Obey the Monster, But Let's Revenge

My family was crumbling, clinging to the last vestiges of a once-great name.

My upcoming marriage to Ethan was supposed to save us, his new money cushioning our fall.

But rumors painted Julian Thorne, a reclusive tech billionaire, as a monster who ruined women, and his people chose my beautiful half-sister, Hailey, as his next "companion."

Then Ethan, my fiancé, panicked, pulling me into a desperate elopement.

In a cheap motel room, he revealed his true plan: I was to pretend we'd been secretly married before Hailey's selection.

He needed me as a convenient shield, a deniable wife, so he could keep Hailey, and her potential connection to Thorne, on a string.

My stomach churned; this wasn't love, it was a transaction.

Back home, my family, desperate to "save" Hailey, demanded I support Ethan's lie, threatening to cut off funding for my cherished art project.

They called me "strong" when they wanted me to bear their burdens, to be a doormat.

The disgust was a bitter taste in my mouth, realizing I was just a pawn in their cruel, self-serving games.

Why was I always the one sacrificed, always the "strong" one meant to suffer in silence?

The thought of living Ethan' s fabricated life, a life of quiet humiliation and deceit, suddenly felt infinitely worse than facing any rumored monster.

A cold fury rose in me, sharp and clean.

I would not be their pawn, their disposable currency.

Looking my father dead in the eye, I declared, "If Hailey is too delicate for Mr. Thorne, then I will go in her place."

I' d rather face a monster with my eyes open than be a fool' s secret.