The chamber’s silence was suffocating, broken only by the faint hum of hidden machinery and the echo of Aria’s pulse in her ears. She sat rigid, her fingers twisted together in her lap, trying not to stare at the man she recognized.

He can’t be here. He shouldn’t be here.

But he was. And the longer she avoided his gaze, the more she felt the weight of it pressing against her like a blade poised to strike.

Damien leaned back in his chair, chains clinking as if to remind the room that even caged, he was dangerous. His gray eyes swept across the Council members, landing finally on the one who had spoken.

“You’ve dragged me across continents, locked me in rooms, paraded your dogs in suitsand for what?” His voice carried, smooth and sharp. “To posture?”

A low murmur rippled among the figures seated in the shadows. The leader didn’t flinch. “We brought you here to make a choice.”

Damien smirked. “I don’t take orders.”

“This isn’t an order,” the leader said calmly. “It’s survival.”

Aria’s stomach twisted at the word. Survival. That wasn’t an invitation. It was a threat.

The leader leaned forward, the faint glow of the lights brushing over his face, enough for Aria to feel her throat tighten again. She forced herself to look away, but Damien’s gaze snapped to her instantly. He caught the flicker of fear, the way her shoulders stiffened.

His voice dropped. “You know him.”

Aria shook her head quickly. “No.”

The single syllable came out too fast, too shaky. Damien’s eyes narrowed, but before he could press her, the leader’s voice boomed again.

“You were warned, Blackwood. Stay hidden, live quietly, and the Council would let your bloodline rot in obscurity. But you’ve surfaced again. You’ve brought attention.”

“And?” Damien challenged.

“And now,” the leader said smoothly, “you’ve dragged her into it.”

Every head in the chamber turned toward Aria. She stiffened under the weight of their collective gaze, heat crawling up her neck.

“I don’t have anything to do with this,” she blurted. “I didn’t even know who he was when he walked into my bar.”

“That,” the leader replied, “is exactly the problem.”

Damien’s chains rattled as he leaned forward, his voice a growl. “If you touch her”

“Stop threatening me,” the leader cut him off, voice icy. “Your father tried the same, and we buried him. You think you’re different?”

The words hung heavy in the air.

Aria’s head whipped toward Damien. His father? Buried by them? The implication twisted through her chest, raw and shocking.

Damien’s face didn’t change, but his silence was louder than fury.

The leader rose slowly from his chair, his presence filling the room. “You have two options, Damien. Walk away from the girl and return to exileor keep her, and declare war against us.”

Aria froze. Walk away or war.

Her eyes shot to Damien. He sat perfectly still, unreadable. But the slight twitch in his jaw betrayed the storm beneath his calm.

“You think you can dictate my choices?” he said finally, voice soft but lethal.

The leader smiled faintly. “No. I can dictate hers.”

Aria’s chest tightened. “Me?”

“Yes, Miss Collins.” The leader’s gaze locked on her, cold and merciless. “You are the variable. The anomaly. And we don’t allow anomalies to live long.”

Damien slammed his cuffed fists against the table, the metal screeching. “Enough!” His voice roared through the chamber. “You lay one hand on her, and I’ll burn every last one of you to ash.”

The chamber erupted in murmurs, the Council shifting in their seats. Some were amused, some unsettled. The leader remained unshaken.

“You talk like a king,” he said, “but you’re still a boy in chains.”

Aria’s hands trembled in her lap, but her voice rose, sharper than she expected. “Why are you doing this? Why drag me into something I don’t understand?”

The leader’s eyes gleamed. “Because ignorance is as dangerous as knowledge. And because Damien Blackwood has never protected anything in his life without it being destroyed.”

The words landed like a blow.

Aria’s gaze flicked to Damien. For a fraction of a second, she saw itthe flicker of guilt, the crack in the armor. And it terrified her more than the Council’s threats.

The leader straightened, his voice final. “You have until dawn. Choose exile or war. If we don’t have your answer, we’ll choose for you.”

The chamber doors opened with a heavy groan, and guards stepped in. The session was over.

Aria was yanked to her feet, her pulse pounding. Damien was pulled beside her, his wrists bound, his face unreadable.

As they were dragged out, Aria’s mind reeled. The leader’s words clung to her, echoing in her bones. Damien Blackwood has never protected anything without destroying it.

Her stomach turned cold. Was she next?

The guards shoved them back into the sterile hallway. Once the heavy doors shut, silence pressed in.

Aria turned on Damien, fury spilling past her fear. “What aren’t you telling me?”

His jaw clenched. “Not here.”

“No, now.” Her voice cracked. “You said I was leverage, a pawn. But they’re talking like I’m more than that. Like I matter. Why?”

He didn’t answer. His silence was worse than any lie.

Aria’s chest ached, betrayal and confusion tangling inside her. “Damien, if you don’t start giving me answers, I swear to God”

He stopped walking, the guards yanking at his arms. He turned his head toward her, his gray eyes blazing with something raw, desperate.

“You don’t want the truth, Aria,” he said hoarsely. “Because once you have it, you’ll never be able to leave me.”

The words rooted her to the floor, heat and terror colliding inside her chest.

The guards shoved them forward again, dragging them down another endless corridor.

Behind them, the Council doors clicked shutand Aria caught one last glimpse of the leader watching her, his lips curling into a knowing smile. He hadn’t threatened Damien. He’d threatened her. And she finally realized: this wasn’t Damien’s war. It was hers too.

The guards’ boots echoed off the stone floor, the rhythm too steady, too final. Aria’s chest rose and fell in sharp bursts, each step pulling her further into a web she didn’t understand.

“Where are you taking us now?” she demanded, her voice shaking despite her attempt to sound strong.

The taller guard sneered. “Holding. Until the Council decides.”

Aria’s stomach turned. Until they decide. As if her life were just another item on their agenda.

Damien kept his gaze forward, his movements controlled, almost calculated. It was like he’d rehearsed every step, like he knew this path too well.

“Damien,” Aria hissed, desperate. “Say something.”

He glanced at her, gray eyes flaring with warning. “Not here. Every wall has ears.”

Her frustration boiled over. “Then when? When they kill us?”

The guards shoved them into a narrow passage lined with heavy doors. Cold air seeped from the stone, making her shiver. They stopped at a cell near the end, unlocking it with a metallic groan.

“In,” one ordered.

Damien stepped inside first, towering despite the chains. Aria followed reluctantly, and the door slammed shut behind them with a finality that made her chest clench.

The room was bareconcrete walls, a single bench, a drain in the corner. No windows. No escape.

Aria spun toward him, her voice rising. “You’re going to tell me the truth now. Who was that man? Why did he look at me like he knew me?”

Damien’s jaw tightened, his silence cutting deeper than words.

Her throat burned. “You think keeping me in the dark will protect me? It won’t. It’ll get me killed.”

Finally, he stepped closer, shadows hardening the angles of his face. “The more you know, the more dangerous this becomes. Not just for youfor both of us.”

She met his stare, refusing to look away. “I don’t care. I’d rather know what’s coming than die blind.”

For the first time, his expression faltered. A crack in the mask. Something raw flickered in his eyesfear, not for himself, but for her.

He lowered his voice, barely above a whisper. “Then understand this, Aria: the Council isn’t afraid of me. They’re afraid of what I might do if I choose you.”

Her breath caught, heat and dread tangling in her chest. If he chooses me

The lock on the door rattled suddenly, and the sound of footsteps approached. Someone else was coming for them.