LYNEXIA Dimitri and I haven't exchanged a word since we left the complex. I don't even bother to ask him where we are headed because my mind is too busy wrestling its own demons. I'm anxious about the hard conversation Dimitri and I are going to have and also about this whole thing that I started. I was hasty to spill out what I saw. For once I also wanted to be useful for something so I didn't hesitate. But the moment Seraphina voiced out her doubt, I became engulfed in my own self-doubt. What if it's just my brain playing games on me? What if I have them barking the wrong tree? What if an innocent person dies because I had them going after the wrong tail? Never-ending what-ifs flood me. Of the three times, I have had foresight, and not one has proven useful. So what gives me the stupid confidence that things can actually be different this time? If there is anything I'm good at, it's spewing rubbish and causing more trouble than I am worth. I rest my head on the car window w

LYNEXIA Over the past few days, Dimitri and I have found a middle ground and we have settled into an amicable dynamic. I don't feel like throwing knives at him anymore and we are rarely at each other's throats. I'm beginning to find his presence comforting which is a cause for alarm. I don't hate him with much intensity anymore. And I feel like if he is ready to tell me what happened five years ago, I'm willing to hear him out. I don't know what is happening to me and to be frank, I don't think I want to know. I'm not ready to face head-on the changes happening inside of me. Gradually letting go of the hatred makes me feel light and some days, it fills me with trepidation because what if this is all Dimitri's elaborate plan and I'm falling right into his trap? The thoughts are too overwhelming so I decide to shut it down completely until further notice. My legs bounce under me. "So what are we doing this morning?" Dimitri and I have started our usual training and it has been fa

DIMITRI From the moment I laid my eyes on Lynexia this morning, I could tell she was furious. She has this look different from the usual murderous ones she gives me every time. Not only that, she didn't have a banter ready for me when I said good morning to her. She has replied accordingly to all my questions without any biting remark which is an impossible thing for Lynexia to do. At least to me. She has been off. Very off and I don't like it. As we walk towards the office, she abruptly asks, "Got something to say?" Her tone is flat and she doesn't bother to glance at me and is tired of my stares. "Seems like you have something to say." I turn the question on her. She tilts her head to me, a cheeky smile playing on her lips. "No. I don't." Her voice carries a bite in contrast to her smile. She walks ahead of me not giving me a chance to reply and I don't push it. But as soon as we walked into the office, I couldn't hold it in anymore. I push her against the wall and cag

LYNEXIA As if Dimitri can sense me, his gaze sweeps around the crowd. I quickly duck my head before he sees me, pulling Julianne down with me. The dense crowd works in our favor as we weave our way through the crowd away from Dimitri towards wherever the restroom is. I release Julianne's hand when we get to the restroom. She already has a remorseful look on her face when I turn my gaze to her. "I know you are upset, but I can explain." She raises her hands. I gesture to her. "Go ahead." "Uhm...I lied." She admits, squeezing her eyes shut. "I'm sorry. You won't come with me if I told you he was going to be here, and I didn't want to come alone." My eyebrow shoots up as I cross my arms. "So you tricked me?" She nods, looking regretful, and leans against the counter. "It's just," her hand threads through her hair. "I didn't want Gavin to think I came here because of him." I sigh, resting against the counter beside her. "Why is that?" "I..." She hesitates, her gaze droppi

LYNEXIA I stiffen. I should have known the musky scent of the bartender would stick to me. "Why do you care?" I force a defiant tone, squaring my shoulder. "Don't fucking play with me, Lyn." His low rumble voice rattles my inside. "Did you let another man touch you?" He rasps, harshly as if it physically pained him to say those words. "Maybe." I breathe, fully aware of the dangerous line I walk. "Maybe not." "Did you or did you not?" His jaw clenches as he commands. If I'm not so used to them enough to resist the effect of his voice, I will be spilling right now. "What if I say I do?" The restraint holding Dimitri snaps right in front of my eyes. He grabs my wrist roughly and drags me across the room. Before I can breathe, he shoves me against the wall and cages me in with his body. Trapped between him and the wall, the air cackles with tension that both terrifies and thrills me. From a distance, I hear the sky groans heavily with rain. "You shouldn't have let him tou