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Chapter 6: The glass fortress
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2026-02-28 17:00:59The grand entrance hall of the De Luca estate felt less like a home and more like a mausoleum. The black marble floors were polished to a mirror finish, reflecting the jagged lightning that streaked across the sky outside.
Josh’s grip on my arm was like a brand, cold and unyielding. He pulled me down the grand staircase just as the massive oak doors were kicked open.
Silas Vane didn't walk in; he stormed in. He looked lethal—his hair dampened by the rain, his eyes narrowed into slits of pure, dark ice. But it was the woman he held close to his side who caught my breath.
Myra Bliss.
She looked exactly like her photos on the news, but the poise was gone, replaced by a raw, vibrating fear. Our eyes locked. In that split second, I didn't see a famous journalist or a billionaire’s fiancée. I saw a mirror of myself—a woman being used as a shield and a prize in a game she never asked to play.
"Let her go, Josh," Silas growled, his voice vibrating through the hollow hall. He didn't have a weapon drawn, but the way he stood—shoulders back, hand hovering near his jacket—told me he was ready to burn the house down to get what he wanted.
"Which one, Silas?" Josh mocked, his laugh a low, dry sound. He pulled me closer, his hand sliding up to rest heavy on my shoulder. "The one you’re pretending to love, or the one you’ve been trying to find for five years?"
Myra gasped, her gaze snapping to Silas. "What is he talking about? Silas, who is she?"
Silas didn't look at her. He didn't blink. "He’s talking about the only mistake I ever made. The woman I couldn't protect because your father was too busy playing God with people’s lives."
The air in the room felt like it was being sucked out. I looked at Julian, who was standing in the shadows of the hallway with a medical bag gripped in his white-knuckled hand. He looked at me, his eyes full of a silent, agonizing apology. He knew. He had known all along that bringing me here would trigger this explosion.
"Julian, go," I pleaded, my voice breaking. "Go to Leo. Save him."
Julian hesitated for a heartbeat, his gaze darting between his brother’s lethal grin and Silas’s cold fury. Then, with a final look of heartbreak at me, he turned and disappeared into the service tunnel.
"One brother runs, the other stands his ground," Silas sneered, taking a step forward. "Typical De Luca cowardice."
"Careful, Vane," Josh warned, his voice dropping to a dangerous whisper. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small remote. "This house is a fortress. One click, and the shutters go down. We can stay here all night and settle this the old-fashioned way. Or, you can give me the 'Project X' files Myra has been so diligently hiding in her garter, and I’ll let you walk out of here with your life."
I felt Myra stiffen beside Silas. The 'Project X' files. The very thing she had been using to investigate the man holding me.
"I don't have them," Myra lied, her voice surprisingly steady. "I destroyed them."
Josh laughed, a sharp, ugly sound. "A journalist destroying her best story? Please, Myra. I know you. I know you have them encrypted on a drive. And I know your 'fiancé' here is the main villain in those files."
I looked at Myra, and for the first time, I saw the conflict in her eyes. She was falling for the man who was the subject of her own investigation. She was trapped in a lie just as deep as mine.
"Silas," I called out, finding a strength I didn't know I had. "If you ever cared about the girl you lost five years ago... help her. Help Myra. Don't let him do to her what he did to me."
Josh’s grip tightened until I winced. "Silence, Elara. The adults are talking."
Silas’s gaze finally shifted to me. For a second, the ice in his eyes thawed into something that looked like recognition—and deep, haunting regret. "I told you I’d find you, Elara. I just didn't think I’d have to fight through a De Luca to do it."
"You're too late, Silas," Josh hissed. "She's already mine. And so is the boy."
At the mention of Leo, something in me snapped. I didn't care about the remote. I didn't care about the De Luca power. I twisted in Josh’s grip, my nails digging into his hand.
"He is NOT yours!" I screamed.
In the chaos of that moment, the front doors creaked. Not from the wind, but from a third party.
A man in a dark hoodie stepped into the light of the foyer. On his wrist, a heavy silver watch caught the light. But he wasn't Josh. And he wasn't Silas.
He was the man from the balcony. The man who had haunted Myra.
"Evening, gentlemen," the stranger said, pulling back his hood to reveal a face that made both Silas and Josh turn pale. "I believe I’m the one you’re actually looking for."
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