Davina's POV:
The air backstage at the Devil's Club was thick with the usual chaotic blend of hairspray, perfume, and nervous energy. The other dancers, their bodies already adorned in various stages of glittering undress, moved with a practiced ease, adjusting straps and applying last-minute touches of makeup. I moved amongst them like a ghost, my new costume – a skimpy, sequined number in a garish shade of purple that was lying on a velvet stool. My reflection in the mirror was a stranger: haunted eyes, pale skin, a stark contrast to the carefully applied glamour around me.
Devlin, her usual slicked-back hair even more severe tonight, paced back and forth, her phone pressed to her ear, her voice a low, urgent murmur. She ended the call abruptly, her gaze sweeping over th
Davina's POV: The days that followed settled into an uneasy rhythm within the sterile elegance of Ezra’s house. The guest room, though luxurious compared to the cramped space above the Devil’s Club, felt like a gilded cage. I kept my distance, acutely aware of the power dynamic between us, the debt that still hung heavy in the air. Ezra, surprisingly, remained… distant. He ensured I had everything I needed, provided meals that were left outside my door by a silent housekeeper, but his presence was minimal, a fleeting shadow in the vast expanse of the house.Then, one evening, Roy appeared at my door, his usual gruffness tinged with a hesitant awkwardness. "Devlin wants you back at the club tonight, Angel." he stated, his gaze fixed somewhere over my shoulder.A familiar knot of anxiety tightened in my stomach. The thought of returning to that stage, the leering eyes, the constant vulnerability… it was terrifying. "Okay," I managed, my voice barely a whisper.Roy shifted uncomfortably
Davina's POV: Waking up in a strange bed sent a jolt of pure panic through me. The soft, unfamiliar sheets, the heavy, expensive curtains blocking out the daylight, the faint scent of expensive cologne clinging to the air – it was all wrong. My memories were fragmented, a jumbled mess of flashing lights, a sickly sweet taste, and a terrifying, looming figure.Then, the events of last night crashed down on me in a wave of mortifying clarity. Ivan's leering face, the burning in my throat, the terrifying weakness… and then Ezra. His furious face, the brutal violence, and finally, the hazy memory of being carried, weightless, out of the club.My eyes flew open, and I scrambled back against the headboard, my heart hammering against my ribs. Ezra was there, asleep beside me, his dark hair tousled, his strong features softened in slumber. A wave of shame washed over me, hot and intense. What had happened? Had I…His eyes fluttered open, and the sleepiness vanished instantly, replaced by a g
Ezra's POV: The drive to my house was a blur of conflicting emotions. Anger at Ivan, a simmering possessiveness towards Davina, and a reluctant sense of responsibility for her current state warred within me. The cool night air seemed to have cleared some of the drug's immediate effects, but she remained unsteady, her movements jerky and uncoordinated. My house was quiet, the vast, echoing rooms a stark contrast to the chaotic energy of the club. I helped Davina out of the car, her weight still slightly off-kilter. As we walked towards the entrance, she stumbled, her ankle twisting beneath her. I reacted instantly, my arm wrapping around her waist, pulling her close to prevent a fall. "Careful," I murmured, the feel of her slight frame against
Ezra's POV: The prospect of tonight’s formal dinner with Tatiana Sokolova clung to me like a suffocating shroud. The meticulously tailored suit, the crisp white shirt – each garment felt like a step closer to a predetermined future I loathed. I lingered in the sterile confines of my private office at the Devil's Club, the muffled sounds of the late-night revelry a distant, unwelcome reminder of the life I was about to trade for a cold, political alliance. The polished mahogany desk reflected my grim visage, a man reluctantly marching towards his own gilded cage. Just as I finally forced myself to rise, the weight of obligation heavy on my shoulders, a sudden, violent commotion erupted near the back of the club. Roy’s usually gruff pronouncements, laced with an unfamiliar urgen
Davina's POV: The next evening.The pulsing, synthetic beat of the club’s generic dance music vibrated through the thin soles of my heels, a familiar tremor that usually provided a strange sense of grounding, a temporary escape from the gnawing anxiety that had become my unwelcome shadow. Tonight, however, the rhythm felt jarring, discordant with the heavy unease that had settled over the Devil's Club, memories of the private dance I gave to Ezra made my stomach feel unsettled. Almost as if my own being was stuck on that closeness.I was performing my routine for a man seated at a secluded, plush velvet booth near the dimly lit back corner of the club. His eyes, cold and assessing, followed my every sway and dip with a predatory intensity that made the fine hairs on the back of my neck prickle. He was new, a burly figure with a shaved head that gleamed under the strobing lights, and unsettlingly vacant eyes that seemed to bore right through my carefully constructed facade. Roy, with
Ezra's POV:The heavy, ornate door to Lorenzo’s private study clicked shut behind Andrei Sokolov and his chillingly composed daughter, leaving a vacuum filled only with the oppressive weight of the just-concluded transaction. The air, still carrying the faint, cloying scent of Sokolov’s expensive cologne, felt tainted, polluted by his presence in our sanctuary. My father, Lorenzo, stood by the massive mahogany desk, his knuckles white as he gripped the edge, his usual booming authority subdued, replaced by a strained, almost defeated air.Tatiana Sokolova. The image of her remained etched in my mind – a study in glacial beauty and icy entitlement. The way her piercing blue eyes had swept over our opulent surroundings with such detached indifference, as if judging its worth. Her infrequent pronouncements to her father, each word precise and laced with an unspoken command, had painted a clear picture of a woman accustomed to wielding power, even at her young age. And that undercurrent o