Chapter 3: "A Cold Reception"
Elena felt her heart racing as the guards dragged her down the long hallway. Her hands were still tied together with those stupid handcuffs, and she couldn’t even move her arms properly. It was like everything was happening in slow motion, and she couldn’t make it stop. She wanted to scream, but no sound came out. All she could hear was her breathing.
They stopped in front of a huge door, and one of the guards knocked before swinging it open. Inside, it was dark and scary. There was a big desk with a black chair, and behind that desk was the man she had seen earlier—the mafia boss.
Dominic.
He didn’t look up when they brought her in. He just kept staring at the papers in front of him. Elena stood there, frozen, not sure what to do. He wasn’t like anyone she had ever seen before. He was tall, with broad shoulders, and looked like he could break anyone in half if he wanted to. And he wasn’t even looking at her like she was a person. It was like she wasn’t even there.
"Leave us," Dominic said, his voice so calm that it made Elena’s stomach turn. The guards nodded and left the room, leaving her alone with him.
She felt the weight of the silence hanging in the air. She wanted to run, but she couldn’t. Where would she even go? There was no way out. She had to stay here. And that thought made her feel sick.
Finally, after what felt like forever, Dominic looked up at her. His eyes were cold like he was studying her. "Sit down," he said, pointing to the chair in front of his desk.
Elena didn’t move. She wasn’t going to listen to him. She wasn’t going to just sit there like some kind of prisoner. "I’m not going to sit here and let you control me," she said, trying to sound braver than she felt.
Dominic just stared at her. "You don’t have a choice, Elena. You belong to me now."
Those words hit her harder than anything else had. Her stomach twisted, and she felt like she couldn’t breathe. But she wasn’t going to let him see that. She wouldn’t give him the satisfaction.
"I don’t belong to anyone," she said, her voice shaky but loud enough for him to hear. "I’m not yours."
Dominic smirked like he thought she was funny. "You don’t get it, do you? This isn’t about you. This is about power. I own you now."
She wanted to scream at him, but she couldn’t. He was right. She had no power here. He was in charge, and she was stuck. But she wasn’t going to give up yet. She wasn’t going to just let him win.
"I won’t be yours," she said, her voice more sure this time. "Not now, not ever."
Dominic didn’t smile. Instead, he looked at her like she was just a problem to solve. "We’ll see how long that lasts," he said quietly.
Elena’s heart was pounding in her chest. She didn’t know what to do anymore. All she knew was that she was stuck here with him, and she wasn’t sure how she was going to get out. But she wasn’t going to give up. Not yet. She wasn’t going to let him break her.
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