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Chapter 5: A Battle of Fire and Ice
Terakhir Diperbarui:
2025-02-25 13:53:52I didn’t sleep.
How could I?
Dominic Caldwell had played me, twisted my loyalty into a noose, and left me standing in the ruins of my own choices.
My father’s scandal was now public.
Dominic had betrayed me.
And worse, I was still his—trapped in a marriage I had no way of escaping.
By the time the sun rose, I had made a decision.
If Dominic wanted a war, I’d give him one.
****
The next morning, I didn’t wait for him to summon me.
I stormed into the dining room, where he sat at the long mahogany table, sipping his coffee like he hadn’t just burned my world to the ground.
He barely glanced up. “You’re up early.”
I slammed a newspaper onto the table—the same one detailing my father’s downfall. “You used me.”
Dominic sighed, setting his cup down. “We’ve already established that.”
I clenched my fists. “Then let’s establish something else. This marriage? It’s over.”
A slow, mocking smile spread across his lips. “You really think that’s up to you?”
“I won’t be your pawn.”
“You already are,” he murmured, leaning back in his chair. “And you signed a contract, remember?”
Anger coiled in my stomach. “Contracts can be broken.”
His gaze darkened. “Not mine.”
I hated him. Hated his power, his control, the way he made me feel powerless—no, helpless.
But I wasn’t weak.
And Dominic was about to learn that the hard way.
****
I spent the entire day plotting my next move.
By evening, I had an answer.
Liam.
It was risky—dangerous even—but I had no other choice.
I found him in his office, drowning in paperwork and frustration.
When he saw me, his eyes softened. “Elena.”
I didn’t have time for pleasantries. “I need your help.”
Liam frowned. “With what?”
I exhaled sharply. “Taking Dominic down.”
His entire body went still. “You’re serious.”
“Completely.”
Liam leaned back, studying me. “What changed?”
I hesitated. “He betrayed me. My father. Everything.”
His jaw tightened. “I told you to walk away from him.”
I flinched. “And I didn’t listen. But I’m listening now.”
Liam sighed, running a hand through his hair. “If you go against Dominic, it won’t just be business. It’ll be war.”
I met his gaze. “Then help me win it.”
A long silence stretched between us.
Then, finally, Liam nodded.
“Alright,” he said. “Let’s destroy him.”
****
I didn’t return to Dominic’s penthouse until late that night.
I expected him to be asleep.
I was wrong.
He was waiting for me.
The moment I stepped inside, he was there—leaning against the wall, his eyes dark and knowing.
“Where were you?”
I forced myself to remain calm. “Out.”
Dominic’s lips twitched. “Try again.”
I crossed my arms. “I don’t answer to you.”
His gaze darkened. “That’s where you’re wrong, Sinclair.”
I swallowed hard. “You don’t own me, Dominic.”
His smirk was slow, deliberate. “Then why are you lying to me?”
Panic surged through me, but I masked it with defiance. “I’m not lying.”
Dominic stepped closer, his presence overwhelming. “You think I don’t know where you went? Who you saw?”
I froze.
He knew.
Somehow, he knew.
“I warned you, Elena,” he murmured, his fingers brushing my jaw. “Liam can’t save you from me.”
My breath hitched. “And what happens when I save myself?”
Dominic’s smirk vanished.
For the first time, something unreadable flickered in his gaze.
And for the first time, I wondered if I had just made the biggest mistake of my life.
The next morning, I received a message that turned my blood to ice.
Meet me at the docks. 11 PM. Come alone.
It was from Liam.
I should have questioned it.
I should have waited.
Instead, I went.
But when I arrived, Liam was nowhere to be found.
The docks were eerily silent, the water lapping against the wooden planks.
Something was wrong.
A shiver ran down my spine. “Liam?”
Silence.
Then—
A pair of hands grabbed me from behind.
I gasped, struggling, but a cloth was pressed to my mouth—something chemical, something strong.
My vision blurred.
The last thing I heard before darkness swallowed me whole—
Was Dominic’s voice.
“Did you really think I wouldn’t see this coming, Sinclair?”
Then everything went black.
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Twisted Vows Of Desire Chapter 6: The Devil’s Move
I awoke to the chilling touch of cold metal on my wrists. My head throbbed, and my vision was hazy as I tried to comprehend my surroundings. The dim, flickering light overhead cast unsettling shadows on the concrete walls. Where was I? I pulled at my hands, realizing I was handcuffed to a chair. A wave of sickening déjà vu washed over me. This wasn’t my first encounter with Dominic Caldwell, but this time felt different. I wasn’t sure I would escape with my life. Footsteps broke the silence, slow and deliberate. Then he emerged into the light. Dominic. Clad in a black suit, his expression was inscrutable, embodying the ruthless billionaire who ruled the city. But his eyes? They glowed with a dark, menacing intensity. “You should have known better, Sinclair,” he said, his voice low and almost indifferent. “Did you really think I wouldn’t discover your little alliance with Liam?” My heart raced. He was aware. I swallowed hard, striving to keep my voice steady. “You kidnapped me.
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I felt the blood drain from my face.Dominic stepped out of the shadows, slow and controlled, like a predator that had just cornered its prey. His expression was unreadable, but his eyes—those dark, calculating eyes—burned with triumph.I had been played.Again.Liam stiffened beside me. “Caldwell,” he said, his voice a forced calm.Dominic ignored him. His focus was on me, and me alone.“You never learn, do you, Sinclair?” he murmured.I forced my chin up. “Looks like you don’t either,” I shot back. “Eavesdropping is a bad habit.”His lips curved into a smirk, but there was no amusement in it.“You thought you were so clever, didn’t you?” he mused. “Slipping away. Meeting your little ally in secret.” He took another step forward, his presence suffocating. “Tell me, Sinclair, did you really think I wouldn’t be watching?”I said nothing.Because the truth was, I had underestimated him.Dominic wasn’t just ruthless—he was ten steps ahead. Always.And now, I was trapped.His gaze flicker
Terakhir Diperbarui : 2025-04-09Twisted Vows Of Desire Chapter 8: Lies Wrapped in Silk
I couldn’t sleep.The message played on a loop in my head.“Your husband isn’t the only one with secrets.”What did that mean? Who was this person?I sat in the dimly lit bedroom, gripping my phone like it held all the answers. I could feel Dominic’s presence in the penthouse—he was still in his office, working late, as if nothing had happened. As if he hadn’t just pulled the rug out from under me.I had spent so much time focusing on destroying Dominic, convinced he was my biggest enemy.But what if I was wrong?What if there was someone worse lurking in the shadows?I typed back.Me: I need proof.Nothing.I tried again.Me: If you’re telling the truth, show me something real.Still nothing.I exhaled sharply, tossing my phone onto the nightstand. I hated this—being in the dark, being played. Every second in this penthouse felt like a chessboard where I was two moves behind.But not for long.I swung my legs over the bed and stood. If this mysterious informant wasn’t going to hand m
Terakhir Diperbarui : 2025-04-09Twisted Vows Of Desire Chapter 9: The Vanishing Act
My father’s words echoed in my mind.“She’s gone, Elena.”Thea had vanished.And no one knew why.I felt my stomach tighten. My sister had always been the perfect one, the one who followed the rules, who played the game exactly how our father wanted. She wouldn’t have just disappeared—not unless something had happened to her.And now, I was standing in her place, married to a man I couldn’t trust, tangled in a conspiracy I didn’t understand.I took a shaky breath, trying to process it.“I want the truth,” I said, my voice sharp. “Everything.”My father studied me carefully. “You won’t like it.”“I don’t care.”His expression hardened. “Thea was supposed to marry Dominic as part of the original arrangement between our families. But three weeks before the wedding—she ran.”My breath caught.“Ran where?”“If I knew that, do you think I’d be sitting here?” He exhaled sharply. “She left without a trace. No messages, no goodbyes. She just… vanished.”A sick feeling twisted in my gut.“You r
Terakhir Diperbarui : 2025-04-09Twisted Vows Of Desire Chapter 10: Shadows of the Past
The silence stretched between us, thick with something unspoken.Dominic’s jaw was tense, his fingers gripping the phone so tightly I thought he might crush it. His eyes—dark, intense, unreadable—were locked on mine.I forced myself to breathe. “Who was she last seen with, Dominic?”He hesitated.Then— “Julian Hale.”The name hit me like a slap.I swayed slightly, gripping the edge of his desk. “That’s not possible.”Julian Hale was a ghost from my past. A name I hadn’t heard in years.A man I had once trusted—once loved.He had been my closest friend in college. The golden boy with an easy smile and a mind sharp enough to cut through steel. We had been inseparable—until he vanished without a word, leaving behind only whispers of scandal and betrayal.And now, my sister had disappeared, last seen with him?My stomach twisted.“What the hell does Julian have to do with this?”Dominic exhaled sharply, running a hand through his hair. “That’s what I intend to find out.”I shook my head.
Terakhir Diperbarui : 2025-04-14Twisted Vows Of Desire Chapter 11: Midnight Lies
I stood at the dock's edge, gripping my phone tightly. The midnight waves lapped gently against the wooden boards beneath me, while the moon cast a soft, silvery light over the water. The air was thick with the scent of salt and something else—something metallic, hinting at danger lurking nearby. Julian was late.Dominic had wanted to accompany me, but I had managed to slip away before he could intervene. If Julian had any connection to Thea’s disappearance, I was determined to uncover the truth myself.Taking a deep breath, I scanned the dark surroundings. The docks extended into the shadows, eerily quiet except for the occasional creak of boats swaying at their moorings.Then I heard footsteps.I turned quickly.A figure stepped out of the darkness.It was Julian Hale.He looked leaner than I remembered, his sharp features obscured in shadow, and his once-boyish charm now replaced with a harder edge. His dark hair was longer, tousled by the wind, but it was his eyes that startled m
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I stared at the bloodstained note in my trembling hands.“Your mother started this. Now you’ll pay the price.”The words felt like a noose tightening around my throat.My mother?This wasn’t about my father’s corruption scandal. This went deeper—darker.Dominic stood across from me, his expression unreadable, but his tense posture told me everything. He knew something.I lifted my gaze. “Tell me.”His jaw tightened. “Elena—”I stood, despite the throbbing pain in my shoulder. “No more half-truths. No more secrets. If my mother was involved in this war, I deserve to know.”He exhaled sharply, running a hand through his hair. “It’s not that simple.”Anger flared in my chest. “It never is with you, is it?”His eyes darkened. “Because the truth will destroy everything you think you know.”I stepped closer. “Try me.”He hesitated for a long moment. Then—“Your mother and my father were lovers.”The words hit me like a slap.I staggered back. “What?”His gaze locked onto mine. “It wasn’t ju
Terakhir Diperbarui : 2025-04-14Twisted Vows Of Desire Chapter 13: The Council’s Move
The moment the words left Dominic’s mouth, my heart slammed against my ribs.Thea’s been taken by the Council.I barely registered the way my breath hitched or how my fingers curled into fists at my sides.Dominic’s grip on his phone was tight, his knuckles white. His jaw clenched. “She sent a message before they got to her.”I snapped out of my daze. “What did she say?”He turned the phone toward me. A single text glowed on the screen.Warehouse. Midnight. Come alone.The blood in my veins turned ice-cold.Dominic swore under his breath. “They’re baiting us.”I already knew that. The Council didn’t make careless moves. They were calculated, patient, and terrifyingly precise. If they had Thea, it meant they were done lurking in the shadows. They wanted us to come to them.And they wanted us vulnerable.I swallowed hard. “We don’t have a choice.”Dominic shook his head. “We do. We just don’t like any of the options.”I knew what he meant. Walking into a trap was the worst possible move
Terakhir Diperbarui : 2025-04-14
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Twisted Vows Of Desire Chapter 35: A Deeper Game
My pulse hammered in my ears as the car sped through the streets, leaving the alley behind. I glanced over at the driver, but the figure was obscured by the shadows. The dim light from the streetlamps outside barely illuminated the face, but the sheer force of their presence was undeniable. Whoever they were, they’d saved me—whether by chance or design, I couldn’t tell. But I didn’t care. At that moment, survival was the only thing on my mind.I pressed my back against the seat, trying to steady my breathing, still too disoriented to think clearly. The man in the alley—the one who’d been chasing me—wasn’t just a random thug. He had known too much, too many details. His words echoed in my mind: “You don’t have a clue what you’re dealing with.”What had I gotten myself into?I swallowed hard, trying to quell the panic rising in my chest. Was Dominic involved in this? Was he behind whatever game these people were playing? And if so, what was the real objective? I was no closer to answers
Twisted Vows Of Desire Chapter 34: Unmasking the Enemy
I felt suffocated. As soon as the footsteps ceased, it was as if all the air had vanished from my lungs. There was no doubt now—someone was out there, advancing towards me. My heartbeat thudded in my throat, and every muscle in my body was coiled with anxiety. It was no longer just about Thomas; I sensed that something far more sinister was approaching. I was no longer merely fleeing from Thomas; I was escaping the reality of the situation. I remained as motionless as possible, straining to listen, to wait. The footsteps were slow and purposeful, as if the person was fully aware of their destination. Then came the unmistakable sound of a shadow gliding against metal—the noise of someone sliding along the back of the car—confirming my fears. Someone was near. I reached beneath the seat for the emergency kit that had been gathering dust for weeks. My hand trembled as I grasped the tire iron. I didn’t care if it was insufficient; it was all I had. The weight of it offered a slight re
Twisted Vows Of Desire Chapter 33: Dangerous Alliances
I didn’t have time to think. My body acted on instinct, slamming the door shut behind me as Thomas reached for the flash drive. I knew I couldn’t let him have it. Not when it held the key to everything—Dominic’s past, my father’s betrayal, and the twisted dance we’d all been caught in.But Thomas wasn’t just a threat in the form of a man. He was a shadow, slipping through the cracks with a quiet menace that sent chills down my spine. As I backed away, my mind scrambled for an escape, for something—anything—that could help me gain the upper hand.“Don’t make this harder than it needs to be, Elena,” Thomas called out, his voice calm, unsettlingly so. “You’re smarter than this. You know that keeping the drive is just going to hurt you in the end. All you need to do is hand it over, and I’ll make sure you and your family walk away unscathed.”I was breathing hard, my chest tightening with every word. Unscathed? He was lying. If I gave it to him, everything Dominic had worked for—everythin
Twisted Vows Of Desire Chapter 32: The Weight of Truth
The silence between us was deafening.Dominic stood at the edge of the rooftop terrace, the city lights flickering behind him like distant stars—untouchable, indifferent. The night air was sharp, cutting through the tension that hung like a noose between us. My fingers clenched the edge of the marble balcony, grounding myself, because if I didn’t hold onto something, I might fall apart.“I didn’t want you to find out this way,” he said at last, his voice low and rough.I scoffed. “You mean the truth? That you manipulated every moment of my life to lead me here—to you?”He turned slowly, eyes dark and unreadable. “You think this is easy for me? Watching you look at me like I’m the monster in your story when I was trying to protect you from a truth worse than anything I’ve done?”My throat tightened, rage and confusion warring inside me. “Protect me?” I laughed, bitter and sharp. “Dominic, you orchestrated my father’s downfall. You blackmailed me into this engagement. You lied about eve
Twisted Vows Of Desire Chapter 31: Blood and Betrayal
The room crackled with tension, thick enough to choke on.Thomas didn’t flinch. He kept the gun pointed at me, his finger hovering above the trigger. His smirk remained intact, like this was just another game to him. Another power play.Dominic’s gun never wavered. He stepped into the room, calm and lethal, like a predator that had stalked this moment for years.“I said drop it,” Dominic growled.Thomas tilted his head, amused. “Dominic. Always the knight in tarnished armor. But you’re too late. She came to me, remember? Looking for answers you didn’t have the guts to give her.”My heart hammered in my chest. I stood frozen between two men whose hatred for each other ran deeper than bloodlines.“Let her go,” Dominic said again, this time colder. “You’ve made your move. It’s over.”Thomas chuckled. “Over? No, Dominic. This is where it really begins.”Then he did something I didn’t expect—he lowered the gun.Not all the way. Just enough to look like he was considering surrender.Dominic
Twisted Vows Of Desire Chapter 30: Tangled in the Truth
The silence that settled between Dominic and me in the car was suffocating.Not a word passed between us as the engine hummed beneath us, New York’s city lights blurring by in streaks of gold and white. I sat stiffly, arms crossed, trying not to look at him—trying not to acknowledge the heat still coursing through me after what happened at the penthouse. My lips still burned from his kiss. My skin tingled where his fingers had touched me.But none of that mattered now.Not after what I’d found. Not after the phone call I’d intercepted.Because while he might have claimed to love me—might have whispered promises of truth in my ear—Dominic Caldwell was still hiding things. Things that had everything to do with Thomas. With my father. With this damn web of betrayal I couldn’t untangle without bleeding.“You’re quiet,” Dominic finally said, his voice low but pointed.I didn’t look at him. “Do I need to fill the silence with lies to keep you comfortable?”That made him tense. I felt it eve
Twisted Vows Of Desire Chapter 29: Beneath the Surface
The atmosphere was charged with unease as I found myself alone in Dominic's office, my fingers gliding along the desk's edge as if searching for hidden truths waiting to be revealed. Each step I took into this realm blurred the lines between forward motion and a plunge into chaos. Thomas's menacing words still reverberated in my thoughts. He had materialized out of nowhere, a specter bringing with him a history that Dominic had fought tooth and nail to conceal. Now, with Dominic missing—vanished without a trace after their altercation—my anxiety was stretched to its breaking point. My phone vibrated. I grabbed it, half-hoping it was a message from Dominic. It wasn’t. Liam: Trust no one. I’m on my way. That was all. No details. No reasoning. My heart raced. Liam hadn’t spoken to me since the night Dominic disappeared—the night I witnessed him confront his demons and walk away from me, silent and broken. And now his twin was re-entering the fray? Why? I made my way to the Caldwell
Twisted Vows Of Desire Chapter 28: The Enemy Within
The letter trembled in my hands, its words etched into my mind:“Your mother didn’t run away—she was taken.”I stared at the rusted gates of the old Sinclair estate, the morning sun casting long shadows that seemed to whisper secrets of the past. The estate, once a symbol of our family’s prominence, now stood as a decaying monument to forgotten truths.I had come here seeking answers, but instead, I found more questions. Thomas was nowhere to be seen, his promise of revealing the truth replaced by this cryptic message.A sudden rustle behind me snapped me back to reality. I spun around, heart pounding, only to find Dominic emerging from the shadows, his expression a mix of concern and determination.“I told you to stay back,” I said, clutching the letter tightly.“And let you walk into a trap alone? Not a chance,” he replied, his gaze scanning the surroundings.I handed him the letter. As he read, his jaw tightened, and a storm brewed in his eyes.“This changes everything,” he murmured
Twisted Vows Of Desire Chapter 27: The Enemy Within
Darkness swallowed the room as the door burst open. My heart raced, my eyes struggling to adjust to the sudden absence of light. A figure moved swiftly, and before I could react, a sharp pain exploded at the back of my head. The world tilted, and everything went black.I awoke to the cold touch of a concrete floor against my cheek. My wrists were bound, and a dull ache throbbed at the back of my head. The room was dimly lit, the only source of light a flickering bulb hanging from the ceiling. I was alone.Memories flooded back—Dominic’s confession, the confrontation, and then the attack. Panic surged through my veins, but I forced myself to remain calm. I needed to assess my situation and find a way out.Footsteps echoed outside the door. My breath caught as the door creaked open, revealing Thomas. His smug expression sent a wave of anger through me.“Good to see you’re awake,” he sneered. “We have much to discuss.”I glared at him. “What do you want?”Thomas chuckled, stepping closer
