chapter two
1412 Words
You belong to me.
The words echoed in Lily's ears even after signing the contract.
She sat back in the slick black car, gazing at the structures that flew by, with her purse in her hands and her fingers twitching around the bag and holding on to it as though it were the only thing that connected her to her past life.
Her phone had already been taken — “for security reasons,” the sharp-faced assistant said. The driver hadn’t spoken a word since she stepped in.
She hadn’t even gotten to see Daniel before they took her away.
That haunted her more than anything else.
The only thing that comforted her was that her brother would be in good hands, as Sebastian promised her. The operation was timed for the following morning. It would be managed by a personal physician, a top doctor nationwide. Said Sebastian, without heat and with confidence, like another errand on his list. To Lily, it was all. Still… why her?
The thought stayed in her mind as a mere murmur that would not go away. There were other ways for a billionaire to fake a marriage. Why her? A girl from a two-bedroom apartment working as a café waitress? This did not make sense.
The car drove onto a side road, which was quiet and bordered by tall hedges and no apparent neighbors. Her pulse accelerated.
The house appeared to be more of a castle than a dwelling place. Unnaturally stark black glass, soaring steel fringe, and an entrance manned by two men in suits, with earpieces.
This wasn’t a house. It was a citadel.
The driver drove to the exclusive gate. Before Lily could touch the door handle, it opened for her. One of the guards just nodded his head.
She walked on the black stone road with concrete feet. She walked to the end of the place and tilted her head backwards to look at how high it was, and at once she started feeling dizzy.
She'd never been this close to something so grand, expensive… and lifeless.
A woman in a tailored navy suit waited just inside the doors. She looked Lily up and down with professional boredom.
“You’re late,” the woman said.
“I—I didn’t know there was a time—”
“Come with me. I am Jules. I handle Mr. Blackwood’s private schedule and now, by unfortunate extension, yours.”
Lily barely managed to follow her into the elevator. It was lined with mirrored walls, so she had no choice but to look at herself — wrinkled shirt, nervous eyes, hair pulled into a bun that had a long-lost shape.
She looked nothing like a billionaire’s wife.
Jules, on the contrary, seemed to fit into this world. Her heels tapped lightly on the marble, and the elevator doors opened into a penthouse that was arguably a museum in the making. Glass walls. Black leather furniture. Everything in grayscale.
Everything except Lily.
Jules handed her a sleek folder. “This contains your daily schedule, wardrobe codes, appearance protocols, dietary requirements, and public behavior guidelines.”
“Public behavior?”
“You’ll be appearing beside Mr. Blackwood at public events. The media will expect class, composure, and silence.”
“I thought we were keeping the marriage private?”
Jules smiled for the first time. It didn’t reach her eyes. “Private from those who matter. But appearances must be kept. And people talk. Mr. Blackwood doesn’t lose control of narratives.”
Lily could hardly digest any of it. Her eyes wandered along the far end of the penthouse and came to a barred, heavy steel door. There was something in it that twisted her stomach.
Before she could help herself, she asked, What is that room?
Jules did not even look at it. It is none of your business.
And then, she walked away.
Lily was later taken to her room. She could have cried looking at the enormous bed, the subdued lighting, and an en-suite bathroom that would have been an ideal asset to a five-star hotel, but she was emotionally drained. However, it was not all hers.
Not the bed. Not the designer dresses hung in the closet. Not even the name on the ID card slipped under her door.
Lillian Grace Blackwood.
Not Lily Monroe.
Her old name — her real name — had already been erased.
She did not sleep that night. Instead, she sat in a silk robe at the window, gazing at the stars and wondering whether Daniel was all right. She prayed--loudly, not, and not with her lips. Let him live. Let him make it through surgery. Let this be worth it.
The following morning came too fast.
At 6:30 a.m., a gentle knock on her door woke Lily. A maid entered without waiting for a response.
“Mr. Blackwood expects you for breakfast,” the woman said. “Seven sharp.”
Lily wanted to ask if Daniel had been transferred. If the surgery was still on schedule. But the woman was already gone.
She got dressed quickly — a soft cream blouse and navy trousers from the wardrobe Jules had selected. She left her hair loose. No makeup. She walked to the dining room, trembling.
Sebastian was already seated at the end of a comically long table.
He did not look up when she came in.
The table was laid, and it had silver cutlery, fresh coffee, bowls of fruit, and hot croissants. Lily paused momentarily, then sat opposite him.“You’re late,” he said without looking at her.
“It’s 6:59.”
“You’re late.”
Lily swallowed. “Is Daniel okay?”
He paused, then lifted his coffee. He was transferred at 2 a.m. The surgery is scheduled for noon today. When it is done, you will be informed.
She felt her chest tightening out of relief, yet she did not know how to say thank you. Not when he put it in the tone of a business transaction.
“Why me?” she asked finally, her voice small.
Sebastian put his coffee down carefully. Up he looked, meeting her gaze for the first time that morning.
“That's not your problem," But it is mine. You picked me. "You… knew things about me, I didn’t tell you.”
He didn’t deny it.
Lily’s breath hitched. “Are you going to explain?”
“No,” he said coolly. “All you need to know is that this arrangement benefits both of us." You get your brother’s life. I get your silence and your obedience. That was the deal.”
“But there’s more,” she whispered. “Isn’t there?”
Sebastian leaned back slightly. “Curiosity is dangerous, Mrs. Blackwood. I suggest you kill it before it kills you.”
The words chilled her more than the morning air.
She pushed back her chair, heart pounding. “I’d like to visit my brother.”
“No.”
Her stomach dropped. “Why not?”
“Because people watch. People talk. You disappear now, the story unravels.”
“I’ll be careful—”
“I said no.” His voice cut like a blade. “You’ll stay here." You’ll do as you’re told. I’ve kept my end of the bargain. Don’t test me.”
She stood frozen, her hands trembling again.
Then, almost casually, he added, “There will be an event this Friday. You’ll be fitted tomorrow. Jules will handle the rest. Do not humiliate me.”
And with that, he returned to his coffee, as though no conversation had occurred.
Lily spent the rest of the day pacing in her room. She hated him.
Not because he was cruel — he was, in a distant, surgical way — but because he’d made her need him. Because she couldn’t leave. Because Daniel’s life depended on a man who didn’t even see her as human.
And yet…
Some part of her wondered what was behind all of this.
The contract. The sudden marriage. The bolted room.
Why her?
Afterward, that night, when the city's lights flashed beyond the glass walls, Lily returned to the hall with the locked door.
She rested her hand upon the steel. Cold. Solid.
She leaned forward and placed her ear on the surface. Silence.
But she knew in her bones that whatever stood behind the door would not be what she wanted to hear at the moment.
Not yet.
- Writer
