changed.

The war was over.

The contract was broken. This is what happened. Someone did not do what they were supposed to do. Now the contract is no longer valid. The contract is. That is a fact. The people who made the contract did not keep their promises. Now the contract is broken.

And life… real life… had begun.