We’ve returned to the halls of the Moretti estate, but not all is as it once was. The air is heavier. The stakes are higher. And Emilia is no longer the outsider. She’s stepping into her role, and with enemies circling, the storm is only just beginning. Thank you for reading, your support means everything as we build toward the reckoning. Buckle up. The fire’s coming.
Lucien stalked the west wing with the fury of a storm caged in a man’s skin. Every hallway, every corner, every shadow was under his scrutiny. His men swept the estate with military precision, reports crackling through radios, but none of them said the only word he wanted to hear.Emilia.She had disappeared under his roof.Disappeared under his protection.Santiago’s warning hadn’t even cooled in his chest, and now this.Every step thundered with dread and rage. The moment he saw the camera feed glitch, Julio’s update, her form vanishing from the frame, something in him had cracked.And now, as he pushed through the far end of the west wing, his instincts flared.There.The scent of her perfume.Light. Faint. But real.Lucien rounded the last corner, and stopped dead in his tracks.She was walking toward him. Her eyes lit up the moment she saw him.Safe.Unharmed.Alive.“Emilia,” Lucien choked out.She smiled slowly at the sound of his voice, her expression surprised at first, then
The hallway to Lucien’s private wing was quiet, too quiet for a house that pulsed with power and armed silence. His steps were quick, sharp against the marble, every motion honed with purpose. His mind was already ahead of him, past the doors, to Emilia. What he would say. How he would hold her after the madness of the past long hours.He admitted to himself he missed her. Ached for her. Longed so hard it clawed at his chest.He had just turned the corner when one of the guards stationed near the central stairs stepped forward, expression tense.“Boss,” the man said. “A package arrived for you. It’s in your study.”Lucien slowed. “Vetted?”“Yes, sir. Thoroughly. Cleared for chemical agents, biological traces, even explosives. We ran full protocol, sniffer dogs, thermal scans. It’s clean.”Clean.Lucien didn’t reply. He turned on his heel without hesitation, boots echoing as he took the long path toward the west side of the estate, his private study.He hadn’t seen Emilia since his ret
The city blurred beyond the car windows, streaks of amber and dusk passing in silence. Lucien sat back against the leather seat, eyes sharp, hand resting against his jaw. His thoughts were already home, Emilia’s scent, her skin, the tension she’d left behind in the car like perfume on his tongue.The phone rang.Julio glanced at the screen and answered without hesitation. “Matteo.”Lucien turned slightly, his eyes narrowing.Julio listened, brows furrowed. Then, he held the phone toward Lucien. “You’ll want to take this.”Lucien didn’t speak until the phone touched his ear. “Talk.”Matteo’s voice came steady. “We have a visitor at the estate. Said he won’t leave until he speaks with you.”Lucien’s fingers curled around the phone. “Name.”“Raúl Navarro. Runs a syndicate out of the south, cross border routes, arms, narcotics, heavy bribes in local governments. Kept low until recently.”Lucien leaned forward, resting his forearms on his thighs. “He came without warning.”“Uninvited. Says
The estate had never felt this quiet.Not when Lucien was home. Not when his presence moved through its corridors like thunder wrapped in silk. But now that he was gone, the silence clung to the walls, pressing in around Emilia as she moved slowly through the halls, two security men trailing her like shadows.She didn’t acknowledge them. She didn’t need to.She was used to being watched.The air carried the faintest scent of cigar smoke and leather-bound power, Lucien’s office lay just ahead. The door was slightly ajar, the wood heavy and dark, a warning in its own right. It felt almost wrong to enter without him, but something tugged at her chest.Curiosity or instinct, she couldn’t tell which was louder.She slipped inside.The guards stayed at the door, just as they were trained to do. Inside, the room was immaculate in its masculinity: shelves of law books, strategic maps on the walls, weapons displayed like art, and a massive desk that commanded the space like a throne.She ran h
The morning came with an unnatural stillness. The sun had only begun to bleed into the sky when Lucien rose, fully dressed before the rest of the house had woken. He stood by the window of his room, staring out across the estate grounds. The men were already moving, quietly, efficiently, just as he’d ordered.Behind him, Emilia stirred beneath the sheets, the faint rustle of silk against skin as she rolled over, half-asleep. Lucien’s eyes lingered on her reflection in the glass. She looked so peaceful, so unburdened in that moment. He hated the thought of leaving her, even temporarily.But this wasn’t a day for softness.A knock came on the door.Lucien turned. “Enter.”Julio stepped in, dressed in black from collar to boot. His expression was tight, the lines around his mouth sharper than usual.“We’re ready,” he said quietly. “Vehicles are in position. Perimeter is secured. All units accounted for.”Lucien nodded once. “Good.”Julio hesitated, then added, “Security on Emilia’s floor
The bedroom was dim, bathed in amber light from the sconces Lucien never remembered turning on. He didn’t call out for her. He didn’t have to. He heard the soft rush of water, the patter of droplets against tile, steady, rhythmic, calming in a way nothing else was lately.She was in the shower.Lucien’s shoulders ached beneath the weight of command. Santiago, the summit, the wolves he’d kept at bay with nothing more than presence, it was all still inside him, taut and buzzing like a wire strung too tight. But as he crossed the room and stepped into the bathroom, that tension shifted.Glass fogged with steam. The sound of water cascading down her bare skin. And through the haze, her silhouette, soft, feminine, strong. His Emilia.Lucien stripped silently, each piece of clothing discarded without a second thought. The door slid open with a soft hiss, and the heat embraced him before he even stepped inside. She didn’t startle. Didn’t turn. She already knew it was him.Her back was to him