Chapter Eighteen: Bloodlines and Bargains

The words didn’t land all at once.

They arrived slowly, like shards of glass sinking into my skin one by one.

“She took your sister.”

For a moment, I thought I’d misheard Dominic. That my mind had twisted his words into something monstrous because fear was already clawing at my chest. I searched his face for contradiction for any sign that he would shake his head and say I misspoke.

He didn’t.

His jaw was locked so tightly I could see the muscle jumping beneath his skin. His eyes those eyes that always seemed to see too much were stripped bare, darkened by something close to rage and something even closer to guilt.

The room tilted.

“No,” I whispered, the word barely a breath. “You’re wrong.”

Silence answered me.

My knees buckled before I realized I was falling. Alex caught me just in time, strong arms bracing my weight, his body solid behind mine. I felt his hand tighten on my shoulder, grounding me, holding me upright when my own strength abandoned me.

Ryan swore low, vicious, the sound sharp enough to cut through the air.

“When?” Alex asked, voice steady but deadly.

“Tonight,” Dominic said. “Less than an hour ago.”

My chest constricted painfully. My sister’s face flashed through my mind her laugh, her sharp tongue, the way she always acted fearless even when she wasn’t. She hated being protected. Hated being told she was vulnerable.

And now she was a pawn in a game I never meant to play.

“This is my fault,” I said, the truth tearing out of me before I could stop it.

Dominic’s head snapped toward me. “No.”

“Yes,” I insisted. “She took her to get to you. And you’re here because of me.”

For the first time since he arrived, Dominic looked like a man who didn’t have an answer.

That terrified me more than any enemy ever could.

We moved fast after that.

Not with panic panic wasted time but with the kind of urgency that came from knowing every second mattered. Ryan disappeared into the guest room and returned with a duffel bag I hadn’t known existed, unzipping it to reveal things I didn’t want to name.

Weapons.

Alex moved through the apartment with calculated precision, checking doors, locking windows, pulling out his phone and sending short messages in coded language I didn’t understand. He wasn’t frantic. He was focused.

Dominic stayed close to me, like he was afraid that if he looked away for even a second, I’d disappear too.

“Where would she take her?” Ryan asked.

Dominic hesitated.

That single pause sent a cold wave down my spine.

“There’s an estate,” he said finally. “Outside the city. It used to belong to her family.”

“Used to?” Alex asked.

“It burned,” Dominic replied. “Years ago. What remains is… isolated.”

Remote.

Hidden.

Perfect.

“I’m coming,” I said immediately.

Dominic turned on me. “No.”

“I’m not asking,” I shot back. “She’s my sister.”

“And she’s bait,” he said harshly. “Selene wants me. You being there makes you a liability.”

The words stung, even though I knew he was trying to protect me.

I stepped closer to him anyway, lifting my chin. “Then stop treating me like something fragile that breaks when you touch it.”

His hand rose, stopping inches from my face. For a second, I thought he might cup my cheek. Instead, his fingers curled into a fist and dropped to his side.

“Stay close to Alex,” he said quietly. “If anything goes wrong”

“I won’t run,” I said.

His gaze locked onto mine, something fierce and aching passing between us.

“I know,” he murmured. “That’s what scares me.”

The drive felt endless.

City lights faded into darkness, buildings replaced by trees that pressed in close, their shadows stretching across the narrow road like grasping hands. No one spoke. There was nothing left to say that hadn’t already been said or wouldn’t be said with blood.

My thoughts spiraled despite my efforts to control them. Fear for my sister twisted with anger toward Selene, and beneath it all, a terrible realization settled in my chest.

This wasn’t just obsession.

This was revenge.

“Tell me everything,” I said finally, breaking the silence.

Dominic’s hands tightened on the steering wheel. “Selene doesn’t see people as they are,” he said. “She sees them as they should be according to her.”

Alex glanced at him through the rearview mirror. “And you refused to fit her vision.”

Dominic let out a humorless breath. “I refused to belong to her.”

“And she never forgave you,” I whispered.

“No,” he agreed. “She never does.”

The estate emerged from the forest like a scar that never healed.

Charred stone walls rose from the ground, partially rebuilt, surrounded by towering trees that swallowed sound and light. Warm illumination glowed from within soft, inviting, deceptive.

Ryan parked the car a distance away. “Too quiet,” he muttered.

We approached on foot.

Every step felt heavier than the last, my heart pounding so loudly I was sure Selene could hear it from inside. The front door stood open, welcoming.

I hated her for that.

Inside, the air was thick with incense and something metallic that made my stomach churn. Candles lined the walls, their flickering light casting long shadows that seemed to move on their own.

“Mary?” I called softly.

A laugh answered me.

Slow. Amused.

Selene stepped into view like she owned the world. She was dressed elegantly, dark silk hugging her frame, her hair perfectly arranged. She looked untouched by the chaos she’d caused.

Behind her, bound to a chair

My sister.

Fear surged so violently through me that my vision blurred.

“Let her go!” I screamed.

Selene tilted her head, studying me with cold curiosity. “So this is her,” she murmured. “You never did mention how beautiful she is.”

Dominic emerged from the shadows, his presence immediately shifting the air. “This ends now.”

Selene’s gaze slid to him, glowing with satisfaction. “You always did underestimate me.”

She dragged a finger along my sister’s cheek, making her flinch. “She told me everything. How you protect. How you sacrifice.”

My chest burned. “You don’t get to touch her.”

Selene smiled. “I already have.”

The first shot shattered the calm.

Everything exploded into chaos.

Men poured in from hidden rooms. Glass shattered. Shouts echoed. Alex shoved me behind a pillar, his body shielding mine as bullets flew.

Ryan moved like a storm, precise and ruthless.

Dominic fought his way toward Selene, blood blooming at his side as he took a hit. My heart stopped.

“No!” I screamed.

Something inside me snapped fear giving way to fury.

I ran.

Alex shouted my name, but I didn’t stop. I reached my sister, hands shaking as I fumbled with the ropes binding her.

“Mary,” she sobbed. “I’m sorry I didn’t know”

“I know,” I whispered. “I’ve got you.”

The ropes fell away just as Selene screamed Dominic’s name.

He froze.

She held a gun aimed at me.

“Choose,” Selene said softly. “Me… or her.”

Time slowed.

Dominic’s face twisted in agony.

I met his eyes and shook my head.

Don’t.

He chose anyway.

And the choice shattered everything.