Chapter 4: Bound by Blood

A strange heat pulsed through Lena’s veins the moment her hand touched Adrian’s. It wasn’t pain—it was something deeper, something electric and raw, like a dormant ember suddenly catching fire.

Her breath hitched.

Adrian’s grip lingered, his fingers cool against her skin, his silver eyes darkening. He felt it too.

For a split second, something flickered behind his gaze—recognition? Surprise? Desire?

Then, as quickly as it came, he let go.

“Interesting,” he murmured again, tilting his head, studying her like a puzzle piece that had just clicked into place.

Lena inhaled sharply, rubbing her palm against her jeans, as if trying to erase whatever had just passed between them. What the hell was that?

She lifted her chin. “You want to explain what just happened?”

Adrian’s smirk returned, but this time, it didn’t reach his eyes. “A… confirmation, of sorts.”

Her stomach twisted. “Confirmation of what?”

He didn’t answer. Instead, he stepped back, reaching for the sleek black car parked behind him. With a smooth motion, he pulled open the passenger door and gestured inside.

“Get in.”

Lena folded her arms. “That’s it? No explanation?”

Adrian exhaled slowly, as if debating how much to tell her. Then he moved closer—too close—his presence wrapping around her like a shadow.

“Patience, Lena,” he murmured. “You wanted freedom. That means you’ll learn things on my terms, not yours.”

A slow, deliberate pause.

“Unless, of course, you’d rather walk away.”

She hated how he said it. The way he made it sound like she had a choice, like he wasn’t already pulling her into something far bigger than she understood.

But fear wasn’t the only thing swirling inside her now.

Curiosity.

Excitement.

Something darker.

Lena took a deep breath—then, without another word, she slid into the car.

Adrian’s smirk widened, pleased. He shut the door behind her and moved around to the driver’s seat.

As the engine purred to life, Lena glanced out the window.

The streets blurred past.

There was no turning back now.

---

The Blackwood Estate

The car wove through the city, slipping away from the neon lights and busy streets, deeper into the secluded outskirts where the buildings turned to sprawling mansions and wrought-iron gates.

Lena shifted in her seat. The further they went, the quieter everything became.

No streetlights. No late-night pedestrians.

Just the smooth hum of the car’s engine and the darkened silhouettes of estates too large to be real.

She stole a glance at Adrian.

One hand on the wheel, the other resting on his thigh. He drove effortlessly, gaze fixed ahead, completely at ease in the silence.

He didn’t look at her. He didn’t need to.

He commanded the space around him without trying.

Finally, she couldn’t take it anymore.

“Where are we going?”

Adrian’s lips twitched, amused. “Home.”

She blinked. “Your home?”

“My estate,” he corrected smoothly.

Lena frowned. “I never agreed to stay with you.”

That time, he did look at her. Silver eyes gleaming under the soft glow of the dashboard.

“Didn’t you?”

Her stomach twisted.

She had made a deal. She had said yes.

But she hadn’t realized just how much that yes would cost her.

The car slowed as gates appeared in the distance.

Massive. Blackened iron. Twisting, intricate designs woven into the metal like something out of a gothic fairy tale.

They creaked open without a sound.

Lena’s breath caught.

Beyond them, the Blackwood Estate loomed.

Dark stone spires stretching toward the sky. Towering walls draped in creeping ivy. Windows glowing dimly, as if secrets lurked behind every curtain.

It wasn’t just a mansion.

It was a fortress.

The car rolled up the long, winding driveway before stopping in front of the entrance. Adrian put it in park, then turned to her.

“Welcome home, Lena.”

A chill ran down her spine.

Was this still a deal…

Or had she just signed herself away to something far more dangerous?