Novels by DessySly

Chapter One Hundred and Fifteen Julian’s POVThe shot cracked like lightning, and for a split second I couldn’t tell where it landed.Then Victor reeled back, blood spraying across the wall. He stumbled, snarling like some wounded animal, his eyes wild and unbroken. He should’ve been dead already, but he refused to fall. His rage was the only thing keeping him upright.I shoved Aria tighter behind me, my body on fire with the need to protect her. Her hands clawed at my arm, desperate, trembling but she didn’t cry out. She was too damn strong for that.Celeste stood her ground, pistol still trained, her chest rising and falling in sharp, uneven breaths. I could see it now, the cracks in her composure. She wasn’t just aiming to kill him; she was holding onto something personal, something raw, and she was barely keeping it contained.Victor’s laugh came low, wet with blood. “You think… bullets will stop me?” He dragged himself forward, one staggering step at a time, leaving a red trail

Chapter One Hundred and Fourteen Aria’s POVThe echo of the gunshot still rang in my ears. My breath hitched as Victor staggered, one hand pressed against his bleeding side. His glare darted around the room, venomous, searching.I turned sharply, my shard of glass still clutched in my trembling hand.The shooter stood in the doorway.Celeste.Her dark hair framed her face like fire, her expression unreadable, somewhere between satisfaction and disdain. Smoke curled from the barrel of the pistol she held, her arm steady, her stance like she had rehearsed this moment for years.Julian coughed, trying to push himself upright, his voice hoarse. “Celeste… what the hell are you doing here?”She smirked faintly, eyes never leaving Victor. “Finishing what you couldn’t.”Victor’s laugh was low, ragged, twisted by pain. Blood smeared his lips, but his eyes were still blazing. “Of course… it’s you.” He spat the words like poison. “The traitor.”I froze. Traitor?Celeste tilted her head, her pis

Chapter One Hundred and Thirteen Aria’s POV“Julian!”The scream tore from my throat, raw and useless, as I watched Victor’s massive hand clamp tighter around his throat. His face had gone pale, lips tinged with blue, veins bulging at his temples. His boots kicked weakly against the floor.I couldn’t breathe. My chest was burning like I was the one being strangled.“Let him go!” I shouted, my voice shaking, breaking. I tried to lunge forward, but Victor shifted, dragging Julian with him, his body like a shield between us. The sadistic smile on his face made bile rise in my throat.“Don’t you see?” Victor sneered. “This is justice. This is what he was always meant for failure.” His eyes burned into mine, dark and feral. “And when he’s gone, you’ll finally see who the stronger man is.”“No” My voice cracked. “I will never, never choose you!”The words sliced through the room, sharper than any blade. For a second, Victor’s jaw clenched, his hold on Julian tightening. Julian let out a st

Chapter One Hundred and Twelve Julian’s POVI’d faced enemies my entire life. Rivals, traitors, assassins in the night. But nothing compared to the man in front of me.My father.Victor Blackwell.The monster who built my empire in shadows before I ever had a chance to claim it as my own. The man who branded me, molded me, and now dared to threaten the only woman I’d ever bled for.Aria’s gasp lingered in the air, her broken whisper what does that mean slicing me open. But worse was her eyes, those wide, searching eyes burning into me as though I held the blade at her throat.Victor knew it. He saw the crack, and like the viper he was, he sank his fangs deeper.“You’ve kept her in the dark,” he sneered, his lip curling. “But she deserves the truth. Doesn’t she, son?”Rage flared so hot my vision blurred. My grip on his collar tightened, and I slammed him harder into the wall, the sound reverberating through the room.“Say another word about her” I growled.He cut me off with a laugh,

Chapter One Hundred and Eleven Aria’s POVThe air in the room turned toxic. Celeste’s words slithered into my ears and coiled around my chest until I could barely breathe. Her. That single word detonated in my head, ringing louder than Julian’s silence.He didn’t deny it.That was the part that cut the deepest, not Celeste’s venom, not the cruel gleam in her eyes but Julian’s stillness. His silence was an answer in itself.My pulse thundered. “Tell me she’s lying,” I whispered again, my voice trembling, almost breaking. “Julian, please, tell me she’s lying.”He opened his mouth, but nothing came out. His jaw worked, his eyes closed for a heartbeat like he was fighting himself, and when they opened again, there was a darkness there I hadn’t seen before. A weight he had carried all this time, and hidden from me.Celeste laughed softly, like a dagger sliding into a sheath. “Oh, he won’t say it. Not to you. Because if he does… you’ll never look at him the same again.”I wanted to scream,

Chapter One Hundred and TenJulian’s POVThe words were out before I could stop them. He’s alive.The silence that followed was sharper than any blade. Aria’s face, pale and trembling, cut into me deeper than Celeste’s smirk ever could. Her eyes weren’t just questioning anymore, they were shattering.I had spent years mastering control, building walls so high no one could climb them. Yet in this moment, with Aria standing before me, those walls crumbled like dust. And the ghost I had buried, the one shadow I never thought would rise again, stood between us.“My father…” The name nearly caught in my throat, but I forced it out. “Victor Blackwell.”Even saying it felt like poison.Celeste tilted her head, savoring the fracture in me, the weakness I had sworn I’d never show. “Oh, Julian,” she crooned, “you always did inherit his talent for secrets.”I wanted to shut her up, to silence her before she twisted this deeper into Aria’s veins, but the damage was already done.I turned to Aria,