Sold to a Stranger.

Chapter 01 

Elowen’s POV

“Let me go!”

My red heels scraped against the marble floor as two hefty men dragged me toward the front door.

From the corner of my eye, I saw all the staff staring at me. Some watched with pity, while others looked almost excited by my humiliation.

“Elowen!” My mother's voice cracked behind me— not with any other thing than frustration. “ Stop making this difficult!”

“You're selling me!”

“We're saving this family!”

I kept silent at first. I should have asked what she meant and what any of this had to do with me.

But I already knew.

My parents had found the perfect solution to their problems: me.

I twisted violently, catching the edge of the table.

The vase on top crashed to the floor with a loud thud.

“Then sell Lilia!”

Silence fell. Absolute silence.

I looked over my shoulder.

My younger sister stood at the bottom of the stairs, pale and trembling. But I knew it was all a pretense.

If anyone in this house was happy about what was happening, it was her.

My father slowly turned toward me.

“Watch your mouth.”

“Why?” I spat. “ Because for once I'm saying what everyone in this house is thinking?”

They weren't stupid. They knew exactly what I was saying. They simply chose to ignore it.

Before anyone could say anything… a butler came in with a box in his hand. Unaware of what the tension in the house was about, he announced with an uneasy smile—

“Your wedding dress just arrived, Miss.”

I didn’t even realize when I bursted into tears.

This wasn't supposed to be happening.

It wasn't how I'd imagined my carefully planned future unfolding.

Not the extravagant kind my parents would have loved to flaunt in front of their business associates. I didn't care about the size of the ballroom or how many expensive cars would line the driveway.

I only wanted Ethan.

I wanted to walk down the aisle knowing that the person waiting for me at the end of it had chosen me.

Loved me.

Not because of my family name.

Not because of what my marriage could do for the family.

Just me. Elowen.

And for the first time in my life, I had believed I was going to get exactly that.

Ethan had been the one thing in my life that had ever felt like it belonged to me.

Then, in a matter of days, my parents had decided to take even that away.

It still didn't make sense.

A few days ago, my mother had welcomed Ethan with a warm smile. Though…after he left, she complained that Ethan came from a minor gang branch, that he had little influence, and that he wasn't the kind of man they could proudly introduce at a business dinner. 

But they had agreed. Or I thought they had.

One minute, I was to be Ethan’s wife. The next, I was still supposed to become a wife.

Just not to him.

To Leo— the comatose heir to one of the most powerful families in the city. One of the Moretti's.

A man I had never met.

A man who had been lying unconscious in a hospital bed for months.

A man I was apparently supposed to marry because my younger sister, Lilia, had decided that she wanted no part in a marriage to a comatose heir.

Lilia had always been the precious one. 

Even though I was the first child and daughter, I had been made the second. Nothing ever belonged to me in this house.

“Add it to her filthy luggages. One more terrible choice to add to the pile.” I heard my mother say. 

My nose flared in anger as my hand tightened into a fist. 

She had accompanied me when I went to choose my dream wedding gown, and all I'd heard throughout the entire appointment was how some absolute monstrosity of a dress would suit me better. 

She rebuked me for choosing what I actually liked.

Cole—my father—walked to me slowly. His head was bowed, his face arranged into a facade of sadness.

“Sweetie, if leaving your family like this doesn't settle well with you,” he started, his palm resting on my shoulder. “You can leave first thing tomorrow.”

“Try clearing your mind in your favorite garden in this house, and think about how important this decision is,” Mother added.

I see. 

They were giving me the illusion of a choice. 

An idea popped into my mind. I nodded my head, forcing a little smile. “Thank you, Father.”

“Can I go to my room now?”

“Of course, sweetie.”

Immediately, I started towards the stairs. 

Mother yelled, less concerned. “Call me if you need anything!” 

I didn't reply. 

Finally, I made it to my room. I shut the door behind me and clicked the lock.

I paced back and forth across the room before finally stopping. 

I wasn't going to let this happen, and pretend I'm not affected. 

Whenever my parents needed something, I was expected to understand. And whenever the family was in trouble, somehow my name always found its way into the solution.

This time— hell no.

I reached for my phone in my back pocket. Then, I opened a familiar chat.

‘We don't have much time. Let's leave tonight.’

I stared at the message I'd just sent Ethan. 

Ethan and I had talked about leaving before. We'd always treated it like a distant dream.

It had become a necessity. There was no going back now.

If my family wanted to trade me like a piece of property, they could.

But they would have to catch me first.

Tonight, I would run.