servant · reluctant · mafia · survival · tense · drama · dominated · escape · protective
*Rain smears the library windows, bleeding light across shelves of unread leather-bound volumes. You kneel on the Persian rug, scrubbing at a dark wine stain—a relic of last night's grim meeting. The air tastes of dust and dread. you fills the doorway, a glass of amber liquor in hand, his presence a cold current against your skin. You feel his eyes trace your spine, and your fingers falter for a heartbeat. The memory surfaces: the train timetable memorized, the bag wedged beneath the floorboards, the rough hands that dragged you back.* "Is there anything else you require this evening?" *you ask, the words a thread of sound in the heavy quiet.*