CHAPTER FOUR: RESTRICTED BY AN AGREEMENT

"Sign it."

Like a razor, the words sliced through the quiet. My fingers curled into my palms as I gazed at the huge pile of papers on Jeo's slick black desk.

"Have you read it at all?" My voice was quiet but tinged with defiance as I asked.

Jeo Like a predator assessing its prey, Donald sat back in his chair and watched me with his piercing, analytical eyes. "If I did, would anything change?"

The moment's weight settled on my chest as I gulped. The contract I was looking at was a bargain with the devil himself, not just some paper.

"Three years," I murmured, almost raising my voice.

"Third years," he said. "In every way that matters, you will be mine."

The words made my spine tingle. Mine. He gave it such a definitive tone.

I looked at him, looking for any hesitancy, for any breach in that unyielding, icy shell. Joe, however, wasn't the kind of guy to doubt himself. He had made up his mind beforehand. There was no bargaining involved. It was a directive.

And I was at a loss.

A Cage passed off as a Deal

I gazed at the dotted line as I took up the pen, my fingers shaking a little. My future, my freedom, and my decisions are all entangled in-laws and writing.

I said, holding the pen firmly, "I need to know something." "Why me?"

Jeo's face remained unchanged. If anything, the question seemed to delight him. "Is it important?"

"It affects me."

He walked around the desk carefully until he was standing uncomfortably close. Like a hurricane on the horizon, the air between us roared.

His voice was calm and silky as he replied, "You were drowning." I tossed a lifeline to you. Avoid asking why.

I gritted my teeth, not wanting his words to linger. I detested how quickly he was able to see right through me and remind me of my helplessness.

He led the pen to the page, his fingers grazing mine as he reached for the pen in my hand. "Telsa, sign."

As I dropped the pen, my pulse raced. Another stroke. Bound to his name, mine.

Joe grabbed the contract and slipped it into a folder, putting it in the desk drawer as soon as the ink was dry. His lips curled into a slow, triumphant sneer as he turned back to face me.

"You are now mine."

A Loyalty Test

Joe threw me into the deep end without any delay. He asked me to go with him to an investor meeting the very following day, which was a fierce, high-stakes discussion where failure would spell disaster.

I felt each pair of eyes pierce me as I sat next to him at the long, shiny table. The investors, guys in fitted suits who had too much money and not enough patience, assessed me with looks that ranged from interest to skepticism.

One of them whispered, just loud enough for me to hear, "She's new."

Joe didn't blink. "I own her."

The room reverberated with just one sentence. A few grinned. Others looked at each other knowingly. However, no one dared to directly challenge him.

The tension persisted even when the topic of discussion turned to business. There was a subtle challenge in the air, and I could sense it: prove yourself or be cast aside.

Richard Langley, one of the investors, leaned forward and gave me a perceptive look an hour into the discussion. Tell me, Ms. Reed, how you feel about the change in the market. Do we need to worry?

For half a second, I froze. Langley, Richard. The elder brother of Victor Langley.

An examination.

I sensed Jeo waiting and observing me. I wouldn't be ready for this world if I tripped or hesitated.

I raised my chin, trying to speak without fear. "Are you worried? No. Strategic? Of course.

Richard's eyebrow went up. "Oh?"

I went on, "The market is adjusting, not collapsing." Decisions made in a panic only help those who are waiting for others to fail. We don't have to lose if we go cautiously. Rather of responding to the transition, we may influence it.

There was silence in the room. Then Richard laughed gently. "Interesting viewpoint."

Joe remained silent, but I could see something menacing in his eyes when I dared to look at him. Acceptance.

A Threatening Intruder

I was exhausted when I arrived to my flat that evening. Although the day had been difficult, I had made it through.

I grabbed for the light switch, kicked off my heels, and then froze.

The bulb was on already.

This place had been visited.

My pulse thumping, I looked around the flat and felt a shiver go down my spine. Then I noticed it. On my coffee table, there is just one piece of paper.

I took a step forward and grabbed it up, my heart pounding in my ears. Only five words.

You have no idea who he is.

My blood froze.

I quickly turned and looked at the windows and door locks. Everything was safe. However, there had been a visitor. This was left for me by someone.

I read the lines again and swallowed hard.

I was aware of Jeo Donald's brutality. I was aware of his peril. However, one horrifying idea took over my mind as I clutched the message in my shaking hands.

What if I knew nothing about him?

I was jolted out of my reverie by a beep on my phone. With shaky hands, I grasped it. The screen showed a message.

Joe: Approach me. Right now.

My breath caught.

Was he aware? Did he send this? Or was I about to encounter something worse?

It was obvious that I wasn't safe. And I needed to understand precisely what I had just committed to if I wanted to live.

Because there was one thing that was for sure.

I had just entered a far darker realm than I had ever known existed.