Dawn came too soon, bathing Khalid’s residence in a golden glow. I had slept little, my thoughts trapped between Khalid’s words and Maddox’s intensity from the previous night. Both men occupied my mind in different ways, and although I tried to stay focused, I knew I was caught in a game where I was the central piece.A message from Max appeared on the device, as direct as always:"Confirm progress with Khalid. Maddox will be in contact soon."I sighed and set the device aside, deciding to prepare for another day. I knew interactions with Khalid were inevitable, and every moment with him felt like a challenge to my ability to maintain control.Breakfast at the residence was a spectacle of opulence, like everything else that surrounded Khalid. A long table was laden with exotic fruits, freshly baked bread, and an array of dishes that seemed more appropriate for a gala dinner than the first meal of the day. Khalid was already there, seated at one end with a look of calculated tranquility
The air in Khalid’s residence was dense, thick with a tension that was almost tangible. I knew that every minute I spent here brought me closer to his true objective—one that went beyond an alliance with Maddox. Khalid didn’t just want an agreement; he wanted control. And I was at the center of his game. The morning meeting had been nothing but a façade. Between the diplomatic greetings and toasts with high-profile businessmen, the real negotiation was happening in the silences, in the way Khalid watched me when he thought I wasn’t looking. I knew he was trying to disarm me little by little, pushing me onto ground where he had the advantage. After lunch, one of his assistants appeared at my room with a message. “Mr. Al-Fayez wishes to speak with you in private. He is expecting you in his office.” I didn’t ask what it was about. I knew Khalid never sent messages without a reason. I made my way to his office with steady steps, fully aware that, no matter how much I tried t
The night draped Khalid’s estate in a silent veil, but I knew the calm was only an illusion. Every word of his proposal kept echoing in my mind, mixing with Maddox’s warning and the anonymous message. *Not all the players on this board are who they claim to be.* I couldn’t sleep. The weight of uncertainty, the feeling of being watched, the ever-present danger in every conversation… it all built up in my chest like a knot impossible to untangle. I got out of bed and approached the window. The desert breeze lightly moved the curtains, and in the distance, beyond the meticulously maintained gardens, the darkness of the desert stretched like an endless abyss. Something told me I wasn’t the only one awake tonight. The buzzing of my device broke the silence. **Maddox.** *"I need you to get out of there."* My heart pounded. *"What are you saying?"* I responded immediately. *"It’s not safe. Leave now."* I frowned. Maddox wasn’t the type of man to react impulsively
The desert sun had begun to paint the sky in shades of orange when I opened my eyes. I had barely slept, but not because exhaustion wouldn’t allow it. Not after the conversation with Khalid. Not after the way Maddox had looked at me. Every word they had said still echoed in my mind, entangling in my thoughts like a web I couldn’t escape from. Maddox was jealous. I had seen it in his gaze, in the restrained tension in his body, in the way he looked like a spring coiled too tightly when he saw me with Khalid. And the most dangerous thing about it was that I didn’t know what it meant. Was it possession? Was it concern? Was it something else? My hand slid toward the device on the table. Nothing. No message from him. A sigh escaped my lips. Maybe it was for the best that he said nothing. But the feeling that something between us had changed was undeniable. When I left my room, the hallway was silent. Khalid’s house felt empty, but I knew it was just an illusion. Somewhere, he
The air inside Khalid’s residence had grown heavier, denser. The feeling that something was off intensified with every passing second. The message in Maddox’s hands wasn’t just a threat; it was a clear warning that this game was about to change. I didn’t realize when my breathing became faster or when my mind started analyzing every possibility. But I felt it. The danger lurking just beyond our reach. —We’re leaving. Now —Maddox repeated, his voice sharp, every word an unyielding order. —If we disappear suddenly, Khalid will notice —I warned, trying to stay calm. Maddox clenched his jaw, his icy stare piercing through me. —I’d rather have him notice than end up dead. I knew he was right, but that didn’t make the situation any less complicated. If we left Khalid’s residence abruptly, we would raise suspicions. Khalid wasn’t stupid. He knew how to play with information better than anyone. —We can’t just leave —I said firmly—. If we do, Khalid will chase us with quest
The man's body was still on the floor when the air in the room grew thicker, more suffocating.Not just because of the corpse, nor because of the poison that had taken his life in a matter of seconds.But because of what it represented.Maddox continued to watch him with an expression I had rarely seen. It wasn’t just fury. It wasn’t just frustration.It was something darker.I still had the device in my hand, the anonymous message glowing on the screen like a reminder that this game was bigger than I had thought."We're leaving. Now," Maddox said, his tone relentless."What do we do with this?" I asked, pointing to the body.The guard swallowed and took a step back."We can get rid of him before Khalid finds out.""No," Maddox immediately replied. "Leave the body here. Let Khalid find him."I frowned."You want Khalid to see him?"Maddox looked at me with eyes sharp as blades."I want him to know someone else is moving the pieces. I want him to understand he’s not the only one with in
The air in the room was dense, charged with something more than the desert heat. Maddox stood, shirtless, still breathing heavily, his hands resting on his waist as though he physically needed to hold himself back from coming any closer to me.I remained on the bed, my lips swollen from his kiss, my skin alight, my body tense.I couldn't believe what had just happened.We had held it back for too long, ignored it, repressed it... And now, that line had been crossed.Or worse, we had barely stepped over it, but neither of us dared to move forward.Maddox ran a hand over his face before turning away from me, his back to me as if looking at me was too dangerous at that moment."This shouldn't have happened."His voice was low, rough.Something inside me stirred."We didn't do it alone."He let out a small, humorless laugh, his head hanging low."That's the worst part," he muttered.I slowly sat up in bed, my eyes fixed on his broad back, on the way his muscles tensed when he took a deep b
The insistent sound of Khalid’s phone vibrating on the nightstand was a brutal reminder of reality. An echo of everything we tried to ignore.Maddox didn’t move at first. He was still on top of me, his body firm, his heavy breathing colliding with my lips. His gaze remained fixed on the illuminated screen, where Khalid’s name flashed like a silent warning.I didn’t move either. Not because I couldn’t, but because I knew that the moment I did, everything we had just shared would break.Finally, Maddox clenched his jaw and pulled away with a low grunt. He got off the bed with stiff movements, as if trying to regain control that he had just lost.I slowly sat up, feeling the cold surround me as his warmth disappeared. My body still burned from his touch, from the way he had kissed me, as if he wanted to devour me, as if he had finally stopped resisting.But all of that faded with the persistent vibration of the phone.I looked at it.Maddox had his back tense, fists clenched, his head sli
The first ray of sunlight slipped through the gap in the curtain, tracing a golden line across the messy bed. The warmth of Maddox’s body still lingered in the sheets, even though he was no longer there.I sat up slowly, still wrapped in the slow rhythm of our night. Every muscle ached in new ways—not from physical exhaustion, but from the emotional intensity still vibrating in my bones.Maddox had been... different.There had been a fierce tenderness in his touch. A restrained need that didn’t come from desire, but from something deeper. More dangerous.An attachment he didn’t want to admit.I wrapped the sheet around me and stepped out of the room. The hallway was quiet, but not empty. I could feel his presence before I saw him.And there he was.Standing by the window in the main room, a cup of coffee in hand, eyes fixed on the horizon. He wore only his suit pants, his shirt unbuttoned, and the sunlight kissed his back as if trying to understand him too.When he heard my steps, he
The contact was barely a touch.But for both of them, it was the end of resistance.Amalia felt the slight tremble in Maddox's fingers when he touched her. It wasn't insecurity—it was the weight of everything he always held back. The words he never said. The emotions he had denied, even when he desired her, even when he protected her like his life depended on it.This time, he didn’t stop.His lips brushed hers with a gentleness that shattered her. As if he didn’t want to break her. As if he knew that if he crossed that line, there would be no going back.She held him by the nape, pulling him closer, and he lost control.He kissed her with a silent desperation. A mix of need, guilt, desire, and redemption. As if she were his only way out. His only peace.Maddox gripped her waist, pulling her toward him. His hard, tense body enveloped hers completely. The brush of his torso against hers made her burn inside. It wasn’t just heat—it was connection. The kind of fire that consumes you slow
The roar of engines echoed through the trees.Amalia adjusted her tactical jacket as she descended the hill alongside Maddox, Dax, and Max. Leaves crunched beneath their boots. In the distance, a cloud of dust rose: Cillian’s men were on the move.“Left flank, Dax. Don’t let anyone come through the stream,” Maddox ordered without turning. His voice was clear, sharp. Undeniably a leader, without hesitation.“Got it,” Dax replied, drawing both his knife and pistol. His smile was tense but electric—like he’d been waiting for this moment for weeks.“Max, with me,” Maddox continued. “We’ll greet them head-on. Amalia…”She looked up.“What?”“You decide,” Maddox said, his gray eyes locked on hers. “Do you lead the second line of defense or come to the front?”Amalia swallowed. It was the first time he openly gave her the choice. He wasn’t sidelining her or treating her like a burden.“The front,” she answered without hesitation.A flicker of approval crossed Maddox’s face. Just for a second
The name hung in the air like an ancient poison.Gian.Amalia hadn’t heard it in years. Not since the first whispers, when everything was still darkness and fragments. Not since Maddox had erased it from every conversation, as if eliminating his existence was the only way to contain what it truly meant."Are you sure?" Amalia asked, her voice barely a thread.Maddox looked at her. His gaze, usually impenetrable, was now an uncontrollable storm. His gray eyes gleamed like blades under the dawn light slipping through the shattered windows."Too sure."June stood in the corner of the room, still processing everything that had just been revealed. But when she heard that name, she took a step back. As if the past had just punched her in the face."He wasn’t dead..." she whispered."He never was," Max said, voice dry.Dax ran a hand through his hair, frustrated."They lied to all of us.""Who is Gian?" Amalia finally asked, her tone as sharp as a promise of breaking.Maddox didn’t answer imm
The dawn arrived uninvited.The sky, stained with a threatening gray, seemed to anticipate the storm.In the base’s operations room, maps were spread out, screens were on, and the air… was heavy.Max was marking positions on the map with absolute focus.Dax was checking intercepted surveillance cameras.Maddox stood, arms crossed, watching everything as if he had already seen it all play out in his mind.And Amalia.Amalia was there.Sitting at the table, among them.One of them.But she was no longer just the woman dragged into this war by mistake.Now… she was part of the strategy."We have three blind spots on the west border," Max said, pointing. "If they’re coming in, it’ll be through there.""And what if that’s not what they want?" Amalia cut in. "What if this is just a distraction?""That’s what I thought too," Dax added. "Look at this."He projected a video.A hooded figure moved through shadows.A familiar silhouette."Is that…?" Amalia whispered."Yeah," Maddox confirmed, his
The return to the safe house was silent. None of them needed to speak. The glances exchanged in the rearview mirror, Maddox's tense grip on the steering wheel, the way Amalia kept her eyes fixed on the road… it was enough to understand that something had changed.The Council wasn’t dead. Only asleep. And now, it had awakened.As soon as they arrived, the protocols were activated. Ivan ordered all access points to be sealed, triple surveillance installed, and the war room prepared. The atmosphere was electric. Every step, every command, every look carried the certainty that the real enemy had finally shown its face.But Maddox said nothing. Not yet.He went straight to his office, with Amalia following silently. When the door closed, the silence grew heavy."You knew," she broke the tension. "Say it, Maddox. Just say it. You knew."He turned slowly. His jacket was open, sleeves rolled up, and his gray eyes darker than ever."I knew there were strange movements," he admitted. "But not th
The early morning was a living, throbbing creature.And Maddox was already awake before the first ray of sunlight pierced through the bulletproof windows of the house. He was dressed in black, as always, immaculate even in chaos. His movements were controlled, as if each one was calculated for combat."We’re ready," Ivan reported as he entered the meeting room.Behind him, Dax and Max came in almost at the same time. Both wore the same serious expression, although Dax still carried the hangover from the night before."What does the satellite report say?" Maddox asked, without lifting his gaze from the digital map in front of him."Movement to the north. Heat points in the area of the old gas factory. They shouldn’t be there," Max replied, crossing his arms."Then they’re testing our surveillance," Maddox murmured.Amalia appeared in the room a few seconds later. She wore a fitted jacket over a black shirt, her hair tied in a braid that gave her a fiercer look. Her eyes met Maddox’s for
The calm before the storm came in the shape of a freezing dawn.Amalia woke to the sound of soft footsteps in the hallway. They weren’t nervous. They were calculated. Measured. Like someone who didn’t need to hide.She grabbed her gun from the nightstand without thinking. She was no longer the same woman who had stumbled into this world by accident. She no longer hesitated.She opened the door silently and saw him.Derek."What are you doing?" she asked, not lowering her weapon.Derek raised his hands slowly."I was heading to the office. Maddox asked for the blueprints of the southern entrances.""Maddox is in the east wing."Derek hesitated for a second. Just one.And for Amalia, it was enough."Stay still," she ordered.At that moment, the silent alarm vibrated on her device. An encrypted message from Ivan."Communication intercepted. One of ours is selling coordinates."Amalia’s blood ran cold.Derek narrowed his eyes, as if he knew the moment for masks had passed."You were always
The night fell violently over the land.It wasn’t just any nightfall. It was a declaration of war.The sky turned dark faster than usual, as if the universe knew something was about to break.Inside the mansion, the atmosphere was different. Dense. Silent. The kind of calm that only comes before disaster.Amalia was in Maddox’s office, alone, with the documents she had stolen. In front of her, a map of the tunnel system that crossed the border. Smuggling routes. Coded names. Black-and-white photographs of faces that shouldn’t exist.The list of the Council’s traitors.And in the center, a single word repeated again and again:ARES.Behind that name was Maddox’s past. The real reason why it all began.And the man who was now about to unleash the final fire."Amalia," said a firm voice from the door.She didn’t flinch. She knew he would come. He always did.Maddox stepped inside. Imposing. Impeccable. Wearing a black suit that contrasted with his gray eyes, now sharper than ever."I knew