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20: The Return of the Past
Terakhir Diperbarui:
2025-02-11 06:51:12
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Broken Vows, New Promises 21: Uncharted Territory
Damien had insisted, gently but firmly, that I needed to come with him. He wasn’t taking no for an answer.His voice had been soft, but there was no mistaking the authority that underlay every word. His hands were still on me, the way they had been earlier, never leaving me for a second as he guided me toward the elevator. His grip was possessive, like a man who wasn’t willing to let go—of me, of the situation, or of whatever had been brewing between us since that very first night.“Come on, Aurora,” Damien had said, his voice a mixture of patience and determination. “You need to rest. You’ve been through too much tonight. I’m taking you somewhere safe, somewhere you can calm down.”I hadn’t been in the right state of mind to argue, and honestly, I didn’t know if I wanted to. Part of me still felt shaken from the confrontation with Adrian, and the idea of retreating to somewhere far from all the pain, all the memories, had a strange allure.The penthouse. Damien's penthouse.I had hea
Terakhir Diperbarui : 2025-02-15Broken Vows, New Promises 22: The Storm That Approaches
The next morning, the sunlight streamed through the vast windows of Damien’s penthouse, casting long, golden rays across the marble floor. The city beyond was waking up, its hustle and bustle a far cry from the stillness inside the penthouse.I sat at the dining table, my hands wrapped around a mug of coffee, but I couldn’t taste it. I couldn’t focus on the mundane. My mind was still caught in a whirlwind, torn between the betrayal of Adrian and the undeniable pull I felt toward Damien.I didn’t want to feel this way. I didn’t want to be caught in this storm of emotions, this battle between the remnants of a past that had shattered me and the overwhelming, dangerous allure of the man who had taken me in last night.I glanced over at Damien, who was across the room, his back turned as he paced, seemingly deep in thought. His posture exuded power, confidence, and a quiet intensity that was always there, even when he wasn’t speaking. The air between us was thick with tension, but it wasn
Terakhir Diperbarui : 2025-02-15Broken Vows, New Promises 23: Crossroads and Unexpected Encounters
Aurora’s POVThe drive to Damien’s office felt like an eternity. My hands were clasped tightly in my lap, trying to ignore the way my heart pounded in my chest. Damien, ever the calm and collected figure, sat beside me in the back of the car, his gaze focused, his body radiating an air of possessiveness I couldn’t shake.I had spent the past few days wrestling with the turmoil in my heart, the confusing pull toward Damien and the remnants of what I thought I had with Adrian. But I knew one thing for certain: there was no going back. Damien had made that clear.The car came to a slow stop in front of the towering glass building that housed Damien’s company, and my breath caught in my throat. I had always known Damien was powerful, but standing before the skyscraper that symbolized his dominance in the corporate world made the weight of his presence feel even heavier."Are you alright?" Damien’s voice broke through my thoughts, his gaze searching mine as he reached for the door.I force
Terakhir Diperbarui : 2025-02-15Broken Vows, New Promises 24: The Ties That Bind
Aurora’s POVThe weight of Damien’s presence beside me seemed to intensify with each passing minute. After the awkward encounter with Adrian and Victoria in his office, I couldn’t shake the feeling of being caught between two worlds—two men—and the complicated emotions that swirled around them.The car ride back to Damien’s penthouse was quieter than usual. I was lost in my thoughts, trying to piece together the fragments of my shattered reality. The idea of Adrian being under Damien’s employ didn’t sit right with me. I could still hear his words echoing in my mind: “You’ll come back to me, Aurora. You always will.”But the thought of going back to Adrian felt like swallowing poison. After everything that had happened, after the betrayal, the lies—it was over. I was done. Yet, why did it still hurt? Why did it still feel like a wound that hadn’t fully closed?Damien’s hand rested on the back of my neck as we entered his penthouse, his touch grounding me in the present. I hadn’t even n
Terakhir Diperbarui : 2025-02-15Broken Vows, New Promises 25: The Proposal and The Cunning Game
Aurora’s POVThe days had passed in a blur since the night Damien brought me to his penthouse. I had spent hours lost in thought, wrestling with my emotions, but still unable to escape the hold he had on me. Damien was becoming something more than just a man I was falling for—he was quickly becoming my world. And that terrified me.I had already begun to accept the fact that Adrian and I were truly done, but I hadn’t yet reconciled the strange sense of peace I felt when I was with Damien. His presence was both grounding and unsettling, as though he was both offering me stability and pulling me into a whirlwind I wasn’t prepared for.It was late evening when Damien finally broke the silence that had been hanging between us for days.“Aurora,” he began, his deep voice cutting through the stillness. I turned to look at him, sensing the change in his tone—something serious, something final.I could already feel the weight of his words before he even spoke them.“I’ve been thinking about u
Terakhir Diperbarui : 2025-02-15Broken Vows, New Promises 26: The Storm Unleashed
Aurora’s POVThe day had started like any other—quiet, filled with the hum of routine, and yet, there was an unmistakable weight in the air. I had spent most of the morning in Damien’s penthouse, trying to work through the whirlwind of emotions that had been consuming me ever since that proposal. Despite my heart’s longing, doubt gnawed at me. Was this really what I wanted? What Damien wanted? Or was I merely a part of a dangerous game—one that I couldn’t fully understand yet?Then, the doorbell rang.It was late afternoon when Damien opened the door to reveal a tall, imposing figure standing in the doorway. His expression was stern, unreadable, but there was no mistaking the presence of authority that surrounded him. The man behind him was someone I hadn’t met, but from the way Damien tensed, I knew who it was. His father."Damien," his father’s voice was cold, his gaze sharp and calculated as he stepped inside. "We need to talk."I stood frozen, watching as Damien’s eyes flicked to
Terakhir Diperbarui : 2025-02-16Broken Vows, New Promises 27: A Deadly Game
Aurora's POVThe days were becoming increasingly suffocating. The weight of Damien's attention, both possessive and overwhelming, was enough to make my heart race in a constant state of confusion. I couldn’t deny the pull I felt toward him, but at the same time, the dark clouds of his family’s disapproval loomed over me, leaving me feeling like a fragile pawn in a game I never agreed to play.And now, the tension seemed to be growing thicker. Damien’s father's warning still echoed in my mind, his cold words lingering long after he left. “You will be dragged down by this woman." The threat had been clear—he would stop at nothing to ensure his son returned to the life he had been raised for, a life that didn’t include me. I wasn't the woman he envisioned for Damien.I sat quietly at Damien’s penthouse that evening, trying to sort through my thoughts. Damien had insisted on keeping me close, even though it was clear neither of us knew how to navigate the deepening mess we were caught in.
Terakhir Diperbarui : 2025-02-16Broken Vows, New Promises 28: A Heart in Peril
Damien’s POVMy heart was still racing as I paced outside the hospital room. The hospital staff had taken Aurora away to run some tests, but the unease in my chest wasn’t from concern over her health—it was something else. Something darker.I couldn’t shake the feeling that all of this was too orchestrated, too calculated. My instincts were on high alert. I hadn’t seen anything out of the ordinary at first—just a normal hospital visit, a few concerned looks from the staff—but as I watched Aurora get wheeled away for more testing, a creeping sensation began to coil in my stomach. Something was wrong.I stepped out into the corridor, my mind still racing. I needed answers. I needed to know who was behind this.Before I could move any further, my phone rang. The number that flashed on the screen made my blood run cold. My father. I hadn’t heard from him in days, but there was no mistaking the stern, commanding tone that came with any communication from him.I gritted my teeth, swiping th
Terakhir Diperbarui : 2025-02-16
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Broken Vows, New Promises CHAPTER 149 : Ashes of the Failsafe
Silence pressed against their ears as they approached the lowest chamber. The air was heavier here—thick with ozone and dread, as if the facility itself exhaled the weight of its own malice. Damien’s flashlight beam danced across the walls, revealing veins of circuitry pulsing beneath steel plates. Each step echoed like a verdict.Aurora’s grip on her rifle tightened. “This corridor leads straight to the core. Seraph must be close.”Asher flanked Damien’s other side, unblinking in the dim light. Though forged in Monroe’s broken crucible, the boy’s courage was pure—a reminder that hope could grow from ashes.Null’s voice crackled in their earpieces. “I’m seeing systems coming back online. Ten minutes before full lockdown. We need to move.”Elias checked his watch. “Understood.”They rounded the final corner and stopped.A vaulted chamber yawned before them. In its center, illuminated by a ring of harsh white light, stood Seraph. Taller than a child but smaller than an adult, she was fr
Broken Vows, New Promises CHAPTER 148 : The Sleeper Below
The silence grew heavier the deeper they went.Null’s map guided them through a maze of subterranean halls—some cold and sterile, others torn by time and disuse. The smooth hum of generators still echoed in places, interspersed by flickering emergency lights that bathed the world in sickly red pulses.Damien led the way with Aurora and Asher close at his heels. The boy in the containment pod had given them everything—coordinates, access routes, and warnings. Seraph wasn’t like Daemon or Omega.He was worse.“Bio-signature locked,” Null murmured, eyes on the scanner as they reached another sealed door. “There’s something down there. No readable vitals, but movement… constant. Pacing, almost.”“He’s waiting,” Aurora said.Asher’s small voice cut in, soft but certain. “He doesn’t think. He reacts. He was made to become… everything they wanted me to be.”Damien knelt beside him. “You don’t have to face this.”Asher looked up. “I do. If we don’t stop him, he’ll come for us. For others.”Au
Broken Vows, New Promises CHAPTER 147 : Into the Heart
The elevator doors closed with a reluctant groan, sealing them in.Inside the narrow shaft, the only light came from their tactical gear—soft glows against skin and metal. Aurora stood beside Damien, her hand brushing against his, an anchor in the silence. Asher stood between them, staring straight ahead, lips pressed into a thin, focused line.The descent felt longer than it should have. As if the very walls were stretching around them—preparing to swallow them whole.Then the lift jolted to a stop.A hiss of depressurization followed. The doors slid open with a groan, revealing a corridor bathed in cold white light. Clean. Too clean. The sterile scent of disinfectant and ozone clung to the air like a ghost.“This is it,” Null said quietly. “The Core Lab.”They stepped out as one.Unlike the upper floors, this level was pristine. Not abandoned. Not even neglected. Lights functioned. Doors responded to biometric scans. Cameras followed their every move, some still tracking with soft c
Broken Vows, New Promises CHAPTER 146 : Before the Storm
The sun dipped low, setting fire to the horizon in hues of crimson and ash. From the ridge above the temporary camp, Damien stood alone, watching shadows stretch over the forest like fingers reaching for something they could never quite hold.Below him, the others prepared in near silence. The kind of silence that didn’t come from fear—but from knowing. From understanding just how close they were to the end.The wind curled around him, carrying the scent of pine and steel and something colder. A storm was coming. Not of weather—but of reckoning.“You always find the highest place when you need to think.”He didn’t turn. He didn’t need to.Aurora’s voice always settled beneath his skin like a familiar hum—gentle and steady.She stepped up beside him, hands tucked into the sleeves of her jacket, her gaze following his to the horizon.“You used to be quieter,” he said. “Before all this.”“I used to have more to be afraid of,” she replied, half-smiling. “Now I just have more to lose.”He
Broken Vows, New Promises CHAPTER 145 : A Name Among the Ashes
The boy didn’t speak of the dream again.But something in him shifted after that night. His steps were a little steadier. His gaze no longer darted to the exits first. He stayed near Damien, yes, but not like a shadow clinging to light. Now, it felt like a tether, an anchor—not dependence, but choice.Damien noticed it when they trained in the clearing behind the safehouse. The boy followed directions without flinching, without looking over his shoulder every five seconds like he expected Monroe to appear from behind the trees. And when Kai handed him a blade—not sharp, just a practice knife—he held it with the curiosity of someone discovering a piece of themselves.“What do we call him?” Eli
Broken Vows, New Promises CHAPTER 144 : Echoes in the Light
The morning sunlight felt wrong.Too bright. Too open.After days in the Hollow’s synthetic twilight, Damien squinted at the skyline like it was some forgotten relic. The world outside was still broken, scarred by everything Monroe had built, but out here—beneath real sky—it felt like breathing for the first time in weeks.They moved through the forest trail in silence, Aurora walking beside Damien, the child—now clothed in a borrowed jacket and boots too large—staying close to Damien’s side like a shadow tethered to light.No name.No past.
Broken Vows, New Promises CHAPTER 143 : The First Breath
The air inside the chamber thickened as the hum of the cryopod deepened, soft lights tracing across its surface like veins awakening after a long slumber. Damien stood with his hand hovering just above the control panel, eyes locked on the boy within. A-00.The child who shouldn’t exist.The child who had been discarded—forgotten—yet had outlived the project meant to replace him.Aurora touched Damien’s arm gently. “Are you ready?”He didn’t answer right away. His gaze was still fixed on the boy’s face. So young, so still. Yet somehow, it felt like staring into a mirror that refused to reflect.
Broken Vows, New Promises CHAPTER 142 : Into the Hollow
The helicopter blades sliced through the Ural sky like a warning.Beneath them, the forest spread like a sea of frozen pine and fractured stone, untouched and unwelcoming. The coordinates Null had provided pointed to a narrow canyon—its jagged sides veined with ice and shadow—where no human path should've ever led.Damien sat beside Aurora, eyes locked on the narrowing terrain below. The cold had begun to seep in through the insulated layers, but it wasn’t the temperature that clenched his gut.It was the silence.Even at this altitude, the absence of wildlife was unnerving.As if nature itself refused to brea
Broken Vows, New Promises CHAPTER 141 : Fractures Beneath the Surface
The wind had changed by morning.Geneva’s neutral calm felt different now—like something sacred had been disturbed beneath its manicured stillness. The team gathered in the briefing room of the underground complex, still shaken from what they’d uncovered the night before: Damien’s prototype—Subject A-01-D—and the fractured remnants of Monroe’s last vault of secrets.No one spoke for a long while.Elias was the first to break the silence. “So what now? We’ve seen the start of it. That clone—your prototype—it changes everything. Doesn’t it?”Null nodded slowly, pacing. “It suggests Monroe’s e
