Chapter 5 Beneath the surface

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Chapter 3: Beneath the Surface

POV: Sienna

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The morning sun filtered through the velvet curtains, but the light felt cold. Almost unreal.

I couldn't stop thinking about that message on the mirror.

Mine.

I stared at it until the condensation faded, hoping it would vanish like some haunting trick of my imagination.

It didn't.

I didn't sleep after that. I just lay there, eyes wide, heart thudding like a drum.

And when I finally got out of bed, something had shifted inside me.

Fear was still there. But curiosity was winning.

And maybe something else too.

A pull I couldn't explain.

Kade Valen.

His name tasted dangerous in my mind, like blood and silk.

Why him?

Why me?

I wandered through the hallways, trying to find the kitchen, but every turn led me deeper into this palace of secrets. I passed portraits with hollow eyes and statues that looked like they might move when no one was watching.

Then, I heard it.

Piano.

Soft. Dark. Sinful.

The sound drew me in like a spell, my feet moving before my thoughts could catch up.

I found him in a room filled with shadows and sunbeams, sitting at a grand piano, shirt sleeves rolled up, veins tracing his arms like marble.

Kade.

Playing something beautiful.

And heartbreaking.

I didn't even realize I was holding my breath until he stopped.

"You found me," he said without turning around.

I froze.

"How did you-?"

"I hear everything in this house."

He turned slowly, those eyes-God, those eyes-locking onto me like they could strip me bare.

"You slept well?"

"No," I answered honestly.

His lips twitched. "Good."

"What's wrong with this place?" I asked, stepping closer.

"Everything."

There was something heavy in the air now.

Thick with unspoken truths and... tension.

Sexual and dangerous.

My eyes flicked to his throat. The way it moved when he swallowed.

His hands.

God, his hands.

"You're not afraid of me anymore," he said, voice dropping an octave.

"I think I am."

"But you're still here."

I didn't answer.

Because I didn't know why I hadn't run.

And I didn't know why the thought of him being dangerous didn't scare me enough.

It thrilled me.

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POV: Kade

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She didn't run.

Even after everything-she walked straight into the lion's den and looked the beast in the eye.

Sienna was a problem I didn't know how to solve.

She made me want to be human again.

But that part of me was long dead.

"You shouldn't wander this house alone," I said, standing slowly. "There are parts of it that remember pain."

"I'm not afraid of old ghosts."

"No," I said, stepping closer. "But you should be afraid of the living ones."

Our eyes locked.

She was so close.

Too close.

Her heartbeat echoed in my head like a war drum.

And something inside me stirred.

My control wavered.

I could hear the beast inside me whispering.

Touch her. Claim her. Mark her.

But I didn't.

I couldn't.

She wasn't ready. And if I took her now, she'd never forgive me once she knew the truth.

"You should go," I said sharply, breaking the spell between us.

Sienna's eyes narrowed. "Why? Are you afraid of yourself?"

Yes.

But I didn't say it.

I walked past her and slammed the door shut behind me, needing distance.

Because if I didn't put space between us, I would taste her lips before the hour was out-and I wasn't sure I could stop at just that.

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POV: Sienna

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I found Luca again.

This time in the garden, sitting on a stone bench like he'd been waiting for me.

"I warned you," he said, tossing a stone into the fountain. "But you're already wrapped around his claws, aren't you?"

"I'm not stupid."

"Didn't say you were. Just cursed."

He reached into his coat and handed me something wrapped in cloth.

"What is this?"

"A journal. Hers."

My blood ran cold. "Whose?"

"Marla's."

The name meant nothing-until it did.

Ten years ago.

The last girl.

The one who vanished.

The one Kade loved.

I opened the journal with trembling fingers.

The first line read:

"If you're reading this, it means you're next."

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