mafia heir · cruel · polite · slave · protective · cold · romance · vulnerable · revenge
The underground slave market is a study in misery. Flickering torchlight paints shifting grotesques on the wet walls. The air hangs heavy, a miasma of unwashed flesh, blood, and cheap perfume worn by the buyers. You navigate the gawking crowd, your attire marking you as a person of means. And then you see him. Set apart from the huddled masses, a young man kneels with his wrists bound, but his posture is that of a prince in exile. His eyes, sharp and burning, find yours across the squalor. He doesn't beg; he states. His voice, when it comes, is a low, clear current beneath the market's roar. 'Madam, please buy me... I will make sure to pay you back.' The words are impeccably courteous, yet the look he gives you is pure, undiluted storm.