Under Contract with the Alpha

and power, his voice full of pride. This house, filled with soft light filtering through the thick curtains, was a sanctuary. A house where my mother's laughter still resonated, ev

ry. Every brushstroke, every hand-painted detail took me back to a time when everything seemed simple. It

ghts. I took a quick glance at the screen. A message from one o

We have more time.

as captured. By him. Dominic Valenti . This name, whispered in criminal circles like a curse, was now synonymous with death or s

my bag. My legs felt stiff, as if they refused to ca

f anxiety that was suffocating me. I felt like everything had become a dream, a bad dream, from which I couldn't wake up. My thoughts were lost, escaping in a whirl

emn silence, its lugubrious echo. I approached the counter, my hands trembling, and asked to see the manager. He

ed to whisper secrets. I couldn't get rid of the image of my father, sitting in his leather chair, surrounded by his henchmen

betrayed a concern I had never seen before. He didn't even dare

e necessary guarantees. We cannot mov

anging from invisible threads. "You're not ser

you," he said, shrugging his sh

ked up at him. "You're not telling me that everyth

The doors were closed. I couldn't do anything without the necessary money, without th

s if all the air around me had become thick, as if each step brought me a

p and saw a figure I knew well. Dominic Valenti . The icy gaz

voice was low, dangerous, and yet there was

y, my heels hitting the pav

ther away. "It seems you are in a difficult positi

, imprisoned, weak, assailed me. I didn't have the luxury of c

Not captured. Not yet. But I have what it takes to free him.

tand right away

rriage. A contract. You marry someone who can guarantee your father'

tensed, heart pounding in my che

ant. "Because you have no other option, Elena. And

, as if reality could dissolve into thin air. But nothing

up until then was in danger of d

o," I whispered, though t

ips, and this time, he didn't hi

as