Chapter Two
1108 Words
CHAPTER TWO — The Price
The rain did not stop that night.
It followed Elena home.
It soaked her shoes.
It made her hair wet.
It made her whole body cold.
She walked slowly.
Each step felt heavy.
Like she was walking into something dark.
Something she did not understand.
When she reached her small apartment, she closed the door and leaned against it.
She did not take off her wet coat.
She just stood there and tried to breathe.
But breathing felt hard.
She went to the bed and sat down.
The room was so quiet.
Too quiet.
The kind of quiet that makes you feel more alone.
Alexander Blackwood’s words stayed in her mind.
“Your life.”
She touched her chest.
What did that mean?
What would he do?
What would happen to her?
She didn’t know.
And not knowing scared her.
Her eyes felt hot, but she didn’t cry.
She was too tired to cry.
She lay down on the bed.
Her clothes were still wet.
Her hair was still wet.
But she didn’t care.
She closed her eyes and whispered into the dark:
“Please… I need another way…”
No answer came.
Morning came.
The rain slowed, but the sky stayed gray.
Elena returned to the hospital.
She already knew the path.
She walked it every day.
The hospital smelled like cleaning chemicals.
And sadness.
She opened the door to her mother’s room.
Her mother was still sleeping.
Her breathing was slow.
Weak.
Soft.
Elena sat beside her.
She held her mother’s hand.
It felt too light.
Too thin.
“Mom,” she whispered, “I’m here. I won’t leave you.”
Her voice shook.
She looked at her mother’s face.
So pale.
So tired.
But still beautiful to her.
She brushed her mother’s hair gently.
“I will save you,” she whispered. “I promise. I just need a little more time.”
But time was the one thing she did not have.
A soft knock came at the door.
Mrs. Rowan walked in.
She was gentle.
She always moved quietly.
“Elena,” she said. “You saw him?”
Elena nodded.
Mrs. Rowan sat beside her.
“And?” she asked.
Elena stared at her mother.
She didn’t look at the walls.
Or the floor.
Just her mother.
Because her mother was the reason for everything.
“He asked for something,” Elena whispered.
Mrs. Rowan waited.
“He wants me to live with him. For one year.”
Her voice trembled.
“He wants me to belong to him.”
Mrs. Rowan closed her eyes.
Her face looked sad.
Very sad.
“Elena,” she whispered, “I’m so sorry.”
Elena shook her head.
“No. Don’t be sorry. I can’t let her die. I can’t.”
Her voice rose.
Then broke.
“I have nothing left. I sold everything. I tried everything.”
Mrs. Rowan held her hand.
“Elena,” she said softly, “love makes us promise things we never thought we could do.”
Elena nodded.
A shaky nod.
“Yes,” she whispered. “I love her.”
But inside, she felt small.
Like a candle in the wind.
One breath away from going out.
Later that day, her phone buzzed.
One message.
No name.
“Come to the Blackwood Estate at 7 PM. Alone.”
Her stomach felt tight.
Her hands felt cold.
She stared at the message for a long time.
Then she typed back:
“I will come.”
Her fingers trembled when she sent it.
Evening came.
Too fast.
Elena stood in front of her apartment door for a long time before leaving.
She thought of her mother’s smile.
Her laugh.
Her voice singing in the kitchen.
She took one deep breath.
Then another.
And she walked.
A taxi took her to the wealthy part of the city.
The part that felt like a different world.
Tall gates.
Quiet roads.
Perfect gardens.
Everything looked expensive.
The Blackwood Estate was the biggest one.
It looked like a palace.
Beautiful.
But cold.
Like the house did not know what love was.
The gates opened slowly.
Her heart felt like it sank.
The taxi stopped.
Elena stepped out.
A guard opened the door.
He didn’t speak.
She went inside.
Her footsteps echoed on the shiny marble floor.
She could see her reflection on the ground.
She looked tired.
She looked scared.
Alexander Blackwood stood in the center of the room.
He wore black.
He always wore black.
His eyes were dark.
Cold.
Sharp.
He looked at her like he already owned her.
“Elena,” he said.
Her name sounded heavy from his lips.
“Mr. Blackwood,” she whispered.
“Sit.”
Not loud.
But firm.
A command.
She sat.
He watched her.
No smile.
No warmth.
“You came,” he said.
“Yes.”
“Good.”
He walked toward her.
Slow.
Controlled.
Like a man who always got what he wanted.
“I will pay for your mother’s treatment,” he said.
Relief filled her chest.
Warm.
Sharp.
Painful.
But then—
“There is a condition,” he said.
Her heart dropped.
“What is it?” she asked.
He looked at her with eyes like winter.
“You will live here. With me. For one year. You will follow my rules. You will not leave. You will not lie. You will not disobey.”
She felt something squeeze inside her chest.
“And why me?” she whispered.
His answer came without emotion.
“Because I chose you.”
Her hands curled into fists.
“And if I say no?” she whispered.
He stepped closer.
Very close.
“Then your mother dies.”
The world went silent.
Her heart hurt.
“I… I don’t have a choice,” she whispered.
“There is always a choice,” he said. “But some choices hurt more.”
Tears filled her eyes.
Her voice was small.
But she spoke.
“I love my mother. I will do anything to save her.”
“Then the decision is made,” he said.
She felt something inside her break.
Quietly.
Softly.
Slowly.
She stood.
Her voice was barely there.
“I agree.”
Something in the air changed.
It felt like a door closing.
He stepped closer.
His eyes stayed cold.
“You will move in tomorrow morning,” he said. “Your life belongs to me now.”
Outside, the rain began again.
Slow.
Soft.
Sad.
Elena lowered her head.
She did not cry.
Not here.
But inside, something was breaking.
And she could feel it.
- Writer
