Aria bolted upright, sheets tangled around her legs.
Damien's voice wouldn't stop clawing at her head. "All of it belongs to me." The words ricocheted in her skull, cutting through her like shards of glass.
She shoved the covers aside and swung her feet to the cold floor. Her chest heaved, each breath shallow, sharp. Sleep wasn't coming. Not tonight.
Not ever, with him caging her thoughts.
She paced the room, the walls closing in tighter with every step. Her palms brushed the curtains, the dresser, the locked door. Everything in this place screamed of Damien's control. She yanked the handle, expecting resistance. To her shock, it gave way. The door wasn't locked.
Her pulse spiked. Why tonight?
She slipped into the hall, heart pounding loud enough she swore the guards could hear it. The corridor stretched empty, shadows flickering from the dim sconces. She pressed forward, searching for air, anywhere but that suffocating room.
A sound cut through the silence.
She froze. Then she heard it again, closer this time,urgent whispers from the garden. Against every instinct, she crept to the balcony doors, fingers trembling as she pushed them open.
And there he was.
"Aria," Ethan rasped, blood staining the front of his shirt. His eyes, wild with desperation, locked on hers.
"Come with me. Now!!."
Her stomach dropped. "Ethan..what are you doing here? You'll be killed"
"No time," he hissed, clutching his side. "I got past the guards. We can leave. I'll take you far away from him. You've got to trust me."
Her mind spun. Freedom. The word slammed into her chest like a drum.
But before she could move, the night split open.
"Don't even dare !!!."
Damien's voice. Cold and Lethal.
The balcony lit up with motion. Armed men poured in, rifles raised, red dots dancing across Ethan's chest.
Damien emerged from the shadows, his long trench coat brushing the ground, the faint glint of the city lights catching the edges of the dark fur collar. His presence filled the place, calm and menacing all at once, eyes gleaming with cruel amusement.
He didn't look surprised. No, he looked like he had been waiting for this exact moment.
"Well, well," Damien drawled, his voice low and controlled, carrying that familiar edge of danger.
"The rat returns to the trap."
Ethan stepped back instinctively, shielding Aria with his own body.
Stay away from her," he spat, his voice trembling more from fear than anger.
Damien tilted his head, the shadows highlighting the sharp lines of his face. A smile ghosted his lips, not warm, not kind, but sharp, predatory. "You came crawling back to my doorstep, bleeding like a fool," he said, pacing just a step closer, "and you dare make demands?"
His gaze snapped to Aria, sharp as a knife. "Tell me, sweetheart… is this what you want? This broken man risking his life for you?"
Aria's heart thudded painfully in her chest. She could feel the tension in the air, thick enough to taste. Every step Damien took seemed deliberate, measured, as if he were savoring the scene, the fear, and her presence.
Ethan's hand trembled slightly as he gripped her arm, trying to anchor her, to shield her from the storm that was Damien.
Her thoughts raced. Why does he always look so… untouchable? Even like this, with danger practically rolling off him, there's something magnetic. She swallowed hard, trying not to flinch as Damien's eyes met hers, unblinking..
Damien stopped a mere foot away, letting the silence stretch, letting the words sink in. His hand brushed the edge of his coat almost absentmindedly, but every movement spoke of control, precision, and quiet dominance. And then, he smiled,slow, deliberate, teasing, spread just enough to make her stomach twist.
He's enjoying this. He's always enjoying this, she thought, the realization sending a shiver through her.
Ethan tightened his grip on her shoulder, but Aria took a steadying breath and straightened, her chin high. I'm not afraid.
Damien's gaze flicked between them, sharp and calculating, and he chuckled softly under his breath, almost to himself. "Such fire… such spirit," he murmured, his voice like silk laced with steel. "She's clever, isn't she, my little rabbit?" His eyes softened or perhaps that was just her imagination, but the dangerous edge never left them.
And yet, beneath the predatory amusement, a spark of something unreadable stirred. Damien leaned slightly closer, as if measuring, judging, savoring every heartbeat in the place. The air hummed with tension, with unsaid threats and unspoken promises, and Aria realized, with a pang, that she had never felt anything so sharp, so intoxicating, or so terrifying all at once.
"Stop," Aria choked out, her voice breaking. "Please… don't hurt him."
Ethan's hand twitched toward his weapon, but Damien's voice lashed out first.
"Don't." The single word froze him mid-motion.
Instantly, red laser sights from the guards' rifles snapped onto his chest, a dozen glowing dots pinning him in place.
Aria's breath hitched. One wrong move and Ethan would be gone.
Damien strode forward, calm in the storm, his presence more suffocating than the smoke curling around them. He stopped inches from Ethan, gaze unreadable. "I should let them tear you apart. But I don't waste tools that still have value."
His eyes shifted to Aria. The smirk returned, darker now. "So here's your choice."
Her stomach knotted.
"You leave with him now," Damien said, his tone soft but deadly. "But he dies before sunrise."
Ethan stiffened, blood dripping through his fingers. "Don't listen to him…"
"Or," Damien continued, cutting him off, "you stay here. With me. And I'll let him live. Bruised, broken perhaps, but breathing. Under my watch." His lips curved. "Bound to me… forever."
Aria's knees nearly buckled. Her pulse thundered in her ears, drowning out the world, making it hard to breathe. She tried to swallow, but her throat was bone dry, like sandpaper scraping against itself.
Her gaze darted to Ethan. His face was pale, lips trembling, blood soaking through his shirt. His eyes begged her,choose me, save me.
That look sliced her open in a way bullets never could.
Then Damien's eyes seized her, locking her in place. They were endless pools of shadow, cold and claiming, promising chains she could never escape. His smirk was faint, but it pressed on her chest heavier than a gun against her ribs.
Her hands shook. She clutched them together at her stomach to hide it, but Damien noticed. Of course he noticed.
His gaze lingered there, savoring her fear like it was a feast meant only for him.
The air felt too thick. Each inhale scraped her lungs raw. She wanted to scream, to cry, to claw her way out of this nightmare, but no sound came. Only silence. Only terror.
Her mind screamed run, run, run…but her body refused. Because if she ran, Ethan would fall. She saw it already: his body sprawled across the cold marble, lifeless, because of her choice.
Her chest constricted so tight it hurt. She looked between them, again and again, like her eyes could find a way out, like staring long enough would open a door that didn't exist.
Her lips trembled. Her breath caught. She felt Damien's power pressing closer, Ethan's desperation pulling harder those two chains dragging her apart until she thought she might shatter.
And still, she couldn't decide.
The silence stretched, crushing her chest. Seconds bled into what felt like eternity, each one slicing her thinner than the last.
Her lips parted. Her breath hitched. She opened her mouth to speak….