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And Then They Turned on Him

Penulis: Jovik
last update Terakhir Diperbarui: 2025-07-13 08:05:04

Ariana’s POV

I knew it would happen. Eventually, but I didn’t expect it to feel like this. Quiet. Uneasy. Almost sad. The same morning the Sentinel story spread across the country, I opened my inbox to find messages from names I hadn’t seen in years.

One from a Luxe board member, one from a former assistant, one — shockingly — from Elise. Yes. That Elise. The woman Daniel once swore was “just a colleague.”

The same woman whose perfume lingered on his shirt when I confronted him and he said I was overthinking again. Now she was writing:

// “Ariana, I just want to say I’m sorry. I believed everything he said about you. And I realize now… I was part of the machine that helped erase you. I didn’t know. But that’s no excuse. Thank you for speaking up. If you need a statement from me, I’m ready.”

I stared at the screen for a long time. Not because I was shocked, but because I had nothing left to say to her. Forgiveness wasn’t the point anymore, reckoning was.

*****

By midday, Daniel’s name
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  • Surrendered Desires   A Step Into the Open

    Ariana’s POVThe city air felt colder than it should have as I stood facing Daniel on the street. Every sound seemed amplified—the hum of traffic, the buzz of a neon sign across the block, the faint scrape of a pigeon’s wings against brick.But beneath it all was silence. A silence so sharp it cut into my bones. Daniel’s eyes held mine, steady, calculating. The smile he wore was polite, practiced. But I knew better than anyone what lived behind that smile.“You look tired,” he said finally, his voice smooth as silk. “Are they keeping you up at night?”“They,” of course, meant Luca.My chest tightened. But I refused to look away. “I sleep better now than I ever did with you.”For the briefest moment, a flicker of anger flashed in his eyes. But it was gone almost instantly, replaced by calm amusement.Luca shifted at my side, his grip on my hand like steel. “You should leave, Daniel.”Daniel’s gaze slid to him, slow and deliberate. “Ah, the prodigal lover. Still playing hero, I see.” Hi

  • Surrendered Desires   Cracks in the Mirror

    Ariana’s POVSleep was a stranger that night. Even with Luca’s arms around me, the image of that black car below the window kept me wide awake. Every time I closed my eyes, I imagined Daniel’s gaze cutting through the glass, watching me breathe, cataloguing my every move.By dawn, my body was heavy with exhaustion, but my mind was restless, alert. I padded to the bathroom, splashed cold water on my face, and stared at my reflection in the mirror.For a moment, I didn’t recognize her—the woman staring back. Shadows under her eyes, hair loose, shoulders stiff with strain. She looked like someone caught between two worlds: the woman Daniel once molded, and the one slowly clawing her way out.I whispered to the mirror, barely audible. “Who am I now?”The question hung in the air like smoke, unanswered.By the time I stepped into the kitchen, Vanessa was already there, her legs crossed on the counter, sipping black coffee as though it were champagne.“You look like death warmed over,” she

  • Surrendered Desires   The Man in the Car

    Ariana’s POVThe morning was gray, a dull wash of light across the city, but I could feel him even before I saw him.Daniel. His car was still parked on the street below, sleek, black, polished to perfection. The kind of car that didn’t just sit—it watched.Nathan had been right. He hadn’t left. He had stayed the entire night. Waiting.I stood at the window, hidden behind the curtain, my coffee cooling in my hands. From up here, I couldn’t see his face, but I knew his posture by heart. Straight, still, composed. A predator conserving energy before the strike.The memory of his knock still rattled in my bones.Vanessa came up behind me, her robe tied loosely, her cigarette already lit despite the hour. “He’s still out there?”I nodded. She exhaled smoke through her nose. “Persistent bastard.”Nathan joined us, his voice clipped, sharp. “He’s making a statement. He wants Ariana to feel trapped even in her own walls.”It was working. My skin itched. My stomach tightened. Every sip of cof

  • Surrendered Desires   The Door Between Us

    Ariana’s POVThe apartment was so quiet I could hear my own heartbeat hammering in my ears. Daniel’s voice still lingered in the air like smoke, his threat curling around my lungs, making it hard to breathe. No one moved. Luca stood closest to the door, his frame blocking it completely, like a wall of muscle and fury. Nathan edged toward the window, checking the street below as if Daniel might have backup waiting. Vanessa, of course, lit another cigarette, her eyes sharp with both fear and defiance. But me—I was frozen.Every cell in my body screamed not to open that door. And yet, some part of me—the part that had been conditioned for years—ached to obey, to let him in, to soothe the storm before it began.I dug my nails into my palms until I felt pain. No. Not anymore.Daniel’s knock came again, quieter this time. Almost patient. “Ari,” he said, his voice smooth, steady, the kind he always used when he wanted to reel me back in. “You’ve been confused. I understand. Let me explain.”

  • Surrendered Desires   Daniel’s Shadow

    Ariana’s POVMorning crept in like a thief, pale light slanting through the curtains. I hadn’t slept. None of us had. The box sat where we left it on the table, its contents spilling in my mind even when I closed my eyes.Every word from those files replayed: procedure authorized by D. Cole. Every threat, every order, every chain Adrian and Daniel had wrapped around me. My body was heavy with exhaustion, but my veins thrummed with something sharper than fear—resolve.Vanessa was the first to speak. Her hair was a mess, her eyeliner smudged, but her voice cut through the silence. “So, what’s the plan, Ari? You’ve got dynamite in your hands. You gonna light it or keep staring at the fuse?”Her bluntness stung, but she wasn’t wrong. Nathan, leaning against the counter, crossed his arms. “We move carefully. Too fast, and Daniel will know exactly where to strike back. He’ll play the victim. He always does.”Luca looked at me, his eyes soft but steady. “Whatever you choose, I’ll stand with

  • Surrendered Desires   The Weight of the Box

    Ariana’s POVBack at the apartment, silence followed us in like an unwelcome guest.Vanessa tossed her coat on the couch and dropped into a chair, flicking ash into an empty coffee mug. Nathan stayed standing, pacing the floor like a restless shadow. And Luca set the box on the table with a soft thud, his hand lingering on the lid as though it might leap open by itself.I sat across from it, staring. It wasn’t just metal and lock. It was every question I had carried for years, every scar, every whisper that haunted my sleep.And for the first time in a long time, I was afraid to know the answers.“You’re trembling,” Luca said gently.I looked down. My hands were shaking against my knees. I clenched them into fists. “I can’t stop.”Vanessa blew smoke toward the ceiling. “Well, honey, no wonder. That thing is practically Pandora’s box. You sure you’re ready to crack it open?”Her tone was sharp, but her eyes—those eyes—were softer than her words. She was worried.Nathan finally stopped

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