ログインThe lower hallway behind the main dressing rooms was completely dark. The only illumination came from a single bulb hanging by a wire at the far end of the corridor. The air down here smelled like old bleach and damp wood, far away from the expensive perfume and clean floors of the upper levels.
I kept my steps light, my sneakers making no sound against the floorboards. I needed to reach the old manager’s office at the back of the basement. That was where the old re
The clock on the wall showed exactly midnight when I slipped out of my room. The hallway of the third floor was completely quiet, the dim wall lights casting long, thin shadows on the carpet. My jaw still rubbed painfully against my collar every time I turned my head, a sharp reminder of Val's fists from earlier.I walked slowly down the corridor until I reached the heavy door of Andreas's private bedroom. I didn't knock. I just turned the brass handle and stepped inside, closing the wood softly behind me.The room was dark, except for the pale moonlight coming through the large glass window. Andreas was sitting on the edge of his massive bed, his shirt off, unlacing his heavy leather boots. He stopped the moment the door clicked, his head snapping up. His dark eyes found me in the shadows instantly."Arthur," he said, his voice deep and rough from the late hour. "What are you doing out of bed?""I couldn't sleep," I whispered, walking over
Leon did not even knock before he opened my office door. His face was tense, and his breath came fast, like he had run all the way from the basement levels. I looked up from my ledger, my pen freezing over the paper."What happened?" I asked, my voice dropping instantly."Val and Arthur," Leon said, wiping his brow. "They just had a massive brawl in the back hallway behind the dressing rooms. Val pinned him, but the boy fought back like a feral cat. He split Val's lip open before we could pull them apart."A dark, heavy heat flooded my veins. I stood up so fast my knuckles knocked against the edge of the desk. "Where is Arthur now?""I sent him straight up to the third floor. Bella is with him," Leon replied quickly, stepping back as if he expected me to storm past him. "Val is still downstairs cleaning the blood off his face. He's out of his mind with rage, Andreas.""I am going to break his neck," I growled, rounding the desk.
The lower hallway behind the main dressing rooms was completely dark. The only illumination came from a single bulb hanging by a wire at the far end of the corridor. The air down here smelled like old bleach and damp wood, far away from the expensive perfume and clean floors of the upper levels.I kept my steps light, my sneakers making no sound against the floorboards. I needed to reach the old manager’s office at the back of the basement. That was where the old records were kept, the papers from before Andreas took over completely. I needed to find a trace of my past. I needed to know if my family's name was written down in those old books.I reached the middle of the hallway when a large shadow stepped out from the recess of the linen supply room.I stopped immediately, my muscles freezing."You are a long way from the third floor, dancer," Val said. His voice was low, dripping with a venom that had been building up for months.
The papers on my desk were piling up, but I couldn't focus on the numbers anymore. Every time I looked out the front windows, I could see the blue and red lights of the police cruisers reflecting off the wet pavement. Marco’s exile had turned the whole district upside down. The precinct was breathing down my neck, waiting for me to make one wrong move so they could rush the building.Dino walked into the office, shutting the heavy door behind him. He looked just as tired as I felt, his tie loose around his neck."The north docks are completely frozen, Andreas," Dino said, sinking into the chair across from me. "Leon’s guys can't move the crates while those patrol cars are sitting at the intersection. We are losing thousands of dollars every hour.""Let the money go for now," I said, my voice low and rough. "If we move anything while the cops are watching, we lose the entire line. Tell Leon to keep his men inside the warehouse.""
The cold morning air hit my face the moment I stepped out of the back exit of the club. After the heavy, suffocating warmth of the master suite and the private rooms upstairs, the outside world felt shockingly real. The breeze carried the smell of wet pavement and exhaust. I pulled my thin jacket tighter around my chest, keeping my head down as I walked down the narrow alleyway that led to the main street.My body still felt exhausted from the long hours with Andreas, but my mind was fully awake. The skin on my wrists still felt slightly warm where the leather cuffs had been, a constant physical reminder of what I had given up to find a moment of peace. I needed to move. I needed to feel like I was doing something instead of just waiting in his bed like a captive while the world moved around me.When I reached the corner of the block, I stopped behind a tall metal trash bin. I peered around the edge, my eyes scanning the main road. The street was mostly e
The bedroom was completely silent except for the soft, steady sound of Arthur’s breathing. I stood by the side of the bed for a long moment, looking down at him. He was deeply asleep, his pale face resting against the white pillow, his hair messy. After the frantic way he had held onto me in the dark room, his body was finally completely still.I pulled the heavy blanket up over his bare shoulders, tucking it in so the morning chill wouldn't wake him.He was a puzzle I couldn't solve, and it was starting to anger me. When I first found out his name was Arthur and not Raine, I had managed to stop myself from digging into his past. I had told myself it didn't matter. He was a dancer from the lower district, a boy who lied to keep his job, and that was all I needed to know.But the way he was acting now was entirely different. Tonight, he had looked at me with so much panic and guilt, as if he were hiding a massive weight. It was like he had com
Ash's POV I didn’t want to go back to The Pit. Not after the gunshot, not after Andreas’s warning, not after the weight of Dante’s emblem burned a hole through my pocket all night. But morning blurred into evening, and fear didn’t change the fa
The note I’d found in my locker felt like it was burning a hole through my pocket. Stop digging if you want your brother alive. Every time my hand brushed against it, a jolt of panic shot up my spine. Someone knew. Someone was in the room when I wasn’t looking, or they’d been watching me since the m
Andreas PovThe club was quiet from my office on the third floor, but the monitors on my desk told a different story. Dozens of screens showed lots of movement. Dancers in the dressing rooms, security guards pacing the perimeter, and the heavy bass vibrating through the walls.I leaned back in my ch
The Pit of Lust was a different world during the day. It didn’t have the usual noise or the smell of sweat and expensive perfume. Marco was helping me more than he realized—or maybe he knew exactly what he was doing. As we walked toward the breakroom for a quick lunch, he’d point things out with a







