“Forget about home," Bennett said sharply. “If I don't say you can be sad, then you don't get to be. Your tears, your emotions, they're all mine now. Everything you have is mine. When I say no crying, you obey."

"That's not fair. If I could stop the tears, don't you think I would?"

Ariana said, struggling to hold back tears.

"I don't care if it's fair. When I say no, that's final," Bennett replied coldly.

Ariana scoffed, wiping her eyes. "How much money did Zayden get for selling me to you?"

Bennett let out a chuckle scornfully. "You've got it all wrong. You should ask how much he paid to get you here?"

He sat across from her, spinning a fork between his fingers. “Taking you away from the crash site wasn't cheap. My men don't work for free, you know."

He looked at Ariana. “But in Eleymond, we can't just grab someone off the streets. They're all about the rules there. You'd be here way sooner if it wasn't for that."

Ariana met his eyes and replied coldly, “Then you'd better keep me under lock and key. If I manage to go back to Eleymond, I'm sending you to jail at all costs."

Upon hearing this, Bennett's frown suddenly softened into a grin.

“Jail, huh?" he muttered.

He had never had anyone talk to him like this. Most people tiptoed around him, too scared to even raise their voices. This was new, and he liked it.

This woman was indeed interesting.

Ariana's fiery defiance actually made Bennett feel a little giddy.

"Fine, let's see what you can do," Bennett said with a chuckle, then scooped some food onto her plate. “But first, eat up."

Ariana stared at the delicious food before her, her expression one of pure misery. She mumbled, “I don't feel like eating."

Bennett, as if he hadn't heard her, pushed the steak closer to her, still grinning. “Already forgetting what I just told you?"

Bennett got very close to Ariana, a smirk playing on his lips as he locked eyes with her, his tone cold and menacing.

"I hate it when people resist me, and you've been resisting me from the start. I have limited patience, and I won't be showing you any more leniency soon. Got it?"

A chill swept through the dining room, freezing even the guards stationed at the door.