Julia sat in the plush seat of the private jet, staring at the endless stretch of sky through the window. Her electric blue eyes seemed to reflect the vast, empty space outside, but her mind was far from peaceful. The vast and serene view only made her feel smaller, as if the whole world was moving on while she remained caught in a turbulent storm. She could hardly remember a time when her life had been so uncertain, so fragile.
Her father's death had torn her life apart. One moment, her world was pristine and carefully crafted, full of privilege and security. The next, it had vanished like a dream. His passing had been so sudden, so unexpected, that she hadn't had a chance to prepare for it. There had been no goodbye, no time to say anything. Her mind went back to that time
The knock on the door was firm, deliberate, and entirely out of place in the quiet hum of the afternoon. Julia had been curled up on the sofa, a half-finished cup of tea cooling on the table beside her, her mind wandering through the mundane tasks of the day. But the sound of that knock—sharp, official, and heavy with purpose—sliced through the calm like a blade.
She opened the door to find two police officers standing on her porch, their faces etched with a grim solemnity that made her stomach twist. The taller one, a woman with kind eyes that couldn't quite mask the sorrow in them, held her hat in her hands. The other, a man with a weathered face and a posture that spoke of years of delivering news no one ever wanted to hear, stood slightly behind her.
"Ms. Julia Hart?" the woman asked, her voice soft but steady.
Julia nodded, her throat suddenly dry, her heart pounding in a way that had nothing to do with the ordinary rhythms of life. This was something else. Something wrong. Something that would change everything.
"I'm Officer Ramirez, and this is Officer Daniels. May we come in?"
The words were polite, but the weight behind them was unbearable. Julia stepped back, her movements mechanical, as if her body were moving on its own while her mind scrambled to catch up. She led them to the living room, her fingers brushing against the back of the sofa for support, though she wasn't entirely sure her legs would hold her much longer.
Before the officers could speak, the sound of hurried footsteps echoed down the hallway. Julia's stepmother, Evelyn, appeared in the doorway, her perfectly coiffed hair and designer clothes a stark contrast to the raw emotion filling the room. Behind her loomed Julia's uncle, Richard, his expression unreadable but his presence always carrying an air of disapproval.
"What's going on?" Evelyn demanded, her voice sharp, her eyes darting between Julia and the officers. "Why are the police here?"
Officer Ramirez hesitated, her gaze flicking to Julia before she spoke. "I'm afraid we have some difficult news. There was an accident earlier today. Mr. Hart... he didn't make it."
The words hit Julia like a physical blow, knocking the breath from her lungs and leaving her dizzy, disoriented. Her father. Her strong, larger-than-life father, who had always been her rock, her guiding star. Gone. Just like that.
"No," Julia whispered, shaking her head, as if denying it could make it untrue. "No, that's not possible. You must have the wrong person. He's...he's at work. He's fine. He's..."
But the look on their faces stopped her cold. The truth was there, in their eyes, in the way they stood, in the silence that stretched between them like a chasm. And then it hit her, all at once, a tidal wave of grief so overwhelming it nearly brought her to her knees.
Her father was gone.. gone forever
Evelyn let out a choked sob, clutching at her chest as if the news had physically wounded her. Richard, however, remained eerily still, his face a mask of stoic indifference. Julia couldn't help but notice the way his jaw tightened, the way his eyes flicked to her, cold and calculating, even in this moment of shared loss.
"This can't be happening," Evelyn cried, her voice trembling. "Not Edward. Not my Edward."
Julia wanted to scream, to lash out at the unfairness of it all, but the words caught in her throat. Her stepmother's grief felt performative, exaggerated, and Richard's silence was unnerving. She had always been the outsider in this family, the daughter from her father's first marriage, the one who never quite fit into their polished, perfect world. And now, with her father gone, she felt more alone than ever.
Officer Ramirez stepped forward, her hand outstretched as if to steady Julia, but Julia shook her head again, tears streaming down her face. She didn't want comfort. She didn't want kindness. She wanted her father. She wanted to turn back time, to undo whatever had happened, to hear his voice, to see his smile, to feel his arms around her one more time.
But that was impossible. And the truth of it shattered her.
"I'm so sorry," Officer Ramirez said again, her voice breaking slightly. "Is there someone we can call for you? Someone who can be here with you?"
Julia opened her mouth to respond, but Evelyn cut in, her voice shrill and demanding. "We're her family. We'll take care of everything. we will take care of her"
The words felt hollow, empty, and Julia couldn't help but flinch. Take care of her? Evelyn had never taken care of her. Neither had Richard. They had tolerated her presence at best, resented it at worst. And now, with her father gone, she was completely at their mercy.
The officers stayed for a while, their presence a quiet, steadying force, but eventually, they left, leaving Julia alone with Evelyn and Richard in the suffocating silence of the house. Evelyn sank into a chair, dabbing at her eyes with a tissue, while Richard stood by the window, his hands clasped behind his back, his expression unreadable.
Julia sank to the floor, her back against the sofa, her arms wrapped around herself as if she could hold the pieces of her broken heart together. But it was no use. The grief was too deep, too all-consuming. And as the tears came, hot and unrelenting, she let them fall, each one a testament to the love she had lost, to the man who had meant everything to her.
Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Richard glance at her, his lips pressed into a thin line. There was no sympathy in his gaze, no warmth. Only calculation. And in that moment, Julia knew that her father's death was just the beginning of the storm.
Her stepmother, cold and calculating, had wasted no time in taking control. Within days of her father's death, she and Julia's uncle had begun to make decisions on her behalf. Decisions that pushed her aside, that ignored her feelings. As if she didn't even exist. They had all but erased her from her own story.
And now, they had practically sold her to pay her father's debts. She never knew her Father had become involved in a trail of businesses that had failed. Probably in a bid to satisfy her stepmum's constant desires. Who knows. Now she had been bartered to a man she didn't know. A man who was old enough to be her father, whose wealth and power gave him the right to purchase anything or anyone he desired. Luigi de Romano. A billionaire. She was nothing more than a transaction. A way to pay off the debts her father had left behind.
Her hands clenched tightly in her lap. She could feel the trembling starting in her fingers, spreading through her arms, her chest. She wasn't ready for this. She wasn't ready to become someone's possession. The idea of being married to a man she didn't know, of being sold as a prize, was too much for her to bear. Julia closed her eyes, trying to steady her breathing, trying to calm the storm that swirled inside her, but it was no use. The plane climbed higher, but it felt as though she were sinking deeper into despair and a future she couldn't escape.
She had fought until she could not anymore. The weight of it all crushed her. Her life wasn't hers to control anymore. Everything she had known had slipped away, and no matter how tightly she tried to hold on, it was fading before her eyes.
Just as the depth of her thoughts began to overwhelm her, she closed her eyes and dozed off. Julia became aware of something, or someone else in the cabin. It was a subtle shift, something in the air. Her eyes flicked open suddenly to the seat across from hers, and there he was.
A man, sitting across the aisle. At first glance, he seemed like an ordinary passenger. But there was something about him, something that immediately felt wrong. Julia's eyes locked onto him, and her heart skipped a beat. He was different.
He was handcuffed.