“She's already mine.”

Those words kept replaying over and over again in my head. I turned to look at Kai who had a sinister smile on his face. I could tell that there was something much more going on.

Derek snatched the contract from me, his jaw clenched as he read through it. “T—This is bullshit. This wasn't supposed to happen,” he argued, his voice edged with sharpness.

Kai just smirked, taking his position back on his chair. The way he looked like he towered over us and could destroy us in seconds. I knew he could. But he just looked more intimidating.

“You can't do this,” Derek yelled. “She doesn't in any way belong to you and you know that. This contract is a sham and I won't let you take her away from me.”

He grabbed my hand harshly. “She's coming with me, and there's nothing you can do to take her away from me.”

He sounded so determined that I almost fell for his words all over again. Kai shot me a look, snapping me back to reality.

I tried wriggling from my grip. “You can't tell me what to do,” I struggled, trying to free myself from his grasps. “Those days are over, Derek. And I'm going to be making my own decisions.”

He was surprised by my newfound boldness. I had never argued like this with him before. Throughout our three years together, he's been the one making all the decisions, and even though I didn't agree with most of them, I never argued with him.

But that was over.

“This isn't your decision. I am your husband and whatever I decide is what is going to happen,” he said through gritted teeth.

He was about to tear up the contract, but the securities barged in at that moment and restrained him from doing so. And judging by the look on Kai’s face—This was perfectly structured.

That's when it hit me. I've signed my destiny to him. I couldn't go back because I've made a grave mistake and I have to bear with the consequences.

I stood frozen, my legs glued to the ground. I realized the ink was still drying on my name—My freedom—Gone. With one signature.

How could I have been so stupid?

Kai stretched his hands on the table. “The deal is binded, Derek, and your debts are cleared already,” he said, his voice low but steady. “You sold her, Martinez. Don't act like the victim.”

Derek screamed, his voice echoing around the room. “You tricked us! You planned this from the start, didn’t you?”

Kai leaned back in his chair, calm like he had all the time in the world. His gray eyes stayed fixed on Derek, not even blinking. “Tricked you?” he asked slowly, almost like the word bored him. “No, Martinez. You knew exactly what you signed.”

Derek shook his head hard. “No! You changed the papers. You did something to them. This isn’t what I agreed to!”

Kai gave a small, cold laugh. “You agreed to anything that would save your own skin. You were too desperate to even read. That’s not my fault.”

I felt my heart sink as those words sank in. I looked at Derek, hoping to see some kind of denial, something to make this feel less real. But he didn’t say anything. His eyes darted around like he was searching for a lie to cover up the truth.

“Derek?” My voice trembled. “Tell me he’s lying. Please.”

He opened his mouth, but no words came out. That silence was louder than any confession. My stomach twisted painfully as tears filled my eyes.

“You knew…” My voice broke. “You knew what you were signing.”

“Chloe, it’s not like that,” he said quickly, stepping closer. “I thought—I thought I could fix this. I thought I could win. I swear I didn’t mean for—”

“Stop lying!” I snapped, the sound surprising even me. My whole body shook. “You gambled me like I was nothing. You didn’t even ask me. You just—” I took a shaky breath. “You ruined me.”

Derek reached out for me, but I stepped back. The touch that once felt familiar now made my skin crawl.

Kai’s men stepped forward, their presence filling the room. The tension was thick. Kai stood up slowly, fixing his cuffs as if this was just another meeting for him. “Enough,” he said simply. “You made your deal, Martinez. And now it’s done.”

Derek’s face turned red with anger. “You can’t take her!” he shouted. “She’s my wife!”

Kai didn’t even flinch. “Was,” he said quietly. “You sold her the moment you put your signature on that paper.”

Everything around me blurred for a moment. My ears rang. I could barely breathe. I couldn’t tell if I wanted to scream or collapse.

Two men in black suits moved closer to Derek. One grabbed him by the arms, the other reached for his shoulder to hold him still. Derek tried to fight them off, but they were too strong.

“Let me go!” he yelled, struggling. “Chloe, don’t let them do this to us! Tell him no! Tell him I didn’t mean it!”

I stood there frozen. My mouth opened, but nothing came out. All I could do was stare.

He called my name again, his voice cracking. “Chloe, please! Don’t let him take you. You’re my wife!”

But the word wife suddenly meant nothing to me. I looked at him—at the man I’d spent years defending, sacrificing for, waiting for—and all I saw was betrayal.

Kai gave a small nod, and the guards started dragging Derek toward the door. His voice echoed behind me, begging, cursing, promising to make it right.

I didn’t move. I didn’t even blink until the door finally slammed shut, cutting off his voice completely.

The silence that followed was suffocating. My chest felt tight, like someone was pressing down on it.

I turned slowly to face Kai. He was watching me quietly now, his expression unreadable. For the first time, he didn’t look like the monster in the room. He looked… human. But that didn’t make him any less terrifying.

“What happens to me now?” I asked, my voice barely a whisper.

He walked around the table, every step slow and deliberate until he was standing right in front of me. Kai looked down at me with calm eyes, the kind of calm that made your heart race. “Now, Mrs. Martinez,” he said softly, “you live by my rules.”

The words sent chills down my spine.

I swallowed hard, trying to steady my breathing. “And if I don’t?”

His gaze lingered on my face for a second, then he leaned in close enough that I could feel his breath near my ear. “You will,” he murmured. “Because you’re smarter than your husband.”

I wanted to say something, to fight back, to tell him I wasn’t scared. But I was. Terrified, actually.

Kai straightened his suit jacket and motioned to one of the men by the door. “Take her to the car,” he ordered. “She’s coming with us.”

The guard nodded and gestured for me to follow. I didn’t move at first. My legs felt like they didn’t belong to me anymore.

Kai’s voice came again, calm but final. “Don’t make me repeat myself.”

And just like that, I took my first step into whatever life I had just signed away.