Chapter 5 The Bitter Aftertaste

Chapter 5: The Bitter Aftertaste

ELARA

I woke up to the sound of the Mediterranean. For a split second, I forgot where I was. I thought I was back in my cramped apartment in London, the sounds of traffic outside my window. Then, the weight of a heavy, muscular arm draped across my waist brought it all crashing back.

I stayed perfectly still, my heart hammering. The sheets were silk, cold against my skin, but the man behind me was a furnace. Sebastian was still asleep, his breathing deep and even.

I looked at my hands. They were shaking. What the fuck did I do? I had let him in. Not just into my body, but into the one place I was supposed to keep guarded. I had traded my defiance for a few hours of chemical bliss, and now, the shame was a physical weight in my chest. I felt like a traitor to myself.

Gently, agonizingly slowly, I lifted his arm. He stirred, a low grunt escaping his throat, but he didn't wake. I slid out of the bed, my legs feeling like jelly. My red dress was a crumpled heap on the marble floor. I snatched it up, pressing it to my chest, and retreated into the bathroom.

I locked the door and leaned against it, sliding down until I hit the cold floor. I didn't cry. I was too angry for tears. I was angry at him for being a monster, but I was fucking livid at myself for liking the way he looked at me.

Three hundred and sixty-four days left, I thought. If I don't find a way out soon, I'm going to lose more than just my freedom. I'm going to lose my soul.

CASSIUS

The morning sun in Sicily was unforgiving. I stood on the lower terrace, a cigarette dangling from my lips, watching the perimeter. My phone vibrated-a secure line.

"Is she alive?" a female voice snapped. It was sharp, panicked, and distinctly British.

"She's fine, Raven," I said, exhaling a plume of smoke. "She's sleeping."

"Sleeping? Or drugged? Or locked in a fucking dungeon?" Raven's voice rose an octave. "I swear to God, you giant, silent gargoyle, if you don't let me talk to her, I'm going to find a way to burn that villa to the ground with all of you inside it."

I leaned against the stone railing. There was something about Raven that poked at a part of me I usually kept dead. She was loud, reckless, and completely unimpressed by the fact that I could kill her with my bare hands. It was... refreshing.

"You're in a safe house in Tuscany, Raven. Enjoy the wine. Elara is the guest of a man who doesn't take 'no' for an answer. You know how this works."

"I don't give a shit how it works! She's my best friend. She's not some trophy for a mafia prick."

"I'm hanging up now," I said, though I didn't want to.

"Wait! Cassius... please. Just tell me she's okay. Truly."

The change in her tone-from fire to a soft, desperate plea-hit me square in the gut. I looked up toward the master wing. I knew what had happened last night. I'd heard the silence that followed the screaming match. I knew Sebastian had finally claimed what he'd been hunting for half a decade.

"She's okay," I lied. "For now."

I tucked the phone away just as Morrigan appeared at the end of the terrace. She looked like she hadn't slept. Her makeup was perfect, but her eyes were red-rimmed and full of a dangerous, quiet malice.

"He's still with her, isn't he?" she asked, her voice like sandpaper.

"Not my business, Morrigan. Not yours either," I replied.

"It will be," she whispered, stepping closer. "Sebastian thinks he's found a toy. He's forgotten that toys break. And I've always been very good at breaking things he likes."

I straightened up, my hand moving instinctively toward the holster at my hip. "If you touch her, the Boss won't have to kill you. I'll do it myself."

Morrigan laughed, but it was a hollow, ugly sound. "Oh, Cassius. You've always been so loyal. But even the best dogs eventually bite their masters when they get hungry enough. Tell me... do you want her too? Is that why you're so protective?"

I didn't answer. I didn't have to. The truth was, I didn't want Elara. I wanted the chaos she'd brought into this house to stop before it destroyed us all.

SEBASTIAN

I woke up to an empty bed.

The coldness of the sheets where she should have been felt like a slap. I sat up, my muscles aching in a way that felt like a victory. Last night had been... transformative. I'd expected to feel the usual post-conquest boredom. Instead, I felt like a man who had finally tasted water after a lifetime in the desert.

I heard the shower running.

I stood up, pulling on a pair of black silk trousers, and walked to the bathroom door. I didn't knock. I didn't have to.

I pushed the door open. Elara was standing at the vanity, wrapped in a towel, staring at her reflection. She looked up, and the look in her eyes stopped me in my tracks. It wasn't the heat from last night. It was ice. Pure, crystalline hatred.

"Get out," she said.

"Good morning to you too, piccola," I said, leaning against the doorframe. I wanted to go to her, to touch the damp skin of her shoulder, but the wall she'd built overnight was ten feet thick.

"I said get out, Sebastian. I've done what you wanted. You had your fun. Now leave me the fuck alone."

"Our 'fun' is just beginning," I said, my voice hardening. "There are clothes in the dressing room. We're going out today. I have business in the city, and you're coming with me."

"I'm not going anywhere."

I moved then, crossing the room in three strides. I grabbed her arms, pulling her toward me until our chests were touching. "Listen to me very carefully. Last night changed the rules. You are no longer just a guest. You are my woman. And my woman does not stay hidden while I work."

"I'm not your woman! I'm your prisoner!"

"Fine," I hissed, my face inches from hers. "Then you're a prisoner who's going to wear a five-carat diamond and sit by my side while I decide the fate of men who would rip you apart if I wasn't there. Dress. Now. Or I'll have Morrigan come in here and do it for you."

The mention of Morrigan made her flinch. She knew she was in a nest of vipers.

"I hate you," she whispered again.

"Keep saying it," I replied, a dark smirk touching my lips. "Maybe one day you'll actually believe it."

I walked out, feeling the rush of power return. But as I reached the hall, my phone chirped. A text from an unknown number.

I know about London. I know what she did. Do you?

My blood turned to ice. I looked back at the closed bathroom door. Elara had secrets. I knew that. But if her past was coming for her, it would have to go through me first.