10:45 AM – A Door Left Open
Isabella sat frozen long after Ethan left.
His words lingered in the air like a storm cloud.
"You can stop pretending you're powerless."
It was a taunt. A challenge. A dare.
And the worst part?
He wasn't wrong.
She had been sitting here, trapped in a golden cage, waiting.
Waiting for an opening.
Waiting for someone else to break the chains.
But had she ever truly tried to free herself?
Or had she just accepted that Ethan would always be in control?
11:00 AM – A Test of Willpower
The mansion was eerily quiet.
Not a single guard near the library.
No maids bustling in the hallway.
Why?
Was it a coincidence?
Or was this part of Ethan's game?
He had left the door slightly ajar.
A silent invitation.
She could walk out.
Right now.
No one was stopping her.
But that was the trick, wasn't it?
Ethan wasn't just trapping her physically—he was testing her mind.
Would she hesitate?
Would she be too afraid to step through the open door?
Or would she take control of her own fate?
Her heart pounded as she stood up, taking slow steps toward the hallway.
The moment her foot crossed the threshold, the air shifted.
A presence.
Someone watching.
But no one was there.
Just the empty corridor stretching ahead.
Freedom?
Or another carefully placed illusion?
11:10 AM – The Choice She Never Had
She took a deep breath and walked forward.
One step.
Then another.
The marble floors were cold beneath her bare feet.
The hallway stretched endlessly, yet every corner felt like a trap.
Her instincts screamed—turn back.
But she kept going.
She reached the grand staircase.
Down below, the main doors stood tall and imposing.
Unlocked.
Her heart hammered.
Ethan never left doors unlocked.
This was a trick.
A test.
Was she supposed to fail it?
She clenched her fists.
No.
If this was a test, she would pass it.
She rushed forward—
Only for a voice to stop her.
"Going somewhere, Isabella?"
Her breath hitched.
She turned slowly, her pulse roaring in her ears.
And there he was.
Ethan.
Standing at the top of the stairs.
Watching her.
Waiting.
How long had he been there?
Had he followed her?
Or had he never left?
Her throat went dry.
"You left the door open," she said, her voice steady.
Ethan's lips twitched.
"And you took the bait."
She stiffened.
"So, this was just another game?"
He tilted his head.
"No, sweetheart." His voice was calm. "This was a lesson."
Her hands curled into fists.
A lesson in what?
In how powerless she still was?
In how easily he could predict her?
Or in how she still hadn't figured out what he really wanted from her?
Ethan took slow, deliberate steps down the stairs, his eyes locked on hers.
"You think walking through an open door makes you free?" he asked.
She swallowed hard.
Wasn't that what freedom was?
Taking the chance?
Choosing for herself?
But then why did she feel like she had already lost?
Ethan reached the bottom step and stopped.
His presence was suffocating.
His gaze was unreadable.
"I gave you an open door, and you walked through it."
He studied her, as if waiting for something.
Then—
"Now what?"
11:30 AM – The Real Trap
The silence stretched between them.
Now what?
She didn't know.
She had spent so long dreaming of escape, yet standing here, so close to the exit…
Something was wrong.
Something was missing.
Freedom wasn't just walking through an open door.
It was knowing what waited on the other side.
And right now—
She had no idea.
Ethan took another step closer.
His voice was softer now, almost thoughtful.
"You've been waiting for an opportunity, Isabella. And I gave you one."
Her jaw tightened.
"An opportunity for what? To prove that you still have control over me?"
His lips curled.
"No."
Then, to her surprise, he reached for the door—
And opened it.
Wind rushed in, carrying the scent of rain.
The outside world.
It was right there.
The road. The sky.
Freedom.
Ethan's gaze darkened.
"Go."
Her breath caught.
"What?"
He stepped aside.
"If you want to leave, leave."
She stared at him, her pulse racing.
This was wrong.
Too easy.
A trick.
A trap.
But what if it wasn't?
What if she had been so conditioned to expect a trap that she couldn't see a real choice when it was given to her?
Her feet wouldn't move.
Because deep down—
She didn't know if she wanted to leave.
Not yet.
And Ethan knew it.
That was the real test.
She had never been his prisoner.
Not in the way she thought.
The chains weren't on her wrists.
They were in her mind.