Chapter 4 The Devil's Bargain

The wind was soft that morning,too soft for a day like this. It was almost mocking. The sky was clear, as if the world refused to mourn with her. Lucy stood still, her black dress clinging to her skin, her eyes fixed on the wooden coffin.

Her mother was in there.

People moved around her, murmuring, whispering, offering tissue and half-hearted hugs, but it all felt like a blur. Distant. Like she was underwater.

She didn't cry at first. She just stared.

"I used to think grief would feel like thunder," she whispered, almost to herself. "But it's quiet. It just... sits."

June stood beside her, eyes glassy, her hand gently pressed against Lucy's back. She didn't speak. She didn't have to. She just stayed.

Lucy's mind drifted back

To when her mother's cough started. At first, it was nothing. Just a sore throat. Maybe stress. But then the hospital visits started. The weight loss. The quiet fear in her mother's eyes.

"I'm fine, baby," her mother had said, one night when Lucy found her crying in the bathroom. "Just tired."

But Lucy knew. And even if she hadn't, the way her father broke down on the phone from jail told her everything. He wasn't there. He couldn't be. And her mother didn't make it to see him come home.

She remembered those nights sitting by the hospital bed, holding her mother's cold hands, pretending everything was okay. "We'll go to the beach when you're out," she had said once, forcing a smile. "Just you and me, okay?"

Her mother smiled weakly. "I'd like that."

They never went.

The final days were the worst. Her mother barely conscious.

And Lucy had been alone.

Back at the funeral, she bit her lip hard. The pain was grounding. Real. She looked at the casket and whispered, "I'm sorry, Mom. I should've done more. I should've gotten him out faster."

Her voice cracked.

"I promise I'll get Dad out. I swear it. I'll fix everything. Somehow."

June finally spoke, her voice soft. "You don't have to carry it all alone, Lucy."

Lucy turned to her, tears finally streaming down her face. She let June hug her just held on tightly, like if she let go, she might disappear too.

''babe,''.

A deep voice called her,it was her boyfriend.

She rushed and hugged him.

''it's okay my love,I'm here,''

He patted her at the back,

She cried out,

''Josh,Josh,Josh,''

She didn't care about being strong anymore. She just wanted her mom back. Just for a moment.

But all she had left now... was a promise.

####

"Please," Lucy begged the security guards again, pressing her palms against the front desk. "Just let me talk to him. Please."

One of the guards crossed his arms. "Miss, he doesn't take unscheduled visitors."

"I'll wait all day if I have to. Just tell him.."

The elevator dinged, and every head turned.

Marcel.

Tall, powerful, and intimidating in his dark suit, Marcel stepped into the lobby with his usual aura of calculated cold. He was barely two steps in when he noticed the girl causing the commotion.

Lucy.

Her name had been passed around before, but this was the first time he saw her up close. She was... captivating. Her features soft but expressive, her voice desperate, her presence fierce. Something flickered in him, but he buried it.

The entire office had gone quiet.

"Let her in," he said curtly.

The silence broke into gasps and whispers.

"No way..."

"Isn't that the daughter of the guy who embezzled from Johnson?"

"What's she doing here?"

"Is she here to beg?"

"Marcel never lets anyone in especially not her."

Lucy's heart thundered as the guards stepped aside.

Jeremy, standing behind Marcel with a tablet and a half-eaten granola bar, raised a brow. "You do realise we're now officially in a soap-opera?"

"Shut up, Jeremy," Marcel muttered as he opened the office door.

Inside the grand office, Lucy stood nervously, eyes flicking between the intimidating furniture and the even more intimidating man behind the desk.

"I didn't come to make excuses," she said. "I know what my father did was wrong but please, don't make him suffer forever. I'm begging you. Let him go. I'll work off the debt. I'll do anything."

Jeremy, still standing in the corner with his usual awkward presence, snorted under his breath. "Anything? Are we talking, like, cleaning the CEO's shoes or dramatic soap-opera anything?"

Marcel shot him a look. "Jeremy."

"Right, shutting up," Jeremy said, raising both hands in surrender.

Marcel folded his arms, considering Lucy. "Anything, you said."

She nodded, eyes brimming with desperation. "Yes."

"Then be my wife."

The room went silent.

Lucy blinked. "W-what?"

Jeremy dropped his tablet. "Oh come on,what now?"

"I'm not joking," Marcel said, completely serious. "Two years. You marry me. Your father is released. Debt erased."

Lucy took a step back. "You're asking me to marry you out of nowhere?"

Jeremy cleared his throat loudly. "Uhh, boss? You might want to explain the um, supernatural elephant in the room?"

Marcel sighed. "Lucy, wait outside."

Once the door closed, Jeremy immediately spun on Marcel. "Are you seriously dragging a completely normal girl into your 'twilight zone' drama? What happens if she finds out what you are? What we are!,That you're a literal werewolf?"

"She won't," Marcel said coolly. "We only turn during the full moon. I'll stay away those nights. It's not love. It's business."

Jeremy threw his arms up. "what business?how is it going to benefit me,''

Marcel chulked,

''umm, pleasure,''

He laughed out loud,

''You're cold, man. I hope she's not allergic to wolves."

Jeremy said, disgusted.

"Noted. Call her back in."

Lucy returned, clearly still confused and shaken.

"You have until midnight to decide," Marcel said flatly. "If not, forget it. Your father stays in jail."

She swallowed hard. "What would you get from this marriage?"

"Publicity. A role as my public wife. You'll be taken care of and the internet won't stop talking about the Young CEO who is married to poor girl whose father stole his money,'such a goodman'"

Her chest rose and fell. The words weren't romantic,nothing about this was. But they were her only shot.

"I'll do it,but no intimacy" she whispered.

"who wants to get intimate with you,''

Marcel laughed out loud,

Jeremy joined too

''We are just getting married on papers,Come back later to sign the documents,"

he said, already glancing at his screen again.

Outside, Lucy walked down the steps like someone emerging from a fog. Her hands trembled as she pulled out her phone and dialed.

Some worker staring at her.

"June," she said the moment her friend picked up.

"You sound like death. What happened?"

"I said yes," Lucy whispered. "I agreed to marry him."

"Who?!"

"Marcel."

"Marcel Johnson? The devil in a suit?!"

"I didn't have a choice."

"Lucy, you always have a choice!"

"Not this time," she whispered. "It's the only way to get Dad out."

"I don't like this," June muttered. "The guy's scary rich and scary period. Be careful."

"I'll call you later."

####

Lucy went straight to her boyfriend's workplace. She stood outside, waiting until he stepped out for his break.

His face lit up when he saw her, but the moment she spoke, everything shifted.

"I need to tell you something," she said quietly. "I... I'm getting married."

He stared. "Excuse me?"

"It's complicated. It's only for two years. I'm doing it for my dad."

"Oh, so you're marrying into money now? Wow, just like your old man."

"Don't say that. I didn't.."

"I don't want to hear it," he snapped. "You're exactly like him. You sold yourself."

"I didn't! Please just let me explain."

"No," he said firmly, stepping back. "Don't come back. We're done."

He turned and walked away.

Lucy stood frozen, tears running down her cheeks, alone again except this time, bound by a devil's bargain she couldn't escape.