Pedro entered his private quarters, closing the door behind him with a quiet click. The silence of the room did little to ease the restlessness crawling under his skin. His suit felt suffocating, his pulse too erratic, his mind spinning in too many directions.Valeria’s threats were not empty words. He knew that well.He had seen her ruin careers with a snap of her fingers, watched her strip models of their contracts, blacklist actresses from entire industries, and destroy women she deemed a threat, just because she could.And now, she had set her sights on Aelia.Pulling out his phone, he dialed a secure number.“She needs protection,” Pedro said the moment the call connected.There was no need for names. The person on the other end understood instantly.“Ghost detail?”“Yes.”The voice hesitated. “She won’t notice?”“She doesn’t need to.”There was a brief pause before the answer came. “It will be done.”Pedro ended the call and exhaled slowly, pressing his fingers against his templ
“Mr. Montonio sent an invitation.” Derrick announced and that was all that needed to be said. By the evening of the next day Pedro knew where he had to be. The Montonio estate was as extravagant as ever, its vast halls adorned with artwork worth more than most people’s entire lives. The dining room was set for four, candlelight flickering against the polished mahogany table, wine poured into crystal glasses.Pedro sat across from Valeria, his expression unreadable as he swirled the dark red liquid in his glass.And at the head of the table, exuding power and arrogance, sat Mr. Gabriel Montonio.Pedro’s father.The man who had made him. The man he despised.Gabriel Montonio had aged well, his presence as commanding as ever. He was dressed in a tailored suit, his salt-and-pepper hair slicked back, his sharp eyes holding the weight of decades of ruthless decisions.But Pedro wasn’t looking at him.His attention was locked on the woman sitting beside his father.She was young, breathtaki
Tonight, I wanted to forget everything. Forget the lingering fear that had followed me for weeks.Forget the strange gifts, the unsettling warnings, the man who made my life feel like it was spiraling out of my control.Tonight, I wanted to be free.I fastened the last clasp of my earring and took a step back, letting my eyes glide over my reflection in the mirror.The dress Jamie had sent me this morning was a masterpiece, deep red, the fabric smooth and luxurious against my skin. Tiny stones were embedded all over, shimmering like crushed ruby gems every time I moved. Paired with my styled hair and bold red lipstick, I looked… different.Elegant. Beautiful. Like a woman who belonged in a fairytale.I let out a slow breath.A knock at the door snapped me out of my trance.Jamie.I smoothed my dress and made my way to the door, my heart beating a little faster than usual. The moment I opened it, I was greeted by the sight of him, sharp navy blue suit, perfectly tailored, his dark ha
Aelia’s POVThe world around me blurred.Wine dripped from my hair, soaking into my dress, but I hardly felt it. My ears were ringing, my heartbeat thundering in my chest as I stared at Jamie.He wasn’t speaking.He couldn’t speak.That silence, it was worse than if he had denied it.Because his silence was the truth.The woman beside him, the one who had humiliated me in front of him, straightened her shoulders, her lips arching in satisfaction. Then, she turned to Jamie.“Choose,” she said, her voice firm, expectant.I sucked in a shaky breath.Jamie’s mouth parted slightly, but no words came out.Seconds passed.And still, nothing.My entire body went cold.I had been waiting for him to say something, to explain, to deny, to fight for me.But he didn’t.And that was all the answer I needed.I took a step back, my heels clicking against the polished floor. The restaurant felt suffocating, the candlelight too warm, the walls too tight.I had to get out.So I ran.I pushed past the t
Pedro’s POVThe drive home was silent.No music. No calls. Just the steady hum of the engine and the rain drumming against the windshield.I should have felt something…satisfaction, amusement, victory.I had done exactly what I intended. I had shattered her relationship. I had watched as she crumbled, as she ran out into the rain with nowhere to belong.This should have pleased me.But it didn’t.Instead, a hollow emptiness settled in my chest, heavy and unfamiliar.My fingers flexed against the wheel, a muscle in my jaw ticking as Aelia’s final words rang in my head.“No one ever chooses me!”The way she screamed it, the rawness in her voice, it wouldn’t leave me.I tightened my grip, irritation burning beneath my skin.I had always known my emotions. I controlled them and mastered them.But right now, I didn’t know what the hell I was feeling.And I hated it.I picked up my phone and dialed.“Derrick,” I said the moment he answered. “Come to the house. Bring me everything you have
Aelia’s POVWhen I woke up, I didn’t move, I didn’t even blink. I just stared at the ceiling, watching the dull cracks in the paint, following them with my eyes as if tracing an escape route.My body felt heavy.As though I had been buried beneath the weight of something I couldn’t name.The dress sitting nicely on my stool stared at me in mock delight, much to my terror. It barely resembled what it once was. The ruby-red fabric was wrinkled and stained, the shimmer dull, like it had withered along with everything else.I had peeled off the diamond necklace Jamie gave me at some point. It now lay abandoned on my nightstand, catching the soft morning light which was the only thing in my room that still had life.I turned my head and caught sight of myself in the mirror across the room.I wished I hadn’t.My eyes were swollen, the skin beneath them bruised and dark. My lips were dry, my hair a tangled mess. I looked like someone who had spent the entire night breaking apart.And I had.
Aelia’s grip tightened around the envelope in her hands as she stepped into the towering glass building with a bold crest “Corale Prime” the biggest conglomerate in the continent. She didn’t hesitate and wouldn’t hesitate tonight.She had spent the entire day ensuring every last trace of Pedro Montonio’s gifts was erased from her life. A broker had liquidated the designer clothes, the extravagant jewelry, the limited-edition shoes, every damn thing, much to Darla’s dismay.Now, the money was in her hands, wrapped in a crisp white envelope.And tonight, she would end this.She walked up to the front desk with her heart pounding but her resolve firm.“I’m here to see Mr. Montonio,” she said, standing tall.The receptionist, a woman in her mid-thirties with sharp eyes that barely glanced at her.“Do you have an appointment?”“No, but—”“Then I’m afraid Mr. Montonio is unavailable.”Aelia clenched her jaw. “I just need five minutes.”The woman’s stare was cold. “No appointment, no meetin
The silence in Pedro’s office was suffocating.Aelia stood frozen, her pulse pounding so violently she could hear it in her ears. He owned the orphanage.Her last refuge. The only place that had ever felt like home.Pedro Montonio had taken that, too.Her throat felt tight, her pride crumbling as the weight of what she had to do pressed against her chest.She hated him. Hated him to her core!But for the children, for Penelope…She swallowed hard, forcing the words out. “Please… don’t do this.”Pedro watched her carefully, his blue eyes glistening. He leaned back against his desk, arms crossing over his chest as he tilted his head.“I’m a reasonable man, Aelia.” His voice was smooth, controlled. “If you want me to leave the orphanage untouched, I need something in return.”Dread curled inside her. “What do you want?”Pedro’s lips quirked at the corner. “Work for me.”Aelia stiffened.“No.”His gaze didn’t waver. “Then the orphanage goes.”Aelia’s stomach plummeted.He wouldn’t.Would
The moment Sola stepped outside, she knew something was wrong.The air felt too heavy, too watchful. The street was too quiet, save for the distant hum of traffic. Then came the sharp sound of a car door slamming.Two men in suits approached. Not just any men, law enforcement.“Sola Spencer,” the taller one said, voice clipped. “We need you to come with us for questioning.”Sola’s brows furrowed. “What?”A flash of a badge and a formal tone. “You’re a suspect in an ongoing investigation. Please come with us.”The world shifted on its axis. She felt it in the pit of her stomach, the kind of freefall sensation that came with being caught off guard. She barely had time to react before firm hands took her by the arms, guiding her toward the unmarked car.Her mind raced. Investigation? What the hell were they talking about?Then she saw them, reporters. Cameras flashing, microphones extending.(“Sola Spencer, do you have any comments about the allegations?”“Are you responsible for Aelia
The room was too quiet. The kind of quiet that made Darcy’s skin crawl.She sat beside the bed, hands clasped together as she stared at Aelia’s face. Peaceful. Unmoving. It didn’t suit her. Aelia was never still, never silent. She filled spaces with her presence, with her sharp wit, with the reckless gleam in her eye that always warned trouble was around the corner.Darcy swallowed the lump in her throat.She hated this. Hated how pale Aelia looked under the hospital lights. Hated the slow, rhythmic beeping of the heart monitor, each sound reminding her that Aelia was still here but only barely.“You idiot,” she whispered, fingers tightening in her lap. “You absolute idiot.”She exhaled, pressing her palm against her forehead. “You promised, Aelia. You promised me. And now you’re just lying here—” She sucked in a shaky breath, her chest heaving. “I can’t, I don’t know how to do this without you.”The words scraped against her throat, raw and aching.“I should be angry,” she admitted,
Something touched her, warm, damp, seeping into her skin like a silent plea. Aelia couldn’t see it, but she felt it. A drop of something, liquid, heavy, and full of sorrow breaking through the veil of unconsciousness that held her.And then, she could hear him.At first, it was just a murmur, distant and hollow, like an echo traveling through an endless void. But the more she focused, the clearer it became.Pedro.His voice cracked and raw, whispering words between ragged breaths. She couldn’t grasp all of them, but the pain in his tone tightened something in her chest. It felt tight, suffocating. He was crying. Crying because of me? The thought alone sent a ripple through the darkness. She wasn’t angry. She should be, she knew she should be. But all she felt was… grief. A terrible, gnawing grief.And then, Penelope.Aelia’s breath…if she had any in this state, hitched. The memory of her promise came crashing down. ‘I told her I would come back. I told her I’d visit every day.’ The
Pedro’s POVThe doctor stood stiffly behind his desk, fingers twitching against the clipboard he held. The room was too quiet, except for the ticking of the wall clock, slow, agonizing ticks that did nothing but fuel the storm building inside me.“She’s stable,” he said, voice careful, controlled, like he was stepping through a fucking minefield. “But… waking up is entirely up to her.”I stilled.“What?”The doctor swallowed. “We’ve done everything we can. The surgeries were successful. There’s no internal bleeding, and her vitals are steady, but—”“But?” My voice dropped, lethal.He hesitated. “But… at this point, we can only keep her stable and monitor her progress. We can’t force her to wake up.”A sharp, seething breath pushed through my teeth.The clipboard in his hands trembled slightly, his knuckles white. He wasn’t a fool. He knew who I was, knew what I was capable of. But that didn’t change the fact that I was hearing the same fucking words I had heard once before, words that
The hospital air was thick with antiseptic and despair.Pedro stood at the edge of the chaos, rigid and silent, his presence a storm contained within flesh. The emergency ward was alive with urgency, doctors barking orders, nurses rushing between rooms, the rhythmic blaring of heart monitors filling the space. People moved around him, but he remained still, watching through the glass as the team of surgeons fought to keep Aelia tethered to the world.His breath was slow, deliberate, but his mind was anything but calm.Aelia.Lifeless.The moment he had seen her car—no, what was left of it, something in him had cracked. The twisted metal, the shattered windshield, the streaks of blood smeared against the crumpled hood. It looked less like an accident and more like an execution.His phone had vibrated in his hand then, a message flashing across the screen like a blade drawn across his throat.“You should’ve said goodbye when you had the chance.”The sender was unknown. Of course, they
“What if—what if…they don’t come back?” Penelope’s muffled voice invaded Aelia’s ears like a nightmare. She lifted Penelope’s face and carefully cleaned her tear-streaked face, flashing a smile she forced to reach her eyes. “Don’t say that, they’d definitely be back, Penny. Or have you forgotten how resilient Sam is or even how Annabel can’t stay a day without Mr. Bunny? that means she would wake up soon to cuddle him so you don’t have to worry. Kimberly will never let you have all the snacks so she would certainly be back for them.”Penelope giggled, “You’re right, Kimberly would definitely be back for my snacks.” Her eyes had a rare gleam as she added “I don’t mind giving them all to her, if only she returns… I wish I had given them to her without fighting.” her voice cracked and Aelia’s heart broke. Aelia held Penelope tighter, cradling her as though she could shield her from everything. It wasn’t fair. None of this was fair. The orphanage, the only home they had, now a crime s
Pedro sat in the back of the car, fingers steepled beneath his chin as he listened to the report. His shadow man’s voice was level, but the words hit like a blow.Aelia had left the villa.And worse, he now knew why.“The children,” Derrick muttered from the passenger seat, brows furrowed as he read the incoming messages on his phone. “Food poisoning. All of them except one. The police are involved. It’s being called a targeted attack.”Pedro didn’t move, but something cold slithered through his veins. He knew how much those orphans meant to Aelia. If she had rushed to the hospital without thinking, she was vulnerable.More than that, this wasn’t just an accident.Someone was pulling the strings.Pedro exhaled sharply through his nose. “Get in touch with the hospital director. I want the best doctors on this case. No excuses.”Derrick nodded, already dialing.Pedro turned his gaze out the window, watching the streets blur past. His heart burned at the thought of those children, innoce
Aelia didn’t sleep well, but she refused to acknowledge why. She lay in a different room, the space around her feeling unfamiliar, suffocating, yet better than the alternative—waking up next to him again.She had just started to drift off when a knock at the door pulled her back to reality. Pedro’s voice followed, low and serious.“I have business to take care of. Don’t go outside. No matter what.”She blinked, staring at the ceiling. Business. The word carried a weight she didn’t want to unpack. She didn’t answer at first, but the silence stretched between them like a taut wire until she sighed and finally turned her head toward the door.“Alright,” she murmured, voice hoarse from exhaustion.He didn’t move. “Promise me.”Her gaze flickered toward the dark outline of his shadow under the doorframe. Even from here, she could tell he was waiting, testing her, maybe. Aelia swallowed, then glanced toward his arm, where she knew the injury still rested beneath his shirt, still healing.“…
The scent of blood and iron thickened the air, stale and suffocating. The dim light barely reached the corners of the abandoned warehouse, where a man sat slumped against a metal chair, his face battered beyond recognition. His breaths were wet, labored, rattling like a dying engine struggling to start.Pedro stood before him, sleeves rolled up, a cigarette burning between his fingers. His shirt was still crisp despite the chaos that had taken place here before his arrival. The man was barely conscious, but his body told a different story—deep bruises, lacerations, and the telltale signs of bones that had been forcefully bent in the wrong directions.Derrick stood nearby, watching the pitiful excuse for an assassin with cold detachment. “He’s tougher than expected,” Derrick murmured. “But he’s slipping. Another hour, and he’ll break.”Pedro exhaled a slow drag of smoke, watching the assassin’s swollen eyelids flutter. “We don’t have another hour,” he said, flicking the cigarette to th