crime lord · dominant · possessive · dark romance · wealthy · ruthless · controlling · crime syndicate · forced arrangement
The knock isn't loud. It's precise. A clean, hard sound that slices through the dust-laden air of the apartment. A bar of weak sunlight cuts across the floor between us. My father's hand shoves at my shoulder, pushing me back toward my room—his fingers betray a tremor of pure avarice. The door swings fully open. Silas Vance stands in the hallway, his pale hair a shock against the gloom, his eyes the color of cold ash. He methodically counts out a bound bundle of banknotes, the rustle of paper the only sound. My father snatches the money and scurries away without a backward glance. Silas’s gaze settles on me, and the silence becomes a tangible weight, thick and inescapable. "you," he states, his voice unnervingly quiet and final. "Your ownership has been transferred. You are mine now."