UNDER HIS PROTECTION

SAMANTHA

A sharp sting lanced through my wrists as I struggled against the coarse rope binding me to a chair. The faint scent of damp wood and mildew filled the air, my head throbbed, disoriented by the dim light of the single bulb that I see swinging above me.

My breaths came short and fast as the situation became clear. I wasn't in her small, cramped apartment. ' I've been kidnapped'. ' By who?'. Questions rang through my head, the thought of the worse happening to me causing the throbbing in my head to deepen. Looking around the room, it reeked of neglect, the cracked walls and boarded windows letting in no light from outside.

"Good, you're awake," a familiar voice drawled, making my heart drop into my stomach.

I froze. Slowly, I turned my head, and there he was-Liam. My ex-fiancé. The man i'd once trusted with my heart, my future, and every hard-earned penny I had saved.

"Liam?," I whispered, my voice raw. "What... what the hell is going on?" " Why am I here?".

He leaned against the doorway, his tailored shirt rumpled, the buttons at his collar undone as if he'd been too lazy-or too desperate-to finish dressing himself properly. His once-boyish charm was gone, replaced by something sharp and dangerous.

"Relax, Sammy," he said with a smirk that made my stomach churn. "It's nothing personal. Just business."

"Business?" The word left my lips like a curse. I tugged at the ropes, my nails scraping the chair's edges as panic bubbled in my chest. "You tie me up in some godforsaken room and think you can call it business?" I said , my voice filled with venom.

He chuckled, low and humourless. "Oh, Sammy. You're so naïve. That's always been your problem."

"Sammy". I once loved when he called me Sammy, erupting butterflies in my stomach but now it sounds like daggers attacking me as the name left his filthy mouth.

My jaw clenched. "Naïve enough to trust you, apparently. Let me guess, t the money you stole from me wasn't enough?"

Liam pushed off the doorframe and stepped closer, his smirk fading into something colder. "You're not in a position to lecture me, sweetheart. You were just an easy target."

His words hit me like a slap. I'd loved this man, shared my dreams with him, even started building a life around him. And in return, he'd stolen everything-my money, my trust, and now, apparently, my freedom.

"You cheated on me," she spat, the memory of finding him with another woman flashing in my mind. "And then you emptied my accounts. And now this? What do you want, Liam?"

He crouched down so we were at eye level, his smirk curling back into place. "You think this is about what I want? No, Sammy, this is about what you're worth."

My blood turned cold. "What... what are you talking about?"

"I'm in debt," he said simply, as if that explained everything. "And not the kind of debt you can weasel out of with a payment plan. These people-" he gestured vaguely, as if referring to a distant storm-"they don't take excuses. So I needed collateral. And you, my darling, are quite the valuable asset."

My breath hitched. I stared at him, disbelief and fury battling for dominance in my chest. "You're selling me?"

He stood, brushing dust off his pants as if this were a casual conversation. "Selling is such a crude word. Think of it as... a transaction."

"You monster," I hissed, venom in every syllable.

"And you're nothing," he shot back. "Face it, Sammy. You have no one. No money, no connections, no way out. I'm doing you a favour, really. At least this way, you'll be useful to someone."

My mind raced, trying to process his words, trying to find an escape. But the ropes bit into my skin with every movement, and the locked door behind him promised no easy way out.

"Who are you selling me to?" I demanded, my voice shaking with fear and rage

His smirk grew darker. "That's not your concern. But let's just say they're not the kind of people you want to keep waiting. And if I were you, I'd start practicing obedience. They don't take kindly to defiance."

My throat tightened as he turned and left the room, the sound of the lock clicking behind him echoing in my ears.

Alone in the suffocating silence, I bit down on her lip, forcing myself not to cry at how pathetic my life turned out. This wasn't the end. It couldn't be. There had to be a way out. I would fight, claw, and scream if it's the last thing I do.

Because if Liam thought he could break her, he was dead wrong.