Bound by Shadow

Selena sat in the sitting room, her fingers fidgeting with the hem of her dress as she tried to calm her racing thoughts. Her father's voice echoed in her mind, urgent and relentless.

"You don't understand, Selena," he had said, his voice rising in frustration. "This is your chance. We don't have the luxury of time. The arrangement is already set. You will marry him."

The cold, hard truth of his words stung. She had heard those words for what felt like the thousandth time, yet they still weighed down on her chest like a heavy stone. She looked at her father, his face set with the grim determination of a man who had already decided her fate. He wasn't asking, he was telling. And when it came to her family's survival, her options were few.

Her gaze flickered to her mother, standing by the window with her arms crossed, her face unreadable. Her mother had always been quiet, always compliant when it came to matters like this. But today, Selena could sense something else in the air-an unspoken resignation, a defeat that mirrored her own. Her mother's gaze flickered over to her briefly, but there was no sympathy in it, only the hardened acceptance of their reality.

Selena swallowed the bitter lump in her throat. This wasn't the life she had dreamed of. This wasn't the way things were supposed to go. She had fought so hard to be free of their constant demands, to escape the suffocating grip of her family's debts. And now, it seemed she was nothing more than a pawn in a game of business and power.

Her father had been insistent. "Think of it, Selena," he had urged. "This marriage is not just an escape-it's your opportunity to rise above your situation. To secure a future."

Secure a future. It sounded like a hollow promise. She knew it wasn't about love. It wasn't even about her happiness. This was about survival, for her family, for her future.

The plan had been set into motion weeks ago. She was to marry the son of a business associate-a man she had never met, a man whose name alone sent a chill through her spine.

Alex.

She hadn't even seen his face. The stories that had followed his name, though, had painted a clear picture. Ruthless. Cold. Untouchable. He was a man who wielded power without remorse, who could crush anyone who stood in his way. And now, he was the key to her family's future.

Her father's voice broke through her thoughts, pulling her from her spiraling mind. "You need to understand, Selena. This arrangement is more than just a marriage-it's a business deal. It will get us out of debt. We will no longer be at the mercy of our creditors."

Her pulse quickened at the mention of creditors. They had always been just one step away from ruin, one missed payment away from losing everything. This marriage, this arrangement, was the lifeline her family needed. But it came at a cost-her freedom, her choices. And the more she thought about it, the more she realized how little she had left to bargain with.

She closed her eyes, swallowing the lump that formed in her throat. There was no escape.

Across the city, in a starkly different world, Alex stood in his father's office, his arms crossed and his gaze steady as he faced the man who had raised him. The cold, ruthless businessman who had made Alex's every move a calculated step in his empire-building.

"You will marry her," his father said, his tone unwavering, his voice carrying the weight of someone who had never been questioned.

Alex didn't respond immediately. Instead, he leaned back in his chair, his eyes cold and hard, studying his father with a mixture of disdain and exhaustion. The words he had been hearing for the past few days echoed in his mind, but they were nothing more than a blur of obligations and orders.

"I've made it clear I won't marry anyone you choose for me," Alex replied, his voice low but firm, carrying the weight of someone who had been through too many of his father's manipulations to give in easily.

His father, though, remained unmoved. He was a man who didn't know how to lose, and certainly not in matters of power.

"You don't get a choice, Alex," his father said, his words cutting through the air like a knife. "This isn't a matter of preference-it's about necessity. This is about securing the future of this family, securing your future."

Alex's jaw clenched as he stood up, moving toward the window. He glanced out at the sprawling city below, his empire. It was all within his grasp, and yet, this-this marriage-felt like a prison he hadn't asked for.

"You think I don't know that?" he muttered under his breath. "You've never cared about what I want. This is just another business deal, isn't it?"

His father's voice grew colder. "Everything is a business deal, Alex. It always has been. You will do your duty. I won't ask again."

Alex's eyes narrowed, his anger simmering beneath the surface. But he knew better than to show his true emotions. He had learned long ago to hide behind a mask of indifference. But this-this was different. His life had always been controlled by power, by wealth, by cold decisions made in boardrooms. But marriage? This was personal.

He turned back to face his father. "And what if I refuse?"

His father's lips curled into a thin, calculated smile. "You don't have a choice. You'll marry her, Alex. Or else-"

Alex didn't need to hear the rest of the threat. He knew his father well enough to understand that nothing was ever a suggestion. His father was a man who would destroy anyone who got in his way.

With a deep, frustrated sigh, Alex turned on his heel and walked out of the room, his mind racing with the implications of what was to come. He wasn't just marrying a woman-he was being sold into a contract, a deal that had nothing to do with love. Nothing to do with him.