LOGINLysandra’s breathing grew uneven. “No…”Her hand came up to her temple. “If she’s Seraphina…” Her eyes widened slowly. “…then everything changes.”Everything.Her position.Her future.Her place beside Damian.Her claim.Her power.All of it..Threatened.No.Because if Seraphina was Sera then she was still “Mrs. Blackwell.”The words tasted like poison. Her nails dug into her palm. Hard.“That can’t happen.” Her voice dropped. “I won’t allow it.”She turned sharply back to the screen. Staring at Sera’s face, at Seraphina’s face.The same.The exact same.And suddenly every interaction made sense.The way Damian had changed.The way he looked at her.The way he tolerated things he never would have before.The way he let her stay.Let her command.Let her exist so close to him without control.Lysandra’s stomach dropped. “…He doesn’t know.”The realization came like a lifeline. Of course he didn’t know. If he did everything would be different.He would have claimed her already. Pulled
The corridor outside the treatment room stretched longer than it should have. Or maybe it just felt that way.Sera began walking again. Fast. Too fast.Her heels struck the floor in sharp, uneven rhythms, echoing off the sterile walls like something chasing her.His voice followed her anyway.I’m sorry.It wouldn’t stop.No matter how far she walked.No matter how tightly she held herself together.Her grip on the tablet tightened until her fingers hurt.She turned the corner and stopped again. Abruptly. Like her body had reached a limit her mind refused to acknowledge.The hallway was empty and that was when it hit.It crashed into her chest all at once.Her breath hitched. Her hand came up instinctively, pressing against her sternum like she could physically hold herself together.“No…” The word slipped out, barely a whisper.Her eyes shut tightly but that didn’t help. Because now there was nothing to distract her. No machines. No voices. No control. Just him telling her he was sorr
The next session felt… off. Not in the machines. Not in the data. In her.Sera stood beside the console, posture straight, voice steady, hands precise as ever. Anyone watching would think nothing had changed. But inside everything was louder.Adrik’s words from breakfast hadn’t faded.Uncomfortable.Unavoidable.Do you remember how he treated you?She did. God, she did. And as she worked, as she adjusted the interface along Damian’s spine, those memories began to creep in, uninvited and vivid.The cold dinners.The long silences.The way she would speak… and he wouldn’t respond.The way Lysandra’s voice used to echo through those same halls she had just walked through days ago.Mocking.Belittling.And him standing there. Watching and doing nothing.Her fingers paused for a fraction of a second against the interface. Then resumed.Professional.Focused.Detached.“Signal stable,” one of the doctors said. “Proceeding to phase two.”“Proceed,” Sera replied. Her voice didn’t shake but he
Morning at the Volkov estate came with a quiet kind of elegance.Sunlight spilled through tall windows, catching on polished surfaces and soft linen, making everything look calmer than it really was.But beneath that calm there was tension.Sera sat at the breakfast table, her coffee untouched, fingers lightly wrapped around the cup as if she needed the warmth more than the taste.Nikolai was at the far end, already halfway through his meal, distracted by something on his tablet as he mumbled to himself about “signal optimization.”Adrik sat across from her. Watching. Not in the obvious way. But in the way of someone who had learned her over years.He noticed the small things.The way her shoulders held just a little too tight.The way her eyes drifted, not to him, not to the table but somewhere else entirely.Back there.Back to him.“So,” Adrik said finally, breaking the silence.“You’re extending your stay.”It wasn’t a question.Sera nodded.“Yes.”“How long?”“A few more days.”“
Anton smirked faintly. “You didn’t think we’d just let her walk into another man’s territory without knowing what’s going on, did you?”A beat.“A maid,” Anton continued casually. “Placed there. Quiet. Loyal. Invisible.”Damian’s gaze didn’t leave him now. “She’ll report anything unusual.”“Movements.”“Visitors.”“Security shifts.”“Anything concerning.”A small pause. Then softer, “She’s safe.”That word again.Safe.Damian leaned back slightly in his chair. The tension in his shoulders easing just a fraction. “Good.”Anton watched him carefully. "You don’t look convinced.”“I am.”“Then why do you still look like you want to burn the world?”Damian’s lips curved slightly. Because he did. Because part of him always would. “Because she left.”Anton nodded slowly. “Yeah.”“You going to stop her?” Anton asked.Damian shook his head. “No.”That surprised him. “Really?”Damian’s gaze dropped briefly to his legs again. Then lifted. Steadier now. “No. I’m going to earn my way back.”Anton
Downstairs Damian had already been informed.He didn’t react immediately. Not outwardly.He just sat there. Still. Processing. Then he wheeled himself toward the staircase.Slow.By the time Sera came down again, he was already there.Waiting.She stopped mid step when she saw him.Of course.He wasn’t going to let this happen quietly.Nikolai lingered behind her, unsure.“…You’re leaving,” Damian said.Not a question. A statement.Sera nodded. “Yes.”“Why?”“Because it’s the best option.”“For who?”“For me.”That landed.Damian’s gaze didn’t waver. “And the treatment?”“Continues at the facility.” Her voice was calm. Prepared. “I’ll come in every day.”“You won’t stay.”“No.”Silence.Then Damian leaned forward slightly. “You don’t have to do this.”Sera’s fingers tightened slightly around the handle of her bag. “Yes, I do.”“No, you don’t.”“Yes.”Her voice sharpened just a little. “I do.”He studied her. Carefully. Trying to read what she wasn’t saying. Because this, this wasn’t j
Sera swallowed hard.Yes.Italy was beautiful.It had also nearly destroyed her.She forced a smile, even as her heart began to race again, a thousand invisible alarms ringing inside her head.“…Okay,” she whispered.Nikolai’s face lit up so brightly it almost made her flinch.“Really?!”Sera nodde
The words landed like a bullet.The man in the wheelchair choked.It wasn’t dramatic, but it was real, sudden. His eyes widened, and he coughed once, harshly, like the name had caught in his throat and tried to kill him from the inside.The nurses panicked instantly.“Sir...!”“Mr. Blackwell, are y
The guard hesitated.He should have stopped here.Should have recognized the strange line of questions.But to him, it was just a rich kid on a school trip, curious and bored and asking about famous mafia stories like it was some Netflix show.So he answered.“San Celeste Private Medical Center,” h
Nikolai smiled at her with that bright, confident grin that made her heart ache because it reminded her of a man who once smiled like that only in her imagination.“Stop worrying,” he said, gentle now. “I’ll stay with security.”Sera cupped his face with both hands, kissing his forehead slowly, as







