All Chapters of Claim Me Behind The Mask: Chapter 1 - Chapter 5

SUNESIS'S POVThe silver mask was cold against my skin. It felt completely different from the hot, stuffy air of the dressing room. I stood in front of the broken mirror, my hands shaking as I fixed my long black silk dress.I made sure the fabric covered my shoulders and arms perfectly. I had to hide everything from my neck down. Underneath the smooth cloth were the deep, ugly burn scars that ruined my body, the painful marks from the fire that took my family away.Someone knocked loudly on the door. "Sable, you are on stage in two minutes," the manager called out. I heard his shoes clicking against the floor as he walked away.I did not say anything. I just closed my eyes and breathed in slowly to calm my racing heart. “Do it for her,” I whispered to myself.Before coming to work tonight, I sat beside my grandmother’s bed. She looked so small and weak under her old blankets. Her face looked pale because she was very sick. She held my hands tightly with her rough, tired fingers."Sun

SUNESIS'S POVThe morning light felt too bright, stinging my tired eyes. I stood inside the huge, modern penthouse office of Ashford Corporation. Everything was white, grey, and cold.I wrapped my arms around myself, trying to disappear inside my massive, beige wool sweater. The thick sleeves hid my wrists completely, protecting my secrets and my scars.My hands shook a little bit as I stood in front of the large mahogany desk. I held the morning papers and files tightly against my chest.Behind the desk sat Blake. He did not look like the man from last night who was throwing money at a stage. Today, he wore a sharp grey suit, every piece of his hair perfectly in place.But his face was dark with anger. He looked furious, his jaw clenched so tight the muscles jumped. I knew why he was in such a foul mood.Last night, as Sable, I had rejected his exclusive contract and walked away from his money. He was a man who always got what he wanted, and my other self had left him burning with fr

SUNESIS'S POVEvery muscle in my body felt like it was on fire. I dragged my feet up the creaking stairs of the apartment building, my hand gripping the wooden railing just to keep myself upright.I had been taking every single extra shift the manager offered at Velvet Eclipse over the past week, dancing until my limbs grew heavy and numb.Between my daytime exhaustion from Blake's harsh demands at the office and the late-night shifts behind the silver mask, I was running on pure survival instinct.Working as Blake’s assistant paid decently, but every single cent went straight into a black hole of medical bills.Even with the massive stack of tied cash I had taken from Blake's table in the alleyway that night, which had thankfully paid off our most urgent debts, Grandmother’s treatments were a never-ending cycle. It was never enough.It had been a week since my new neighbor, Jay, had moved into apartment 4B. And over the past seven days, he had become a quiet fixture in my thoughts.E