Chapter 6 Chapter 6: The Wedding Night.

I hadn't had enough chances to talk to my parents before Arrow took me away.

'You would always see them.' He had said.

Yeah right Sherlock.

In my past life, my parents were dead. In this, they were much alive and well but I had no memories of what I experienced in this. Everything seemed almost the same, but there was a slight difference....

"Stop staring." Arrow said without looking up, his eyes fixed on his phone.

"I wasn't." I snapped.

When we arrived at the mansion, my mouth fell open.

The gates didn't even creak. They just slid open smoothly. The car drove through a driveway that was too long and clean.

Trees on both sides like they'd been trimmed by hand.

This was Arrow's personal mansion.

And it looked even more luxurious than the main Sawyer estate owned by Arthur.

Why? This was supposed to be the side house.

"Let's go." Arrow said as the driver opened my door.

The front doors were huge and made of expensive dark wood. Guards were stationed outside. As the door opened, the air inside smelled like nothing. Like air that had been filtered too many times.

The marble echoed under my heels. A chandelier bigger than my old bedroom hung above us in the large downstairs sitting room.

Guards were still stationed in strategic corners of the mansion and cameras were in the corners of the ceiling.

This was the perfect example of a gilded cage.

We went up a staircase that curved, my hand felt cool on the railing.

Down a hall. Then another. Our footsteps sounded too loud.

"Go to the bedroom first." Arrow said and walked away before I could speak up.

A shudder went down my spine as I stared at the massive door ahead. With one breath, I walked closer and pushed the door open.

The master suite of Arrow's mansion was built of dark slate and reinforced glass, overlooking the black silhouette of the southern valley. In the corner of the ceiling, a tiny green light on the security sensor blinked every few seconds, tracking my movements like a mechanical eye.

I stood in front of the dressing table, my finger struggling with the zipper at the back of my gown. The metal was stuck, biting into the fabric.

"Let me."

An arrow's reflection appeared behind me in the mirror. He had taken off his jacket, his white dress shirt unbuttoned at the collar and the sleeves rolled up to reveal his thick veiny arms.

He didn't wait for my permission. His rough hands came down to my shoulders, his fingers cold against my bare skin as he slowly worked the zipper down. The cool air of the room hit my back, making me shudder.

After the zipper was undone, I expected him to pull away but he didn't. He stood there, his eyes scanning the scars on my shoulder blades through the reflection.

Another effect of being reborn. Some things from your past life stay, even the scars.

My scars from when I was a firefighter stayed. Proof that I wasn't running mad, I hadn't noticed them until earlier in the changing room.

"You're different, Camila," Arrow murmured, his voice was quiet and calm. "The girl I knew would have screamed if a glass broke. But today, you ran all the way to Vitucci, why?"

My throat tightened. I couldn't tell him the truth. I couldn't tell him that I had watched him murder me in a staged car crash three years from now, or that my three years as Ravira, the paramedic.

"Staying with you is the only way to keep my family moving forward," I said, turning around to face him. I held the front of my unzipped dress against my chest, my eyes locking onto his. "However, that doesn't mean it makes me happy."

He said nothing and walked over to the table, leaning against it with his arms crossed over his broad chest. He studied me for a moment then spoke. "That's an honest answer but a dangerous one."

"Tell me something, Arrow," I countered, standing up to face him directly, my hand still holding the dress tightly against my chest. "Why me? You could have had any heiress in the country,"

"You're a Vane," he said flatly. "Your father's lines are the only routes my family's trucks don't control. With you in this house, the Vane estate becomes a subsidiary of the Sawyer estate. Its business, Camila,"

He then arched a brow. "Why are you suddenly concerned? If I remember correctly when the arrangement was made you didn't seem to care."

Didn't care? I thought to myself. Marrying Koa Sterling, who was a sweetheart, was enough to make me run away in my past life.

What kind of a person was I in this life?

"Nothing," I lied, clearing my throat. "I'm just curious. Afterall, I just tied myself to you for eternity. It's only fair that I know the reason behind this.....trade."

He nodded. "Alright," he pushed himself off the table and began to walk toward the door when he suddenly stopped and turned. "Oh and Camila, make it seem like we are in love like you always did. That's a lie I won't forgive you for failing."

"And if I don't play the quiet wife?"

He turned around fully, a wide smirk now spread across his

lips. "Then I'll show you why you should be scared of me and never cross the line.”