The Marriage Deal

Isabella’s POV

My legs shook as I took one step after another towards him, the man my parents had pretty much sold me to. Today, I was marrying a man I had never met in my life. I only knew his name - Damian Whitmore, a forty-old billionaire who was famous for his ruthlessness and heartless dealings.

The fact that he was twice my age did not deter my parents. All they wanted was the money. They sold me for thirty million dollars to pay up the debt their company incurred when it went bankrupt. Of course, it was way more than they owed but they needed to make a lot of money if they were to continue living their lives lavishly.

My moist fingers clutched the flowers in my hands and from the corner of my eyes, I could see the guests standing up, smiles on their faces.

But I could not smile. I didn’t want this marriage. My parents were literally selling me off for money! How greedy could they be?

My mind flashed back to Eleanor, my best friend whose lifeless body laid on the floor just two nights ago, her eyes staring blankly into space even in her death.

She was shot and it was all my fault.

I caught my mothers gaze at the front pew and she shot me a warning glare, no doubt reminding me that my fate was already sealed so I had to wear a pretty smile and pretend everything was fine.

I swallowed hard and continued on, my heart pounding loudly in my chest.

I grasped my bouquet so hard, my knuckles went white.

Each step felt heavier.

Then I reached the altar.

And my world crumbled

It was him.

The masked man from the alley.

Damian Whitmore.

My groom.

The man who had murdered an entire family two nights ago. The man who had murdered my best friend.

He smirked, tilting his head. Dark eyes burned into mine, like that of a predator watching its prey.

"Hello, sweetheart," he whispered, so low only I would hear.

My stomach plummeted.

He knew me. He recognized me from that night.

His fingers skimmed mine as he reached for my hand. A shiver ran down my spine.

Then he leant in.

"If you run," he whispered, a thread of humour in his voice, "I'll find you."

I couldn't breathe.

I couldn't move.

I was marrying a monster.

A monster who had **already ordered my death once.**

My mind screamed at me to do something. Anything.

Then the priest spoke.

"Do you, Isabella Harrington, take Damian Whitmore to be your lawfully wedded husband?"

Time stopped.

I had two choices.

Say "I do" and seal my fate

Or run.

My breath hitched.

Then I ran.

I tore my veil off and sprinted.

Gasps filled the cathedral.

Someone yelled out my name.

I didn't look back.

I fought my way through the crowd, pushing aside shell-shocked guests, my gown wrapping around my legs.

Then I heard it.

Damian's voice, black with anger.

"Bring her back. Dead or alive."

My blood ran cold

I wasn't running from a wedding anymore.

I was running for my life.

TWO NIGHTS AGO

My eyes burned from all the tears I’d shed, but nothing seemed to move my parents. They had vowed not to listen to any word I said, so I called the only person who would listen.

"Meet me at The Blue Orchid," I said the moment Eleanor picked up.

"Bella—" she started.

"Please." My voice broke. "I just need to forget. For one night."

An hour later, I sat across from Eleanor in a darkly lit bar, clutching my glass like it was the only thing holding me together.

She leaned across the table, clasping my hand. "You could still run, you know."

I let out a bitter laugh. "And go where?”

She hesitated. "I have some money saved. We could leave the city."

Hope fluttered in my chest-only to be squashed by reality. "They'd find me," I whispered. "My parents wouldn't let their thirty-million-dollar deal slip away."

Eleanor's eyes clouded over. "I hate them."

I swallowed hard. "Me too.

We didn't say another word after that, only drank in silence as the music and laughter went on around us, like it belonged to another world. A world I'd never be part of.

By the time we left, the inky night air was cool against my flushed skin. Eleanor looped her arm through mine. "Let's walk. One last night of freedom, yeah?"

I nodded, forcing a smile. I didn't know it would be our last night together.

---

We took a wrong turn.

The alley was darker than I remembered, the streetlights flickering above us. A thick, uneasy silence hung in the air.

Then we heard it.

Screaming.

Eleanor's grip on my arm tightened. "Bella—"

I shushed her, heart pounding as I peered around the corner.

And I saw them.

A man knelt on the ground, his wife and two children beside him. Their faces were frozen in terror as **four masked men** surrounded them.

One of them, the tallest, stepped forward.

A gun gleamed in his hand.

"Please," the father begged, voice trembling. "I'll do anything."

The masked man tilted his head. Then he pulled the trigger.

A shot rang out into the night.

The man's body collapsed to the concrete.

His wife emitted a choked scream. The gunman didn't falter—**he shot her next.**

I clamped a hand over my mouth, my body frozen in terror.

Eleanor gasped.

It was barely a sound.

But it was enough.

One of the masked men turned sharply. His gaze locked onto ours.

"There!" he barked.

Panic rushed over me like a tidal wave.

"RUN!" Eleanor screamed.

We sprinted down the alley, feet pounding against the pavement.

Gunshots echoed behind us.

"Faster!" I wept.

Eleanor stumbled, breathing heavily. "I can't-"

A shot fired.

Eleanor screamed.

I was in time to see Eleanor's body fall.

Her eyes were wide, her mouth open as if in an effort to speak. **But no sound came out.** ʙ "No," I whimpered. A masked man loomed over her, gun still raised. Then he **pointed it at me.** I didn't think. I ran. Terror shot me forward. My legs on fire, I sprinted in a mindless dash through a maze of alleys. Footsteps thundered behind me.

They were still after me.

I veered sharply into another alley, darting behind a stack of garbage bins. My chest heaved, my heartbeat a frantic drum against my ribs.

Footsteps slowed.

"Where is she?" a voice demanded.

A second voice growled, "She couldn't have gotten far."

I squeezed my eyes shut, pressing myself deeper into the shadows.

Then I heard the words that would haunt me forever.

"Find the other girl. No witnesses."

I bit down on my lip, hard enough to taste blood.

If they found me, I was dead.

I stayed perfectly still, listening to the sound of their boots crunching against the pavement. One minute, two minutes. I don't know for how long I hid there but I stay till I was certain they would have been gone.

Then there was silence.

They were gone.

But I knew the truth.

They were not done chasing me.