To Forge a Woman

 Sebastian Novair looked at me with his midnight blue eyes, inspecting my frail body with a keen, hungry gaze. A few moments later, his men surrounded me and bent down to pick me up.

Sebastian hovered his hand, sending them away. "I'll handle it."

I felt my weight lifted off the ground and the feeling of Sebastian's sturdy chest against my head. He caressed my hair, brushing them off my face.

"You're an eyesore," he whispered to me.

"Shut up..."

He chuckled for a moment as he brought me into his car. Within minutes, I was transported into a foreign place and into a new bed. His maids brought me a feast into my room, but I struggled to finish it with my appetite.

"Fetch her some clothes."

"N...No need. I'm going home after this anyway."

Sebastian crossed his legs. He was sitting near the entrance of my room, watching me like an owl.

"Home? And where's that?"

I lowered my head. By now, Damian would have thrown my things away already.

The maids arrived with new garments. As they stripped me, I could feel Sebastian's gaze intensifying.

I peeked a bit only to find his expression indescribable.

His lips were pursed, and his eyes were colder than usual. His jaw was clenched, and his hands were clasped.

By the time our eyes met, he focused them on mine and I quickly averted away.

"Have you always had that?"

I bit my lips. He's referring to my imperfections, the huge dark scar trailing from my hip to my shoulder, the bruises on my arms, thighs and the marks on my neck.

"That doesn't concern you," I replied as the maids slipped me into my new clothes. "What can you do for me?"

Sebastian crossed his arms and stood up, and it was only then that I realized how little I was compared to him. With a signal from his hands, the maids left the room, leaving me alone with this dangerous man.

God. I didn't even know why I called him.

All I knew was that I had no choice.

He walked closer to me, and I stepped back until I felt the vanity dresser behind me. Sebastian closed his distance and I lowered my head.

"I-I saved you. It's time for you to do your part of the bargain." I demanded, albeit intimidated.

I was a medical student before I gave up my studies to help Damian with his company. When I was wedded to him, I stopped my dreams to save my father's company too.

And Sebastian... I happened to save him after he yielded a gunshot.

No doctors helped him after learning he was the heir of Noir de Costas, an infamous syndicate group, known to be the government's lapdogs.

"I can make his life difficult for you," he whispered with a curl on his lips. "Or I can simply make him disappear for you, princess."

"There's no fun in that, isn't there? And don't call me princess."

"Why not, kitten? You are but a stray with no owner. You should have left with me when you had the chance, Kierra."

"I gave up your offer because I loved Damian."

His smile faded, and he then dropped multiple photographs on the bed. i blinked with shaking hands and looked at them.

They were pictures of Damian fucking Selene.

I shut my eyes and clenched my fists. Goddamn it, Damian.

"He fucked her. Hit you. Killed your daughter. You have no dreams. No degree. Your reputation is ruined. And you still love him?"

Sebastian's words felt like a stab.

But he was right.

I am nothing now.

Sebastian lifted my chin, his other hand pulling my waist closer.

"Are you sure you want my help, princess?"

"Did I stutter, Sebastian?"

He grinned. "If so, then you'll have to completely abandon your life. Your marriage. I'll have to break you so you could shine, just like glowstick. Are you prepared for that?"

"Break me if you must."

A playful smirk spreads from his lips, "That's my princess."

_____________________________

Sebastian did not lie when he said he would break me.

In the first weeks of being under his roof, I was beaten more than my husband ever did me. I was taught how to fight.

Sebastian's men would surround me, hitting me as lightly as they could, but they would feel galvanizing to me. They were mobs, so I get it. They hesitated to hit me at first, but Sebastian was ruthless.

"How will you survive if you don't feel pain?"

He was a psycho. And I hated to admit it, but he was a perfect mentor.

Everyday when I returned to my room, I was covered in bruises- but they did not hurt anymore.

Weeks turned into months and Sebastian finally took his stand before me. I was wondering why he'd never come and train me himself.

"Finally. On second thoughts I thought you were being a sissy to hit me yourself." I joked at him before he finally presented himself in the ring where they trained me.

Sebastian gave me a calculated smile while unbuttoning his suit, revealing the mass of muscles he had been hiding under that riveting array of draconic tattoos. It suited his tanned skin, though it seemed that the tattoos were merely a mask for the plethora of scars that buried deep in his skin.

"Shall we test your six months' worth of training, princess?"

"Boss, I don't think that's a good idea-"

"Sure." I cut one of his men off. "And once again, don't call me that."

He smirked at my challenge, rolling his shoulders back as he cracked his knuckles. "Alright then, Kierra. Let's see if you're ready."

I tightened my grip on the knife in my hand, my pulse thrumming in my ears.

"Princess, if there's one thing you'll know about me... is that I don't do training."

He lunged first, his speed catching me off guard. I barely sidestepped in time, feeling the rush of air as his fist skimmed past my cheek. Before I could counter, he twisted, his foot sweeping toward my legs. I jumped back, barely maintaining my balance.

"I kill regardless, so do your best to survive."

Gritting my teeth, I retaliated, slashing the knife in a quick arc toward his arm. He dodged easily, twisting away like a shadow, but I wasn't done. I pivoted, using the momentum to drive the blade upward.

A sharp gasp rang through the air.

The knife's edge sliced across his cheek, leaving a thin trail of crimson in its wake.

For a moment, the world stilled.

Then, to my horror, Sebastian laughed. His tongue darted out, tasting the blood that dripped from the fresh wound.

"No hesitation. Beautiful," he murmured, eyes dark with something terrifyingly ecstatic. "Absolutely beautiful."

My breath hitched. The pain didn't faze him-no, he relished it. He reached up, pressing a thumb against the cut, smearing the blood along his jaw as he tilted his head.

"You'll be the best trump card Noir de Costas will ever have."

"So you trained me to use me?"

"I'll use you, yes. And then you'll burn Eboncorp's empire to the ground."