> I found a rabbit lying hurt behind the house while trimming the bushes on this blessed day
It should've been whimpering or panicked, but it just stared at me_trembling. I picked it up gently, patting its back before rubbing ointment onto its wounds.
The rabbit darted off without a limp. I guess the ointment works well.
I've use it on everyone who seemed wounded. It always works like magic.
As I wiped my hands on my apron and headed toward the house, voices floated through the open window.
"We've fed her all this while," my aunt snapped. "She should repay us."
I froze mid-step.
"You want her to marry him?" my uncle said quietly.
"Why not? Or would you rather offer Oriana?" Her voice grew sharper. "We can't give our daughter to someone like that. But Aurelia? She's… convenient."
I stepped closer to the door, heart slamming against my ribs.
"We should think of another way to pay, not sell her off," my uncle murmured.
"It's too late. The man already agreed. The papers are signed," Aunt said.
I didn't remember walking through the back door. Just the blood roaring in my ears as I shoved it open.
Three heads turned toward me: Uncle, Aunt, and Oriana.
She sat perfectly poised at the table, her golden curls tucked behind one ear, lips pressed tight. She didn't look surprised. Just… guilty.
A thick envelope stamped in red wax sat between them. My name stared back at me in elegant ink.
"What's this?" I asked, pointing.
No one answered.
"You weren't supposed to hear that," Aunt finally said.
"I wasn't?" My voice shook. "Were you just going to hand me over to a stranger like cattle without telling me?"
"He's not a stranger. He's your future husband," she snapped. "And you should be grateful."
"Grateful? For being sold? Why not her?" I looked at Oriana.
"Oriana has a future. You were always… temporary."
The silence that followed should've crushed me.
But something in me_quiet and steady_hardened.
"Okay. When do I leave?"
"Dawn. Pack something clean," Aunt said coldly.
For a moment, I wondered what would've happened if I hadn't overheard them. Would they have bundled me into a sack and shipped me off before I could scream?
Bitterness crept into my chest. I left without another word.
---
My room felt smaller than usual.
I stared at the contract in my hands. I didn't sleep. I packed in silence, moonlight spilling across the floor of this borrowed room.
A soft knock came at the door.
I already knew who it was.
"Aurelia… can I come in?"
I didn't answer, but Oriana slipped inside anyway.
hair curled, lashes dark. Perfect, as always.
She stood awkwardly by the door, eyes downcast.
"I didn't want this," she said softly. "I didn't ask them to__"
"But you didn't stop them," I cut her off. "You knew. And you watched."
That shut her up.
If this were any other situation, I might've enjoyed it.
But this was about my life. And I didn't have the energy to savor her guilt.
She bit her lip. For a second, I almost believed she might cry_but Oriana's tears were like pearls. Rare. Pretty. Always perfectly timed.
"He's dangerous, Aurelia," she said.
I didn't answer just packed.
"You don't understand. People disappear around him."
"Then it's good you're not going." I snapped.
She flinched.
I buckled the last strap on my suitcase and turned to face her. My hands didn't shake. My heart didn't hollow.
Just cold.
"You were afraid of him. But more than that, you were afraid of losing your comfortable life. So stop pretending this is about me."
I walked past her.
She didn't follow. She didn't say goodbye.
---
The car arrived before sunrise.
It was black, sleek, silent. A Rolls Royce.
Driven by a man in a black suit with no name and no words. My uncle handed him the suitcase. My aunt didn't even come outside.
The ride through the hills of Rome was long. Quiet. The vineyards, ruins, and sleeping streets blurred by. None of it felt real.
Then I saw it.
The estate sat like a predator on the cliff's edge__glass and marble and shadows. It didn't belong to money. It owned it.
The iron gate opened without a sound.
The car stopped in the courtyard.
I still didn't see him.
A woman in silver-gray stood at the foot of the stairs, eyes like glass.
"Miss Moretti," she said. "The master is expecting you."
He didn't even come to greet me.
"You'll be shown to your room. He prefers not to be disturbed."
I wanted to laugh. Or scream. Or demand to see him.
But I didn't. I followed her into the mansion.
---
The room they gave me was beautiful__too beautiful. Ivory walls. Sheer curtains. A bed carved from blackwood and shadow.
Like someone had tried to make a cage look like a palace.
I wandered the hallways barefoot, past flickering candles and heavy silence. The house felt too big for one man. Too quiet. Like it was waiting.
I turned a corner__and crashed into someone.
I would've fallen, but he caught me.
A hand on my waist. Strong. Fast. Unshakable.
Tall. Sharply dressed. Eyes like obsidian rimmed with gold. His face too perfect to feel human. His stare burned.
My breath caught.
"Aurelia," he said. My name from his lips sounded like a command.
"Draven," I breathed.
He was nothing like I expected.
Wasn't he supposed to be old? Ruthless? Ugly? Probably even bald?
He released me slowly.
I just stared.
"Nice to meet you, my lady," he murmured, taking my hand and kissing my knuckles.
"Uh… same," I said, bowing stiffly.
My stomach twisted.
So this was the man who bought my name with blood and Ink.