LOGINThe war room remained heavy with silence after Vincent’s final words.He controls the war before it even starts.No one said a word after that.Even Enzo remained silent, not coming up with anything to lighten the atmosphere. Because for the first time since Luca had started his move, the scale of what they were dealing with had finally become visible.It’s not a family war or revenge.Not even power alone.Luca wanted control, movement and fear.Entire systems hidden beneath the surface of society.Dominic stood motionless near the center of the table, eyes fixed on the layered maps while his mind moved rapidly ahead.Planning.Calculating.Adapting.He finally looked toward Helena.“I need a meeting with the generals.” He said in a firm tone.The room shifted immediately as it was not made a request.Helena narrowed her eyes slightly.“You’re serious.” She stated.“Yes, I am.” He replied solemnly as he straightened up. “If the Axis Gate is real, I want every remaining structure mapp
Morning arrived with tension already waiting for them when Dominic and Althea went out of their room the following day.It was not explosive or frantic but heavy and purposeful.Blackstone felt like a headquarters and no longer feels like an estate preparing for conflict.Guards moved through the halls with sharper discipline with communication lines remained active.Maps and handwritten reports had already begun piling again inside the war room before sunrise.Dominic stood beside the long table waiting for everyone to arrive, one hand resting against the edge while the other held a cup of untouched coffee that had already gone cold.He barely slept.Not after the Axis Gate.Not after realizing Althea willingly walked into the center of, it.Not after finally understanding what his father had truly been protecting all these years.The door opened behind him and Dominic looked up immediately.Althea, who went to check on Nico after breakfast, entered first.August behind her.Then Hel
Althea interrupted him this time. But not with words. She reached for the buttons of her blouse calmly and started undoing them.Dominic blinked, mid-lecture.“What the hell are you doing?!”Althea didn’t answer as she simply slipped the fabric from her shoulders slowly, her eyes never leaving his.Dominic visibly lost his train of thought.“Thea.” He warned.Still no answer as her fingers moved toward the waistband of her pants next.Dominic stared at her.Actually stared.His irritation visibly colliding with immediate distraction.“You think this is going to stop me from being angry?” He scoffed.Althea finally spoke softly.“It looks to be working.” She answered with a small smile.Dominic opened his mouth immediately then stopped because unfortunately, it is working.“Thea.” He tried warning her again, though his voice had already dropped lower.Rougher.She stepped closer.Barefoot against the floor.Calm.Dangerous in an entirely different way now.“You yelled enough already, D
Dominic did not let go of her hand the entire way upstairs.They passed through the halls and corridors and the guards and staff immediately looked away the moment they saw Dominic’s absolutely furious expression.Althea had to double time on her feet as Dominic took long strides without even glancing at her to make sure, she’s okay. She tried pulling her hand but he only tightened his grip on her without saying anything.She stopped struggling after that and kept up with him.The door to their room slammed shut behind them with enough force to shake the frame.Althea barely had time to turn before Dominic faced her fully.His face is livid.“What,” he began sharply, “f8cking possessed you to disappear into the mountains chasing hidden war infrastructure without telling me?”Althea opened her mouth.Dominic didn’t let her answer and just wen on.“No! Actually—wait.” He continued as he dragged a hand through his hair violently. “Let’s make this worse. You took August with you. He’s no
Which was somehow worse.August noticed the shift in her expression immediately.“You’re nervous.”Althea frowned slightly.“I’m not nervous.” She argued.“You’re absolutely nervous.” He pointed out.She looked away again.“He’ll understand eventually.” She muttered.August barked out an actual laugh.“No, he won’t, Althea.” He countered and that made her glare harder at him. “He’ll understand why. But that doesn’t mean he’s not going to lose his mind first.”Althea exhaled slowly.True. She thought dreadfully.The gates of Blackstone finally appeared just after noon.Immediately, Althea noticed the difference. She saw additional guards that she knew Helena have brought from the island it with unknow tactical positioning. She noted the reinforced outer security.August muttered quietly, “She really turned the estate into a fortress.”Althea barely heard him because her stomach dropped when she saw Dominic standing near the front entrance, waiting.His arms are crossed and his expressi
The meeting with the generals lasted until dawn.The conversations did not drag unnecessarily, but because every answer revealed another layer beneath the Axis Gate.Another consequence, terrifying possibilities.By the time General Reyes finally rolled the old maps closed again, the prayer hall had grown silent with exhaustion and the weight of what they learned lingered heavily over everyone inside.Althea stood near the long table, arms folded tightly while staring down at the convergence point one final time.The Axis Core. She thought intently, her mouth in a straight and firm line. The hidden center beneath decades of blood, war, manipulation, and silence. And now Luca is moving toward it openly.Reyes approached her quietly.“You understand what happens if he gets there first.” He commented.Althea nodded once.“Yes.”“Then don’t underestimate how far he’ll go to secure it, Althea.” He advised.Salcedo stepped closer as well.“He’ll start escalating pressure soon.” He informed
Dominic smelled blood before he saw it.Not the sharp, metallic tang of fresh violence. What he smelled was older, darker, soaked into fabric and skin.Hospital antiseptic clung to it, trying and failing to erase what had already happened.Althea was sitting on the edge of the bed, looking out the w
Althea arrived at the Valtieri estate after dawn.The car that picked her up rolled through the gates as the sky shifted from gray to pale gold, the light catching on stone and iron without warmth. Morning should have felt like relief but exhaustion is clearly overtaking her body.The operation Luc
The breach began quietly.There were no alarms screaming or any dramatic storming of gates. It was a single, almost imperceptible lapse. One door that remained unlocked half a second longer than protocol allowed, a camera feed that lagged not enough to trip automated alerts but enough to create sha
The next morning, Aurelio summoned Althea again, this time after Dominic had already left for the office in just an hour.The summon came with impeccable timing and calculated politeness. A knock delivered by a servant who would not meet her eyes. A message that was phrased as a courtesy, framed li







