“I told you, Aria,” he said calmly. “We were never on the same side. And I need the funds. That’s all.”
It felt like something inside me split clean in half.
I begged after that. I said everything I could think of. I told them I was pregnant. I told them I would do anything—anything at all—if they would just stop.
But he turned away before I could finish.
When the final bid came through, the voice declared, “Sold.”
I don’t remember walking off that stage.
Only being dragged through corridors. Cold hands. Locked doors. A dim room that smelled like smoke and expensive alcohol. I kept repeating it like a prayer that might save me.
“I’m pregnant… please… don’t…”
No one listened.
Pain, noise, panic—it all blurred together until the door suddenly slammed open.
“Enough!”
A voice cut through everything like thunder.
Chaos erupted. Shouting. Fists hitting walls. Someone falling hard against furniture.
And then—arms caught me.
Steady. Strong. Real.
When my vision cleared, I saw him.
Vincent Wolfe.
Matteo’s rival.
“Stay with me,” he said firmly, holding me as if I might disappear. “You’re safe now.”
Safe.
The word didn’t feel real anymore.
And then everything went dark.