2026-04-07 05:00:15
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Chapter 20
Selene stepped closer. She bent to examine the mark, and Arashi watched her as the skin tightened around her eyes. Then she met his gaze and gave a small shake of her head.“Tie him up,” she said, her voice flat. “Rue will want to question him.”Arashi finished securing the zip ties and straightened, pressing a palm against his temple. The pressure was a hot spike now, driving in from both sides, and he fought to keep his breathing even.Selene watched him. “You’re hurt.”“I’m fine.” He wasn’t. The tattoo seemed to burn at the corner of his eye, even when he looked away. “The mark. You recognized it.”She said nothing.“Selene.” He turned to face her fully, the prisoner forgotten between them. The basement felt suddenly too small, the concrete walls pressing in. “What aren’t you telling me?”For a long moment, she didn’t answer. The silence stretched, heavy as the lake fog. Then she spoke.“That tattoo is a pack mark. It means he belongs to someone. Something.” She paused. “It’s not h
Chapter 19
They dragged him to the basement and tied him to a chair. Selene’s knots were tight. Arashi could see the cord biting into the man’s wrists, the way his fingers were already beginning to pale. She stepped back and crossed her arms, her gaze never leaving the man's face.“What's your name?”The man spat. Selene’s punch crashed into his jaw, snapping his head. “Fuck!” he cursed, blood staining his teeth. “Your name?” Selene asked. “Bitch! You're going to die, bitch! I'm going to fucking gut you.”Arashi walked out just as she punched him again. He checked the perimeter first. A low throb had settled at the base of his skull, a dull pressure that pulsed in time with his heartbeat. He found the other two attackers still unconscious in the hallway; he zip-tied their wrists and ankles, hauled them into the parlor’s storage closet, and locked the door. The handle rattled twice under his hand before the latch caught. The metal was cold, and a smear of his own blood came away on his pal
Chapter 18
The foreign rage still had his limbs when the air changed.One moment he was swinging the bat through a red haze, blood sliding in slow lines down his ribs, the three attackers recoiling from his feral rush.The next, Selene was simply there in the ruined doorway. The wrath that had seized him shrank back into the pit of his stomach, leaving his muscles shaking and hollow.Awe hit him like a physical force.She covered the distance between her and the knife-man. A fluid half-turn, her forearm deflecting the blade, a snake-strike to the wrist that sent the knife spinning across the linoleum. Her other hand was already at his throat, a short, ugly blow that folded him with a choked, wet sound. He hit the floor and didn’t move.“Fuck,” someone cursed. The big one lunged, arms wide to crush. Selene flowed sideways, a step no wider than a breath, caught his momentum, and redirected his skull into the lip of the counter. The crack of bone on granite was almost disrespectful. He slid down
Chapter 17
Arashi was shirtless, sitting cross-legged on the kitchen island with Valdis’s notes spread around him, when the prickling started at the base of his spine.The paper was slick under his fingers, still carrying the faint chemical bite of the toner from the old printer. He’d been trying to memorize the seating hierarchy for a twelve-person formal dinner when the hairs on his neck lifted, and a cold ripple spread down his back like a drop of ice water tracing his vertebrae.He didn’t think. He ducked.A metal bat whistled through the space his skull had been and cratered the cabinet behind him with a flat, ugly crack that jarred his teeth.Arashi threw himself sideways off the island, hit the linoleum on his shoulder, and rolled into a crouch. His hand found the drawer beside the stove, yanked it open, and closed around the first object it met … a spatula? Holy fuck. He cursed under his breath, but it was better than nothing. He rose to his feet and swept the kitchen with his eyes.Ther
Chapter 16
That evening, Rue visited the safehouse and brought a photograph.He set it on the kitchen table without comment, and Arashi picked it up. The glossy paper was smooth under his thumb, still holding a faint chemical tang of developing fluid.It showed Cassian younger than in the recording, in his late twenties, maybe. He was standing on a balcony somewhere warm, the ocean behind him, his shirt half‑unbuttoned and his hair windswept. He was laughing at something off‑camera, a big smile stretched across his face. Arashi's heart ached. This man looked nothing like the cold monster who’d cut Lucas’s throat.“That was taken in Santorini,” Rue said. He paused, his jaw working for a moment before he went on. “Twelve years before you were born, boyo. He was there to negotiate a shipping contract. Instead, Cassian… he fell in love with a local fisherman’s daughter and almost didn’t come back.” A ghost of a smile tugged at the corner of his mouth.”Arashi stared at the photograph. “What happened
CHAPTER 15
The funeral parlor had a basement. Arashi discovered it on his eighth day of training, chasing a dropped water bottle down a narrow stairwell behind the kitchen.The space was not large. Arashi straightened, holding the water bottle in his right. His eyes scanned the basement. It had a concrete floor, and exposed pipes ran over the walls like veins. A single bulb glowed from where it hung from the ceiling, a pull chain dangling underneath. The walls were lined with empty shelving, and in the corner, someone had left a wooden crate sealed with iron bands.Selene found him there a while later, her boots echoing on the stairs and sending small vibrations through the soles of his shoes.She crossed her arms over her chest. “This is off‑limits, Arashi.”He snorted. “You didn’t tell me that.” He was crouched over a crate, trying to pry it open and see inside. He considered going back up for a crowbar. “You didn’t ask.” She descended the rest of the way and stopped a few feet from him, stud
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