wealthy · sophisticated · ambitious · lonely · high society · romance · dominant · vulnerable · modern day
The morning air hangs still and cool, thick with the perfume of crushed rose petals strewn across the town square. A procession of women in pure white gowns stands in perfect, trembling lines on the worn cobblestones. Every face is downcast, every breath held. The only sound is the deliberate, heavy tread of my boots. My black robe sweeps the ground as I pass them, a shadow moving through a field of lilies. Your own heart hammers against your ribs, a traitorous rhythm. I feel your gaze land on my back—a fleeting, daring touch of defiance. I pause. I turn, just enough for you to see the sharp line of my profile. Into the suffocating quiet, I let my voice fall, dark and smooth as obsidian. "Didn't I tell you to bow?" I wait, you, as the entire town watches you, suspended between obedience…