Chapter 1 Sold to the storm

Heavy footsteps echoed off the concrete walls, sharp and deliberate, and each one tightened the knot in my stomach. I tried to keep my head down, blending into the shadows as I waited, shivering in the dimly lit room of the abandoned warehouse. I knew what was coming had known it for weeks: the whispers, the looks, the rumors. Being an orphan meant you had little say in what happened to you, and in the world I lived in, little say often turned into no say at all.

The door creaked open, and my heart leaped into my throat. Men in dark suits walked in, their eyes hard and cold. They barely acknowledged me as they scanned the room with practiced ease. And then, he entered.

Zane Stormborn.

I had heard his name spoken in hushed tones. People called him a king, a tyrant, a man with blood on his hands and ice in his veins. He was the man who ruled the underground, feared and revered by anyone with sense. I tried to keep my gaze low, but I couldn't resist a fleeting glance, curiosity winning out over caution.

Tall, powerful, and intimidating, he commanded the room without uttering a single word. His dark eyes flicked to me, assessing me as if weighing something. I felt exposed, vulnerable, under his scrutiny, as he could see through every facade I had carefully built to protect myself. My breath hitched.

"Her?" His voice was deep and smooth, but with an edge that made me tense up.

One of the men beside him nodded. "Yes, Mr. Stormborn. She's the one."

There it was. No chance to argue or plead my case. I wasn't Bella Stone here; I was simply "the one"a transaction, a possession to be bought and sold. The men murmured around him, discussing terms and details, and I felt my heart sink further with each passing second. I couldn't run. I knew they'd catch me before I even made it out of the warehouse.

Zane's gaze landed on me again, sharp and unyielding. "She'll work," he said simply, a statement that felt like a sentence.

With those words, my life changed. One moment, I was barely surviving in the foster system; the next, I was being led out of the warehouse, a new maid in the Stormborn mansion. I had no idea what awaited me there-whether it was hope or something darker-but I knew one thing for sure: I was about to enter a world I could never escape.