Chapter 6 Trapped
Elara's POV,
"No." His voice is cold. "You'll sign because you have no choice. You're going to die, Solis."
I laugh, and it's loud, cracked, and ugly. "How cute."
His voice drops. "You will die, once my enemies find out… and our son becomes a bargaining chip."
My blood turns cold.
"They won't..." I whisper because I know they won't. I've been hiding longer than he'd ever imagined.
"My mother will raise him. My enemies will want him. My world—" He stops short.
He doesn't want me to know, except I already do. His world will devour Asher alive.
"You're the only reason he's still just a child," he finishes quietly.
Silence crashes down as the truth hits me like a blade between the ribs.
I've been cornered again, just like in the Virelli mansion. I grit my teeth.
"Fuck you!" I say loudly. "Fuck your idea of protecting him! I've been doing it for five years, I'll continue doing it!"
"No, you won't. I'm taking my son, whether you like it or not."
"Our son!" I scream. "For some twisted reason that the gods find funny, he's our son!"
I twist and jerk my body upward with the last of my strength to grab his collar.
"If I'm doing this, we're doing my way. Add a clause," I snarl. "I'm his legal guardian. I continue school. And no bodyguard bullshit."
His hand closes around mine, and he smiles cruelly.
"A done deal, Solis."
And just like that, I sign my soul to the devil.
~ ~
The first person I meet in the Kòrvac household is Isolde, Lucien's younger sister.
When I stand at the foot of the stairs, she looks at me like I'm something she stepped on by accident. Her eyes rake over me, slow, dismissive, and cruel, and she doesn't even bother hiding it.
No greeting, no courtesy. Just open contempt.
But I don't even care. As long as she didn't do shit to Asher, she was safe.
For the past three long weeks since I signed that contract and agreed to co-parent with Lucien, I've stopped caring about a lot of things.
I waited a week before telling my friends. I told them my boss took an interest in me, and that it turned into an engagement. I even had to tell them "the bitter truth." Asher was Lucien's son. I had a one night stand with him after my husband died so it cleared any doubts of why Asher looked like Lucien.
God, I hated the way they were all happy for me. Carla even blessed us with tears in her eyes, and guilt pricked at me, but I buried it.
Lies are easier than the truth. Lies keep people alive.
I move with Asher into the Kòrvac mansion. It's massive and beautiful.
And I'm a ghost in it.
Asher, of course, is thrilled. He clings to Lucien like he's a god. He laughs more, smiles wider, and spends every waking moment with his father.
I tell myself I'm happy for him, but the bitterness still settles in my chest like rot.
I hate Lucien with a passion I don't bother hiding. And Lucien barely acknowledges my existence. We share a house, a child, a contract… and nothing else.
One afternoon, I sit alone in my room, staring at my open laptop.
I can't even remember the last time I did something reckless. Something me. I feel boxed in, watched, and trapped.
And it's not just a feeling. Even when I asked that I have no bodyguards, I was still watched closely. I don't blame him. Of course, he doesn't trust the woman that hid his son right under his nose.
I scoff and look to see my screen flicker.
Right, a breach attempt. I knew it'd only be a matter of time before he starts trying to get into my personal space.
I blink once, then scoff.
Amateur.
I shut the break through my firewall down in seconds, sealing every door. But when I scan deeper, my smile fades.
I was a second too late.
The virus already chewed off a sliver of information.
Annoyed now, I trace the signal. It doesn't lead outside the mansion but inside.
Perfect. Lucky for the person, it'd be a quick death. I grab a table knife from the bed side, follow the trail down the hall, and stop at an open door.
I pause when I see it's Isolde.
She's hunched over a computer, fingers flying, and jaw clenched. Then, she slams her palm against the desk in frustration.
"After hours," she mutters, "she still manages to block me out?"
I lean against the doorframe, arms crossed and knife rotating on my palm.
Ah, so it's you, you little bitch.
And just like that, something sharp and alive curls inside my chest.
Finally. I grin. A little fun.
I step into the room just as Isolde slams her hand on the desk again, frustration radiating off her in waves. The screen in front of her is frozen. How sweet, I know it's my work.
I smile.
"Careful," I say lightly. "If you hit it any harder, it might actually cooperate out of pity."
She whirls around, and our eyes lock.
Something shifts in her expression. It's not fear, but recognition. The kind people get when they realize they've underestimated the wrong person.
"How are you the viper?" she asks slowly and I raise a brow.
"I earned it."
I push myself off the doorframe and walk in like I own the room. Which, since I'm getting married to her brother, I do.
"So you tried to crawl into my system," I continue. "You're clever, but sloppy. You left fingerprints everywhere."
Her eyes flicker to the knife I held in my hand and her jaw tightens. "At least, I broke into your firewall."
So brave. I snarl softly and walk till I stood on front of her. If I killed Lucien's precious sister, what would he do? Will he spare me for the sake of Asher...or not?
"No," I correct. "I let you hit it."
Silence. She's still looking at the knife in my hand.
"You're staring at it like it's the threat here." Her eyes slowly meet mine and I smile. "It's not."
She stills in her chair and looks up at the web camera facing us. I laugh once, and place the knife beside her laptop. Then I slide it closer to her with one finger.
"Relax," I say, smiling as gently as I could. "If I wanted to hurt you, you wouldn't be sitting still."
Then I turn to leave.
"Elara."
I pause in my tracks.
"I know who you are," Isolde says. "You're a Virelli."