Chapter 81: Buried Lies

The door creaked open under Dominic’s firm push, the sound slicing through the heavy silence of the night. I clutched his hand tighter, my heart hammering so violently it shook my ribs. Dust motes danced in the pale shaft of moonlight that spilled into the room, revealing faded furniture and broken dreams.

The safehouse smelled of abandonment—of old wood, forgotten memories, and the faint metallic tinge of secrets long buried.

Dominic swept the room with sharp, calculating eyes. He moved with precision, scanning every detail. Meanwhile, every step I took felt like trudging through quicksand, fear and anticipation weighing me down.

“There,” Dominic said, nodding toward the corner of the living room.

A battered cabinet, its surface scarred with deep gouges, stood half-concealed beneath a threadbare sheet. He yanked it open, revealing a heavy safe built into the floor.

“Of course,” he muttered grimly. “Victor wouldn’t trust a lockbox.”

Dominic knelt beside the safe, pulling a small device from his jacket pocket — a code breaker. Watching him work, I realized just how far he was willing to go for the truth. No hesitation. No doubt.

The lock clicked open with a harsh metallic snap.

For a moment, neither of us moved. We just stared at the gaping mouth of the safe, as if it were a portal to the past.

Then Dominic reached in.

He pulled out stacks of files, photographs, and several old cassette tapes. My breath hitched as I spotted a bundle of worn letters tied with a faded blue ribbon. My mother’s handwriting scrawled across the topmost envelope.

“These are hers,” I whispered, my fingers trembling as I reached out.

Dominic set them gently in my hands, his touch lingering for just a second longer than necessary — a silent offer of strength.

I untied the ribbon and unfolded the first letter.

Victor,

I don’t know how much longer I can live like this. Every day feels like another betrayal to myself, to us. Richard watches me too closely now. He suspects everything. I fear for our lives if we continue down this path… but I cannot live without you.

Always yours,

Olivia

My throat burned as I read, each word slicing deeper than the last.

She had loved him. Truly, desperately.

And she had been afraid.

Dominic found a battered journal next, flipping through its pages. His brows furrowed as he skimmed through notes, dates, meetings — all documenting the League’s movements and their financial schemes. Victor and Olivia had been gathering enough evidence to bury half the city’s elite.

“They were going to expose them all,” Dominic said, awe and horror threading through his voice.

“And they killed her for it,” I rasped. “My father… he knew.”

Dominic looked at me then, his expression raw, unguarded. “We can still finish what they started, Elena.”

A surge of determination slammed into me. My parents’ lies, the feud, the manipulation—it all ended now.

Suddenly, headlights flared through the front windows.

We froze.

Dominic moved fast, pulling me behind him as he crouched low. He peeked through the curtain, his body tense as a wire.

“Black SUV. Unmarked plates,” he muttered. “They’re here.”

“The League?” I breathed.

He nodded grimly. “Probably.”

He stuffed the evidence into a duffel bag in record time. “We can’t let them get this.”

The front door rattled violently, splintering under a heavy blow.

“We’re out of time,” Dominic hissed, grabbing my hand. “Back door, now!”

We sprinted toward the kitchen just as the front door crashed open and footsteps thundered inside. My heart slammed against my ribs, panic clawing at my throat, but I forced myself to keep moving.

We burst into the night, the cold air shocking my lungs. Dominic dragged me toward the treeline just as bullets tore through the darkness behind us.

“Go!” he shouted, shoving me forward.

Branches slashed at my arms as we plunged into the woods. The bag bounced against Dominic’s back as he kept me shielded, never once letting go of my hand.

Adrenaline fueled me, but terror gnawed at the edges of my mind. We were so close — so damn close — and I refused to lose everything now.

Shots rang out, shattering the silence.

One whizzed past my ear, too close.

Dominic cursed under his breath, yanking me down behind a fallen log. He pulled his gun from his waistband, returning fire with ruthless precision.

“We need a distraction,” he said, scanning the forest.

I ripped a flare gun from my coat — something we kept for emergencies.

“Will this work?” I asked breathlessly.

He grinned — a wild, reckless thing — and kissed me hard and fast. “You’re brilliant.”

Without waiting, I fired the flare into the trees behind us. The forest exploded into bright, blinding red light, forcing our pursuers to duck for cover.

Dominic grabbed me again, and we bolted for the car parked half a mile down the dirt road.

By the time we slammed into the front seats, both of us were heaving for air, sweat slicking our bodies despite the cold.

He jammed the key into the ignition, and the engine roared to life.

Tires spinning, we tore down the road, away from the death trap we had barely escaped.

Only when we hit the main highway did Dominic allow himself to slow down, his hands white-knuckled on the wheel.

I clutched the duffel bag to my chest like it was a lifeline.

“Are you okay?” he asked hoarsely.

I nodded, tears burning my eyes. “I’m okay. You?”

He gave a grim chuckle. “Never better.”

We drove in silence for a few minutes, the weight of everything pressing down on us. I stared at the bag, knowing that inside it was the key to destroying everything our families had built.

And maybe, just maybe, the key to freeing ourselves.

Dominic reached over and laced his fingers with mine.

“We’re close, Elena,” he said. “Closer than we’ve ever been.”

I turned my head, studying the man beside me — this complicated, ruthless, fiercely loyal man who had once been my enemy, but was now my anchor.

“We finish it together,” I whispered.

His mouth curved into a slow, dangerous smile.

“Together.”

As the city lights blurred into view ahead, I realized one undeniable truth:

Love and hate had been the weapons our families wielded.

But Dominic and I?

We were going to be the fire that burned them all to the ground.