Chapter 54

Damien

I woke up to the sound of footsteps echoing in the quiet corridor. My body was stiff, my back aching from sleeping on the hard stone floor outside Alison’s door.

As I lifted my head, my vision blurred for a moment before clearing to reveal Hugh standing over me with a firm expression on his face.

“Knew I’d find you here,” he said, shaking his head slightly.

I rubbed the sleep from my eyes, stretching my shoulders before replying. “Why do you sound like that’s a bad thing?”

Hugh furrowed his brows. “It’s not. Come with me I have something important to discuss.”

I sighed, but I stood, cracking my neck as I followed him down the hallway. “What’s this about?”

“Aiden,” Hugh said.

That one name was enough to drain the last remnants of sleep from my mind. My steps quickened, and by the time we reached the study, I was fully awake. Hugh shut the door behind us and turned to face me.

“He knows about our plan,” Hugh said gravely.

I scoffed. “Obviously. He had a spy in the house.”

Hugh exhaled sharply. “About that—I’m not in support of what’s been going on between the both of you, but I’m going to let things slide because I have never seen you act this way before with anyone.”

“It seems you suddenly developed a heart overnight.” I declared.

“I have always had a heart,” Hugh replied. “It is just that after you told me Aiden was the mastermind behind everything, I thought about it more. I realized I shouldn’t be so hard on her anymore.”

I almost smirked, but Hugh wasn’t done.

“So, like I said,” he pressed on, “Aiden knows our plans.” Hugh leaned forward, lowering his voice. “I discovered he is already moving to implement them. Based on my intel, Aiden’s been to the Highlands in the past few weeks. He visited Hades and his mad brother, and now, he’s with the Perez brothers.”

I frowned. “He’s striking a deal?”

“He’s not just making a deal,” Hugh corrected. “He’s making you the deal or in this case our gang the deal. He has convinced them that he has us wrapped around his damn finger. And he won’t stop until he brings you down.”

I ran a hand through my hair. “That’s insane.”

“Yeah,” Hugh muttered. “But it’s working.”

I shook my head as that thought settled in my mind. Aiden was always a step ahead, always maneuvering like a snake in the grass.

It was crazy he managed to do the same thing again.

“We need to figure out his next move,” Hugh said. “The problem is, my intel can only get close to his men—not Aiden himself. It’s going to be hard to track how he plans to strike.”

I exhaled. “So what do you need from me?”

Hugh straightened. “We need your girl to cooperate.”

My muscles tensed at the sound of his words.

“She’s the only one who can help us figure out what Aiden’s next move is,” Hugh continued. “She knows how he thinks.”

I shook my head. “Alison isn’t in the right frame of mind for this. She just found out she was being used. She’s broken, Hugh.”

“Well, she doesn’t have the luxury of breaking right now,” Hugh said, his voice hard. “We don’t have time. She needs to help us.”

I took a step toward him, my voice lowering. “I will try to get her to help, but I’m not going to force her to do anything she doesn’t want to do.”

Hugh studied me for a moment before nodding. “Alright, lover boy.”

I rolled my eyes. “Is that all you wanted to discuss?”

“There’s one more thing,” he said.

“What?”

“I’m heading to the city.”

I narrowed my eyes. “I’m coming with you.”

“No,” Hugh said immediately. “You need to stay here, hold the fort, and get the girl to help us. You’re the only one who can.”

I clenched my jaw. I hated sitting back while others did the work, but I knew Hugh was right.

Without another word, Hugh turned and walked away, leaving me standing in the study with my thoughts.

After a few moments, I left the study and went straight to the kitchen. If I was going to talk to Alison about Aiden, I needed to ease her into it. I whipped up a simple meal—something warm, something comforting—and made my way back to her room.

I knocked lightly.

“Alison,” I called but there was no response.

I sighed, setting the tray down and leaning against the door. “I spoke with Hugh,” I said in a calm voice. “He told me Aiden is planning something big. He’s already moving forward with his plans.”

There was still no answer.

I exhaled. “Alison, I know you blame yourself for this, but you shouldn’t.”

The silence continued, but I knew she was listening.

“This isn’t your fault,” I continued. “Aiden played you, just like he’s played everyone else. If anything, I should’ve investigated the issue right now. I would have discovered this sooner. I would have been able to protect you from him.”

A soft shuffle came from the other side of the door.

“You don’t have to talk,” I murmured. “Just eat. Please.”

I waited a few moments before stepping back, allowing her space. I hoped she would at least eat something.

When I left her room, I returned to see that she had taken the food. I was really glad about it.

That night, I slept outside her door again. It had become a routine at this point—waiting, hoping that one day she would open that door.

I jolted awake when I heard the sound of people shouting.

My heart pounded as I sat up.

“There’s an attack!” someone yelled from down the hall.

I was on my feet in an instant, reaching for my weapon as I sprinted toward the commotion. The scent of blood hit me before I saw it—one of my men was on the ground, with a bullet in his chest.

My hands curled into fists as I scanned the surroundings, my eyes darting between the figures in the corridors.

‘Aiden.’ A voice in my head whispered.

This had his name written all over it.

More shouts echoed through the halls as my men rushed to counter the attack. My mind raced. How had they gotten in? Who had let them slip through the defenses?

Then, a chilling thought settled in my gut. Ignoring the chaos, I turned and ran back toward Alison’s room.

We needed to get out of here fast!