Chapter 18: Walking in the Shadows

After the night of proving her worth, the relationship between the three of them grew stronger and clearer than ever before. They were no longer just master and slave, or controller and controlled, but had become ‘partners’ bound by love and understanding.

Merin began to play a larger role in the mansion. She was no longer just an Omega who was pampered day by day, but she began to learn to take care of the two Alphas in her own way. She learned to cook Aries’s favorite dishes, helped Lisena schedule appointments, and was a good listener when both were tired from work.

Aries and Lisena also began to adapt to each other in a new way. They were still business rivals with vastly different personalities, but when they were with Merin, they learned to set aside their pride and cooperate to give happiness and security to the one they loved.

But the shadow of the past had not yet faded…

The dark businesses that Aries and Lisena ran together were many and varied, and one of them was to eradicate the human trafficking organization that preyed on the weak… the same organization that had once taken everything from Merin.

One afternoon, while Aries and Lisena were in a tense meeting in the office, Merin brought in tea as usual. But then she heard a name that made her freeze… the name ‘Marco.’

“The latest intel says he’s still at large,” Aries said in a tense voice. “And now he’s joined a larger organization… the Crimson Night Network that controls all of Eastern Europe’s market.”

“How annoying,” Lisena grumbled. “I thought threatening him would have made him cower.”

Merin, who was standing at the door holding the tea tray, trembled all over. The name of that organization… she had heard it before… it was the name the guards in the black market used.

She decided to gather all the courage she had and walk into the room.

“I’m sorry to interrupt… but just now… were you talking about the Crimson Night Network?”

The two Alphas turned to look at her with surprise.

“How do you know about it?” Aries asked in a sharp voice.

“When I… was captured… I heard them talking about it,” Merin answered, her voice shaking. “They said… if they found an Omega with special characteristics… to send them directly to Warehouse Number Seven… without going through the black market.”

The unexpected information made both Aries and Lisena fall silent instantly.

“Warehouse Number Seven… where is it?” Lisena asked quickly.

“I don’t know the exact address… but I remember… the car that took me there… it had the salty smell of the sea… and I heard seagulls all the time,” Merin tried to squeeze out the terrifying memory. “And… on the arm of the man who was driving… he had a tattoo of an anchor with a snake coiled around it.”

These small details were the crucial puzzle pieces that Aries and Lisena had never had before!

“Well done, Merin!” Lisena exclaimed excitedly. “This is the best information we’ve ever gotten!”

Aries didn't say anything, but the way she looked at Merin was filled with unconcealed amazement and acceptance.

That day… Merin had transformed from a weak victim… into a key witness who could bring down the organization that had hurt her. She used the wounds of her past as a weapon… and that was truly walking out of the shadow of fear.

Aries and Lisena used the information from Merin to make their final plans. They assembled their best team and prepared to raid the beast’s lair soon.

The atmosphere in the mansion became tense again, but this time it wasn’t from the tension within their relationship, but the tension before a great battle.

The night before the operation… the three of them didn't sleep apart, but instead slept together on the large bed in Merin’s room. No lovemaking occurred, only hugging each other to give warmth and encouragement.

“I’m scared,” Merin confessed in the darkness.

“Don’t be,” Aries replied in a firm voice, her hand tightening the embrace around Merin. “This time… we will end it for good.”

“And we will always come back to you,” Lisena added, placing a light kiss on Merin’s forehead.

That night… under the shadow of the impending danger… the three of them had completely merged into one. Not as lovers… but as a ‘family’ ready to fight and protect each other until the very end.