The mansion gates groaned shut behind them, iron grinding against iron like the jaws of a beast. Kai sat stiff in the car, his hands still trembling despite the silence that followed the firefight. His ears buzzed with phantom gunfire, his chest refusing to slow.
Lucias didn't look at him once during the ride back. He leaned into the shadows of his seat, eyes forward, the sharp line of his jaw set in something that wasn't anger—but wasn't calm either.
Kai hated the silence more than the bullets.
When the car finally stopped in the courtyard, Mark was out first, his usual calm intact. He glanced at Jas, who looked pale and shaken. Without a word, Mark rested a steadying hand on their shoulder, guiding them toward the safety of the inner halls.
Kai stumbled after them, but Lucias's voice cut like a whip.
"You. With me."
Kai froze. His pulse jumped at the command. His body wanted to rebel, to spit a smart retort—but his instincts screamed louder. Tonight had already proved how thin the line between survival and death was.
Lucias's hand clamped around his wrist. Not bruising, but unyielding. The kind of grip that didn't allow escape. He dragged Kai down a different hall, past steel doors and guards who bowed their heads the instant their boss passed.
"Where are you taking me?" Kai demanded, trying to match Lucias's stride, his voice sharp to mask the spike of nerves.
Lucias didn't answer until they reached a heavy door at the end of the corridor. He unlocked it with a code, then shoved it open.
Inside: a room. Larger than the safe one Kai had been confined to before. Polished floors. A broad bed. A desk, bookshelves, and a single narrow window sealed with reinforced glass.
A cage disguised as a sanctuary.
Kai's breath caught. "What is this?"
Lucias finally turned, eyes locking onto his. "Your new quarters."
Kai's jaw dropped. "Quarters? You make it sound like I enlisted."
Lucias's expression didn't change. "You saw what happened tonight. They came for you. That means you don't leave my sight again. Not until I say otherwise."
Kai's chest tightened. "You can't be serious. You're locking me in here? What am I, a pet?"
Lucias stepped closer, the heat of him pressing against the air itself. "You're a liability. Until I know why they want you, you stay where I can control the outcome."
Kai glared up at him. "Control. That's all this is to you, isn't it? Contain, command, leash."
Lucias's lips curved, not quite a smile, more a dangerous edge. "Leashes keep wolves from tearing their throats out. You should be grateful I'm not letting you bleed out on the pavement instead."
Kai's breath stuttered. For a moment, his defiance faltered under the intensity of that gaze—the raw truth buried inside it. Lucias hadn't dragged him here for amusement. He'd done it because he meant to keep him alive.
And somehow, that was worse.
"Don't look at me like I should thank you," Kai muttered, dropping his gaze.
Lucias leaned in, voice brushing against Kai's ear like velvet and steel. "I don't need your thanks. I need your compliance."
Kai's heart slammed against his ribs. He hated the way heat curled in his chest at those words, hated how close Lucias was, hated—
—and yet didn't move away.
Lucias finally stepped back, breaking the charged air between them. "Mark will assign guards. Jas will be relocated nearby. You'll eat, sleep, and work from this room. Step out without my permission, and I will personally drag you back."
Kai spat, "You think you scare me?"
Lucias's eyes narrowed, dangerous and dark. "No. I think I intrigue you."
The words hit harder than a bullet. Kai's throat went dry, his body betraying him as heat flushed through his veins.
Lucias turned and walked out, the door locking shut behind him.
---
Hours passed. Kai sat on the edge of the bed, fingers raking through his hair. His laptop sat untouched on the desk. No hacking, no freedom, no escape. Just walls. And the echo of Lucias's words crawling through his skull.
"I think I intrigue you."
Kai clenched his fists. "Arrogant bastard."
But when he closed his eyes, it wasn't bullets or shadows he saw. It was the way Lucias's body shielded his. The fire in his eyes when he thought Kai might die. The heat in his voice when he whispered so close.
Kai hated it. Hated that part of him burned for more.
---
Elsewhere, in a quieter wing of the mansion, Jas paced their new quarters restlessly. The room was comfortable, but their thoughts weren't.
Mark stood by the door, silent sentinel.
"You don't have to stand there like a statue," Jas said softly.
Mark's gaze flicked to them. "It's my job."
Jas smiled faintly. "Your job, or your habit?"
For the first time that night, something cracked in Mark's expression. His lips twitched, almost a smile, but faded before it could form. "Maybe both."
Jas stepped closer, their voice gentle. "You saved us tonight. Thank you."
Mark looked away, eyes shadowed. "Don't thank me. It won't always be enough."
But Jas reached out anyway, their hand brushing lightly against his arm. "For tonight, it was."
Mark froze, staring down at that small, grounding touch. The mansion walls felt less heavy for the first time in years.
---
Back in his locked room, Kai finally lay back on the bed, staring at the ceiling. He told himself he hated Lucias. Hated the control, the arrogance, the leash around his throat.
And yet… when he closed his eyes, all he could feel was the burn of fire against his ice.
Enemies, yes. But the storm inside him whispered that fire would devour ice, sooner or later.