Chapter 3

Darian froze for a moment.

Then he reached up and rubbed my head, his tone as dismissive as ever.

“Ines, I know you're hurt. But she just wants to be a bride once. You'll be Mrs. Croft in the end.”

Odette's eyes instantly reddened, and she clutched his sleeve.

“Darian, I'm really scared.”

“She must hate me. What am I supposed to do if she bursts in on our wedding day?”

Her voice caught as she looked up at Rhys.

Rhys's expression darkened abruptly.

“She's right.” He considered it for a moment, his tone so cold it made me shiver.

“Lock Ines up. Let her out after you've said your vows.”

Odette raised her eyebrows at me, her eyes gleaming with triumph.

I'd thought Darian might still have a scrap of decency.

But the next second, he nodded without hesitation. “Fine.”

Even that wasn't enough for him. He looked down at me.

“Don't seal the door shut. Leave her a small chance to escape.”

“If she fights her way out, it'll prove she can't live without me. Once Odette and I are divorced, I'll marry her.”

What a joke.

My throat tightened, and something inside me shattered.

Before I could fight back, they took my phone and locked me in the basement storage room.

The iron door slammed shut.

Cold, damp darkness closed in on me until I could hardly breathe.

I clawed frantically at the rusty latch on the door.

The rough metal scraped my fingers raw. Blood trickled out, but I didn't stop.

Snickers slipped through the gap around the door.

“See? As long as Darian says he'll marry her, she'll do anything.”

“He's about to marry you, and she still thinks she has a chance. Pathetic.”

Every word reached me, and my whole body shook.

I bit down hard on my trembling lip and kept searching for a way out.

For two full days, I used my fingernails to loosen the latch a little at a time.

Late on the second night, it finally gave way, and light spilled through the crack in the door.

But as soon as I saw the light again, I found Odette, Rhys, and Finn blocking the doorway.

Their eyes held undisguised mockery and malice.

“Did you really think we'd let you leave? You actually fell for it, Ines.”

The three of them rushed forward and dragged me roughly up to the third floor, ignoring my struggles and cries.

They bound my arms and legs tightly to a chair, the ropes cutting painfully into my skin.

Darian walked slowly into the room.

He held a remote, his eyes full of amusement.

A modified electric shock device was connected to the chair's armrests and foot supports.

“I want to see just how badly you want to marry me.”

“Hold out for half an hour, and I'll get Odette to sign the divorce papers sooner.”

The moment he pressed the button—

Numbness, stinging pain, and spasms shot through my limbs.

My whole body shook violently. I could barely breathe and almost passed out.

Time crawled by, second after second.

The time I'd agreed to meet that man was getting closer.

Panic burned through me. Every part of me screamed to escape.

I couldn't lose.

I couldn't let them trap me here until I died.

As I struggled, the knot around my wrist slowly loosened.

The current cut off. I let my head fall forward and stayed limp.

“That's all you've got?” Darian sneered.

Their laughter faded as they left the room. I slipped one hand free, untied my other wrist, then bent over the rope around my ankles.

The last knot gave. I shoved the chair aside, ran for the open third-floor window, and jumped.