"This is the end," I thought.

This moment had weighed on me the moment I stepped foot into the manor. Father and mother had welcomed me with open arms, but I always knew the time would come for their scheme to come into play. I'd had nightmares of the horror that awaited me, of the hand shaped shadows wrapping themselves around me, crushing me until my bones turned to dust.

The head maid yanked my sleeve harshly, dragging me down the hallway to fathers parlor. She'd never been this aggressive before, not even when I'd thrown tantrums and rebelled against her master's orders. She'd glare at me, but now her hand grips my arm, nails digging into my skin.

She yanked me harder. "Stop walking slowly on purpose."

Her slim figure dragged me down the marble hall like I was a little child in need of a beating. The head maid always seemed dead, but now she looked like a walking corpse.

Hours ago, I'd been woken from bed early, the sun had yet not risen, the moon was so alight I thought I'd woken in the countryside—-but I was still in the Upstate forests that surrounded our manor. The maids had taken me into my mother, Luna's, powder room—which never ever happens—and bathed me in her roses and oils, and silked my curly hair down. I was ordered to wear one of her dresses, a satin blue laced gown. It felt tight around my body, but it made my figure appealing. Luna had walked into the room after the maids had finished prettying me up.

My adoptive mother was never one for affection let alone motherly affection, for 11 years she'd made sure I'd known my place and why I'd truly joined this family in the first place; which was for the sake of Fathers business and future connections. The Eclipse Family was fortunate, an old money dynasty, we weren't well known but we sure did control almost half of the city's business branches—that means franchises, new start-ups, departments within companies, and almost all of the organizations that's budget is off of products. We were a family of leverage, as Fathers ancestors documented and kept records of all the high ranking companies in New York since the late 1800s—and because of our leverage, we had enemies, and because of our enemies, we needed protection.

I always knew I'd be married off for the sake of the family's legacy, and for everyone in the family to be safe, and as I try to grip onto the love my adoptive parents have for me, I can't help but feel that love will blow out like a candle.

Luna had caressed my hair, she gripped my shoulder softly, I couldn't help but feel cold under her touch. "Mother," I said.

She didn't smile, but her expression was calm. "I believe it's time child."

I felt my body tense, my heart thrumming in my chest. "Must I do this?" I ask. "I believe it all feels so … early."

Luna cupped my cheek, her blue eyes piercing. "You have to do this, no matter how you feel, this is what you were born to do, you and your brothers have a role to play, this is yours."

I shook my head, holding her hands. "But mother, I'm only seventeen—"

"Isabella!"

I halt.

"You have been given so much privilege, you've eaten the world's best foods, lived in the most wonderful places, danced in the most elegant balls, and yet you complain about your destiny, complain about the one thing me and your father ask of you."

Luna took her hands away, almost disgusted to have touched me in the first place. "Don't make me and your father regret our kindness," she said.

I bowed my head, my hands shaking. "I'm sorry mother."

Luna looked away, clasping her hands as her bracelets jingled. She always wore the most extravagant jewelry, I'd spent so many years dreaming of looking as stunning as her in those jewels. Not that the jewels did much to hide the bruises on her wrist.

She turned to face the mirror in front of us. "Look at you," she said so calmingly. "You're going to be a part of the Vemoure family, a member of their dynasty, and our family will finally become allies of the underworld." She turns to me. "I couldn't be more proud."

I forced a smile.

The door bursts open, and the head maid enters, her spine straight, her long legs sliding down the stairs to the seating area where Luna and I stand. She looked directly at me, her eyes were dark. With her gray hair and red lips, I wouldn't be surprised if she was a vampire.

"The chairman is here," she said.

I tried to mask my expression, but judging how she smirked, the color must've drained from my face. "It's time to go," she said.

I didn't know what sparked in me, but I suddenly couldn't leave. I ran towards Luna, my hands gripping the silk of her scarlet gown, she stared at me in horror as I pleaded. "You can't make me go there, you can't sell me to a bunch of gangsters and murderers! I'm your daughter, I'm still a kid!"

Luna tried to push me away, her lips curling into a snarl. "You despicable spoiled girl! I was married off at fourteen! Your father and I gave you everything, you have no reason to throw yourself at our mercy!"

"You can't sell me to that family of murderers!"

Luna's hand escapes my grip, she slaps me so hard I stumble, falling to the ground. The head maid watched us, taken aback.

"The Vemoures aren't murderers," Luna barked. "They are underworld rulers, owners of a top-selling fragrance brand, they are not as awful as you think! So many girls would kill to be in your position, to live their lives in the solitude of wealth, to do everything they ever dreamed of, all you have to do is marry into the damn family!"

No teenager would kill to get married off by her own family.

I wipe my tears. "I'm sorry mother."

Luna curses under her breath. "To think the girl I raised is a beggar, shameful."

The head maid grabbed me by my arms and yanked me up, but before I could retort she was dragging me away. I tried to break from her grip but she was too strong. I looked back to Luna, at my mother, the person I spent most of my life trying to please, the person that taught me, some little city orphan how to live in luxury and class. I had thought that when the Eclipse Family had adopted me, they'd let me live my life the way I'd dreamt of it so long in the orphanage. I never expected that such luxury would come with a price.

I screamed at Luna. "Please, mother! Don't let them take me!"

The head maid walked towards me and yanked me hard. I stumbled to the ground, crying to my mother. "Did you ever even love me, mother?"

Luna refused to look at me, her eyes were glued to the mirror, at her own reflection, because that's all she cared about; herself. "Goodbye Isabella, don't disappoint me."

The door slammed shut.

The head maid dragged me down the hall, the lanterns dimly lit, the dusk of the morning creating a fresh scent that made me feel dizzy—-or maybe that was from my nausea.

The head maid stopped, and we stood in front of Father's double doors, the entryway into his parlor. I had so many memories here. Father would take me to his parlor so I could receive beatings anytime I misbehaved or embarrassed him. I grew up as a good girl, but I spent so many years getting in trouble for things my brothers did—they'd always frame me.

Thinking about my brothers, they all must be in Spain, enjoying the last week of summer. I wonder if they even knew I was leaving today. I'm positive Nathanial and Kingsley could care less, Nathainal had been counting the days Father would send me off, and Kingsley was too busy drinking his sorrows away in boarding school to even notice. But Salvatore …

The head maid opened the doors and I felt my heartbeat rush at an incredible speed. There was little I knew about this arrangement, just that I'd spent eleven years preparing for it. From the moment I was adopted at six years old, I'd been taught how to be an excellent wife in a dynasty, one with the average old money class. This is your role, I tell myself.

If I do this, I'll be chained to a family of monsters, but I'll be able to leave the Eclipse manor, move to the city, go to college, be away from my parents, and maybe, just maybe, finally do something I can be proud of.

I walked inside, my head held high, I knew my mascara might be smudged and my eyes were red but I won't buckle in front of them, and I won't be intimidated as I'd always been. I'll leave this manor not as a sad bride, but as a runaway charging to what might be her new prison.

"Isabella Eclipse has arrived," the head maid says.

All eyes turn to me.

There were three men and one woman sitting in my father's parlor. Father sat in his armchair, his hands tapping on the wooden handle, when our eyes met he looked almost bored. That's how I always looked to him, a pawn in a chessboard; boring but useful. "Daughter," he said with such forced affection. "Come sit."

I walked slowly towards the couch on his right. I straightened my dress and made sure my hair was behind my shoulder. Don't slouch, I remember Luna telling me the other day. Slouching was my bad habit, I just couldn't help it.

There were three people sitting on the blue chaise lounge sofa on Father's left. They all wore black. The woman at the end who wore sunglasses had the most gorgeous blonde hair I'd ever seen, it flowed to her waist, which was really thin and snatched by the belt she wore. Her black dress covered all of her body, from her neck to her ankles, but I could tell at one glance that she had a beautiful figure. Her lips were plump of nude. She looked like an actress on the runway. From the way her spine was erect and the aura that drifted around her, she had to be a businesswoman.

The man next to her was her spitting image, he caught my eye quickly, he wore black trousers and a dark turtleneck, and his blonde hair curled to his neck and covered his forehead. His eyes were dark green, his under eyelids were coated in cherry pink, the same color as those beautiful lips. His jaw was sharp, his cheeks hollow making his entire face defined like a sculpture at a museum. I was awed at his entire body structure, from his long shoulders to the bulk of his abdomen, he looked like something from a roman painting—unreal.

I tensed when I saw the knife strapped around his leg. I also noticed the small patch wrapped around his ankle. He's a gangster for sure.

I might've been staring too much because our eyes met. Something flashed in his eyes, and I couldn't tell whether he was startled or annoyed that I was looking at him. He turned away, I looked at the floor in embarrassment. Kill me now.

The man by my father, which I'll guess from his old age, the fine black suit he wore, and the scar by his eye, was the chairman, Louis Vemoure, the king of the underworld, and chairman of Vemoure Fragrances. I'd seen him plenty of times growing up, usually in the manor when father would show him to his office or when they'd go into his parlor. I'd always found him scary, from his bulky frame and from his cold expressions. The white in his hair was light, but from his build, you would never guess he was a grandfather.

He began to speak. "I assure you, Samual," Louis says. "Everything is properly taken care of, your daughter Isabella will stay in the family penthouse downtown, and if the city lights aren't to her liking, we have a townhouse on the east side near the park—-"

"I like city lights," I blurt.

They all turn to me.

Maybe, I shouldn't have said that.

I was surprised when the blonde girl at the end chuckled. "Good to know," she says, smiling brightly. "I'll take you to all the good spots downtown." She winks. She had a NYC accent.

The guy next to her shakes his head. "She's not 21," he hissed, loud enough for me to hear. His accent was ruff, it gave off russian.

She shrugs. "Gotta start them young, no?"

Louis clears his throat, and they both shut their mouths. I couldn't help but smile. Were they siblings? Was he their grandfather?

"So," Louis grunts, turning to me and the blonde man. "I hope you and my grandson can exchange greetings." He turns to the blonde man. "After all, you will be under his care."

I furrow my brows. "Under his care …"

"I'll be your bodyguard," the blonde man elaborates. He crosses his arms. "You can refer to me as Victor."

I look at my father, suddenly taken aback. "Why do I need a bodyguard?"

Father taps his finger on his thigh, slumping in his seat. "I'm sure you know what the Vemoure family do for a living, it would only make sense for you to have personal security, Victor works directly with the Vemoure guard, trained fighter, and a direct bloodline to Louis, he can be trusted. Isn't that right Victor?"

Victor's eyes narrowed, he seemed annoyed to be called by fathers sluggish manner. He looks like he'd rather be doing tight rope on the Brooklyn bridge than sit here. "I'll protect her," he says, then turns to me. "Only if she's on her best behaviour."

My eyes widened. Prick, what was I, a five-year-old?

I turn to my father. "Wait, what about the man I'm marrying."

Louis crosses his legs and leans into the cushion. "You'll meet him soon. Before you two are married, there are things your father and I need to clear up, such as your dowry, and announcements that need to be made. Spring is the perfect time for a wedding. By summer you and my grandson will be on a plane to Los Angeles."

"Los Angeles!" I yell. "I thought I'd be in New York City." I turn to my father. "You said I'd live with them in the city! Not in the west!"

"We have branches in the west that need overseeing, your fiance will be promoted, you'll have to accompany him there." Louis cuts in. "Our beachside manor will be under your management when you arrive, you can live your life in the ranges of LA, away from any threats that will arise in the city."

I scoff. "What is this, the 17th century? I'm not some wife you can lock up in a manor! You can't force me to decorate the living room and pick out silverware. I'm supposed to study at Barnard!"

"You'll transfer somewhere else," my father says.

I shake my head. "This isn't fair, this wasn't a part of the deal!"

Father slams his hand on his armrest and I flinch. He leans in, giving me a death stare. "The moment you stepped foot into my manor, was the moment you became mine. Isabella, you don't get any choices, and by Spring you will be a member of the Vemoure household, and you will leave for the west were you are safe along with Louis's heir, by my orders."

I felt tears prick my eyes. How's that for buckling in fear Isa.

I wiped my eyes, catching both blondes staring at me, the girl looked concerned, and Victor, I couldn't tell. I'm starting to wonder if my life will always be how I'm currently feeling; miserable. Expressionless, dull, boring, all the things my father was.

Nothings gonna change, I think.

Louis claps his hands. "Well, let's continue talking about the details then."

For the most part, I didn't listen to their conversations, nor did I find myself caring when Louis mentioned I'd have to go to gala's and balls and invest myself into the business before truly becoming a Vemoure. I didn't care. Because it all wouldn't matter if I found a way out.

I looked at my bodyguard, who was busy glancing at his nails to notice the hot tears streaming down my face. His eyes looked tired. I never thought someone that gorgeous and rich would look so sullen.

His family would point guns at me if I begged my fiance for a divorce after getting married. So I only had one choice.

I had to run away before Spring.