1 - Ariel Blondeau

ARIEL

I stood at the edge of the underground club, clutching the envelope in my hand so tightly it crinkled. I hated this place. The smell of sweat, alcohol, and something darker coated the air like oil. I could feel it sticking to my skin, making my breath shallow. The money inside wasn’t enough. I knew it wasn’t enough. But it was all I had.

The bouncer at the back door eyed me like I was something he’d scraped off his shoe.

“You sure you wanna go in there, sweetheart?”

“I’m sure,” I lied.

He shrugged and stepped aside, and the bass of the music hit me like a punch to the chest. The underground club was packed, bodies grinding under neon lights, the air thick with the scent of arousal and alcohol. I swallowed hard and pushed through the crowd, heading straight for the VIP section.

"You're late," the bouncer at the door growled, eyeing me from head to toe.

"I'm here to see Maddox. Tell him Ariel has his money."

The bouncer smirked, but he opened the door anyway.

The back room was dimly lit, and the air was worse in here. My stomach turned when I saw him, Maddox, leaning against a desk, shirt half unbuttoned, a cigar between his fingers.

"Look who finally showed up," he said, his voice oily.

I held out the envelope. "It's not the full amount, but it’s close. I swear I’ll get the rest soon. There's just eleven thousand dollars left."

Maddox took the envelope and opened it, flipping through the bills.

"This is a joke," he muttered. Then louder, "You think this is enough? Do I look like a charity to you, sweetheart?"

I backed up as he stepped toward me. "I just need more time. Please...."

"You’re already out of time."

He grabbed my arm, hard. I gasped, struggling to pull free, but his grip only tightened.

"You think you can come in here with crumbs and expect me to smile? You owe me. And you’re gonna pay." He shoved me against the wall.

"Let me go!" I screamed, trying to hit him.

He just laughed and pointed toward the open door behind him. I saw the stage then, naked women dancing while drunk men howled and threw money.

"You see them? That’s where you’re going next. You’ll work off every damn penny you owe me. On your back or your knees, I don’t care."

"No!" I yelled, but it didn’t matter.

Two of his men grabbed me. I kicked and screamed, biting one of them, but they didn’t even flinch. They dragged me through another hallway and threw me into a room.

The door slammed shut behind me.

I sat up, coughing, only to realise I wasn’t alone. The room was full of women, some crying, some quiet, all dressed in revealing clothes. One of them, a tall brunette with kind eyes, knelt beside me.

One of them, a redhead with tired eyes, sighed when she saw me. “New girl?”

“I’m not! I’m not staying here,” I spat, scrambling to my feet.

The women exchanged glances before the brunette shook her head. “Honey, if you owe Maddox, you’re staying.”

“I’ll pay him back..."

“Not with money, you won’t.”

The reality of her words hit me like a slap. I backed into the wall, my breath coming too fast. This wasn’t happening. This couldn’t be happening.

I should’ve been smarter. Should’ve never listened to my Mika who told me to borrow from him in the first place. But I needed the money. Badly.

"I’m not staying," I said quickly. "I’m not like you. I’m not..."

"We all said that once," another woman muttered, brushing glitter off her chest.

"I just owe Maddox some money. I didn’t think he'd..."

"You came in person," the brunette said. "That was your first mistake."

Tears welled in my eyes. I felt sick. "My coworker said he helped people. Said I just had to be quick about paying it back..."

"Your coworker’s either a liar or a fool," the brunette replied. "Maddox never lets people go. Not unless he gets something out of it. If you can’t pay in cash, he takes your body."

"No," I whispered. "I won’t do it."

"Sweetie you won’t have a choice," the brunette said. "Brace yourself. It only gets worse from here."

They handed me a tiny outfit: fishnets, a leather bra, and high heels. My hands shook as I put it on. I couldn’t believe this was happening. I wanted to scream, to run, to turn back time. I felt like the biggest idiot alive. Why had I come here? Why hadn’t I just disappeared?

I stared at my reflection in the broken mirror. I didn’t look like me anymore.

The women were kind, in their own way. They tried to prepare me for what was coming, for what the men would do to me. The redhead, Lena, smudged dark liner under my eyes.

“Fight too much, and Maddox will make it worse. There are places he will hurt you where the bruises will never show,” she warned.

I didn’t answer. My hands were shaking.

When the door opened again, one of Maddox's men barked at us to line up. My heart pounded as we were herded toward the main floor. The music was louder now, the crowd wilder.

I couldn’t do this.

I wouldn’t.

The second the guard’s grip loosened, I bolted.

I didn’t think. Just ran, past the dancers, past the drunk men, straight for the back exit. I was so close.

Then I slammed into a wall of muscle.

A hand fisted in my hair, yanking me back. I gasped, pain shooting through my scalp, and looked up...

Into the coldest gray eyes I’d ever seen.

The man holding me wasn’t just tall. He was massive. Broad shoulders, a face carved from stone, and a presence that made the air around him crackle with danger.

His nostrils flared.

And then his grip tightened.

“You,” he growled.

I didn’t have time to react before he dragged me into a shadowed alcove, his body caging me in. His scent hit me first, dark, wild, like a storm and something entirely different.

He was an Alpha.

His skin should’ve burned for just touching me.

But it didn’t.

His fingers wrapped around my throat, cutting off my air. “I can smell who you are, you're supposed to be dead.”

I clawed at his wrist, panic flooding my veins.

Then....

A shudder ripped through him. His pupils dilated, his breath coming faster.

And I felt it.

The bond.

His snarl was pure fury. “No.”

But his hand on my throat loosened. Just slightly.

Enough for me to rasp, “Who the fuck are you?”

His lips curled back, revealing sharp canines.

“Kazimir Rossi"

Rossi?! From the Rossi family?!

And just like that...

I knew I was fucked.