LOGINDear readers, there will be one more chapter soon…
Amber.I hadn’t even noticed how the sky had bled into deep evening until the car rolled through the gates of the Vercetti mansion.The moment the wheels stopped, I didn’t wait for Zeden or the guard rushing to open the door.I shoved it open myself and bolted, my heels clicking hard against the stone as I ran inside.“Amber!” His voice chased after me, rough and urgent, but I didn’t slow down, didn’t look back.I flew up the staircase.My breath coming fast.My heart still hammering from everything that had happened.The second I pushed into our bedroom he was already there, moving faster than I expected, his hand closing around my wrist.I yanked free with a sharp twist and dropped onto the edge of the bed, my chest heaving as I tried to make sense of the blood, the screams, the knife sinking into flesh like it was nothing.Zeden stood in front of me for a long moment, then sank down beside me, the mattress dipping under his weight.“You know I’m truly sorry, right?” His voice wa
Amber.The second the words left my mouth, Zeden’s head snapped up.His dark green eyes locked onto mine, and for a heartbeat everything inside me went cold.My legs turned to water.My knees buckling like they might give out any second.It felt like I was standing on the edge of a deep hole, and part of him would be relieved to watch me fall in and cover me with concrete, just because I was foolish enough to try stopping him from finishing what he’d always wanted.“What the hell are you saying?” His voice came out low, dangerous.“I’m saying let her go, Zeden.” I forced the words out even though my throat felt tight. “For crying out loud, she’s the mother of your child. I know you’re not the biological father, but are you really going to take her life over something that happened years ago?”I kept my eyes fixed on the tip of the knife still pressed to Marissa’s neck.My hands trembling at my sides.Slowly, I stepped closer.“Come here. Give me the knife.”“Don’t do that, Blondie.
Amber.The second the words left my mouth, Zeden’s head snapped up.His dark green eyes locked onto mine, and for a heartbeat everything inside me went cold.My legs turned to water.My knees buckling like they might give out any second.It felt like I was standing on the edge of a deep hole, and part of him would be relieved to watch me fall in and cover me with concrete, just because I was foolish enough to try stopping him from finishing what he’d always wanted.“What the hell are you saying?” His voice came out low, dangerous.“I’m saying let her go, Zeden.” I forced the words out even though my throat felt tight. “For crying out loud, she’s the mother of your child. I know you’re not the biological father, but are you really going to take her life over something that happened years ago?”I kept my eyes fixed on the tip of the knife still pressed to Marissa’s neck.My hands trembling at my sides.Slowly, I stepped closer.“Come here. Give me the knife.”“Don’t do that, Blondie.
Amber.The room went deathly quiet for a long moment.The kind of silence that presses on your chest until breathing feels impossible.My lungs seized up, the air refusing to move in or out.Zeden’s leg vibrated violently under the table, the rage rolling through every inch of his body like a live wire.His eyes stayed locked on Marissa, dark and unblinking.She raised a delicate hand, signaling the maid to stop pushing her wheelchair.The wheels whispered to a halt.“Zeden…” I whispered, soft enough that only he could hear.He didn’t answer.Instead, he pried my hand off his thigh with surprising gentleness, then shoved his chair back.The scrape of wood against marble cut through the tension like a scream.He stood, and a rough, mocking laugh tore out of him, long, low, and laced with pure fury.“Marissa, I told you to stay in your room. Why did you come down?!” Thalia burst out, trying to reach her daughter first.Zeden lifted one hand without even turning around. “Not another s
Amber. Zeden opened his mouth, but I slid my hand under the table and squeezed his thigh hard, signaling I had this.“I’m sorry, Mrs. Rossi,” I continued, reaching over to take the plate she’d been dishing out even though she hadn’t offered it to me. “I thought the most logical thing after becoming Zeden’s wife was to step up as a mother to his child. After all, someone has to actually be there for her—warm, present. Blood doesn’t automatically make you a parent. Raising her, loving her, earning her trust—that does. And lucky for Zam, she’s finally got that now.”Thalia’s fork clattered against her plate. “Zeden, what kind of nonsense is this? Why is your little maid of a wife trying to mother my own grandchild? And why on earth is Zameera calling another woman ‘mother’?”Zeden leaned back, a smug satisfaction curling his lips. “What else should she call her? Who else does she have to call that? Do you have someone better in mind?”Before Thalia could snap back, a deep male voice c
Amber.We pulled up to the Rossi mansion.It’s sprawling stone facade just as imposing as the last time I’d been dragged here like a prisoner. Back then Zeden had nearly killed Enzo in cold blood while I stood there, treated like nothing more than his disposable toy. Today I was his wife.Pregnant with his child, yet the memory still left a bitter taste on my tongue.I’d tried to change into something more modest before we left, but Zeden had shut that down with one sharp look. So here I was, stepping out of the car in the same revealing outfit I’d worn to mess with his head earlier. The long slit in my skirt kept parting with every movement.Flashing too much thigh. I quickly tried to tug the fabric back together with my free hand.“Leave it,” Zeden said the moment I stood beside him. His voice was low, rough with something darker than anger. “I don’t give a fuck who sees it like that.”“Zeden, you should have let me change,” I muttered. “I could have worn a proper dress.”“
Zeden. I stood under the dim light of my bedroom, right in front of the full-length mirror, a cigarette pinched between my fingers. Steam still clung to my skin from the shower, tiny droplets tracing lazy paths down my chest, over the dragon ink that coiled across my ribs and disappeared behind
Amber. The night outside the hospital was dark, but the tall buildings around threw enough light to make everything glow in shades of gold and blue. I stood on the curb, arm raised, trying to flag down a taxi. This was the third one that had slowed, looked me over, then sped off with some excu
Amber.I couldn’t dare close my eyes. Couldn’t even open them properly. Sweat poured from every inch of my skin, adding fresh sting to the burn already clawing through me.I kept thrashing against the cuffs, wrists raw and screaming. The more I struggled, the tighter the metal bit, widening th
Amber.Despite the hot tears streaming down my eyes and the strands of hair clinging to my face like sticky webs, despite the searing pain radiating from every inch of my skin—my burned palm throbbing like fire, the shallow cut on my chest stinging with every breath—my body betrayed me completely







