Elara barely sleeps.
Every small sound makes her flinch.
Every flicker of light feels like a warning.
In the morning, Damien summons her to his office — a room with floor-to-ceiling windows and a view that makes the city look tiny, fragile, distant.
He doesn't sit.
He stands behind the desk, staring at a digital file on the screen.
"We found something," he says.
Elara's pulse jumps.
Damien clicks the screen, and a photo appears.
A woman, elegant and dangerously beautiful.
Sharp cheekbones.
Cold smile.
Dark eyes that could slice.
Elara recognizes the dress instantly — that metallic purple shimmer.
> "That's her," Elara whispers.
Damien nods.
> "Her name is Selene Arcturus."
The name carries weight, like a storm wrapped in silk.
> "She's the heiress of Arcturus Industries," Damien explains, voice tight.
"One of the largest weapons-tech companies in the world."
Elara's heart stops.
> "Weapons…?"
> "Yes," he says. "And she believes marrying me would have given her a controlling stake in a merger she's been chasing for two years."
Elara stares at him.
> "So she attacked me because she lost a business deal?"
Damien shakes his head.
> "No, Elara. She attacked you because she doesn't lose. Ever. And she thinks eliminating you restores the path she wants."
A chill sweeps through Elara.
She finally understands the scale of the battlefield she's stepped into.
Damien steps closer, lowering his voice.
> "You need to understand something."
"Selene is brilliant. Ruthless. And the kind of person who smiles while ending a life."
Elara swallows hard.
He continues:
> "She's not working alone. She has investors, mercenaries, and a political shield that makes her almost untouchable."
Elara's breath trembles.
> "What does she want now?"
Damien meets her gaze.
> "She wants you terrified."
"She wants you isolated."
"And eventually… she wants you gone."
Elara feels the weight of it settle over her like a cold fog.
But then Damien says something unexpected.
> "She underestimated you."
Elara blinks.
"What?"
Damien walks around the desk, stopping inches from her.
His voice softens.
> "You survived a direct attack."
"You fought back."
"Most people would have collapsed. You ran towards the crowd, not away from it."
For the first time, there's admiration in his eyes.
> "You're stronger than she thinks."
A moment hangs there between them—tight, quiet, dangerous in a different way.
Before Elara can respond, Damien's head of security bursts in.
> "Sir. We just intercepted something."
Damien turns sharply.
"What is it?"
The guard hands him a small black envelope.
Elara's chest tightens.
Damien opens it.
Inside is a single card.
Black, glossy, and embossed with a silver crescent moon — Selene's signature symbol.
Five words are written in perfect handwriting:
YOU CAN'T PROTECT HER FOREVER.
Elara's breath catches.
Damien's fists clench.
> "She wants war?" he murmurs.
"Then she'll get it."
He turns to Elara with a determination she's never seen before.
> "Pack your things."
"We're leaving the city."
Cliffhanger:
Elara stares at him, stunned—
because the last thing she expected was Damien Wolfe…
running.