Chapter 16: Bound by Blood

Jenny woke up to the sound of rain tapping against the windows. The room was dimly lit, the soft glow of the bedside lamp casting long shadows across the space. For a moment, she didn’t know where she was. The weight of exhaustion still clung to her body, and the dull ache in her side reminded her of the bullet wound that had nearly ended her life.

Then, she felt it—warmth beside her.

Her heart skipped a beat as she turned her head slightly.

Marcus.

He was sitting on the edge of the bed, his elbows resting on his knees, his fingers laced together. He looked like he hadn’t slept in days. Dark circles framed his eyes, his usually sharp and controlled expression softened by something unfamiliar.

Worry.

Guilt.

Something deeper.

Jenny shifted slightly, drawing in a sharp breath at the sting in her side. Instantly, Marcus was alert, his gaze snapping to hers.

“You’re awake,” he murmured.

She offered a weak smile. “Barely.”

He leaned forward, his eyes scanning her as if he were searching for something. “How do you feel?”

“Like I got shot,” she said dryly.

A ghost of a smirk touched his lips, but it didn’t last.

Jenny sighed, tilting her head against the pillow. “You should get some rest.”

Marcus scoffed. “Not happening.”

She studied him. The exhaustion in his posture. The tension in his jaw. The unspoken storm raging behind his eyes.

“You’ve been sitting here this whole time, haven’t you?” she asked.

Marcus didn’t answer.

He didn’t have to.

Jenny swallowed. She had known for a while now that she meant something to him—more than just another pawn in his game, more than just another possession.

But this?

The man who ruled with an iron fist, who never showed weakness, who never let anyone close—he had spent two days at her bedside, watching over her, making sure she was still breathing.

It was more than she had expected. More than she had ever expected from anyone.

Her fingers twitched at her side. She wanted to reach for him. To touch him. To tell him that she was still here, still breathing, still his.

But before she could, there was a knock at the door.

Marcus’s expression hardened instantly, the warmth in his gaze vanishing behind a wall of steel.

“Come in,” he said, his voice clipped.

The door opened, and Gabriel stepped inside.

Jenny had only met him once before—a tall, broad-shouldered man with dark eyes and a presence that commanded attention. He was one of Marcus’s most trusted men, his right-hand in the business.

Gabriel’s gaze flickered to Jenny for a brief moment before settling on Marcus.

“We have a problem.”

Marcus stood, his posture shifting from protective to lethal in a heartbeat.

“What is it?”

Gabriel glanced at Jenny again, hesitating.

Marcus’s expression darkened. “Say it.”

“Romano made his move.”

Jenny stiffened.

Marcus’s fists clenched at his sides. “When?”

“An hour ago. One of our warehouses was hit. Three men dead, two missing.”

Jenny felt the weight of the words settle over the room like a storm cloud.

Romano wasn’t backing down. He was escalating.

Marcus inhaled slowly, his jaw tightening. “And the missing men?”

Gabriel hesitated. “One of them was Eric.”

Something shifted in Marcus’s expression.

Eric.

Jenny had heard his name before. He was young, barely twenty-five, and had always been fiercely loyal to Marcus. She had seen him a few times around the estate, always eager to prove himself.

Now, he was in Romano’s hands.

Marcus turned to Gabriel, his voice low. “Find out where he is. Now.”

Gabriel nodded and left without another word.

The door clicked shut, leaving a heavy silence in its wake.

Jenny swallowed hard. “Marcus…”

His gaze snapped to her, and for a moment, she saw something raw in his eyes.

Something dangerous.

“This doesn’t end until he’s dead,” Marcus said quietly.

Jenny knew he meant it.

And for the first time, she wasn’t sure if that scared her… or if it thrilled her.

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