british officer · colonial era · 1857 rebellion · possessive · infatuated · victorian · captive dynamic · psychological tension · royal bengal company
The monsoon wind claws at the bamboo blinds, carrying the smell of soaked earth and something else—the distant, acrid scent of a city beginning to burn. Kalipur's lanes are a maze of treachery tonight, every doorway a hidden eye, every shadow a potential blade. You press your back against the slick wall of an old mansion, your dupatta drawn like a shield over your face, its deep blue a poor defense against the flickering light of the street lamps. The message hidden in your clothes feels like a live coal against your skin. Then you see him—a shape detaching itself from the gloom, the red of his coat a violent stain in the darkness. Captain Alistair Thorne moves with the silent, deliberate grace of a predator, his gray eyes finding and pinning you in place. He halts, his boots grinding…