I pulled her onto my lap without thinking.
We sat in silence for a while, the weight of everything pressing down on us.
Just Damien walking in like the place belonged to him.
I waited for her to pull away. To say no. To call me crazy or remind me she belonged to my uncle.
We just looked at each other, like we didn’t know what we had just done-or what would come next.
“I… I need to go,” I said quietly.
When we finally pulled apart, we were both panting.
We followed him down the stairs and into the sitting room.
That moment had felt like I had forgotten everything-every pain, every loss.
And that… scared me.
I looked at her one more time, and guilt slammed into me.
We had just buried Olivia.
Lennox rubbed his chin, thinking. “Could be Damien was forcing her into this marriage. You know she is human. He’s powerful enough to do something like that.”
He didn’t say anything.
I stared at her, my heart pounding like a drum in my chest.
Her eyes looked confused, but I couldn’t explain.
My hands went to her waist, then her hips, holding her close.
“I don’t like this,” I muttered, already heading for the door.
Louis sighed. “She looked… trapped to me.”
Just stared at us like he didn’t believe it.
Eyes wide. Jaw clenched.
Her lips were slightly parted, and her eyes looked unsure-but not angry. Not afraid.
It felt like the world disappeared.
Because it felt right.
My stomach dropped. “What?”
Too right.
She was still on my lap.
Her lips. Her scent. Her breath mixing with mine.
It wasn’t soft or gentle.
She gasped a little, and I felt her grip my shirt.
Why did she make me feel like this-like I couldn’t think straight when she was near?
He looked… worried.
Damien ran towards her while we moved closer and the closer we got, the more our eyes widened until we were close enough to recognize her fully.
Silence filled the room. No one moved. No one breathed.
Even though we hadn’t seen her in more than three years, we recognized her instantly. Nothing had changed. She still looked just like Olivia… just an older version. Same eyes. Same nose. Same soft lips that used to curl into the same kind of smile that made everything else disappear.
My chest tightened the moment I stared at her. It was like seeing a ghost. A ghost of Olivia…
“Call the healers!” he shouted at the nearest guard, his voice sharp with fear.
I looked back at Damien. He hadn’t moved from Sofia’s side. His wife was missing, possibly in danger-and he hadn’t even noticed. He was too lost in Sofia.
“Pull up the last two hours of footage,” I ordered. “Start from the garden.”
“Follow them,” I said urgently.
“I want the scent tracked immediately,” I ordered. “Send the best wolves out. I want that car found. I want every border locked down. Nobody gets in or out without clearance.” 1
I stepped back from the monitor, my fists clenched. “They planned this. They were waiting for her to be alone.”
His voice cracked. The fear in his eyes wasn’t fake. The pain in his expression wasn’t fake. He still loved her. He never stopped. 1
He didn’t explain more. He didn’t have to. I couldn’t judge him. Because what he didn’t know was-I had kissed her too. And none of us had told the others.
We rushed straight to the CCTV room, our footsteps echoing down the hallway like thunder. None of us spoke. We were all tense-angry, confused, afraid. All for a stranger.
The trunk shut with a loud slam. A few seconds later, the others jumped over the fence and all three ran toward the car. Then they drove off.
“Just do it!” I snapped and hung up.
The footage jumped as the guard changed the camera angle. We saw the men dragging Rebecca through a back path. Then-one by one-they climbed over the high fence with her.
By the time we reached Damien’s room, he was already kneeling beside Sofia on the bed, clutching her hand tightly.
Clark and Dustin were already inside, standing near the main monitor with worried expressions. As soon as they saw us, they stepped back and gave me room.
My heart dropped.
And then I looked at my brothers. “We need to have a talk with Damien now…” I said, and didn’t wait for them to speak before leading the way out.
My brow furrowed, and seconds later-he kissed her. Deeply… passionately.
My jaw clenched. I turned slowly to Levi. He looked away and sighed.
I looked back at the screen, shaking the thought away. “Rewind,” I said. “I want to see what happened after she left.”
Levi frowned and I spoke. “I have ordered the patrol team to look for her…Let’s check the CCTV room,” I said.
I swallowed hard, feeling the storm of anger growing in my chest.
So why? Why did he marry Rebecca? Why bring her here and call her his Luna when his heart clearly still belonged to someone else? 3
“Damn it!” Levi snapped, punching the wall.
Sofia…! It was really her.
Lennox’s POV
Dustin and Clark nodded and rushed out.
Louis and Levi nodded, but Damien didn’t care… he didn’t even utter a word or show any concern, rather, his attention was solely on Sofia. For a moment, I was glad she was back because she will have to clear the misunderstanding Damien had about us telling her his secrets.
“She’s burning up,” he whispered, brushing her hair back from her forehead. “Come on, baby. Stay with me…”
Before we could ask anything, he turned and sprinted into the mansion with her in his arms. My brothers and I exchanged confused looks. No one said a word. But we all followed.
And in that moment, one thing became painfully clear… he never really loved Rebecca.
“Shit,” I muttered. I made a mind link to Clark.
“What the hell-” Louis muttered under his breath.
Rebecca struggled, tried to scream-but within seconds, she went limp. Unconscious.
The next camera switched to the outside of the gate. And there… we saw it. A black car waited by the edge of the woods. One of the men popped the trunk while another carried Rebecca’s limp body and placed her inside.
We all leaned forward. The men cornered her quickly. One grabbed her arms while the second pulled something out of his pocket. A cloth. He pressed it over her nose and mouth.
Then suddenly, everything shifted. Damien panicked and rushed forward, scooping Sofia into his arms like she weighed nothing. Her body was limp, her eyes half-closed.
Levi spoke. “Who do you think took Rebecca? We have to find her, remember?” Levi sounded frustrated, but Damien didn’t utter a word. He just kept staring at Sofia as if if he looked away, she would disappear.
Damien didn’t move from her side. He kept whispering to her unconscious form like she could hear every word.
New Book: Back Home to Marry Off Myself
Loredana’s father left the family for his mistress, leaving them to fend for themselves abroad. When life was at its toughest, her father showed up with “good news” after 8 years of absence: To marry off Loredana to a paralyzed son of the wealthy Mendelsohn family.