Chapter 1


    Angel


    Looking over my shoulder for the hundredth time in thest half an hour, ensuring no one is following me,


    I walk fast on the crowded street. Attempting not to make eye contact with anyone, not wanting to be


    noticed. Being the daughter of one of the most powerful Dukes in Veross City makes me easily


    recognizable. It is not like I want to run away from home, but what else am I supposed to do when my


    father wants me to marry Carlos de Torre?


    Carlos, who is another Duke, is not only twenty-five years older than me—making him around the same


    age as my father—but he has known me since I was a child. Each time he came to visit my parents, he


    would usually bring me toys and sweets until I turned sixteen, and he started bringing flowers. Soon


    after, gifts were sent to the mansion weekly. While I thought it was creepy and inappropriate, my father


    started thinking that me marrying Carlos would not be such a bad idea.


    I stop at an intersection, and before crossing the street, I look behind me, hoping Carlos’ men didn’t find


    me. If they find me… I don’t even want to think what Carlos would do to me. I not only need to find a


    ce to hide, but I need to get away from Veross City. Away from Carlos. Today.


    Even now, six years after my father’s first talk about me getting married to Carlos, I still can’t believe he


    would do something like this to me. While the Dukes have tried to keep it a secret, everyone knows that


    Carlos is a sadist who loves to torture the women he sleeps with. His torture methods are so severe that


    he has killed over a hundred women in thest fifteen years. Or so the rumors say. Three of them were


    married to him at the time of their deaths. He is still free to do what he pleases because more than half


    the city’s police force and judges are controlled by the Dukes. The Lords control the other half.


    About three months ago, my father invited Carlos over to dinner. Little did I know that night I would


    be his fiancée. When a ring was forced on my finger, I was too stunned to say anything. And then


    he tried to k*ss me, and it took every ounce of my control not to p him. After Carlos left, I asked my


    father, even begged him not to force me to marry a man I did not love, but my words were meaningless.


    I don’t need anyone to tell me how my life would be if I were to be Carlos’ wife. It would be a


    miracle if I made it past our first wedding anniversary. And the idea of having to sleep with him makes me


    sick.


    “It’s the way of the Dukes, Angel. Any daughter born to a Duke has to marry someone within our Order.


    Someone who was chosen by the future bride’s family. I have chosen Carlos to be your husband. You


    will marry him, give him children, and in return, you will have a life full of luxuries,” my father told me


    when I kept insisting on breaking the engagement.


    Not that I didn’t protest. “I don’t love him!” I said, but it fell on deaf ears. “And you know what he did to all


    those poor women! How can you force me to marry him?”


    My fatherughed. “You think I loved your mother when I married her? My father told me who my wife


    would be, and I obeyed. And with time, I learned to love her very much. It will be the same for Carlos and


    you. And there is no proof that it was Carlos who killed them!”


    Of course, there was no proof. The Dukes got rid of them because Carlos is not only very powerful but


    also a future Patriarch.


    My father loved my mother very much, and even now, ten years after the tragic ident that took her


    life, he still mourns her. But Carlos is not like my father. Not only that he would never love me, but I have


    no doubt he would hurt me badly.


    Ever since my engagement, Carlos has restricted my movements. I can go outside only if he allows it. If I


    want to take a stroll through the garden, I have to call him first. He even hired two b*dyguards to watch


    every movement I make. Shopping used to be fun; now it is a nightmare.


    “For your safety, Mu?eca. You know that I am an important man. Many people would want to hurt you


    because you are my fiancée,” Carlos told me the day he hired the b*dyguards.


    Carlos might be powerful and have many connections, but I refuse to marry him. I have been nning


    my escape for many days now, and finally, today, I could put it into action.


    With the reason that I have to buy things for the wedding, I could finally go to the mall. Once there, it


    hadn’t been very hard to trick Carlos’ men. I only had to fake that I was getting my period and that I had


    bad cramps. The b*dyguards acted just like I knew they would—like the end of the world has arrived. So,


    I did as any woman on her period would do—go to the pharmacy to buy hygiene products before going


    to the bathroom. A smallmotion in a nearby store was enough to distract the b*dyguards for a


    moment and for me to disappear into the crowd. Finding an exit was not that hard, and before leaving the


    mall, I threw my phone and the ring in a trash bin. After taking some money out at an ATM, I chucked my


    credit card as well, scared that I can be located by having it in my possession.


    That happened around an hour ago, and since then, I have been walking around town, thinking of a way


    to get out of the city. The money I have is not enough to get anywhere, not when Carlos is no doubt


    looking for me.


    As I cross the street, I see something that piques my interest—nes Tech Company—the biggest tech


    I think I may have just found a solution to my problems.


    After taking a deep breath and running my hands over my clothes to eliminate any creases they might


    have, I enter the firm’s lobby along with a group of employees.


    A big fish tank was in the middle of it, and rare exotic species could be seen swimming inside. The


    reception is at the far end of the lobby. The two security officers spot me, and before they can ask me


    who I am and what I want, I make my way to reception. A woman with blond hair and long pink nails is


    behind the counter, her eyes glued to the screen of aputer.


    “Hi.” The woman looks at me. Putting on my best smile, I say, “I would like to see Mr. Alekos Raptou.”


    She narrows her eyes, looking at me from beneath long, fake eyshes like she is trying to figure out


    who I am. “Do you have an appointment with Mr. Raptou?”


    N?vel(D)ra/ma.Org exclusive ? material.


    I should have known I needed an appointment. If I weren’t so desperate, I would not have entered the


    firm in the first ce. But I have to see Alekos no matter what. “I don’t. But this is important.” I can’t


    believe how desperate I sound.


    The woman gives me an apologetic look. “I am sorry. Without an appointment, you can’t see Mr. Alekos.”


    How can I convince….ummm….


    Her name tag lets me know her name is Cherry.


    “Mr. Alekos and I went to the same high school. Tell him that Angelica Hernandez is looking for him.”


    Cherry doesn’t look convinced. Not that I me her. “You are not the first to say that. If I had a penny for


    every woman who imed they know Mr. Raptou, I would be rich by now.”


    That many, huh? Alekos is one of the richest men in the city. Not to mention he is single, powerful, and


    handsome. Women flock around him like bees to flowers.


    When I say, “I don’t have anything to gain by lying to you,” Cherry snorts.