LOGINAlthea 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 turned back to Michael immediately.“She took August?” He demanded intently and Michael nodded. “And, your father f8cking let her go? He didn’t even try to stopped her?!”Michael folded his arms.“I don’t think she gave him much choice.”That somehow made Dominic even angrier.Vincent quietly muttered, “She’s becoming more like Alessandro every day.”Dominic shot him such a murderous glare that Vincent immediately looked elsewhere.Michael stepped closer.“They’re not unprotected.” He informed.Dominic looked at him flatly.“Not helping, Devereaux!”“The generals sent reinforcements when they came to fetch them.”“Still not helping.” Dominic snapped.Michael exhaled heavily.“Dom.” He sighed heavily. “Althea figured something out before any of us did.”That stopped Dominic because he knew it was true.Althea had seen the pattern first and Nicholas helped expose it further.Now, the Axis Gate existed because she refused to stop looking deeper.Dominic’s jaw tightened painfully.
Night had settled heavily over the outer routes when Dominic finally saw Michael’s vehicle approaching from the eastern road.The convoy had stopped temporarily inside one of Alessandro’s abandoned relay compounds hidden beneath the old industrial district.A forgotten place made of concrete walls, rusting steel and with only minimal lighting.Exactly the kind of location Alessandro favored.Invisible unless someone already knew where to look.Dominic stood near the edge of the compound when Michael stepped out of the vehicle, Enrico following behind him together with two-armed men from Seraphina’s side.The moment Dominic saw Michael’s face, he knew something shifted.Sebastian noticed it too.“What happened?” The older man asked firmly.Michael exhaled slowly and walked directly toward Dominic.“We found the archive routes.” He answered instead.Dominic nodded once immediately.“Useful?”“Yes.” Michael responded and then paused for a while, his face showing that he’s debating with h
*CHAPTER CONTAINS MATURE CONTENT. PLEASE READ WITH DISCRETION.*Althea was panting breathlessly as her hands wrapped around Dominic’s neck, lowering her head to him and kissed him hungrily, their tongues dancing together.“Dominic,” she whispered briefly as they pulled away. She pressed her forehea
The study room smelled the same.That was what Althea noticed immediately the moment she closed the door behind her.The faint mix of paper, polished wood, and Dominic’s cologne, long settled into the grain of the shelves. The room was untouched in all the ways that mattered since the last time she
The knock came without warning. Three soft, deliberate taps against the solid wood Dominic had once insisted on importing from Italy because Althea liked how it muted sound.Dominic didn’t move at the sound and just stayed silent.The city hummed outside the luxury apartment, indifferent as ever, it
The report reached Dominic before dawn.Enzo didn’t waste words.“They’ve moving, Dom.”Dominic was already standing by the window of the temporary safehouse that he recently purchased as a precaution from one of his personal contacts, the city still bruised with night. “How many?”“Enough to make







