The journey back to Jakarta was a blur of tinted glass and high-speed silence. I sat in the back of the Maybach, my hand resting on the seat beside Adrian’s. I didn't pull away when his fingers laced through mine; I didn't flinch when he squeezed my wrist, checking the pulse through the steel cuff that had been returned to its place. I was a vision of perfection in a dress of deep emerald silk, the bandage over my collarbone replaced by a choker of emeralds and diamonds that hid the implant beneath.
"Remember the rules, Elara," Adrian whispered as the car pulled into the underground garage of the Vance Medical Plaza. "You speak only when I allow it. You tell her you are happy. You tell her you chose this."
"And if I don't?"
Adrian leaned in, his lips grazing my ear. "Then Bella spends t
