Chapter Nineteen

Aria

Darkness.

Everything was spinning. My head felt heavy, and my ears were ringing.

For a second, I didn’t know where I was.

Then the cold hit me.

The hard bite of the ground against my back.

I opened my eyes and chaos exploded around me.

The helicopter was in pieces. Metal twisted everywhere. Smoke and fire filled the air.

The pilot was slumped over the controls, blood trickling down his forehead.

I pushed myself up, coughing hard.

“Damian!” I screamed, panic clawing up my throat. “Dad!”

There was no answer.

I struggled to my feet, my ankle screaming in pain.

The crash had ripped my jeans and blood covered my knees, but I didn’t care.

I stumbled through the wreckage, my heart pounding like a drum.

“Damian!” I cried again.

Then I saw him trapped under a piece of metal, barely conscious.

“No, no, no,” I muttered, rushing to him.

I grabbed the metal and pushed with everything I had.

It didn’t move.

“Hang on, please hang on,” I sobbed.

I pushed harder.

My arms shook. My body screamed.

But I didn’t stop.

I couldn’t stop.

Finally, with a loud grunt, the metal shifted just enough for Damian to pull free.

He coughed, blood trickling from his mouth.

But he was alive.

He was alive.

“Sunshine...” he rasped, reaching for me.

I grabbed his hand tightly.

“I’m here,” I said, tears pouring down my face. “I’m right here.”

Behind me, more wreckage shifted and Dad staggered out, limping heavily but alive.

Thank God.

“We have to move,” Dad gasped. “They’re coming.”

I looked around and saw the black helicopter still burning a few yards away.

But figures were crawling out of it armed men, still alive, still dangerous.

I helped Damian to his feet. He leaned heavily on me, but he could still move.

We stumbled away from the crash site, heading toward the thick trees.

The forest swallowed us up, branches clawing at my skin.

But I didn’t stop.

Gunshots cracked through the air behind us.

“They’re not giving up,” Damian said through gritted teeth.

“Neither are we,” I said fiercely.

We kept moving, deeper into the woods.

The ground was rough and uneven. Every step sent pain shooting through my ankle.

But I didn’t care.

I had to get Damian and Dad to safety.

I had to.

Finally, after what felt like forever, we reached a small creek.

The water was cold and clear.

“We’ll follow the water,” Dad said, breathing hard. “It’ll cover our tracks.”

We splashed into the creek, moving fast.

The cold soaked into my bones, but I gritted my teeth and kept going.

Behind us, the shouts of the men grew fainter.

Maybe we were losing them.

Maybe.

We followed the creek until it twisted around a bend and then we saw it.

An old cabin.

Half-fallen, roof caved in.

But it was a shelter.

“We’ll hide there,” Damian said.

We stumbled inside.

The floor creaked dangerously under our weight.

But it held.

Damian collapsed onto a broken chair, breathing hard.

I knelt beside him, tearing open the first-aid kit I’d grabbed from the helicopter.

His shirt was soaked in blood.

My hands shook as I peeled it away and cleaned the wound.

“You’re lucky,” I said, trying to smile. “It missed anything major.”

He gave a rough laugh.

“First time anyone’s called me lucky.”

I patched him up the best I could, wrapping his shoulder tight.

Then I sat back, exhausted.

Dad was pacing by the window, watching for movement.

For a moment, none of us spoke.

We just breathed.

Alive.

Together.

Damian reached for my hand.

I squeezed his fingers tight.

“Aria...” he said, his voice low.

His eyes were burning into mine.

Dark. Fierce.

“I’m not letting you go again,” he said. “Ever.”

Tears filled my eyes again but this time, they were happy tears.

“I’m not going anywhere,” I whispered.

He leaned in slowly, giving me time to pull away.

I didn’t.

I met him halfway.

Our lips brushed soft at first, then harder.

All the fear, all the pain, all the hope poured into that kiss.

His hands tangled in my hair, pulling me closer.

My body melted against his.

For the first time in what felt like forever, I felt safe.

Loved.

But just as quickly, the moment shattered.

The door exploded inward.

Armed men stormed into the cabin, shouting.

Guns raised.

I barely had time to grab Damian and shove him behind the broken chair.

Dad raised his crowbar like a warrior.

But it was too late.

One of the men stepped forward, gun pointed right at me.

“End of the line,” he said coldly.

“Lucian wants her alive. But he didn’t say anything about the others.”

My heart stopped.

I felt Damian tense behind me, ready to fight.

But he was still hurt.

We couldn’t win this.

Not like this.

I raised my hands slowly, stepping in front of Damian.

If they wanted me they would have to go through me.

The man smiled coldly.

And pulled the trigger.

Aria

The world slowed down.

I could feel the cold metal of the gun pressed against my chest.

The man’s finger was on the trigger, but I didn’t flinch.

Something inside me something deep and primal told me that this wasn’t the end.

For a second, I thought I heard Damian's voice, but it was muffled, distant.

Then the world exploded in a rush of sound.

The gunshot never came.

Instead, there was a loud, deafening crack as a bullet tore through the air, hitting the man in the shoulder.

He spun around, dropping to the floor with a scream.

“Get down!” Damian shouted, pushing me to the ground.

I hit the floor with a thud, my heart racing.

The cabin was a battlefield now.

The men in black rushed into the room, guns raised, shouting orders.

But we weren’t just sitting ducks anymore.

We had an advantage now thanks to the bullet that came from nowhere.

Dad moved fast, swinging his crowbar with deadly precision, knocking one of the men off balance.

I barely had time to process it before Damian was on his feet, grabbing the fallen man’s gun and firing at another attacker.

I scrambled to my feet, adrenaline pumping through my veins.

Everything felt like it was happening in slow motion.

Damian was in his element.

He was strong, fast, like a shadow no fear.

It was hard to keep up with him.

I grabbed the crowbar that Dad had dropped, my fingers trembling.

I didn’t care.

I wasn’t going to sit here and let them take us.

One of the men lunged at me, and I swung the crowbar with everything I had, catching him in the ribs.

He grunted, stumbling back.

But I didn’t stop.

I swung again, this time knocking him out cold.

“Nice shot,” Damian said, his voice thick with approval.

He was beside me now, firing the gun with precision.

The cabin was chaotic.

The air was thick with smoke and the smell of gunpowder.

Everywhere I turned, there was action violent and fast.

We fought as a team, moving together like we had done this a hundred times before.

Dad was in the corner, taking out one of the men with his crowbar, but he was struggling.

His leg was hurt, and it was slowing him down.

“Dad!” I shouted. “Get down!”

But he didn’t listen.

He was stubborn.

Another man raised his gun at Dad, but before he could fire, I shot him first.

The sound of the gunshot echoed in the small cabin, but it was a beautiful sound.

It meant we had a chance.

“We need to get out of here!” Dad yelled.

He was bleeding. His face was pale, but he wasn’t giving up.

Damian was already moving.

“Grab the supplies,” he said, his voice low but commanding. “We go now.”

I helped Dad to his feet, my stomach twisting with fear.

But there was no time to dwell on it.

I followed Damian to the back of the cabin, where a small, rusty door led into the woods.

We rushed through it, the night air cold against my skin.

Damian led the way, gun raised, scanning the trees for any sign of movement.

Dad stumbled behind me, struggling to keep up.

“Keep moving,” Damian ordered. “They’re right behind us.”

I could hear the men shouting in the cabin, scrambling to get out.

But we had a head start.