Unseen Threats

The mansion was silent. Too silent.

Aria had learned that in this world, silence was never peaceful—it was a warning.

She moved through the dimly lit hallway, the air thick with something she couldn’t quite place. Her fingers grazed the cold wooden railing as she walked toward the library. The weight of the night pressed against her skin, and a strange sensation crawled up her spine.

Someone was watching.

She knew it.

She wasn’t paranoid—she had lived in the shadows long enough to recognize when she was being followed.

The softest sound—a shift in the air, a barely-there step.

Her breath caught.

Her fingers instinctively wrapped around the small dagger hidden beneath her sleeve. If someone was behind her, she needed to act fast.

She turned—but before she could react, a strong hand closed around her wrist.

Warm. Firm. Controlled.

Her heartbeat slammed against her ribs as she looked up—

Damien.

The dim glow of candlelight barely illuminated his face, but even in the darkness, his presence was suffocating.

She had seen men who commanded fear. She had seen killers with cold, dead eyes.

But Damien Russo was different.

He didn’t just command fear—he owned it.

He looked down at her, his grip secure but not painful, his expression unreadable.

“You’re playing a dangerous game.” His voice was low, quiet. A whisper that carried more weight than a scream.

Aria exhaled slowly, her pulse still racing. “And if I am?”

His fingers tightened for a fraction of a second—just enough for her to feel it. Just enough to remind her that he was in control here.

Then, just as quickly, he let go.

She took a step back, her wrist still tingling where his skin had touched hers.

Damien didn’t move. He just watched.

And for some reason, that was worse than anything else.

The Meeting – War in the Shadows

A few hours later, in Damien’s office, the air was thick with tension.

Luca Romano—Damien’s most trusted bodyguard, his right-hand man—stood near the desk, his usual easy-going demeanor absent.

He placed a black folder down. “We have a problem.”

Damien said nothing as he picked up the file, flipping through the pages with an unreadable expression.

Aria sat in the corner of the room, unnoticed—or so they thought. She wasn’t meant to be here, but she had learned how to blend into spaces where she didn’t belong.

Until she saw the name.

Raj Singh.

Even she knew who that was. A ghost from the past. A man who should have never been able to return.

Damien’s grip on the folder tightened. The only sign that this news meant something.

Luca leaned in. “He’s not just watching anymore. He’s making moves.”

A dangerous silence stretched between them.

Then—Damien smirked.

A slow, lethal, blood-chilling smirk.

“Let him.” His voice was quiet, lethal. “We’ll remind him who owns this city.”

The Warning – A Silent Threat

Later that night, Aria sat in her room, her mind spinning with everything she had overheard.

She wasn’t sure why she felt this creeping unease—whether it was from Raj’s return or the way Damien had smiled at the thought of war.

A sharp knock at her door pulled her from her thoughts.

She hesitated before opening it.

The hallway was empty.

But at her feet lay a single envelope.

No name. No markings.

A bad feeling slithered down her spine as she picked it up, unfolding the paper inside.

Three words.

“You don’t belong.”

Her fingers tightened around the letter, a slow burn of anger replacing her unease.

Someone knew.

Someone was watching.

And then—a voice.

“Finding something interesting?”

Her breath caught as she turned sharply.

Damien.

Leaning against the doorway, arms crossed, watching her with those dark, calculating eyes.

His gaze flickered to the letter in her hand. Without asking, without hesitation, he stepped forward and plucked it from her grasp.

She should have protested.

But she didn’t.

Because there was something about him at this moment—something terrifyingly in control.

He read the words, then let out a low chuckle.

Not amusement. Not concern.

Something far, far more dangerous.

“Looks like someone thinks they can scare you.” His voice was quiet. Almost mocking.

Aria met his gaze, refusing to look away. “And you think they can’t?”

Damien slipped the note into his pocket, stepping closer. “No.”

A pause.

A challenge.

“I think they just signed their death warrant.”

To be continuous.......

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