Chapter 5 Bloodlines and Bulletproof Glass

The Next Morning – Leontes Penthouse

Aria didn't sleep.

The sniper sight.

The whisper outside her apartment.

She'd called security, tripled the guards, alerted Leo. But none of that calmed the tightening noose around her spine.

Elian wasn't just a secret anymore-he was a target.

She stood at the edge of his room, watching him color spaceships on the floor.

He was humming. Innocent.

Too innocent for the wolves now circling.

Cross Enterprises - Damien's Office

Leo Moretti was already waiting when Damien arrived.

"I didn't expect you to call," Damien said.

Leo gave him a tight smile. "I don't like you. Let's get that clear."

"The feeling's mutual."

"But Aria and Elian are in danger. Which means we don't have time to indulge in old rivalries."

Damien narrowed his eyes. "What kind of danger?"

Leo dropped a flash drive onto his desk. "Military-grade surveillance was used to track her penthouse last night. Someone's after the boy."

Damien stiffened. "Who?"

Leo gave him a long look. "Ever heard of The Syndicate?"

Damien's blood ran cold.

Everyone in high finance had heard of them. Corporate raiders. Power brokers. Ghosts.

"What the hell do they want with Aria?"

Leo leaned in. "Not Aria. The heir. Elian. Someone leaked his existence."

Damien's voice turned sharp. "You think I did that?"

"I think someone wants revenge on both of you. And your enemies outnumber your allies."

Flashback - Three Years Ago, Syndicate Meeting

A shadowed boardroom. Faces hidden. Voices distorted.

"Cross Enterprises is too powerful under Damien," one voice hissed.

"Then burn him down. Leverage the girl," another said.

"Or find the child. Blood is always leverage."

Present - Aria's Safehouse in the Highlands

Aria stood in a modern stone-clad room deep in the Scottish Highlands. Cold. Remote. Guarded.

Elian slept in the adjoining suite, unaware of the storm closing in around his tiny world.

Damien entered, breathless, flanked by two of his own men.

Their eyes met-raw, wary, not yet ready for softness.

"You shouldn't have come here," Aria said.

He walked past her and opened the door to Elian's room.

He stood there for a long time.

Then turned back.

"I want to help."

Aria folded her arms. "Too late."

He took a step closer. "He's my son. That's never too late."

Her guard stepped forward, but Damien held up a hand. "If we want to protect him, we work together. No secrets. No war."

Aria hesitated-then nodded.

Later That Night - Damien's POV

He watched her from the balcony.

Aria, standing in the dark, arms wrapped around herself.

For the first time in years, she didn't look like the Queen of Ice.

She looked like the woman who used to fall asleep with her head on his chest, murmuring dreams into his skin.

"I loved you," he said quietly.

She didn't turn. "Too late."

He stepped beside her.

"I'm not asking you to forgive me. I'm asking you to trust me-with him. Just once."

Aria's eyes glistened. "Trust is earned, Damien. And you buried it with your signature on those divorce papers."

They stood in silence.

Until the door burst open.

"Ma'am! Sir!" the guard shouted.

"The safehouse's mainframe was breached. They're coming."

On a highway not far from the Highlands, a black SUV sped through the rain.

Inside, a masked man adjusted his earpiece.

"The heir has been confirmed," he said. "We extract the boy before dawn. Leontes Corp. and Cross Enterprises die with him."

Back in the safehouse, Aria grabbed Elian in her arms.

Damien loaded the weapon from the armory wall.

And as the windows shattered from a distant explosion-

They knew the past wasn't just chasing them.

It had arrived.

To be continued...