Chapter 1 - The Contract
1095 Words
Isabella's POV
I never saw my life leading me here.
Perched in Blackwell Enterprises' foyer, I felt like a lamb entering the lion's den straightforwardly. Under the fluorescent lights, the immaculate marble flooring reflected the picture of a lady who had lost control of her own life. My pulse throbbed in my ears, the rhythm in time with the sharp click of my heels echoing over the great expanse surrounding me.
Indeed, this was happening. Three months ago, I was merely the director of an art gallery living a life that, although not ideal, was at least my own. Now I was being marched into a forced marriage to a guy I hardly knew—a man with a reputation so icy, that his name made me shudder.
Adrian Blackwell.
Just thinking of him would cause my throat to constrict. A billionaire whose capacity to destroy anybody crossing his path matched only his business sense. And now, in one frantic attempt to save our family from financial catastrophe, I was about to be bound to him—not by love but by a contract my father had arranged.
The gentle clang of the elevator doors broke off my concentration. I stopped momentarily, fixed on my reflection on the mirror walls. Under the strong lighting, my pale skin appeared nearly ghostly; my long, dark hair flowed in lovely waves about my shoulders. I was not the same person I had been only a few weeks earlier. The terror I felt was palpable.
I inhaled deeply and pushed the top level button in the elevator at Adrian's workplace. Every second dragging on like an eternity, my heart felt like it was stuck in my mouth as the elevator climbed.
When the doors did open, floor to ceiling windows presented a panoramic vista of New York City. Though the skyline opened out in every direction, I missed its beauty. I concentrated on the man behind the elegant, mahogany desk, his back turned to me as he looked out at the city like a ruler surveilling his domain.
"Isabella," his rich, silky voice cut through the stillness and shivered my spine. You are on schedule. I started wondering if you would have changed your mind."
I straightened my shoulders, sharpening myself before onward motion. "Do I have a choice? No, I don't."
He turned then, staring right at me with piercing blue eyes. Though menacing, Adrian Blackwell was as beautiful. Tall, with his neatly combed dark hair and strong shoulders, he looked every bit the billionaire he should. But there was another, darker, more frightening element there. It was in the way his lips curved to a cold, deliberate smile.
"You always have a choice, Isabella," he whispered, his voice a low murmur as he turned the desk and came to stand in front of me. But the repercussions of choosing the wrong one can be.... serious.
I battled with the thought of wanting to turn away by swallowing hard. I wouldn't let him see my terror. "Why me?" My voice just above a whisper, I asked. "Why my family? You are not short of choices. Why work through all of this?"
His eyes darkened, and for a split second I thought I saw something flutter—pain? Regret? yet it vanished just as fast as it first showed. "Your father wronged me," he replied, his voice chilly and matter-of-fact. "This marriage is my means of debt collecting from him."
My chest erupted in anger, driving away the terror. "So, I am simply a pawn in your system of retribution? Is that correct?"
Though his lips quenched, Adrian's smile lacked any warmth. "Call it what you find appealing. Still, make no mistake—you are not here by accident. I chose you, hence you are here.
Fighting the need to yell, I tightened my hands at my sides. Every thread of my life shouted at me to flee, to escape as far from this man and his planet as I could. But I could not. The words of my father rang in my head, his calls to me to save him and what remained of our family. Not now, not now could I fail them.
"What do you expect from me?" I questioned, my voice stiffening.
Adrian stepped forward, his presence stifling and overbearing. "I am looking for your allegiance. I have your name here. And I crave your stillness. Your father's debts will be pardoned in exchange, therefore restoring the name of your family."
His comments felt to me like ice in my bloodstream. This did not constitute a marriage. This prison was one of a kind.
"And what happens if I reject?" Knowing the response beforehand, I asked.
His eyes fixed on mine, and for a split second the air between us buzzed with conflict. "I will wreck your family if you refuse. I will make sure your father never returns under the light of day. And with regard to you... His voice faltered, leaving the rest of his threat hanging like a guillotine.
I inhaled shakily while my mind ran. There was no escape path. Not without giving everything and everyone I loved up first.
"I have no choice," I answered, my voice shaking even with my best attempts to remain firm.
Adrian grabbed a little packet from his pocket and held it out to me. "Sign this," he said, his voice devoid of opportunity for debate. "The contract is this. Once you sign, you cannot undo."
With my head whirling with ideas and feelings, I stared at the envelope for what felt like an eternity. Every instinct shouted at me to dash, to leave and never turn around. However, I couldn't. Not without subjecting my family to a fate much worse than mine.
I grabbed the letter with quivering hands and opened it to find cold, scientific phrases spelling out my future. Future linked to a man I hardly knew. a man looking for retribution at any expense.
One final time, I turned to look for any indication of kindness or decency. But nothing showed up. Only cold, deliberate will.
I swallowed the lump in my throat and signed my name using the pen he held out to me.
Carpenter Isabella Carter. Not too far off Isabella Blackwell.
Like I had signed away my soul, I felt a shiver fall over me as the ink dried on the paper.
Adrian took the contract from my hands and shined with pleasure. Mrs. Blackwell, welcome to your new life.
And my destiny was sealed exactly like that.
- Writer
