Chapter 1

I graduated with honors from Melrose University, and everyone saw me as a prodigy. And yet, here I was, kneeling before Lilith Storm with my hands held out so she could throw up in them. My former classmates mocked me—they called me the Storm family's lackey, a slave, and Lilith's lapdog. My friends had distanced themselves from me over time, believing I had traded my dignity for Lilith's leash. Word of what I had become spread to my relatives in my hometown. To them, I had endured a decade's hardship as a student only to end up as a lapdog for the rich. And so, I was made the object of my hometown's contempt. But only I knew how expensive my sister, Anna Schmitt's medical bills were. Lilith, high and mighty as she was, had told me I was nothing without her. I hated her guts. And the contract that bound me to this reviling woman? Well, it would lapse in another month. … In the nightclub, Lilith perched at the head of the table, revered by those in her presence. They fawned over her with sickening sycophancy. "It's your birthday today, Lilith. As a treat, everyone's drinks are on me!" said the man next to Lilith as he pulled her close and raised his glass. Lilith rolled her eyes. "As if I need you to foot the tab." She then cut a look at me and curled her finger. "You there! Come here." "Right away," I said, hurrying to crouch beside her. "Put your hand out," she ordered. I did as she said and lifted my palms to her. She spat on them just as I caught the flicker of gold-red embers. The next second, she snuffed out her cigarette on my palm. "You may leave now," Lilith said coolly. I frowned, ignoring the pain from where her cigarette embers had burned me, and quickly said, "Yes, ma'am." I kept my face neutral as if this was normal. It wasn't, but I was used to it. In the last three years, she had done worse things to me than spit on my palm. I scrubbed my hands clean at the restroom sink. When I returned, someone cried, "Look, Lilith, your dog's back!" Someone else clicked their tongue at me. "Come here! Let's see if we can teach a mutt some tricks!" Everyone at the drinking table thought I was beneath them. I said nothing as I walked up to Lilith and pointed out, "Ms. Storm, it's getting late—" "Who are you to lecture me, you mutt?" Lilith cut me off sharply. Holding my gaze, she threw a credit card in my face and snapped, "Go book a room for me! I won't be going home tonight." "Yes, ma'am," I said obediently, picking up the credit card and hurrying out of the lounge. There was a hotel next to the club. I had just booked a room for Lilith when she called. "Send me the room number." "Oh, of course," I replied. "Wait for me outside the room. Don't go anywhere!" "Alright." I was obliging, just as I had been for the last three years. I had never once disobeyed her. Finally, ten minutes later, Lilith showed up clinging onto a man. They traipsed down the hallway like a pair of lovebirds. The man was from the club earlier. Looking triumphant, the man looked down his nose at me and drawled, "He's more obedient than my dog. Look at him, waiting out here for you just like you asked." Lilith shot me a look when she heard her companion's words. She sneered, "I doubt he's better than a dog. Once he stops working for my family, he'll be worse off than a stray mutt." She and her male companion regarded me with contempt as they brushed past me, locked in a passionate, sloppy kiss as they shoved through the hotel room door. I turned around to give them some privacy, only to feel a purse hit the back of my head. This was followed by a warning, "Stand watch outside the door tonight! Do not move from your post. If I don't see you tomorrow morning, I'll tell my father!" My heart dropped to my stomach. "But—" The room door slammed shut before I could get my words out, though I heard a muffled "No buts!" I gaped at the door for a good half a minute and sighed in resignation. A privileged and snobby woman like Lilith would never understand what it was like for me. I had to take care of my comatose sister at the hospital during the night and head to work at Storm Corporation during the day. I couldn't stand guard outside her hotel room for the entire night. Even her father would never have allowed her to treat me like this. Lilith was used to giving orders and would never do anything for herself, so I had to oversee things at the company during the day. Her father was the one who got me to sign a contract. Through it, I was bound to serve Lilith for three years in exchange for two million dollars. I had pledged my loyalty to her, and I would have to die if she asked me to. Such were the terms of the contract. I had signed away three years of my life and autonomy for two million dollars. The initial payment of two million dollars was to save Anna, whose condition had been critical following the car crash. Unfortunately, Anna had been comatose since, and she had not opened her eyes during the last three years she had been bedridden. The hospital was practically my second home for the last three years. Despite the exhaustion and humiliation, I did not so much as grouse. Shaking my head, I dismissed the thoughts and focused on the nearing end of the contract. Just one more month, and I would have fulfilled three years of being loyal to Lilith. Lilith had taken me for granted and maximized my services. At this point, I owed her nothing. I made my way down to the lobby and left Lilith's purse at the front desk. After that, I got into the car and drove straight to the hospital.