The Devil Who Claimed Me

Later that night, the mansion was quiet. The guards rotated their shifts. Valentina moved through the dimly lit corridor and stopped outside Mila’s room.

Two guards were stationed there.

"Open the door," she commanded.

The guards hesitated.

"It’s late now," one spoke. "She might be asleep."

"Dominic wants to make sure she is alright there," Valentina said. "Let me see her."

This time, the guards didn’t stop her.

The door clicked open, and Valentina stepped in.

Mila curled in on herself in the silent, dimly lit room. At the sound of the door opening, she sat up and lifted her eyes to see Valentina.

"Why are you here?" she asked, her tone cold.

Valentina smiled. "You have made quite a mess today. You hurt Dominic’s man. That was bold."

Mila simply stared at her.

Valentina stepped in closer. "Dominic is furious. He relaxed his rules for you because he trusted you. But you broke his trust. And now..."

She let her eyes roam around the room before resettling on her. "You are back here. Locked up. Was it worth it?"

Mila clasped the bedspread.

"I told you to accept this place, this life," Valentina continued. "But you wouldn’t listen. You are making things harder for yourself."

"Are you here to mock me?" Mila snapped. "Then you’ve done enough. Leave now."

The sharpness in her tone irked Valentina. But then she calmed herself and forced a smile.

"You know – Dominic still believes you are worth protecting," Valentina said. "He is grateful to you for saving his life. Even though you hurt his man, he still took your side."

Mila slightly narrowed her eyes, a hint of disbelief on her face. How could he side with her? He himself had locked her up. He said it was her punishment for what she had done.

Mila didn’t believe a word she said.

"He defended you," Valentina went on, "said you didn’t mean to hurt the guard, that it was just instinct. You see, how much he trusts you."

Mila still said nothing.

"Let’s see how long that lasts." Valentina sneered. "I don’t think you will stop disappointing him. And soon, he will lose faith in you completely."

"You are right," Mila said sternly. "I won’t stop until I get out of here. You can lock me up. But I’ll still find my way out."

"Mm. I remember what you said – a desperate person can do anything. I’d like to see how you get out of this room. Then you think about escaping this place."

She turned to leave.

"Do you really want me to stay here?" Mila exclaimed, stopping her in her tracks. "Aren’t you afraid I might hurt more people? Do you want to see chaos every day?"

Valentina turned back to her.

"Why don’t you help me?" Mila looked straight into her eyes.

Valentina held her gaze. She could see the clear desperation in her.

"You are nothing that we should be afraid of," she scoffed. "We are not acting harshly with you because you are under Dominic’s protection. The moment he withdraws that protection, you are finished. So watch your steps."

She turned on her heels, ready to leave. Then she paused and added, "I’m loyal to Dominic. I’ll never go against him. But..."

She paused for a moment before speaking again. "If I ever see you as a threat to him, I will personally throw you out of here."

She dropped a clue before walking out of the room. A slow smile appeared on her face.

The trap was set. She believed Mila would make another mistake soon.

’This time, Dominic has to listen to us.’

Inside the room...

Mila remained seated still. Her mind raced as she replayed Valentina’s words.

"A threat to Dominic..." Her brows drew closer in suspicion. "Is she asking me to attack him?"

The thought alone sent chills down her spine. Fear took over her.

"This is a trap. This woman – I shouldn’t trust her. But I’ll definitely find my way out."

~~~~~~~~~~~

The next few days passed in peace.

Mila remained silent. She didn’t resist. She didn’t even speak unless necessary. It was as if she had accepted her situation.

Dominic had not come to see her since that day.

Though she hated him, she couldn’t stop thinking about what he might be doing. Was he going to let her out of this room? How long was he planning to keep her locked?

Another day passed in silence. And there was still no news of Dominic.

Mila grew restless. She had no sense of time anymore. She had no idea when morning came or when night fell. Locked inside, she felt like she was slowly suffocating.

When the maid came to deliver food, Mila refused to eat.

"I want to see Dominic," she said flatly.

"Mr. Russo is not here," the maid replied. "He has gone out."

"I won’t eat until he comes to see me," Mila said adamantly.

The maid thought it was another outburst. "You should eat, Miss. He is not coming. We don’t know when he will return."

She left but didn’t take the tray with her.

Mila didn’t touch the food.

One day passed, and she didn’t eat anything. The maid brought food every day, though.

At the beginning, they didn’t take it seriously, thinking she would start eating once she was hungry. But three days had passed, and she had not eaten a thing. She survived only on water.

Gradually, her strength faded. Her face turned pale, her body weaker by the hour.

The maids panicked. They were afraid she would pass out. If that happened, Dominic would punish them.

"Please, Miss. Eat something. You are already weak."

Mila glanced at her wearily. "Where is Dominic? Call him. Tell him to come."

"We don’t know where he is," the maid replied, growing restless. "He left days ago. And we don’t know when he will return."

"Then call him."

The woman lowered her head. "We don’t disturb him during work. Please, stop being stubborn. Eat something."

She held out a bowl of soup. "I prepared corn soup for you. Have some."

Mila turned her head aside. "I told you – I won’t eat anything until he sees me."

"Miss, you will die if you keep starving. Sir will be mad. Don’t make things difficult for us."

"I’m already like a dead person here," Mila muttered. "I won’t regret it if I die. Leave. I won’t eat."

The woman sighed in defeat and put the bowl back on the table. "I’m keeping it here in case you change your mind."

With that, she walked out.

Later that day...

Dominic finally arrived. The moment he stepped into the mansion, the news reached him.

"What?" he barked. "She has not eaten anything for days! How could you let that happen?"

"We tried," the maid said, trembling in fear. She didn’t even dare to lift her head. "But she refused to eat anything. She kept asking for you."

"Shit..."

Dominic didn’t waste another moment. He went straight to her room and froze.

Mila lay on the bed, pale and weak. Her lips had lost color. Her eyes barely opened.

"What the hell were you thinking?" he thundered, but he couldn’t hide the worry in his heart. "You are a doctor. You should know better than this."

Mila slowly opened her eyes. She didn’t have the strength to argue with him. But she was forced to speak.

"You finally decided to show up," she whispered weakly. "Can you please end this punishment?"

Dominic felt a helpless anger rolling inside his stomach. Even in this condition, she could only think about her freedom.

His nostrils flared. "Call the doctor," he commanded.