Chapter four

Aziel POV

“For the last time, get out of the fucking car,” I growled, my hands clenched as a wave of anger rolled off me, each second feeding the irritation already burning in my chest.

Zarek leaned back further into the seat, arms folded, a smug curve to his mouth that said he was enjoying this far too much.

I exhaled slowly and glanced at Luciano, who stood casually against the car, watching the scene unfold like it was afternoon entertainment.

That was enough.

I grabbed Zarek by the shoulder and hauled him out of the car in one rough motion. His weight resisted for half a second, deliberate, testing me.

“I hate you,” he spat, shoving my hand away the moment his feet hit the ground.

“That works best for both of us,” I replied coldly, not bothering to lower my voice.

“I’m not staying here. Not one bit. Not with someone like you.”

His chin lifted in defiance, but his gaze slid past me, quick and calculating, mapping the estate.

I stepped closer, letting out a soft chuckle as I tilted his chin up, forcing his attention back to me.

“You see, kitten, I don’t think you’ve seen anything yet. So you’d better pack your bags and be at your castle gates. Save me some trouble.”

The word landed harder than I expected. His jaw locked, breath tightening, but he didn’t pull away.

“You’re a sick bastard,” he snapped.

“No one wants to babysit a whining wild animal.”

“How dare you.” He lunged at me, fury finally cracking through the attitude, but this time I caught him easily, holding him in place before shoving him aside.

He stumbled, caught himself, then straightened, shoulders squaring as if dignity were something he could reclaim by force.

“I’ll handle it,” Luciano said, his hand closing around my shoulder in warning.

I gave Zarek one last look. It took every fiber in my body not to do something irreversible. I knew he was stubborn, but I hadn’t expected this level of defiance. He wasn’t dangerous, just too familiar. And that was worse.

For a split second, the memory surfaced uninvited. Soft laughter, a different kind of defiance, eyes that never looked away from me. I crushed it down before it could take shape.

“Doctor Chavez is on his way,” I said, glancing at my phone. “Make sure he’s treated.”

“Noted.”

With a final nod, I turned and strode through the main entrance.

“Don, your father is requesting you,” one of my father’s men said as I passed.

I didn’t bother responding, heading straight down the corridor toward his office.

The tension hit me before I even crossed the threshold. My father was buried in conversation with two of his right-hand men, their voices lowering the instant I entered.

“Take a seat,” he said.

I lifted my gaze to meet his, then sighed and dropped into the chair opposite him.

“What’s going on?”

“Shipment got seized thirty minutes ago.”

“How is that possible? You said the king would—”

“We slipped. They slipped. Don’t you understand?”

“I’ll go deal with it.” I pushed to my feet.

“No. I’ve already sent the border base.”

“I should be the one out there handling that shit and—”

“You can’t leave.” His tone sharpened. “Someone put a bounty on that kid’s head. He needs to be guarded.”

I ran my hands through my hair, lowering my head as the weight settled in. Pressure built behind my eyes, familiar and unwelcome. One person and in less than twenty-four hours endless problems.

“Alessio,” my father said, “tighten security. The last thing I need is a fucking assassin on my estate.”

“Understood.”

“Dismissed.”

The two men left, the door closing behind them, but the air between my father and me stayed heavy.

“You’re late,” he said as I stepped fully into the room.

“He’s on the estate grounds. Like you wanted,” I replied flatly.

“We had an agreement. One hour. Unharmed.”

“It was a bullet scratch from his stupid tantrums."

My father pushed the files aside and removed his glasses, setting them down with care. That small gesture always meant patience was running thin.

“Are you going to tell me what this is really about?”

“Nothing,” I said through clenched teeth. A memory flashed, blood, shouting, the sound of my own breathing breaking apart, but I forced it down.

“He needs to go back. I’ll clean up my mess.”

Silence stretched. He didn’t interrupt, didn’t argue, and that restraint unsettled me more than anger ever could.

“You will prepare the training schedule,” he said casually.

“I won’t train him.”

The chair scraped back as he stood, slow and controlled, claiming space without raising his voice.

“Enough,” he growled. “You will not defy me, boy. When you chose to stand at my side, you accepted the consequences.”

“I know my choice, Father, and—”

“I don’t give a damn what you have against that kid,” he cut in. “You will do as I instruct, or we will have bigger problems than this.”

“He’s leaving anyway. I don’t need to lift a finger.”

“I will not lose an empire I built from scratch because you let your emotions cloud your judgment.”

“There is no—”

“Get the fuck out of my office.”

I hesitated only a second before turning toward the door.

“And Aziel,” he said quietly.

I froze.

“If you don’t want this life anymore, you can go back to her.”

The words landed like a punch to my chest. My muscles tensed like coiled steel, my jaw ticking with a force I barely controlled, shadows of pain, longing, and regret creeping in as a memory I’d buried clawed its way to the surface.

“Dad…”

“Leave.”

I walked out, each step heavier than the last, and shut the door behind me.

Leaning back against it, I closed my eyes and dragged in a slow breath, forcing control back into my hands until something slammed into my shoulder.

“What?” I snapped.

“We have a situation,” Luciano said, his voice tighter than before.

“This better be a death situation,” I hissed, “because if it’s not, someone’s going to pay.”

“You might want to calm down before you see it.”

The gunshot cracked through the estate.

My body moved before thought caught up, adrenaline spiking as the sound echoed again in my head.

Luciano was already turning.

“We need to move.”

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