The fire in Zarek’s eyes softened for a fraction of a second, flickering into something resembling pity."You were a child, Declan. We both were," Zarek said, his voice low and heavy. "He exploited your obsession just like he exploited my absence. He didn't just steal the company, he stole our ability to trust each other.""And now?" Declan’s jaw tightened. "Are we taking him down? Because if we pull her out of there, he’s done. The board, the police, the Cleaners... they won't be able to hide a living, breathing Elara Riggs.""We aren't 'taking him down' yet," Zarek growled, slamming the car into fourth gear as the hospital’s brutalist concrete towers pierced the horizon. "Tonight, we are extracting a soul. If he stands in the way, he dies. If the city stands in the way, it burns."Declan nodded slowly. He reached into the glove box and pulled out a heavy, silver-plated revolver, his own hidden insurance."Floor four," he repeated, his voice cold with mirrored resolve. "The Aethelga

Two Cleaners were braced outside Room 402. They weren’t leaning or idling; they held low, tactical crouches, suppressed submachine guns leveled at the heavy oak door.Then Zarek saw him.At the far end of the corridor, near the nurses' station, stood Finnian O’Shea. The old man looked smaller than he had in the study. His expensive silk suit was rumpled, and his knuckles were stark white where they gripped a silver flask. He wasn’t looking at his guards. He was staring at the door of Room 402 with a look of pure, unadulterated terror, the look of a man watching a grave burst open."Do it," Finnian croaked, his voice cracking like dry parchment. "The boy is coming. I can feel him. He’s in the walls. He’s in the air. End it now!""Sir, the sedation hasn't fully worn off," one of the Cleaners replied, his voice a flat, professional monotone. "She's disoriented. If we go in now—""I don't care if she's dreaming or screaming!" Finnian roared, his face mottling a sickly purple. "That gi

"I thought you died, Zarek," she sobbed. The sound was raw and jagged, tearing through the quiet of the room. "I saw the fire... I saw them chasing you... and I waited. I waited for you to come through the smoke, but the men in the suits came instead. I tried to find you, but I couldn’t—they took me."She buried her face into the crook of his neck, her tears hot against his skin, the first warmth he had felt in a decade that didn't come from a muzzle flash or a burning building."I couldn't do anything," she choked out between gasping breaths. "They kept me in the dark. They gave me the medicine that made the walls move.”“I tried to scream, I tried to find you, but I was just... I was just

The guilt was a physical weight, heavier than the cold salt spray. He remembered the way Elara had looked at Zarek, the pure, untainted recognition. She hadn't even looked at Declan. To her, he was just another shadow in a ten-year nightmare."I’m sorry, Elara," he whispered to the dark water. "I wasn't a prince. I was just a thief."The SUVs slid to a halt in a synchronized arc, trapping him against the water. Doors flew open. Eight men, professional and silent, stepped into the light.At their head was Kedrin, the lead enforcer Zarek had downed in the alley, now sporting a jagged, purple bruise across his temple.Last Updated : 2026-03-20