Chapter 7 Welcome To The Fire

The first thing Ava saw when she stepped out of her suite was the envelope. No name. Just a black wax seal with an unfamiliar crest: a serpent coiled around a dagger. It was already waiting on her breakfast tray-perfectly centered, silent and threatening, like a trap that wanted her to believe it was an invitation. She broke the seal. Inside: an itinerary. One item. > 12:30 PM – Victor's private dining terrace. Mandatory. Alone. No explanation. No warning. She stared at it for several seconds before folding it into her pocket. Kai hadn't said a word about this.

And that meant one of two things: He didn't know. Or worse-he did, and said nothing. --- At exactly 12:30, she arrived at the terrace. It was secluded from the main villa, draped in sheer white linen and surrounded by creeping jasmine vines. The table was already set. Silver cutlery. Bone china. Two glasses of wine. Victor Leclair sat waiting, tapping one ringed finger against the table like he was keeping tempo for a song only he could hear. He didn't greet her. Just pointed to the chair across from him. She sat. "Tell me," he said, cutting into a slice of melon, "do you think love is more dangerous when it's real... or when it's bought?" Ava blinked. "Excuse me?" He looked up. His expression was unreadable. "Humor me." She hesitated. "Real love hurts more." "Hmm." He sipped his wine. "Wrong." She frowned. "Bought love," he said, "is fragile. Unstable. Built on illusion. And the problem with illusions is-" he smiled, "they tend to shatter." Ava said nothing. He leaned forward. "How long have you known Kai?" "A few days." "Yet here you are. Wearing his ring." She kept her posture calm. "He asked me." Victor nodded slowly. "That doesn't bother me. What bothers me is that he never asks for anything." "Maybe he changed." Victor smiled faintly. "Men like Kai don't change. They evolve. Sometimes into something worse." A pause. Then, softer: "He didn't tell you, did he?" Ava froze. "Tell me what?" Victor sat back, satisfied. "That's the thing about men like him. They save the truth for after you've already lost." The words lodged like glass in her throat. Victor pushed a small object across the table. A phone. Old. Burner-style. "Turn it on," he said. She did. One message blinked on the screen. A video file. Dated two years ago. She pressed play. The footage was grainy, low-quality-like a security cam. A man sat at a glass table. Slumped forward. Blood stained the collar of his shirt. Another man entered frame. Tall. Dark-haired. Calm. Kai. He bent, whispered something into the dying man's ear. Then walked away. Ava stared at the screen. The clip ended. She set the phone down, very carefully. Victor tilted his head. "Still feel safe?" --- She didn't run back to Kai. She didn't scream. She walked slowly, eyes unfocused, down the gravel path toward the western gardens where guests were gathering for pre-dinner drinks. He was there, as always-untouched, unreadable, untouchable. When he saw her, something flickered behind his eyes. "Ava-" "Don't," she said. He stepped forward. "What did he show you?" "You tell me." His mouth pressed into a line. "It's not what it looks like." "Oh, great," she snapped. "That's exactly what someone says when it's exactly what it looks like." Guests nearby were beginning to look. Ava turned sharply and stalked into one of the side paths, down into the olive grove behind the main house. Kai followed her. "Stop," she said. He didn't. "Was that man in the video your enemy?" she asked. "Or just in your way?" He sighed. "You're not ready for that answer." "That's not your call." He paused. "Then ask the right question." She stared at him, pulse thudding. "Did you kill him?" she whispered. Silence. Kai didn't flinch. "Yes," he said. --- Ava backed away. "Why am I here?" she asked. He didn't answer. "Why me, Kai?" Still nothing. Her voice shook. "Are you using me too?" Finally, he looked at her. "No," he said softly. "But I am protecting something more than just you." Her breath caught. "And what the hell is that supposed to mean?" But he was already turning away, voice low as he disappeared into the shadows between the trees. "Stay ready, Ava. The game's just started."