A BROKEN CAGE, A SHATTERED HEART
Elena sat in the back seat of Alexander's car, her body rigid, her heart pounding against her ribs.
The rain drummed against the tinted windows, each drop a reminder that she had lost the battle.
She had run. He had found her.
She had fought. He had won.
Again.
Her wrists ached from where he had gripped her. Her breath still came in ragged gasps.
But it wasn't just fear that made her tremble.
It was the way he had looked at her.
Not just with anger.
Not just with possession.
But with something else.
Something raw.
Something terrifying.
Something she didn't dare name.
*****
The car pulled into the Blackwood Mansion's long driveway, the gates closing behind them with a finality that made her stomach twist.
No escape.
No freedom.
Alexander stepped out first.
He didn't drag her out. Didn't force her.
He simply opened the door and waited.
As if he knew she would come.
And that, somehow, was worse.
Because he was right.
With a deep breath, she stepped out, her soaked dress clinging to her like a second skin.
She refused to look at him.
Refused to acknowledge the way his presence seemed to suck the air from her lungs.
But as soon as she stepped inside, the door slammed shut behind her.
She turned sharply only to find Alexander standing there, blocking her exit.
Silent.
Dangerous.
Watching her with those dark, unreadable eyes.
Her heart clenched.
"Say it," she whispered, her voice barely above a breath.
He didn't blink. "Say what?"
"That I'm nothing to you." Her voice wavered, but she forced herself to hold his gaze. "That you never cared."
His jaw clenched.
"You were never nothing to me."
The air between them cracked like lightning.
Her hands fisted at her sides. "Then why? Why did you lie? Why did you make me believe" Her voice broke. "That you'd throw me away when the contract was done?"
His breath hitched.
For the first time, he looked uncertain.
The great Alexander Blackwood, the man who ruled an empire with an iron fist, stood before her powerless.
"Elena…" His voice was low, rough.
But she shook her head, stepping back.
"No," she whispered. "You don't get to say my name like that. Not after everything."
His eyes darkened. "You think I don't regret it?"
She swallowed, the pain raw in her chest. "I think you don't know how to regret."
Silence.
Heavy. Suffocating.
Then
He took a step closer.
She took a step back.
But her back hit the wall.
Trapped.
Again.
Only this time, it wasn't just his presence that held her captive.
It was the storm in his eyes.
The agony in his face.
And the quiet, desperate truth in his next words.
"I love you."
The world stopped.
Elena's breath hitched.
Her body turned ice-cold, then burning hot all at once.
She wanted to believe him.
But she couldn't.
Because love didn't look like this.
Love wasn't chains.
Love wasn't control.
Love wasn't pain.
Right?
Tears burned in her eyes, but she refused to let them fall.
She forced herself to laugh a hollow, broken sound.
"You love me?" Her voice shook. "You locked me in this house. You treated me like I was nothing. You lied to me, Alexander. And now you want to stand here and say you love me?"
His throat bobbed, his hands curling into fists.
"I did everything I could to push you away," he admitted, his voice raw. "Because I knew… if I let you in, I'd never let you go."
A sob caught in her throat.
"Then let me go now."
The words barely escaped before his hand slammed against the wall beside her, caging her in.
"No."
Her breath hitched.
"Elena, I don't know how to love," he confessed, his voice hoarse. "I only know how to own. To protect. To keep." His hand trembled against the wall. "But I know this I can't lose you."
Tears finally fell from her eyes.
"You already did."
She shoved past him.
For the first time, he let her.
She reached the door.
Hand on the handle.
She could walk away.
She should walk away.
But she hesitated.
Because despite everything…
Despite the pain, the betrayal, the unbearable heartbreak…
She still loved him.
And that was the worst betrayal of all.
She didn't look back.
She couldn't.
Because if she did, she knew she would break.
But then
A sound stopped her cold.
A thud.
Her breath caught in her throat as she turned.
Alexander Blackwoodbthe ruthless billionaire, the man who never bowed to anyone
Was on his knees.
Rain dripped from his hair. His suit was ruined.
His hands trembled as they gripped the floor.
His head hung low, his shoulders shaking.
And then
In a voice so broken, so raw, it shattered the last pieces of her heart
He whispered, "Please."
She inhaled sharply, her hands shaking against the door.
"Please, Elena." His voice was nothing but a breath. "Tell me how to fix this."
Her lips parted.
But she had no answer.
Because love wasn't supposed to hurt like this.
And yet, as she looked at the man before herso broken, so lost
She realized
Maybe she wasn't the only one trapped in this golden cage.
Maybe, just maybe…
He was trapped, too.
The door remained open.
The storm raged outside.
And in that moment
Elena had a choice.
To leave.
Or to stay.
To let go.
Or to risk it all one more time.
The answer would change everything.
But as the screen faded to black, only one thing was certain
This wasn't the end.
Not yet.
Because some love stories don't end with goodbyes.
They end with one last chance.
TO BE CONTINUED… IN BOOK TWO.