Gwen's POV:
"Prepare a room for Nicola; she'll be here by noon," Lucien's voice was commanding, cold, like the sharp edge of a blade.
"Yes, Master," I murmured, quickly pulling my clothes back on.
I left his study, the remnants of our steamy morning still fresh in my mind. Lucien—always demanding, always perfect. I knew exactly how he liked it, always pushing me to give him more. Yet,
there was one thing that had always gnawed at me—he never brought anyone into his room.
Why? Why was it only in his study that he let his filthy desires loose?
Being his plaything had its perks, though.
It was how I secured my place. Not only was I appointed assistant head maid, but I even had my own room—far above the others.
I would climb higher. Soon, I'd be sitting beside him, in control.
But then there was Nicola. That bitch. Her father, Mr. Russo, held some weight in this world, but the Ferrantes were on a different level entirely.
Lucien ruled the underworld with an iron fist, hidden beneath a facade of legitimacy.
He was untouchable, feared. And every woman in the city craved him including me.
But Nicola? She was a threat. She had to go.
As I walked the halls, I saw her—the girl Lucien had been keeping. A pawn, or worse, a distraction.
I didn't care why he kept her, but I couldn't stand her presence. I needed her gone.
---
Skylar's POV:
I wasn't confined to my room anymore. They let me roam the mansion, but always with a guard at my side.
It wasn't freedom—it was a leash. I was still a prisoner, shackled in gold, treated like a possession.
I couldn't even walk down the hall without them watching me like I was something to be contained.
I stepped out of my room and saw a maid—Gwen, I knew her face.
She was leaving Lucien's study, freshly fucked. I wasn't surprised. He fucked everything that moved.
He was a machine—always taking, never giving.
I heard it every night.
The screams of women—the sound of his dominance filling the house, mocking me.
Every night, it was someone new.
I wanted out. I had to escape this nightmare, but the security was too tight. The walls were closing in.
I wandered the halls, looking for Nate. He was the only one who didn't look at me like I was some problem to be solved. He was a guard, but he was human, not one of Lucien's puppets. I found him outside, near the garden.
He smiled at me as I walked over.
as the guard left seeing Nate was already there for me.
"So, how's the day treating you?" he asked, his smile kind, but I could see the pity in his eyes.
I sighed, "Never good. It's never good here. I want out. I want to be free."
"I know it's hard," he said, his voice gentle, "Being away from your family, from everything you know. But… you've been here this long. Maybe—just maybe—he'll set you free one day."
I stared at him, a bitter laugh escaping my lips. "You say that every damn day, Nate.
What makes you think it's true?"
"Because," he said, his tone quiet, "he hasn't kept anyone this long before. Maybe he's keeping you for something more."
I glared at him. "You think someone like him is capable of love? He's a monster. I've seen it.
He kills for fun, Nate. He has no heart. And I'll never fall for him."
Nate sighed, his voice softer. "Maybe not.
But remember this: the heart wants what the heart wants."
I rolled my eyes. "And what do you think I want, Nate? To be chained to a madman?"
I looked at the gate beside the garden, the one that led out of the compound. "What are my chances of getting out through there?"
Nate didn't even hesitate. "Zero. You'd be shot before you made it ten steps. There are fifteen guards surrounding this place, two at every corner. Lucien doesn't want you dead—yet. You're not going anywhere."
Frustration boiled in my chest. I wanted to scream, to fight, to run—but it was impossible.
I glanced at the roses in his hand. "What are those for?"
He paused, a slight grimace on his face. "Replacing the ones in the guest room."
"Guest?" I raised an eyebrow.
"Yeah. Nicola, Lucien's mistress," he said, a bitter tone in his voice.
"Ah," I muttered, disgust dripping from the word. "One of his many."
---
It was noon. I didn't have the energy to eat in my room, so I decided to go to the dining hall.
The moment I stepped inside, I heard the sharp, condescending voice of a woman—Nicola.
"Get my things from the car," she ordered, her voice dripping with entitlement.
I watched her stride in like she owned the place, her eyes sweeping over the room until they landed on me.
Her gaze hardened, and I could already tell what was coming.
"Who's that?" Nicola asked, loud enough for me to hear.
The maid, Gladys, bowed low. "She's the master's new pet."
"Pet?" Nicola repeated, her voice thick with disgust as she approached me. "And what gives a pet the right to eat at the same table as its master?" she sneered.
Before I could even react, she snatched my plate and slammed it onto the floor. Food splattered everywhere.
"What the hell?" I snapped, standing up in anger.
"That's right," she said, her smile cruel. "You're just a pet.
You should be eating off the floor like one.
Not sitting at the same table as your master. Pets don't need forks."
She tossed my fork aside, clapping her hands like I was some dog. "Go on, eat, pet."
The audacity. The disrespect.
But before I could launch myself at her, I heard the deep, commanding voice that always made my blood run cold.
"What's the commotion about?" Lucien's voice sliced through the tension.
---
Nicola's POV:
I knew Lucien had made it clear that for some reason, this girl mattered to him. But that didn't stop me. I'd break her. I'd twist her, crush her under my heel, and watch her crumble. She was nothing. A toy. A possession.
I wouldn't let her take what was mine.
The game had just begun. And I always played to win.