Chapter 174
Chapter 175
Chapter 175
The water flowed down my naked body, warm and comforting, but it did little to settle the storm in my chest.
The hotel Dominic booked was… understated on the outside but painfully luxurious inside. Old money style with tall walls that were painted white and silver coloured marble floors. The kind of place with gold faucets and silk robes, where the staff didn’t look you in the eye unless you asked them to.
We had a suite on the highest floor , overlooking the hills. Private elevator, with a sitting room , and even a mini bar.
It screamed money. Money that would have never made it to my generation.
I stepped out of the shower and wrapped myself in the softest towel I’d ever touched. There was a pale beige dress laid out for me on the bed, it was lightweight and sleeveless, with a soft cinch at the waist. Not the kind of thing I usually wore, but I liked how it felt.
It felt like soft cotton against my body, gentle and made me feel feminine.
Unlike everything else that made me feel like a curse of a human being.
Dominic was already dressed when I stepped out. A black shirt with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows. The first two buttons undone. Slacks pressed neat, but no jacket or tie. His watch gleamed faintly in the low light. He looked … calm.
Which is good, I guess?
He looked up from where he was standing by the window, holding a tumbler of dark liquor.
“You good ?” he asked.
I nodded, tugging the hem of the dress down. “Yeah.”
He watched me for a second too long. Then, “You’re upset.”
“I said I’m good.”
“That’s not what I asked.”
I pulled my hair to one side and walked toward the armchair across from him, lowering myself slowly. “I’m tired. That’s it .”
He sat on the edge of the sofa, elbows on his knees. “Tired of me? ”
I let out a dry laugh. “Maybe.”
He gave a slow exhale but didn’t argue.
“I’m not mad,” I said, more to myself than to him. “I mean, not at you. Not completely.”
“So who then?”
I looked down at my fingers, “Everyone. Everything. The vault. The inheritance. My name. There’s always someone trying to control it. Steal it or use it . I feel like a shell of my own self.”
“I’m not them , ” he said.
“I know,” I replied. “But sometimes it feels the same.”
He shifted like he wanted to reach for me, but he didn’t. “Say it.”
“What?”
1/5
Chapter 175
Whatever you’re holding back .
I glanced at him . Then away. “ I just… I wanted to know a thing or two. About them. My family . Not just from files or surveillance . Something tangible Something that doesn’t feel like a secret wrapped in another secret . ”
You will.
“ When ? After everything’s already happened?” I bit my lip. “Regardless that’s not even the only thing to piss me off. I asked to be part of this, Dominic, told you I didn’t want to be protected like a porcelain doll. I wanted to help. I wanted to be involved.”
His jaw ticked.
“I get that you’re used to doing things alone. That you don’t trust easily,” I went on, softer now. “But I’m here. Still here. After everything . ”
“ I know . ”
“ Then act like it,” I said. “Because what really upsets me… isn’t Victoria. Or Nico. Or even what they took .”
I looked at him, meeting his eyes fully.
“It’s the fact that you still don’t include me in the process. Even when I’ve asked.”
“Oh Aria…”
“Don’t Oh Aria me right now, Dominic.” I stepped away from him, heat crawling up my neck. “Yes , I know I said I wanted to go to college, get a new degree, be someone useful. But what’s the use now ? My sickness is back. And not just that, Victoria and Nico stole from me. From me, Dominic.”
He didn’t speak.
I hated when he didn’t speak.
“I just needed something. A win. A moment where I didn’t feel like a pawn again.”
“You’re not a pawn.”
“No? Then what am I?” I folded my arms tightly, my voice cracking. “ The vault was mine, not yours. Not the Syndicate’s. Mine. And I stood there today like a guest. Just like always.”
His eyes narrowed, sharp but he didn’t argue.
After a beat, he turned away, walking toward the other side of the suite. The heavy silence stretched between us, and for a moment I thought he was ignoring everything again. Retreating into that cold, unreadable part of him where emotions didn’t reach.
Then he said, “Sit down.”
I didn’t move.
“I’m going to show you something,” he added, calmer now. “You want to be involved? Fine. But don’t ask for it then complain when it’s not what you expect.”
I followed slowly, standing by the long table near the bar as he opened his briefcase. There were documents inside maps , marked territories , grainy photos, flight logs.
“These are the ongoing operations. Accounts I’ve been tracking. Offshore routes. We were close to tracing the Fletchers‘ backup vault in Liechtenstein before the one here went cold. This-” He tapped a folder, “-is surveillance from three different cities. Victoria was sloppy last week . She withdrew in her name. Nico bought weapons. Alone.”
I blinked, slowly processing everything.
Chapter 175
“You’ve been working this whole time?” I asked, my voice softer now.
“Every day,” he replied. “You think I’ve been sitting around waiting for them to make a move?”
I bit the inside of my cheek, feeling the edge of guilt, but not enough to forget how angry I still was.
“I didn’t tell you because you’ve been… going through hell,” he continued. “And part of me wanted you to breathe. To rest. But maybe I was wrong”
He moved to his laptop, opened it, and pulled up a secure portal. A small red light blinked in the top corner. His eyes narrowed.
“What’s that?” I asked, inching closer.
“A link,” he muttered. “Encrypted.”
“From who?”
He didn’t answer right away. He clicked it, a progress bar loading across the screen, and tension built in the air like something thick was crawling into the
room.
The screen turned black.
And then-
It started to play.
A shaky video feed lit up the hotel suite. Static flickered at the edges as the footage slowly focused.
Dominic’s jaw clenched before the image even sharpened. He knew that place.
The walls were stained concrete, dimly lit. A shadow paced in the background. Then the camera tilted, revealing a man slumped against the wall.
Blood.
A slow drip of red trailed down his jaw.
“Lorenzo,” Dominic muttered.
I stepped closer, my stomach knotting. “Is that…”
“My assistant head of security,” he said. His voice was low, controlled, but the fury underneath it was boiling. His fist clenched, knocked were white. I wanted to touch him to calm him down but I hesitated wondering what I could do at this moment.
The video shifted again. Now the man behind the camera stepped forward.
Nico.
He crouched beside Lorenzo like he was posing with a dead trophy, then looked into the camera.
“This is just a reminder, Dominic,” Nico said smoothly. “You’re not untouchable.”
The screen cut to black.
But it wasn’t over.
A new image flashed up.
My breath stopped.
Chapter 175
It was me.
Tied to a chair, wrists bruised, mouth gagged. My eyes were swollen–my face pale, raw with fear,
That wasn’t from now.
That was from before. From the warehouse. From the day Dominic found me.
The caption below it read:
“We’ve done it once. We can do it again.”
I felt Dominic still beside me. Not just physically. He didn’t blink. Didn’t speak.
Then he reached forward and slowly closed the laptop.
“What the hell,” I whispered. My voice trembled without permission. “They killed Lorenzo?”
He didn’t answer.
“Dominic.”
“Yeah.” His hands balled into fists. “They did.”
I took a step back. “They sent you that photo of me to-”
“-remind me what happens when I don’t act fast enough.”
The silence that followed was worse than shouting.
I couldn’t read him now.
He just stood there, eyes locked on nothing, like he was already somewhere else in his head.
“This was leverage. They want me to hesitate.”
I shook my head. “It’s working.”
His gaze snapped to me. Sharp. Angry. But not at me.
“Don’t say that.”
“Why not?” I snapped. “I know you’re scared. I’m scared. They know where we are, what we’re doing. They could come for me now. I am your weakness and I hate it.”
“No, they won’t come for you Aria.”
“How can you be sure?”
His voice dropped. “Because they won’t leave alive!
I stared at him , unsure if I should feel relieved or terrified.
Dominic moved past me, grabbing his phone. He started dialing, fingers tight around the device.
“I want security doubled. I want eyes in and out of the hotel, the car, the entire goddamn block. I don’t care what it costs,” he said into the phone. “Anyone without a verified print doesn’t get near her. Full lockdown.”
He paused, listening.
Chapter 175
“ Dead. Lorenzo is dead.”
A longer silence.
“Tell the rest of the team. Quietly. And prepare for retaliation.”
He hung up.
I stayed quiet, but my chest was tightening by the second. “What do we do now?”
Dominic turned to me, his jaw set like stone.
“We always find another way.”
He walked toward the safe in the corner of the suite and typed in a code. The door clicked open, revealing a set of black files, weapons, and something wrapped in velvet..
He reached for the folder first.
“What is that?” I asked.
“Names. People Nico and Victoria rely on. People who’ve forgotten where they stand.”
“And you’re going to…”
“I’m going to remind them.”
My throat dried.
He turned to me again, eyes as cold as ice.
“I think it’s time they get a wakeup call” Dominic said, slow and brutal. “I’ll make them regret touching you.”