Kathrin life had been a cycle of loss, but it had also been about survival. After her family's death, her adoptive mother, Chloe, became her everything. Chole's training in Karate taught Kathrin not just how to defend herself, but how to endure.
Yet, when Chloe was killed, Kathrin found herself thrust back into the world of abandonment and loneliness. She built her life on independence, working hard to live on her own terms.
She never imagined that walking into Donovan Company for a job would lead her to cross paths with Greyson Hale, a man who would complicate her carefully constructed world.
At first, Kathrin thought Grey was just another man with an ego, someone who used power to intimidate. But there was something else in his eyes—a recognition she hadn't expected. She didn't want to admit it, but seeing him again and again made her feel a strange sense of connection, like he knew something about her that others didn't. But then, in one sudden moment, everything changed.
The day Greyson kidnapped Kathrin wasn't just a simple abduction. It was a declaration, a desperate, twisted act that revealed more about him than any of his threats ever could. It wasn't love at first sight or Stockholm syndrome.
Kathrin didn't feel like she was trapped in a romantic fantasy, nor was she under any illusion about who Greyson was—a dangerous man who had no qualms about bloodshed. Yet, when Xavier, Greyson's closest friend, untied her and told her how Greyson had changed since meeting her, she felt something more complicated stir inside.
Greyson hadn't softened for no reason. He hadn't suddenly become a better person. But Kathrin, in all her years of fighting to stay alive, knew that survival wasn't just about physical strength. Sometimes, it was about understanding power—where it came from and how it could be influenced.
Greyson, for all his violence, seemed to hold a strange respect for her. He had become more controlled, more deliberate in his actions since meeting her. And that intrigued Kathrin.
She didn't stay because she was helpless. She stayed because she saw in Greyon something raw, something vulnerable beneath the chaos. She knew what it was like to lose everything and to try to find meaning in a world that seemed determined to take it all away. Maybe Greyson had lost something too, and maybe, just maybe, they could find a way to survive together.
When Greyson returned that night, covered in blood, Kathrin didn't flinch. She had seen violence before. She had been trained to fight. But what surprised Greyson was that she hadn't run. She stood there, looking at him not with fear, but with a calm determination.
"Why didn't you leave?" Greyson asked, his voice quieter than usual, almost uncertain.
Kathrin crossed her arms, meeting his gaze. "Because I'm not running from this. Not yet."
Greyson frowned, confused. "You don't have to stay. I'm not forcing you."
"I know," Yuna replied. "But if you think I'm going to let you keep doing this without consequences, you're wrong. I don't stay for you. I stay for myself."
Greyson blinked, taken aback by her response. He wasn't used to people talking to him like that—like equals. And maybe that's why Kathrin's words hit him harder than any rejection.
"Then why?" Greyson asked again, softer this time.
Kathrin sighed, her guard slipping just slightly. "Because I see someone who's lost, and I've been lost too. You need someone to remind you that you don't have to be like this forever. And if I have to be that person... maybe I will."
Greyson stared at her, his usual arrogance replaced by something more human. He wasn't redeemed, and Kathrin wasn't here to save him. But they both knew that this was no ordinary bond. It was built on the understanding that life had stripped them of so much, and in each other, they might just find a way to reclaim some control.
Greyson stepped closer, and for the first time, when he reached out to touch her, it wasn't with force but with uncertainty. "You're not afraid of me?"
"I'm not afraid of what I understand," Kathrin replied quietly.
Greyson smiled, not the cruel smirk she had grown used to, but something softer, almost grateful. "Maybe you're the first person who does."
Kathrin looked at him, her expression steady. "I won't stay if you expect me to put up with everything. If you want me here, things have to change."
"I'll try," Greyson said, his voice low, but there was a sincerity there that hadn't been before.
Kathrin nodded. "Then we'll see where this goes."
