His kingdom. My cage

The Room Full Of Eyes

The event hall didn’t feel real.

It felt like a performance built to make people forget they were human.

Crystal lights hung from the ceiling like frozen rain. Conversations flowed in polished waves. Laughter arrived on cue and disappeared just as quickly. Everyone wore elegance the way soldiers wear uniforms—carefully, deliberately, with hidden intentions underneath.

And me?

I felt like a mistake placed in the middle of it.

Dominic didn’t let go of my hand the entire time we entered.

Not tightly.

Not possessively.

Just enough.

Enough to remind everyone watching that I was not alone here.

Enough to remind me that I wasn’t either.

Whispers followed us immediately.

I caught fragments.

“Vale brought her…”

“That’s her?”

“She doesn’t look like”

The rest dissolved before I could hear it.

Or maybe before I wanted to.

“Stay close,” Dominic said again, voice low enough that only I could hear.

“I am close.”

His eyes flicked down briefly.

Then forward again.

“You’re drifting.”

“I’m walking.”

A faint pause.

Then

“Same thing here.”

That unsettled me more than I expected.

Because he wasn’t joking.

We moved through the crowd like a controlled disturbance.

People stepped aside without being asked.

Some nodded.

Some avoided eye contact entirely.

Some looked at me like I was an unanswered question they didn’t want to solve.

And then

I felt it.

A presence behind us.

Not Dominic.

Not Amara.

Someone else.

“Elena.”

The voice was familiar.

Too familiar.

Soft in a way that didn’t match this place.

I turned.

And saw her.

Maya.

My friend.

Or at least someone who used to feel like one.

She looked different than I remembered.

Or maybe I was just seeing her more clearly now.

Hair styled perfectly. Dress elegant but not loud. Smile already in place like she had been waiting for the right moment to use it.

I felt something in my chest loosen slightly.

Relief.

Instinct.

Memory.

“Maya,” I said, surprised.

She stepped closer immediately.

Too quickly.

Too smoothly.

“I didn’t think you’d actually come to something like this,” she said, laughing lightly.

I let out a breath I didn’t realize I was holding.

“I didn’t exactly come by choice.”

Her eyes flicked briefly to Dominic beside me.

Then back to me.

“Oh…” she said softly. “So it’s real.”

Something in her tone made my stomach tighten.

But I ignored it.

Because she was here.

Someone familiar.

Someone safe.

At least that’s what I told myself.

“You look different,” I said.

She smiled.

“I could say the same about you.”

A pause.

Then

“Except you look like you’ve stepped into something expensive and dangerous at the same time.”

I almost laughed.

Almost.

Dominic shifted slightly beside me.

Subtle.

But noticeable.

Like he had registered her presence fully now.

“Maya,” I said quickly, “this is—”

“I know who he is,” she interrupted gently.

Too gently.

Like she had rehearsed it.

That stopped me.

“You do?”

She nodded.

“Everyone does.”

Dominic didn’t speak.

But I felt his attention sharpen slightly.

Not visible.

But present.

Like a switch had been flicked inside him.

Maya looked at him now.

Really looked.

And then smiled again.

This time smaller.

More controlled.

“It’s nice to finally see you in person, Mr. Vale,” she said.

There was something in the way she said it.

Something too familiar for comfort.

My fingers curled slightly.

“Maya…”

But she wasn’t looking at me anymore.

“I’ve heard a lot about you,” she added.

Still to him.

Not me.

That was when I noticed it.

Dominic didn’t respond immediately.

He just studied her.

Longer than usual.

Too long.

Then finally

“Have we met?” he asked.

Simple.

Direct.

Cold.

A flicker crossed Maya’s face.

So fast I almost missed it.

Almost.

“No,” she said quickly. “Not officially.”

Then she smiled again.

But it didn’t fully return this time.

Something shifted in the air between them.

I couldn’t name it.

But I felt it.

Like a thread tightening.

Dominic turned slightly to me.

“Don’t leave my side,” he said quietly.

“I wasn’t planning to.”

His gaze held mine for a second longer than necessary.

Then

“Good.”

Maya watched us.

I could feel it even when I wasn’t looking directly at her.

And for the first time since seeing her

Something about her presence felt… off.

Not wrong.

Not obvious.

Just… slightly misaligned with the memory I had of her.

We moved again.

Through the crowd.

More introductions. More nods. More carefully constructed conversations I didn’t fully understand.

But my mind kept returning to her.

Maya.

My friend.

My only real friend from before everything changed.

At some point, Dominic stepped away to speak with someone.

Just briefly.

Enough that I was left standing near a tall marble column, holding a glass I wasn’t drinking from.

And that’s when Maya appeared beside me again.

“You okay?” she asked softly.

I nodded. “Yeah. Just… overwhelmed.”

She gave a small laugh.

“I can imagine.”

Then she paused.

Looked around briefly.

And leaned in slightly.

“He’s intense,” she said quietly.

I exhaled lightly. “That’s one way to put it.”

A pause.

Then

“You trust him?” she asked.

The question came gently.

But it landed heavy.

I hesitated.

Longer than I wanted to.

“I don’t know,” I admitted.

Maya studied me.

Not smiling now.

Not laughing.

Just watching.

“That’s dangerous,” she said softly.

“I know.”

Another pause.

Then she reached out and touched my arm lightly.

Friendly.

Familiar.

“Just… be careful,” she added.

Her voice softened again.

Almost like concern.

Almost like the friend I remembered.

But something in my chest didn’t fully settle.

Not yet.

Across the room, Dominic’s gaze found me.

Instantly.

Like he had sensed the shift.

Even from a distance.

And for a second

I wondered if he trusted her either.

The night continued.

But something had already changed.

Not loudly.

Not visibly.

Just enough to make everything feel slightly less stable than before.

And I didn’t realize it yet…

But that was the first c***k.

Not in Dominic’s world.

Not in mine.

But in her.