Free Web NovelChapter 34: Chapter 33 Checkmate
Giulia threw her phone onto the couch.
"What the fuck..."
She dragged both hands through her hair and started pacing the apartment.
"Mireya is going to kill me."
No.
Scratch that.
Mireya was going to hate her....that somehow felt worse.
"Shit!"
Her toes screamed in pain.
"Fantastic. Exactly what I needed."
She limped two steps before dropping onto the couch, burying her face in a pillow.
"I hate rich people. I fucking hate them."
She had just lied straight to Mireya’s face, telling her best friend to stay with that psycho billionaire, and it felt like swallowing glass. But Giulia didn’t have a choice.
Laziel Monroe wasn’t just a regular dickhead; he was demon. He hadn’t showed up with guns or threatened to chop her into pieces. Instead, he had come with papers. Papers that showed her aunt’s massive hospital bills, her own eviction notice, and every single cent she owed.
Her mind flashed back to twenty-four hours ago. It was her first time ever seeing him in person.
Normally, Giulia was the loud one. The bold one. The first to throw an insult, the first to argue, and the first to tell any arrogant billionaire to shove his money where the sun never reached. But the exact second she sat across from Laziel Monroe, her mouth had gone completely dry.
Her legs literally wobbled. She could barely even breathe.
God. Who created this evil-looking, demigod.
"Damn it, Giulia," she had cursed herself internally, digging her fingernails into her palms to stop from shaking. "This bastard is the reason your best friend’s life is falling apart."
But she couldn’t deny the truth. The dark tattoos disappearing beneath the rolled-up sleeves of his crisp shirt should have been a federal crime. She almost rolled her eyes at her own brain. This was exactly how idiots ended up dead or in toxic relationships.
Laziel had watched her the entire time.... studying her, like he already knew every single chaotic thought running through her head.
Finally, he spoke.
"You love Mireya."
It wasn’t a question. It was a fact. Giulia stayed quiet, refusing to give him the satisfaction of a response.
"Good," Laziel said calmly. He didn’t threaten her with violence. He just cornered her with choices.
He had already investigated her entire life. He knew about her aunt’s compounding illness, her massive debts, her string of failed job applications.
Ironically, he was the reason she needed a job in the first place.
Slowly, he slid a folder across the table. Inside was the wreckage of her reality: the hospital bills, the eviction letter, her frozen bank statements.
Then, he tapped a second folder. Inside lay a brand-new apartment lease, an employment contract as the chief manager for one of the biggest, highest-paying underground clubs in his circuit, and a first-month salary advance worth thousands of dollars.
"One path ruins your life," Laziel said, his eyes locking onto hers with a coldness that froze the blood in her veins. He tapped the first folder, then moved his finger to the second. "The other rebuilds it."
Giulia swallowed hard, her voice barely a whisper. "What’s the catch?"
"You stop helping her run."
That was it. No screaming. No guns. No kidnapping or torture. Just a billionaire effortlessly rearranging someone’s entire future with a pen and paperwork. It was terrifying.
Giulia gripped the edge of her chair. "Are you keeping her prisoner?"
Laziel leaned back slightly, his expression completely unbothered. "If she truly wanted to leave... she would have."
Before Giulia could even process that mind-fucking statement, Laziel leaned forward, dropping a line that made her chest tighten.
"Loyalty is an expensive virtue when you are broke, Miss Giulia," he said quietly, his gaze piercing right through her. "I do not need weapons to erase your existence; I can do it with a single signature. You can play the hero and watch your family drown, or you can play the traitor and ensure they breathe. Choose quickly. My patience has a deadline."
He stood up, adjusting his cuffs without a single ounce of remorse. "Mireya belongs in my world. If you keep trying to drag her back to yours, you will both end up under it."
And then, he left.
Back on the couch in the present day, Giulia stared blankly at the ceiling as a tear finally spilled over her cheek.
For the first time in her entire life, she genuinely wished someone had just pointed a loaded gun at her head instead.
The second Giulia wiped the tears from her face, her phone vibrated.
She jumped.
A message from an unknown number sat on the screen.
You handled that call well.
Giulia froze, the breath completely trapped in her lungs. Before she could even process it, the screen lit up again.
Another message.
Don’t make me regret my investment.
No name. No profile picture.
She didn’t need a caller ID to know exactly who sent it.
Hell no. He was watching her. Right now??
Panic took over. Giulia rushed to the window, pulling back the blinds and scanning the street below. Nobody. Just passing cars.
Driven by adrenaline, she ran to the apartment door, threw it open, and looked out into the hallway. Nothing but empty, carpeted flooring. She checked the elevator down the hall. The indicator light was dead. Empty.
It was terrifying. He didn’t need to be standing outside her door to trap her; his eyes were already everywhere.
She slowly closed the door, leaning her back against it as she let out a shaky breath.
"You paranoid bastard..." she whispered into the empty room.
Author’s Note 💙
You guys have been suspiciously quiet... 👀
I haven’t spoken to you all in a while because I’ve been busy plotting everyone’s downfall. 😭
Seriously though, thank you for all the comments, Golden Tickets, Power Stones, and support. Watching this story grow from nothing has been unreal.
Now... be honest.
Would you have accepted Laziel’s offer if you were Giulia?
Don’t lie. 🌚
Now tell me...
Team Giulia or Team "Girl, you sold your best friend"? 🌚
