ADIRA

I’ve been in the hospital with my mom a day now, and her condition only seems to be getting worse. She woke up a few hours after the doctor had given us her prognosis. Since then, she has been in and out of sleep, only waking up occasionally to eat, drink, or use the toilet.

I still refuse to believe that Mama’s chances are slim. She’s strong. Always has been, and I know she’ll fight this too. She just needs us by her side.

I was still lost in thought when my phone buzzed. Annoyed, I frowned—hadn’t I everyone not to disturb me today? I took today off specifically to be with my mother and had explicitly told Thea, my PA, to cancel all my meetings for the day.

Picking up my phone angrily, I saw it was a text from none other than Andronikos.

Demon👿: Meet me at my company now.

First off—he has a company? And yes, I know I should probably know that, but I kinda washed my hands off anything related to him when I got tangled up in his mess. Secondly, is he insane?

I texted back with my usual flare.

Me: Are you sure you don’t need to be admitted to a psychiatric hospital? Because your mind is obviously cracked at this point.

Demon👿: Very funny, Adira. Now, don’t make me ask again. Come to the company now.

I threw my hand in the air in exasperation. He didn’t even ask in the first place!

Right then, my phone rang. It was him.

“I can’t come, Andronikos,” I snapped as soon as I picked up. “My mother is in the hospital, and I’m not leaving her here alone.”

“And?” he replied, utterly bored. “That’s what her husband is for. There’s something important I need to discuss with you. I need you right here. Right now. So, get your ass here, or you’ll regret it.”

“Can’t you just tell me over the phone?”

“No”

“You—”

He cut the call. The bastard fucking cut the call.

I groaned. I cannot with this man.

Sighing, I called my dad to let him know I had business to attend to, then kissed my mother’s forehead.

“I’ll be back Mama,” I whispered. “Get better soon, so you can hit me playfully when I do something stupid, okay?”

Forlornly, I left the hospital room and rushed to the apartment to freshen up. After spending a whole day in the hospital, I smelled like death—and as much as I hated Andronikos guts at the moment, I refused to meet him looking like a corpse.

Twenty minutes later, I stood in front of Andronikos’ pharmaceutical company. I burst out laughing.

The irony was hilarious—he owned a top-tier pharmaceutical company, one of the best in the industry, while simultaneously shipping illegal drugs like candy.

I was escorted into the building by Kace, who was as excited as a puppy when I’d arrived at the apartment moments ago.

“God, I missed you,” he’d said, squeezing me in an uncomfortably tight hug. “These guards are no fun.”

“Why in Hades’ name does this place look so… well, Hades?” Kace said, his voice effectively bringing me out of my brief flash back.

I glanced around and had to agree. The lobby was the perfect embodiment of Andronikos—dark, cold and depressing.

Did he have to apply his terrible taste in decor to everything?

Shaking my head, I strolled toward the elevator, ready to get this over with.

“Wait up, boss lady!” Kace’s hurried footsteps echoed behind me.

I was about to step inside when I stopped abruptly.

Is that… Nefeli?

The viper in question turned toward me. When her eyes met mine, I caught a flash of hatred before she smoothened her face into something unreadable.

“Adira,” she greeted coolly, before striding past me, rubbing her throat absentmindedly.

Weird.

“Let’s keep moving, boss lady,” Kace said, nudging me forward. I shrugged, deciding that whatever had happened to her wasn’t my problem. I was definitely not going to talk to Andronikos about it.

When we reached his floor, I stormed into his office without knocking.

“What the hell was that ‘she’s-not-my-wife’ bitch doing here, Andronikos?”

Yes, I know I said I wasn’t going to talk about it, but sue me, I’m a jealous woman.

“Nice to see you too, Adira,” he deadpanned, ignoring me as he took a seat on the couch near his bookshelf.

“I asked a question, Andronikos.”

“And it’s none of your business,” he shot back. “That’s my answer. Now, sit down. We have a lot to discuss.”

We always have a fucking lot to discuss, I thought angrily dropping onto the couch opposite him.

Kace and Iason stood behind us like hounds, their hands resting on their holstered guns, ready to pounce if necessary.

Andronikos took a sip from his freshly refilled drink before looking at me squarely in the eye.

“You’re in danger. A fuck ton of it.”

My heart skipped a beat at the edge in his tone.

“What?” I blinked, thrown completely off guard.

“For the past two weeks, I’ve been receiving death threats about you,” he said grimly. “At first, I thought it was a minor issue, but it’s much bigger than I anticipated.” He leaned forward, elbows resting on his knees as he regarded me seriously. “This is not a joke, Adira.”

Panic surged in my chest. I could feel an anxiety attack creeping in, but I forced myself to breathe through it. I hadn’t had one in a while, and I didn’t bring my meds with me.

Deep breath in, deep breathe out.

Once I calmed down, I met his gaze. “How?” That was the only thing I could think of. How? How did this happen?

“I don’t know,” he admitted, and the fact that he didn’t have an answer scared me more than the actual threat.

“Is that where you got those injuries from?” My fingers twitched, remembering the cool feel of his muscles when I had patched him up.

“Sort of. But that’s not the point.” He set down his drink. “You’re part of the mafia now, whether you like it or not. Especially since operations are underway.”

I exhaled sharply. I really don’t think I can do this.

“Because of this, I’ve recruited a trainer to teach you self-defense,” he continued. “Just the basics—you’ll need to know how to survive an attack.”

“…And who exactly is my trainer?” I asked, warily.

“Kace,” Andronikos replied, nodding toward my overly eager bodyguard.

I turned to Kace, whose grin was like that of a cheshire cat.

“We’re going to have so much fun, boss lady.”

I smiled back, albeit reluctantly.

At least it’s Kace and not Iason.

I mean… how hard could it be? I thought as I nodded my head in agreement to whatever Andronikos was saying.