Bella sat in the sleek black car, her pulse racing as Damien slid in beside her. The moment the doors shut, the driver pulled away from the underground garage, the city lights flashing past like ghosts in the dark.
She clenched her hands in her lap, trying to steady her breathing. "Where are we going?"
Damien's jaw was tight, his expression unreadable. "Somewhere safe."
"That's not an answer."
His gaze flicked to her, dark and unreadable. "It's the only one you're getting."
Her stomach twisted. "Damien, I need to know—"
"Victor Morelli doesn't make empty threats, Bella." His voice was sharp, edged with something lethal. "If he's watching you, it means he's already decided you're leverage."
She swallowed hard. "Leverage for what?"
A muscle in his jaw ticked. "For me."
Bella's breath hitched. "Why?"
Silence stretched between them, heavy and suffocating.
Then—
"Because I killed his brother."
Her blood ran cold.
She turned to him, her heart hammering against her ribs. "You… killed someone?"
Damien didn't flinch. "I did what needed to be done."
Bella felt the walls closing in. The man sitting next to her—the man she had kissed, touched, trusted—was admitting to murder like it was just another business transaction.
And yet…
Her body didn't move. Her mind screamed at her to open the door, to run—
But her heart.
Her heart stayed still.
She exhaled shakily. "And now he wants revenge."
Damien's gaze darkened. "Yes."
The weight of his confession pressed against her, but instead of fear, something else crept in.
Understanding.
Damien wasn't a good man.
But neither was the world he lived in.
The car pulled onto a private road, winding toward a secluded mansion surrounded by iron gates and security cameras.
Bella swallowed hard. "This is your idea of safe?"
Damien smirked, but there was no humor in it. "This is my idea of untouchable."
The car rolled to a stop, and before Bella could think, Damien was at her door, holding out his hand.
She hesitated.
She could still walk away. Still choose a life without him.
But when she looked into his eyes, she knew—
She had already chosen.
With a deep breath, she placed her hand in his.
And stepped into the lion's den.