Chapter 45

45 iii. Chains of Obsession [Bonus chapter]

“I want you to give me a copy of your resignation letter, to be effective immediately,” Dominus didn’t even spare Cinderella a glance as he said the words.

“But why? I am not resigning, Dom! I did nothing wrong. In all these years I have been here, I have been an efficient secretary to you,” Cinderella felt indignation rise in her chest.

“You will be well compensated, Ms. Cindy. I will be promoting you in fact to Vice President, so do as I say. I want to see your letter of resignation tomorrow on top of my desk,” Dominus continued to read the documents as if the conversation has no consequence for him.

Cinderella lost her cool and took away the file of documents being read by him, “We both know the reason why I was appointed as your secretary. It is a way for us to get to know each other before our official engagement! I have waited so long and patiently bore a lowly position just for this alone!”

Dominus finally looked at the woman who has dyed her hair from blonde into an auburn color, clearly trying to replicate someone from his past.

“Engagement?” Dominus’s deep voice seemed to occupy every space in the office.

“Who told you I will ever be engaged to you?” Dominus let a cruel smile paint on his lips, loving the way the poor woman stared at him with anger.

“Our family has decided on our fate before we were even born! You can’t do this to me, Dom! This is injustice! My family will not tolerate this!” Cinderella had that crazed look on her face as she raised her voice as well.

“If that’s the case, then you might as well marry my family. Because I will never accept you as a fiance,” Dominus looked at her, his eyes bored .

.....

“This is still about that woman, isn’t it? It has been more than six years! For all you know, she might already be married now,” Cinderella held tightly into the documents from earlier, nearly crumpling them from the emotions she felt.

“That woman, is irreplaceable to me. Not one girl will ever be worthy enough to take her place, especially not someone like you. So wake up, Ms. Cindy, it was all game over from the start. Stop conniving to make me like you, the more you try to win me over, the more pathetic you look in my eyes. So stop before I lose all my respect for you,” Dominus’s voice was laced with threat as he stood, his tall build looming over the now panicked girl as she stood there dropping the files from her hands.

“One more mention of her, I might not be able to stop myself from wringing your neck. If you know what’s good for you, you will follow my advice, or I shall not be the one to be blamed for the consequence,” Dominus walked away from the girl, slamming the door behind him.

——–

Dominus stopped his car at enough distance from a shabby apartment where a man is comforting a woman with an embrace.

His eyes focused on her innocent face, her skin has gone even paler now after all these years. Her lips seem to lack more of the color that once easily adorned her face. And her hair, now kept neatly in a bun instead of letting it flow into a river of fire down her cheeks.

He alighted from the car and took a cigarette out of his pocket. He has been trying to locate her ever since he recovered, but no lead ever surfaced.

It is as if she has disappeared without a trace. She didn’t even apply to any of the universities her grades could have gotten her into. It is as if she has thrown her future away.

He lighted the cigarette and breathed in the smoke, letting the poison of the narcotine seep through him. He let it out again, his eyes never leaving her.

This is the first time she ever applied for a job too, he knew because he has been trying to locate her in every possible company she could have worked for. There was no trace of her existence until now.

He felt bitterness grip his heart as he stared at the man beside her. Malavar was his name. A friend, nothing more, he assured himself, repeating what the agents have said.

But he wasn’t born yesterday too, he knew from the way that man touched her, the way he looked at her, he has been bewitched by her as well.

Mary. Dominus repeated her name on his lips, it’s the same name he has repeated over and over when he wakes from yet another nightmare.

His phone rang, it was his executive assistant. He started giving orders, making sure she will be assigned in the same building as himself.

They were to hire her no matter what, the tests and the interviews were all going to be a farce. He wondered how he appeared just now to his employee.

It might justify his nickname finally, as the business world’s mad barbarian, a nickname he has grown to cherish. He was known for making hard decisions, and he was known for having no fears, no regrets, hence, the nickname.

He smiled bitterly as longing filled his heart. Mary. The past years have all been the most difficult stage in his life. Not because of the accident or the long journey to recovery he had to go through. It was because he lost her.

It was as if his heart has been wrenched open, dilapidated, quashed completely. Mary. She was the biggest regret of his life. Not being able to protect her at all costs and not being able to find her.

He laughed, mocking himself over the state he is in. He is in no shape to meet her now. He needs to prepare for when they finally meet again.

He will lure her in, capture her in his world, and never let her go. Like a butterfly caught in a spider’s web, that is how everything should be. This way, even if she struggles she can never break free from him.

The desperate longing in his heart will finally be quenched now that she is back. He is worse than a person who hasn’t eaten for days, he felt like a wild beast who hasn’t been fed almost to extinction.

It is only her who can satisfy his longing, the indescribable loneliness that enveloped him as he suffered all these years. It is only her who can satisfy him, she needs to cure him of all this pain that she herself caused.

“It is only right to make amends, queenie. You made me wait for so long. I waited for so long for you, you know. Why did you have to run away from me? Why did you have to hide? Were you sick of me, were you scared I’ll never be able to go back in shape? Were you ashamed to have a crippled husband? No, these things don’t matter now. Whatever the reasons were, they don’t matter to me at all. What matters is I finally found you, queenie. Now we can finally continue where the story of us got interrupted. Would you like that, honey? Did you miss me the way I missed you? But then, why did you hide so well that I can not even find you?” he chuckled, his mind was playing tricks on him again. Making him believe she can hear his thoughts.

It was madness, of course. But no one has to know. The years of longing made him feel like he was going to lose his mind. But who can blame him?

It was her fault for leaving. How can he remain sane without the only joy in his life? Mary was the only one who ever mattered.

He didn’t trust fate not to interfere, but he will do everything to make sure it never succeed again. It has won before, but now is a different story.

Whether it was the gods or destiny itself who plans to go against him, he will be sure to defy them all. He couldn’t lose her again. It will be like going back to hell when he knew already what being in hell felt like.

“You belong to me, completely. Do you remember that, honey? If you have forgotten, I simply must remind you. I’ll have to remind you whom you belong to. You belong to me, you have to realize that and never forget, you belong to me only,” he felt his heart clench from the memories of losing her.

There is no way he will let that happen again. No matter what, she can’t escape. He will make sure of that. She will be chained right beside him for all eternity, that is how it should be.

He can almost taste her lips now, imagine how his tongue will slide down her throat as she moans out his name. His Mary. He will be sure to never let her go again.

If he has to turn into a monster to make sure she never leaves his side this time around, then he will be that. He will open up the gates of hell itself, if it’s the only way to make sure she can never leave.

“You turned me into the monster that I am, my queen. But even this monster couldn’t stop itself from loving you completely, wanting and needing its queen. Let’s meet again, queenie. Let’s meet again,” his heart was filled with agony as he stared into the clueless lady almost within his reach.

“That is right, I will never let you get away again, my darling. I will make sure to never let you go. Even if the whole of heaven’s armies strikes at me, I will never let go of you this time. I couldn’t, I wouldn’t let us suffer the pain of it all,” he threw the cigarette stick and went back to his car, starting the engine as he take a last glance at the woman that was the reason for it all.

Mary. She was the reason for the terrible sadness that washed upon him, the madness that haunted him, and the anger that comes with it all.

She is responsible for every heartache, every suicidal thought that crossed his mind. She is responsible for the loneliness that accompanied him every night as he goes back to a mansion without her by his side.

Even death would have been sweeter than the pain he felt when he lost her the second time around. But he didn’t give up, rightly so. Now, he has been rewarded by whatever power into finding her. His persistence has not been all for naught.

“Let’s meet again, my queen. This time, I won’t be your prince, but a monster who won’t ever let you go. Blame me if you must, try to struggle and run if you must, but you can never leave. I will chase you and tie you down. I’ll chain you if I have to, to make sure you stay by my side,” he whispered in the night air as his car sped away.

This time around he will be the beast she can hate but never leave, if that is what it takes, then so be it. Whatever the price, he is willing to pay, for another chance to have her in his life again.