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<\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\nServants greeted her, dressed her, prepared her.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
As if she were an object.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
As if she had a role to play.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But no one asked if she was ready.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The ceremony passed in a blur of music, lights, and unfamiliar faces. Smiles that didn\u2019t reach the eyes. Voices she didn\u2019t recognize. Applause that felt distant and hollow.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And then\u2014silence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The kind of silence that comes just before everything changes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The room they led her into was enormous. Too large, too perfect. The bed stood at its center like a stage. Her dress\u2014light, delicate, almost transparent\u2014did nothing to hide the trembling of her hands.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Elina sat at the edge, her fingers tightly clasped together, as if holding on to the last fragment of herself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The door opened.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He entered slowly. Confidently. Like a man who owned everything within those walls.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Including her.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
His gaze was steady. Not overtly cruel\u2014but distant, unreadable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou\u2019re afraid,\u201d he said calmly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It wasn\u2019t a question.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Elina said nothing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He stepped closer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou\u2019re safe here,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But his voice didn\u2019t feel like reassurance. It sounded more like a rule she was expected to accept.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Her heart pounded so loudly she was certain he could hear it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cTake it off,\u201d he said quietly, gesturing toward her dress.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The air in the room seemed to freeze.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
She hesitated.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Time stretched into something unbearable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Slowly, almost mechanically, she obeyed\u2014not out of willingness, but because she felt she had no choice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He watched her.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Without emotion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Without urgency.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And somehow, that made it even more terrifying.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He sat beside her, close enough for her to feel the weight of his presence, like pressure before a storm.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cLook at me,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
She lifted her eyes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And in that moment, she saw not just a man\u2014but someone who was used to absolute control. Someone who never expected resistance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But then\u2014something changed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He paused.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
As if something in her expression unsettled him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
His gaze shifted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Less certain.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Less cold.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou\u2019re not what I expected,\u201d he said slowly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Elina didn\u2019t understand what that meant. But for the first time that day, there was something different in his voice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Doubt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He stood up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Took a step back.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cNothing will happen tonight,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Her breath caught.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
She couldn\u2019t believe it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWhy\u2026?\u201d she whispered.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He was silent for a long moment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Then he answered:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cBecause fear should not be the beginning.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The words felt strange. Almost unreal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But they gave her something she hadn\u2019t had all day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He left the room, closing the door behind him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Elina remained sitting there, motionless, trying to process what had just happened.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Was it mercy?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A delay?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Or the beginning of something she didn\u2019t yet understand?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
She didn\u2019t sleep that night.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But one thing became clear:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
her story was only just beginning.<\/p>\n\n\n\n