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CHANGES

Author: Laney L. R.
last update Last Updated: 2025-10-03 19:33:11

ZACH

Blood dries differently when it’s not your own.

I watched the crimson seep into the cracks of the floorboards, coating the edges of maps and orders I had laid out. The execution had been precise, as necessary as breathing, yet messy in the way reality always is when death is involved. I had wanted the screams to echo, to plant fear like seeds in the bones of anyone foolish enough to cross us. But the truth was simpler, darker: I had enjoyed it. And that enjoyment clawed at the edges of my sanity, a reminder that survival often demands surrendering pieces of yourself.

The war room was silent now, save for the steady drip of wax from candles that had burned low. Niko had left first, muttering about logistics, safehouses, and loyalty checks. Gia lingered longer, her gaze assessing, cataloging every nuance of the man I had become. I didn’t bother to argue. This was who I was, who I had always been, sharpened by betrayal and hardened by blood.

The knock came soft, almost hesitant.

Ala
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  • Whispers of Loyalty   Power

    ZachPower didn’t sit quietly. It hummed in the bones, pulsed like blood in the veins, and tonight, it was alive in the walls of the Vittore estate.Alana had taken the council seat as if she’d been born with it in her hand. Watching her slice through their doubt with nothing but her voice, it should’ve filled me with relief. Instead, it made my chest ache with something I wasn’t ready to name. Pride. Fear. Hunger. All of it tangled together.She wasn’t a doll anymore, not to anyone. Not even to me.I should’ve been happy. But happiness wasn’t a language I spoke anymore. What stirred in me was darker, heavier, and it burned.The corridors outside the chamber were empty now, the marble floors reflecting candlelight. I walked alone, boots echoing like gunshots, my hands still tense from the way they had curled into fists behind her chair. Not because I doubted her, Christ, no. She’d owned that room. But because part of me had wanted to snap Romano’s neck right there when he smirked at h

  • Whispers of Loyalty   Doubt

    AlanaThe house had always carried weight. My father’s shadow was carved into every wall, his presence thick in the air, like the scent of old smoke that no amount of open windows could drive out. For years, I had felt like the ghost inside of it, trapped in silks and sundresses, speaking softly, expected to smile while the real decisions were made by men who thought I would break if I raised my voice.But tonight, the silence was mine. The walls that had watched me bow my head would see me lift my chin and claim what was always meant to be mine.I stood in front of the mirror in my room, fastening the black jacket across my body. It wasn’t lace or silk. It wasn’t meant to flatter. It was meant to armor. My reflection looked different than the girl they had dismissed for years. My hair fell in waves over my shoulders, darkened by the shadows of the room, and my eyes—blue as glass, once dismissed as delicate—burned with something none of them could mistake for weakness.This was not ab

  • Whispers of Loyalty   PATH

    AlanaThe estate was quieter than it should have been. Not the oppressive silence that whispered danger, but the kind that pressed against your chest, suffocating in its anticipation. Every shadow felt longer, every flicker of candlelight sharper. I moved through the halls with caution, my heels silent against the marble, my thoughts louder than the world around me.It had been hours since the first wave had attacked the northern corridor, and the adrenaline had worn off just enough for reality to sink in. Bodies had been cleared, blood scrubbed from the floors, yet the scent lingered—a bitter tang that refused to leave, no matter how many candles I lit or sprays of disinfectant I used.I reached the greenhouse, drawn there instinctively. The sunlight streaming through the glass didn’t warm me; it burned, highlighting every pale curve of my skin, every line of tension I couldn’t hide. I touched the edge of a leaf, tracing the veins as if I could find answers there. But there were no a

  • Whispers of Loyalty   WILLING

    ZACHThe morning came too early, or maybe it was just the war that refused to wait. I didn’t hear it in the usual way, the alarm bells or the shift changes, but in the low hum of tension that ran through the estate like electricity. Every corridor, every shadow, every reflection in polished marble whispered a warning: nothing is safe. Nothing is quiet.I moved through the halls with deliberate precision, boots soft against the stone, hands brushing against walls like a blind predator. The war room had been cleared overnight, maps rolled and tucked, candles extinguished, but the residue of planning clung to the furniture. I could smell the ink and wax still, faint but persistent.Alana was already awake when I reached our quarters. She didn’t speak immediately. Her eyes followed me with a quiet intensity that reminded me, again, that she wasn’t the same girl I’d met months ago. She’d claimed her place at my side, and it was no small thing. In this world, claiming your seat meant blood

  • Whispers of Loyalty   REGRET

    ALANAThe morning light spilled across the estate in a way that made everything look too calm, too serene. The kind of calm that lulls you into forgetting what waits beyond the gates. I stood in the east wing, arms crossed, watching the sunlight fracture across the marble floor. Every gleam of light reminded me of the darkness we’d both embraced, the blood spilled, the lines drawn in red.I could still feel the heat of Zach’s body behind me from last night, the way he had claimed me in the war room before the world had even stirred. The intimacy had been brief but scorching, leaving traces on my skin like a brand, reminding me that even amidst death and betrayal, some things remained fiercely alive.But alive wasn’t the same as safe. Not for us, not in this world we’d chosen.Gia appeared behind me, her presence silent as always, carrying the faint aroma of coffee and leather. She didn’t speak right away, just observed. I didn’t need her to. She understood.“You’re already awake,” she

  • Whispers of Loyalty   CHANGES

    ZACHBlood dries differently when it’s not your own.I watched the crimson seep into the cracks of the floorboards, coating the edges of maps and orders I had laid out. The execution had been precise, as necessary as breathing, yet messy in the way reality always is when death is involved. I had wanted the screams to echo, to plant fear like seeds in the bones of anyone foolish enough to cross us. But the truth was simpler, darker: I had enjoyed it. And that enjoyment clawed at the edges of my sanity, a reminder that survival often demands surrendering pieces of yourself.The war room was silent now, save for the steady drip of wax from candles that had burned low. Niko had left first, muttering about logistics, safehouses, and loyalty checks. Gia lingered longer, her gaze assessing, cataloging every nuance of the man I had become. I didn’t bother to argue. This was who I was, who I had always been, sharpened by betrayal and hardened by blood.The knock came soft, almost hesitant.Ala

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