Eleanor was sitting on the cold floor, her hands tied behind her back. Her body had gone numb from exhaustion, and her mind felt even heavier—dulled by the sharp sting of betrayal.
She had always known her place in their world. Unwanted. Unworthy. A shadow in a family built on power and perfection.
But this…
This was cruelty dressed as fate.
Her father—Adrian Van Laurent, a man feared and respected—had let this happen.
Whether by mistake or design, he had allowed her to be taken by the mafia. Dragged her into a world she had never asked to be part of.
A world where survival was uncertain, and death felt closer with every passing second.
Down here, in the suffocating darkness of the cellar, time had lost meaning. She didn’t know if it was morning or night.
Then—
The sharp sound o
