All Chapters of The Black Rose: Chapter 71 - Chapter 80

SILASThe underground safe house felt like a tomb.I'd been pacing the length of the living room for what felt like hours, my boots wearing a path in the expensive rug Lorenzo had imported from somewhere I couldn't remember. Each step was punctuated by the grinding of my teeth, by the thoughts racing through my head so fast I couldn't catch them all.Elijah was alive.The words kept repeating like a broken record, and with each repetition, I felt that raw betrayal spreading through my chest like poison. It was a feeling I hadn't experienced since I'd left the organization that had both raised me and ruined me—a feeling I'd sworn I'd never let myself feel again.Noir stood in the dark corner of the room, brooding as usual. I could barely see him except for the occasional glint of his mismatched eyes catching what little light filtered into the underground space. He hadn't spoken since we'd gotten back, hadn't moved except to breathe. Just stood there like some gothic statue, processing

ELLIEThe laughter from stealing Lorenzo's ice cream with Silas had faded hours ago, leaving behind a hollow ache that felt like it was eating me from the inside out.I lay in my bed staring at the ceiling, tears streaming down my face and into my hair. The room was dark except for the faint glow from the hallway seeping under the door, and in that darkness, all I could see was Dylan's face.Dylan, who I'd thought was my best friend. My sister. The one person in this world who'd chosen me without any ulterior motive.Except she hadn't chosen me at all.Elijah had sent her. My brother had orchestrated our entire friendship from the beginning, and Dylan had played along. For three years, she'd been watching me, reporting back to him, keeping tabs on his little sister while he did god knows what in Italy.But she'd loved me. I knew she had. The way she'd cried when she told me the truth, the desperation in her voice when she begged me to live and love and find happiness, that had been re

ELLIETwenty minutes later, I was dressed in dark jeans, a plain black sweater, and a baseball cap I'd found in my closet. Nothing flashy, nothing memorable. Just another face in the Milan crowd.Silas was waiting by the garage entrance, looking anything but ignorable in worn jeans and a gray hoodie.His messy hair seemed to be slightly tamed, gray eyes heavy and dark with intent I couldn't decipher. The pants were slightly baggy, but they hung on him like they belonged on a magazine cover. He looked...sexy.This might not work. His eyes were on me in the best second, heated and burning through every defense I'd intended to put up. I was scared and excited all at once and that ravenous look wasn't helping. "Ready?" he asked in a low, deep voice, jangling car keys in his hand."Ready." I gave him a small smile, not bothering to hide the fact that I was admiring how his muscular frame was still very visible beneath his gray hoodie. He looked so good, my mind was foolishly cooking u

ELLIE I went back to my room after that, setting the shopping bags aside before sinking into the mattress with a heavy sigh. I was back here. Despite how much I tried to convince myself that this wasn't a prison, I still found myself wishing I was outside. I had such a good day, the best ive had in a really long time. As my thoughts spiraled as they usually did, a part of me wondered if this was going to be my life forever. Always hiding, always uncertain and always strict scrutiny like I was a piece of glass. You'd think Lorenzo would have more confidence in me after all the rigorous training that I was still being put through. But no. He sounded like I was some dumb bitch who didn't know what was at stake, when I probably understood it better than he did. "Fucking annoying..." I mumbled under my breath. “Who? Me?” I froze, pulse jumping. Lorenzo leaned in the doorway, one shoulder propped against the frame, arms folded across his chest. The black T-shirt he wore clu

ELLIE "Be a good girl and strip for me." He sounded like a completely different person, brown eyes almost black with pure heat burning in those depths. It wasn't a request but a command, his eyes stayed on me as I took a step back, away from him, breathing hard. My lips tingled and ached, much like the soaked part between my thighs, I could feel my pussy lips rubbing against each other, slippery torture that had my legs trembling. I was going to fuck him, I knew that. My body responded to his eyes, to the way his breaths left in in low groans, to the visible dent in his pants that made my my throat dry yet at the same time my mouth watered. I reached for the hem of my hoodie and pulled it over my head with shaky fingers, fully aware of Lorenzo's heated eyes on me. My bra was already undone, I tossed it aside, my breasts laid bare and a part of me enjoyed watching how much of an effect it had on him. His pupils darkened further, gaze narrowing on my hardened peaks as he visi