ログインAurora POVI sit in the lecture hall with my notebook open and my pen resting uselessly between my fingers.The professor’s voice washes over me without meaning. Words drift past but my gaze keeps sliding to the window toward the outside world where everything that matters is happening without me.D
My chest tightens.“There you are,” he says as his gaze instantly finds me.“Here I am,” I smile as I cross the room to him, feeling drab in my school clothes next to him. “Where else would I be?”His hand comes to my waist like it belongs there—because it does. When he looks at me, the weight of ev
Aurora POV The hotel room smells faintly of oud and sandalwood, the most trendy and expensive perfume of the moment. This is the kind of place that knows it’s expensive and doesn’t let you forget it.I sit cross-legged on the edge of the bed in jeans and a sweatshirt, my dress hung carefully so it
Aurora POVThe coffeehouse smells like burnt espresso and pastries, like safety in the form of routine.I sit in my usual corner between classes, my back to the brick wall, the small round table pressed close enough that no one, not even my usual friends, can slide in uninvited. I am too distracted
Then she looks past Dominic and the body to the other older man standing waiting, his face full of resigned dignity so unlike what had been Francesco’s final moments.“Can Gianna’s father live?” she asks hoarsely, her soft voice barely reaching him across the empty space of the warehouse.The words
Aurora POVGianna is finally still.The pill I offered her dissolved beneath her tongue, and within minutes the sharp edges of her panic soften. Her lashes flutter as she slumps against the pillow, breath evening out, the fight draining from her limbs.I brush her hair back from her face with shakin
Aurora POVWhen my phone goes off and a familiar number flashes across the screen, I hesitate to answer it.Camilla.I stare at it for a second too long, thumb hovering over the screen like if I don’t touch it, maybe it’ll all just go away. But it doesn’t. Unfortunately, That isn’t the kind of perso
Finally getting me naked, he freezes again when he sees them: deep purple and yellow bruises that cover much of my upper body from my father beating me. Now fully exposed and painted like warnings across my skin for my disobedience.For a moment, there’s nothing but silence.His breath punches out o
Dominic POVThe tension drained from his shoulders the moment Dominic slid into the driver’s seat of his car. The subtle hum of the engine was a soothing sound compared to Francesco’s grating voice, and he took a moment to savor the quiet.He knew Francesco wasn’t happy—far from it, apparently consi
Until then, survival demanded practicality and the truth of the matter was simple: Dominic needed allies now more than ever.Tapping on the center console to bring up his contacts, he moved through them until he found Luca’s. Connecting the call, he slowed at a traffic light and leaned back in his s







