THE BASTARD THEY FEARED

Chapter 9: Bloodline

Kael’s POV

The air in the warehouse changed the second Lucien said it. “Father hired her himself.” It wasn’t loud. It didn’t need to be. It just sat there and spread through everything like poison. Raven didn’t move, not even a blink.

But I felt it, something inside the room tightening, like the walls had decided to stop breathing with us. I turned slowly toward her. “What did he mean?” My voice came out lower than I expected. Silence.

Raven’s grip on her gun didn’t change, but her eyes did. A fraction colder. Sharper. Like I had just stepped one inch too close to something I was never meant to see.

Marcus muttered under his breath, “Lucien talks too much.” That wasn’t an answer; that was avoidance. I took a slow step toward Raven. “You were hired to kill me,” I said quietly. “I know that part. You said it yourself.” She didn’t respond. My chest tightened. “But he said Father hired you.” Still nothing.

Outside, footsteps circled the warehouse again. Slow. Controlled. Waiting. Like they already knew we were trapped and just hadn’t decided when to end it.

Lucien’s voice came through the loudspeaker again, softer this time. “She didn’t tell you the full contract, did she?”

Raven’s jaw clenched. That was the first real reaction she had given, and it told me everything. My stomach dropped. “No,” I whispered. “No, no, no.” I turned fully toward her now. “Tell me you’re not part of this family’s games.” Her eyes finally met mine, and for the first time since I met her, I didn’t see a killer. I saw hesitation. That was worse.

“Kael,” she said quietly. That’s it, just my name. Like she didn’t know which version of the truth would kill me slower.

Marcus stepped forward fast. “This is not the time.” I snapped at him, “Then when is the time?” A loud metallic crack echoed outside. Something was being placed against the warehouse doors: charges. They were setting charges.

Lucien was done talking. I heard him again, closer now. “You were never supposed to survive long enough to ask questions.” My fingers tightened around the gun Raven gave me earlier. My hands were shaking, not from fear of dying. From the fact that nobody here was telling me the truth, I was starting to realize something very ugly. I wasn’t just being hunted; I was being handled.

Like an experiment, like a piece on a board. I looked at Raven again. “Did you know who I was before tonight?” I asked. She didn’t answer fast enough. That was the answer. My throat went dry. “Of course you did.”

Raven exhaled slowly, like she was weighing something she should have buried long ago. “I was told to observe you.”

Marcus snapped, “Raven.” But she ignored him. Her eyes stayed locked on mine. “Not just kill you,” she said quietly. “Observe. Report. Decide.” My grip loosened slightly. “Decide what?” A distant explosion shook the outer wall. Dust fell from the ceiling.

Raven didn’t look away. “Whether you were worth saving.” The words hit harder than the gunfire outside. For a second, I forgot how to breathe. Worth saving. I let out a short, broken laugh. “You tried to kill me.” “I was ordered to,” she replied instantly. “And now?” I asked. That question stayed between us longer than it should have.

Raven didn’t answer. And that silence did something ugly inside me.

Lucien’s voice came again, almost amused now. “This is why Father liked her.”

Marcus raised his voice. “Enough.” But I wasn’t listening anymore.

Something inside my chest had shifted. Slowly, painfully. Like a door locking shut. I looked at Raven again. “So I was a job,” I said." “No,” she answered immediately, sharper now. “You were a target.” “That’s worse.” Another explosion rocked the warehouse door. The metal groaned loudly this time.

Marcus moved fast toward the back. “We have minutes.”

Raven didn’t move. I could still feel her eyes on me. Like she was still trying to decide which version of me I was becoming.

Lucien spoke again, quieter now. “Kael.” That tone was different. Not mocking, not playful. Interested. “You’re standing in the middle of something you still don’t understand.” I laughed under my breath. “That’s your favorite line.” A pause, then Lucien said, “Open the card.” My hand froze. I looked down at it.

The black card. The silver wolf symbol. It felt heavier now than it had ten minutes ago, like it had absorbed every lie in the room. Marcus shouted, “Don’t!”

Raven stepped forward slightly, tension snapping through her posture. “Kael, don’t.” Even that made me pause. Because now I had two people telling me not to, and that meant I absolutely should. Outside, something clicked. The charges were armed.

Lucien’s voice came one last time. “You don’t get to stay ignorant anymore.” Silence. Then, “Open it.” I swallowed. My fingers tightened around the card, and I pulled.

A thin seam along the edge split open like it was waiting for this exact moment. The silver wolf symbol split in half. For a second, nothing happened. Then the warehouse lights flickered violently. Every screen, every monitor, every device in the room turned on at once.

Marcus went still.

Raven stepped back. And I saw it.

A map. Not of a city, Not of a building. A network. Names. Locations. Bank accounts. Private routes. Hidden transactions. Blackthorn City wasn’t just a place. It was a system, and every single line on that screen connected back to one name. Alessandro Varez. My stomach dropped. "This," I whispered.

Marcus looked like he had just aged ten years in one second. Raven’s voice came out low. “That’s impossible.” The warehouse door exploded inward. Light and smoke flooded the space. Armed men rushed in, but I barely saw them because my eyes were still on the screen. On the list forming itself in real time, and at the very bottom, one line appeared that wasn’t there before.

ACCESS GRANTED: HEIR CONFIRMED

My heart stopped. A voice came through the chaos: "Close now, not over a speaker. Inside the room. “Welcome,” Lucien said softly. I turned. He was standing just inside the broken doorway. No umbrella now. Rain soaking through his coat. Silver eyes locked on me like I was no longer a person. Just a key finally turning.

Raven raised her gun instantly.

Marcus backed away slowly.

Lucien didn’t even look at them. His attention stayed on me, and then he smiled. “Now,” he said calmly. “Let’s see what kind of monster you really are becoming.”