Chapter 4 - The Syndicate’s Shadow
On day nine, the real world crashed into the gilded cage.
Lena was in the kitchen brewing tea when the front doors burst open.
Shouts. The heavy thud of boots. The unmistakable metallic click of weapons being drawn.
She froze.
Adrien stormed in, his suit jacket gone, his white shirt stained with crimson blood.
Lena gasped, dropping the teacup. It shattered on the marble floor.
“Get her to the safe room,” Adrien barked at his right-hand man, Carlo.
“No!” Lena rushed forward, ignoring the glass. “Adrien, you’re bleeding!”
“It’s not mine,” he growled, grabbing her shoulders to stop her.
His hands were trembling. Not from fear, but from adrenaline and rage.
“The Russian syndicate made a move on the docks. They know about you, Lena.”
Her blood ran cold. “Me?”
“They know my routine has changed. They know I have a weakness tucked away in this tower.” His eyes darkened, a storm of violence swirling in the gray depths. “I will burn this city to ash before I let them touch you.”
He pulled her into his chest.
It was the first time he had initiated the contact.
He buried his face in her messy hair, breathing her in like oxygen. The smell of gunsmoke and copper clung to him, but Lena didn’t pull away.
She wrapped her arms around his waist.
May you like
“Carlo,” Adrien said over her shoulder, his voice turning deadly cold. “Call the captains. We go to war tonight.”
He kissed the top of Lena’s head. “Lock the door. Don’t open it for anyone but me.”
