---
The hallways felt colder after my encounter with Riven. Every step I took echoed too loudly in the heavy silence. I didn't dare look over my shoulder, though the sensation of being watched clung to me like a second skin.
I knew this wasn't over. Riven wasn't the kind of man to let defiance go unnoticed.
---
Noah caught up to me halfway to my room. His face was strained, his usual smile replaced by tight worry. "What did he say to you?"
I shrugged, keeping my expression flat. "The usual threats. Power plays. Nothing new."
Noah glanced around before lowering his voice. "You shouldn't push him, you know. He...he doesn't like it when things slip from his control."
---
Control.
That word wrapped itself around my throat like a noose.
I hated how true it was. Riven didn't just want obedience. He wanted ownership — of my life, my mind, my soul. And the worst part was how easily he made me doubt myself. How easily he made survival feel like submission.
---
"I know what I'm doing," I said quietly, more to convince myself than Noah.
He hesitated, like he wanted to say more, but then his shoulders sagged in resignation. "Just...be careful. I don't want to see you get hurt."
For a fleeting moment, I felt the warmth of genuine concern. A dangerous feeling in this place. I couldn't afford to get attached — not to Noah, not to anyone.
---
When I finally reached my room, I found a box waiting for me on the bed.
A black velvet box.
Expensive. Heavy with meaning.
A shiver ran down my spine.
---
I opened it cautiously, half expecting something cruel. Instead, inside lay a delicate silver chain, fine as spider silk, with a small, blood-red ruby pendant. Simple. Beautiful. And somehow terrifying.
Because I knew who had sent it.
A card lay tucked inside:
> "You're mine. Remember that." — Riven
---
I dropped the box as if it had burned me.
Mine.
The word echoed in my skull, a sharp, merciless brand.
---
There was a knock at the door. My heart leapt into my throat, but when I opened it, it was Liam.
His eyes flicked down to the fallen box, then back to me. For a moment, something raw crossed his face — a flash of anger? Disgust?
But he masked it quickly, his usual coldness returning.
---
"He asked me to make sure you wear it tonight," Liam said, voice stiff.
I stared at him, feeling a rush of something close to betrayal. "Of course he did," I muttered bitterly. "Another chain. Another leash."
Liam's jaw tightened, but he said nothing.
---
I picked up the necklace with shaking fingers. "What's tonight?"
"An event. Important faces. You'll be introduced."
I blinked. "Introduced? As what?"
Liam hesitated. "As Riven's...belonging."
---
My stomach twisted violently.
Introduced. Displayed.
Like a prized possession.
---
"I'm not a thing," I whispered.
Liam's hand twitched at his side, like he wanted to reach out, but he clenched it into a fist instead. "I know," he said roughly. "But you have to survive. Understand? Just survive tonight."
---
Survive. That was all I ever did anymore.
---
The evening descended like a funeral shroud.
Noah helped me dress — formal but understated: black slacks, a fitted silk shirt, no jacket. The necklace gleamed at my throat, a crimson drop of blood against my skin. A silent brand. A warning to everyone else.
---
When I entered the grand ballroom, heads turned.
The underworld elite were gathered — men and women who dealt in blood and secrets, smiling over champagne glasses.
And at the center of it all, like a king surveying his empire, stood Riven.
---
His eyes locked onto me immediately.
A slow, hungry smile spread across his face.
He cut through the crowd without hesitation, his presence swallowing the air around him.
When he reached me, he didn't speak. He simply ran a gloved finger down the chain at my throat, lingering just long enough to make my skin crawl.
---
"Perfect," Riven murmured. "You're learning."
I forced my face into a neutral mask, offering no reaction.
Inside, I screamed.
---
Throughout the night, Riven kept me close — one hand always lightly touching me, a constant reminder.
Every conversation, every smile he offered his guests was layered with a silent message: This one is mine. Don't even think about it.
And everyone understood.
---
At one point, Liam drifted by, exchanging a glance with me so quick it almost didn't happen. But I caught the flicker of pity in his eyes.
It almost undid me.
---
Hours dragged by. My legs ached. My soul ached more.
When the event finally ended, Riven leaned down, his mouth brushing against my ear.
"You did well tonight," he whispered. "I'm very proud of you."
---
I stood frozen as he kissed the side of my head — a mockery of affection.
Then he was gone, lost in the crowd of departing guests.
---
I staggered back to my room, tearing the necklace off as soon as the door closed behind me. I threw it across the room, watching it clatter against the wall and fall to the floor.
Tears burned behind my eyes, but I refused to let them fall.
---
Survive, Liam had said.
But tonight, survival had felt like death.
---
And somewhere deep inside, a darker thought took root:
Maybe...just maybe...I didn't want to survive anymore.
Maybe I wanted to fight.
Even if it killed me.
---
[End of Chapter 14]
---