Caged in gold

The last thing Alina remembered was the sound of her own heartbeat-wild and panicked-as she darted through the marble corridors of the hotel. Her heels clicked too loudly. Her breath came too fast. And her camera bag bounced against her hip, holding the one thing she shouldn't have seen.

Dubai was supposed to be her escape. A clean break from a past buried in secrets and fear. She didn't plan to walk into a private, mafia meeting behind the golden doors of the Al Noor hotel. She didn't mean to record the gun being handed off or the name that should never be spoken.

Zayd Al Rahman.

And now, she was running from men dressed in tailored black, eyes like steel, voices like knives.

She turned a corner and slammed into a wall of muscle.

No. Not a wall.

A man.

Her breath left her chest. Time snapped still.

The man in front of her wasn't like the others. He didn't speak. He didn't shout. He just looked down at her-those obsidian eyes cool and silent like midnight oil.

He had the kind of power you felt in your bones. Stillness that made the world tilt. A black suit stretched across broad shoulders. A ring on his right hand. And a face carved out of cruel poetry-sharp jaw, full mouth, hair swept back in perfect control.

She knew who he was before he said a word.

"Zayd," she whispered.

He didn't flinch. "You made a mistake, little girl."

Her legs trembled.

"I-I didn't mean to," she stammered. "I didn't know-"

He raised a hand, silencing her. "Intentions don't matter. Survival does."

Then darkness. A needle. A blur.

And silence.

---

When Alina woke up, she wasn't in the hotel anymore.

She was lying on silk sheets in a room soaked in gold and shadow. Gilded walls. Black velvet curtains. The scent of oud and danger in the air.

And a single camera pointed at her bed.

She bolted upright.

"What is this?" she gasped.

The door opened.

Zayd walked in like a storm, dressed in silk. A man who didn't need to raise his voice to control a room. His eyes trailed over her slowly, deliberately, like he was memorising every line of her fear.

"You're in my house now," he said calmly. "And you're not leaving until I decide what you are."

Alina swallowed. "I'm not anyone. I didn't mean to see anything-"

He cut her off. "That's what they all say."

He walked closer. Slowly. Like a lion circling a doe.

"You recorded something you shouldn't have. You ran. And now you're here." His voice was low. Dangerous. "There are only three reasons a woman runs from a Don like me. She's a spy. She's a traitor. Or she's stupid."

"I'm none of those!" she snapped, then bit her lip too late.

Something flickered in his eyes-amusement? Interest?

Boldness, it seemed, intrigued him.

"I'm just a photography student!" she added. "I came to Dubai to start over. That hotel job was part-time. I didn't even know who you were-until now."

He tilted his head, studying her. "And yet here you are. Sleeping in my bed."

Alina's cheeks flushed. "You drugged me!"

"You screamed. I made a choice."

"You kidnapped me."

He stepped closer, his voice low and unbothered. "I caged you in gold. Don't make it sound so tragic."

Her mouth parted, but no words came out.

He reached into his pocket and pulled out her camera.

"Deleted. But not forgotten," he said. "You can thank me for that later."

Alina stared at him. "What do you want from me?"

His lips curved-not a smile. Something colder.

"Truth."

---

Two Days Later

Alina wasn't allowed to leave the suite.

But she wasn't treated cruelly, either.

Fresh clothes arrived every morning. Dresses are too expensive for her past life. Food that tasted like it was made for the gods. A bathtub big enough to swim in.

But none of it changed the fact that she was a prisoner.

The guards outside the door wore suits. They never spoke. But their guns weren't for decoration.

And Zayd-he only came when he wanted.

Every visit made her heart stutter. Every glance felt like fire pressed to skin.

He never touched her. But his presence touched everything.

"You don't belong in this world," he said once, sitting in the velvet chair across from her.

"Then let me go."

"No," he said simply. "You saw too much."

"I deleted it-"

"It doesn't matter. The fact that you saw it at all means your blood is now tied to mine."

She stared. "What does that mean?"

Zayd stood, walked toward her, and knelt beside the couch where she curled up.

"It means I'll decide what happens to you," he said, voice dark and silk. "And until then, you'll stay here. You'll obey. And you won't lie to me again."

"I never lied-"

"You lied when you said you were nothing," he said, brushing a loose curl from her face.

Her breath caught.

He leaned closer.

"You've got something in your eyes, little dove. Something that doesn't match your story."

She trembled.

He didn't kiss her. He didn't even touch her skin.

But the heat between them could've burned the whole mansion down.

---

That Night

Alina snuck into the hallway when the guards changed shift.

She didn't know where she was going-only that she had to run. Again.

She made it past two corridors.

Then a voice behind her froze her soul.

"You disobeyed me."

She turned.

Zayd stood at the end of the hall. No shirt. Just black silk pants. And eyes that burned like coal.

"Come back," he said quietly.

"No."

He took one step forward. "I don't like chasing things I own."

"I'm not yours."

"You are now."

Alina bolted.

She made it three steps.

Then arms like steel wrapped around her, spun her, caged her against the wall.

Zayd's breath brushed her ear. "You don't get to run from me, dove."

Her heart pounded like war drums.

"I'm not afraid of you," she whispered.

He smiled against her cheek.

"You should be."