Chapter 4 Testing the Chains

Sophia woke to the sound of soft classical music drifting through the air, mingling with the faint aroma of roasted coffee beans and freshly baked bread. For a fleeting moment, she could almost pretend this was some luxury vacation.

Almost.

But the cold weight of the silver tracker around her wrist dragged her right back to reality. She traced her finger over it, the embedded tech glinting in the morning light pouring through the balcony windows.

You will not leave this estate.

Ethan's words replayed in her mind like a cracked record. She hated that his voice was the first thing she heard each morning the way it threaded through her dreams, a tether she couldn't cut.

She forced herself out of bed, wrapping a light robe around her body before padding to the window. The estate grounds stretched out below: manicured rose gardens, tall iron fences hidden behind hedges, the distant glint of security cameras that followed every move.

She hated every inch of it. And yet it was the first time in years she didn't wake up to Ava's fake sweet voice or her stepfather's demands for more paintings.

Sophia's fingers itched to draw. She pressed her palm to the cold glass, imagining the gardens in ink and watercolor roses that dripped scarlet onto paper, cages that melted into butterflies.

A knock startled her. She turned as Lucas cracked the door open, balancing two cups of coffee in one hand and a box of pastries in the other.

"Room service!" he announced in a sing-song voice, grinning like a boy who'd just stolen from a candy shop. "One hostage breakfast, extra sweetness on the side."

She fought the smile threatening her lips. "Shouldn't you be at some movie set being famous?"

Lucas pouted dramatically, setting the pastries on her small desk. "I'm a busy man, Red. But Ethan's been breathing down my neck lately, so I thought I'd hide out with my favorite criminal."

She snorted. "I'm not a criminal."

Lucas tapped the tracker on her wrist lightly, his touch feather gentle. "Could have fooled me."

Sophia flinched and pulled her arm away. Lucas sighed, plopping into her armchair and handing her the coffee.

"Sorry. I shouldn't joke about it."

She took a sip, letting the warmth spread through her chest like armor. For a second, the silence was comforting just the two of them, hidden away in this golden cage.

Lucas tilted his head, watching her with that mischievous glint she'd come to expect. "So. What's the plan today? You gonna rebel yet?"

Sophia arched a brow. "And get you killed? No thanks."

"Hey, I'm tougher than I look!" He puffed out his chest, making her giggle despite herself. "Come on, you can't just sit in here forever."

"I can't go anywhere," she reminded him, waving her tracker like a curse.

Lucas leaned forward, lowering his voice. "What if I told you I could get you out of the house for an hour?"

Her heart stuttered. "What?"

"Ethan's out handling some business. The guards listen to me more than him. We can sneak down to the south gardens no cameras there. Just you, me, and freedom for a bit. You need it."

Sophia bit her lip, eyes darting to the door. "If Ethan finds out"

"He won't. Besides..." Lucas's grin softened. "You deserve a taste of air that doesn't smell like him."

She laughed a rusty, choked sound and for the first time since she woke up here, she felt something warm spread through her ribs. Hope. The stupid, dangerous kind.

Fifteen minutes later, Sophia stood by the side door that led out to the south gardens. Lucas tugged her hood up over her red hair, checking the path for cameras.

The sunlight felt foreign on her skin like a lover she hadn't touched in years. The wind caught the loose strands of her hair as they stepped onto the stone path winding through rows of overgrown rose bushes.

"See?" Lucas said, spinning around dramatically with arms outstretched. "No bars. No chains. Just you and me and the overpriced flower collection Ethan inherited from our mother."

Sophia touched a rose petal, velvety and warm. "It's beautiful."

Lucas watched her, hands in his pockets. "So are you, you know."

She shot him a look, but he just grinned no sleaze, just sincerity that made her throat tighten.

"You're not going to try and keep me, too?" she asked, half joking, half serious.

Lucas stepped closer, brushing a fallen petal from her shoulder. "I'd keep you if you wanted me to. But I'd never chain you up."

Sophia's breath caught. "Lucas"

He shrugged, looking sheepish for the first time since she'd met him. "I know I'm not the scary mafia boss type. But I'd still burn the world for you, Red."

She didn't know what to say to that. Instead, she turned to the roses again, letting the silence bloom between them.

For a moment, she could almost pretend this was normal. That Lucas was just her boyfriend, sneaking her out of her parents' house to kiss her under the sun.

They didn't notice the footsteps at first not until the crunch of gravel made Sophia stiffen, her heart plummeting into her stomach.

Lucas cursed under his breath, grabbing her hand. "Stay behind me."

Ethan emerged from the shadows near the trellis, his black coat swirling around his legs like smoke. He looked even more lethal in daylight eyes glacial, jaw clenched tight enough to crack stone.

"Lucas," he said, voice soft but deadly. "What. The. Fuck."

Lucas cleared his throat, stepping protectively in front of Sophia. "Big bro. Look at this sunshine. Look at these flowers. Isn't this better than locking her in a room?"

Sophia peeked around Lucas's shoulder. Ethan's eyes were on her and they burned. Not with anger alone, but something darker. A promise. A threat.

"Go inside," Ethan told Lucas, his voice like a gun cocking.

Lucas didn't move. "E, come on"

"Now."

Lucas hesitated, then squeezed Sophia's hand once before backing away, muttering, "Sorry, Red. Try not to kill him, okay?"

And then it was just her and Ethan the roses, the summer air, and the chains she thought she'd slipped for just a heartbeat.

Ethan stalked closer, his boots crushing fallen petals underfoot. He stopped a breath away, so close she could smell the faint scent of gunpowder and soap clinging to his skin.

"Do you enjoy testing me?" he asked, voice low.

Sophia lifted her chin, refusing to back down. "I needed air."

His eyes narrowed. "You needed permission."

She scoffed. "I'm not your prisoner"

His hand shot out, curling around the back of her neck. The sudden heat of his palm made her gasp. He forced her to look at him, his grip firm but not painful.

"You think you're free?" he murmured. "You're more bound now than you ever were."

Sophia's pulse skittered in her throat. "Why? Why me?"

Something flickered in his eyes raw, unguarded, gone in a heartbeat.

"Because you're mine to protect," he said. "Mine to keep."

Sophia's breath hitched. She hated how close they were, hated the shiver that ran down her spine when his thumb brushed the delicate skin behind her ear.

"You can't keep me forever," she whispered.

His lips curved into a cold smile. "Wanna bet?"

And then he kissed her.

It wasn't gentle. It wasn't sweet. It was punishment and possession, fire and chains wrapped around her lungs. Sophia gasped against his mouth, her hands pressing weakly against his chest but he didn't pull away.

He kissed her like she was an oath he'd carved into his bones like every breath she stole from him was another promise he'd never let her break.

When he finally pulled back, his forehead rested against hers, breath hot and uneven.

"You'll never run far enough to escape me," he murmured, his lips brushing her skin. "So stop trying."

Sophia stared at him, her heart a riot of anger and something worse something that felt too much like surrender.

"Then you better hold on tight," she whispered back, her voice shaking, "because I'm going to make you bleed for every chain you put on me."

Ethan's smile was wicked dangerous as he tucked a stray strand of red hair behind her ear.

"I look forward to it, butterfly."