Chapter 3 - The Sanctuary of Scars
Julian found the hidden door behind a false wall in the wine cellar, directly opposite where Marcus was currently zip-tied and bleeding from a freshly broken nose.
Julian pushed the heavy door open.
The room was no larger than a walk-in closet. A thin mattress lay on the concrete floor. A single bucket. A bare bulb hanging from the ceiling.
And the walls... the walls were covered in scratched tallies.
Four years of days. 1,460 lines carved into the concrete by Elise’s fingernails.
Julian fell to his knees. The billionaire who controlled global markets, the man who never showed weakness, broke. He pressed his face into his hands and let out a raw, guttural sob that tore at his throat.
He had slept in a king-sized bed just thirty feet above this room. He had eaten gourmet meals while she starved in the dark.
"Julian?"
He snapped his head up.
Elise stood in the doorway. She was still shivering, but she had refused the blankets the guards offered. She looked at the room with a blank, hollow expression.
Julian slowly stood up. He didn't step toward her. He knew better.
"I'm so sorry," Julian choked out, tears streaming down his face. "I am so goddamn sorry, Elise. I didn't know. I swear to you, I didn't know."
Elise looked at his tears. For the first time in the night, a flicker of life entered her deadened eyes.
She took a slow, agonizing step into the room. Then another.
She stopped inches from him. She slowly reached up, her bruised, calloused fingers hovering over his cheek.
"He told me you ordered it," Elise whispered, her voice like cracked glass.
Julian’s heart stopped. "What?"
"Marcus," she breathed, tears finally spilling over her lashes. "He told me you found out I was planning to leave you. He said you ordered him to lock me away. He told me... he told me every time I cleaned the floors upstairs, you were watching me on the cameras. Laughing."
The psychological torture was worse than the physical cage. Marcus had systematically destroyed her reality.
"Elise, look at me," Julian pleaded softly, keeping his hands firmly at his sides so she wouldn't feel trapped. "Look into my eyes. I have never stopped looking for you. I have never stopped loving you. I would burn this entire world to ash before I ever let anyone hurt you."
Elise stared into his eyes. She saw the raw, unfiltered agony. She saw the truth.
May you like
Slowly, Elise collapsed forward, burying her face into his chest.
Julian wrapped his arms around her frail body, holding her as though she were made of spun glass. He buried his face in her hacked, uneven hair, whispering promises of vengeance and safety into the dark.
