Page 60 of Ruin

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"Then at least she'll be choosing for herself instead of living a lie."

The elevator ride down feels like descending into hell.

Which, given the circumstances, might be exactly what I'm doing.

But I'd rather burn with the truth between us than live without her in a kingdom built on lies.

Even if the truth destroys us both.

Even if she destroys me first.

9

Selene

My apartment feels like a stranger's home when I finally return from the office.

Everything is exactly as I left it this morning—coffee cup in the sink, laptop still open on the counter, the shattered wine glass I never cleaned up from last night.

But I'm different now.

The woman who lived here yesterday was naive enough to believe in fairy tales.

The woman standing here now knows she's been sleeping with the villain.

I set my purse down with hands that want to shake and catch my reflection in the hallway mirror.

The diamond collar glints at my throat, beautiful and damning.

For over a year, I've worn it with pride, never taking it off even to shower.

His mark of ownership. His claim on me.

This collar gave me the motivation to transform myself, and now it feels like a chain.

I reach up to unclasp it, needing it off my skin, off my body, away from everything that makes me his.

But my fingers find only smooth metal and gemstones.

No clasp. No opening mechanism.

Because it locks. Of course it fucking locks.

The symbolism hits me like a punch to my gut.

I've been his prisoner this entire time, wearing his collar like a dog, marked as property without even realizing it.

The key is probably in his bedroom, in his safe, somewhere I can't reach without begging him for freedom.

I might laugh if I weren't so close to screaming.

I stumble to the kitchen, pour myself a glass of wine with shaking hands, take one sip, and immediately pour it down the sink.

My stomach can't handle alcohol right now.

Can't handle food, either, judging by the way it lurches when I even think about eating.

The collar feels tighter with each breath, like it's constricting around my throat.

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