No Escape
Ivy’s POV
Damian’s voice cut through the silence like a blade. “Ivy. You think this is about you? It’s not.”
I froze. Every muscle in my body locked in place as my skin prickled under his sinister gaze. He moved slowly towards me, like a predator circling its prey. His tone was final. Unyielding.
“You will marry Cassian Wolfe. And if you don’t…” His eyes flickered to Adrain who was seated in the corner like a wounded animal after being tortured. “…he dies.”
The words hit me harder than any punch could. “No,” I
whispered. My voice barely whispers even as I force it out. Damian stepped closer in two strides as he closed the distance between us.
His presence towering over me, suffocating, oppressive, crushing. “And if Adrian dares step out of line again…” His voice dropped to something dark and dangerous. “…both of you will die. I mean it. No hesitation.”
The words echoed in my skull, sharp and final. Like a sentence carved in stone. “Dad you can’t….you can’t do this to me. I love Adrain not Cassian.” I said, the words leaving my mouth before I could stop them.
I could barely breathe. Not when my heart is pounding in my ears. Adrain sat tied to the chair, his emerald green eyes pierced into mine—a mixture of defiance and desperation.
God…. I wanted him to say something to stop this. I wanted to run to him and beg him to fight for our love. But Damian’s words had already wrapped us in chains neither of us could break.
Silence stretched over the room, except for my ragged breaths and the faint ticking of a clock somewhere in the mansion that felt like nothing but a countdown to my life.
Cassian appeared beside me before I even realized he was there. His gold hair shining under the lights with his grey eyes fixed on me like he was marking his territory.
“Ivy,” he said softly, but there was an edge to his voice that cut through me. “Tonight we are getting engaged again. And this time…” His smirk widened. “…it’s inevitable.”
He stepped closer and his hand reached for mine. My body jerked backward instinctively, my heart thundering so loud I could hear it.
“Don’t fight it,” he murmured. “It’s for your own good.” His words lingered in my head—it felt like a threat but more of a promise.
Damian turned away, his suit sweeping behind him like a dark omen leaving the room. “The engagement party is tonight. You will stand in front of the world and agree to your fate.”
“Da…”
He left before I could finish my words, leaving me staring at the air where he’d been while my mind raced through chaos tearing through me.
I was trapped. No matter what I did to escape this fucking engagement tonight. Adr would be the one to suffer for it.
The house buzzed with whispers and laughter as guests arrived dressed in gowns and suits that glimmered under crystal chandeliers. Photographers hovering like vultures with their cameras flashed everywhere.
Tonight would be my second engagement party— a permanent fate that I could never escape no matter how much I tried.
I couldn’t breathe. My chest felt like the air was being ripped out of my lungs. Every step toward the hall felt heavier than the last.
For a moment, Damian’s threat is still ringing in my mind. Adrian’s wounded expression while he sat there and couldn’t do anything.
“Ivy…”
A voice called out to me and I turned to see Adrain walking towards me, silent but with energy as his green eyes locked on mine.
I wanted to look at him, run to him, and kiss him so damn badly so that I could grab his hand and know that this was just all a nightmare that was going to end.
But Cassian’s eyes — dark, unrelenting. It held me in place. The hall fell silent immediately as guests had already filled the place, and everyone’s gaze turned towards me.
Cassian lips curled into a smirk, his hand now gripping mine with calculated intention. “Ivy Sinclair…” His voice echoed across the hall, smooth and sharp. “…bring me your hand.”
The words sliced through me. I looked down to see Adrain looking at me, his face an unreadable expression. But his eyes…his eyes burned with something I couldn’t name — part fear, part rage.
“Let me put the ring on you and let everyone here witness as you give yourself to me as your fiancée.”
A shiver crawled up my spine as he raised the ring, my fingers trembling so badly I could barely move them.
Cassian stepped closer, his smirk growing darker as he leaned into me. The cameras capture every moment as though this were a fairytale love story while it’s not.
I wanted to claw out his eyes and run away from here. But my legs wouldn’t move, and neither were my hands cooperating with me. They felt as though it was shackled by invisible chains.
For a moment I swore I could hear Adrian’s voice as a sharp whisper in my ear. “Ivy… don’t.”
But Cassian’s eyes flicked to him, dangerous and possessive as if he could hear Adrain’s voice telling me not to do this.
“I'm waiting for you, sweetheart.” His voice deepened.
I swallowed hard. The words caught somewhere in between my throat as I tried to say something. I couldn’t let Adrian die. I couldn’t.
The ring glimmered in Cassian’s hand as he still held it up, the crowd holding their breath as though this were a soap opera. But all I could see was Adrian’s eyes locked on mine.
Cassian’s voice softened, but there was venom beneath it. “Ivy Sinclair… bring me your hand.”
Everything inside me screamed no.
But my body betrayed me and then slowly, unwillingly I stretched my trembling hand toward him. Cassian’s lips curved in victory the moment he slid the ring onto my finger.
The cold weight of it crept into every part of my body as the crowd erupted in applause. I looked over my shoulder and Adrain was still watching me, pain and fury evident across his face.
This wasn’t over.
It could never be over.
Because tonight… I had lost more than my freedom. I had lost a choice.
