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“He said he didn’t want to be disturbed,” Ronan cuts in, his voice sharper this time—final.

My hand stills.That’s interesting.Ruairi doesn’t just go off the radar like this.

“I have information on Aoife,” I say, letting the words hang.“And he’s going to want to hear it.”

Ronan smirks like he sees right through me."If there’s anything worth knowing, I’m sure Ruairi will find out for himself.He went to Dublin to meet with his sister."

That stops me for a beat.Ruairi and Aoife are together?That’s not what I expected to hear.

I force an easy grin."That right?"

Ronan just shrugs."That’s what I said, isn’t it?"

I hold his gaze a moment longer, but he doesn’t give me anything else.Pushing off the doorframe, I offer a lazy nod."Guess I’ll have to catch him later then."

What the fuck is going on?I need answers, now.I fire off a text.

Cian:Did your brother make it safely to Dublin?

Aoife:How do you know he was here?

Cian:It’s my job to know, lass.

Aoife:We had dinner earlier.

Cian:What did you two talk about?

Aoife:Family stuff.I’m making it look like I want to repair our relationship so he won’t see you coming for him.

Cian:You’re fucking brilliant.We’re going to make one hell of a power couple.

Aoife:We’ll have everyone on their knees begging at our feet.

I stare at Aoife’s message, my grip tightening around my phone.

We’ll have everyone on their knees begging at our feet.

My pulse kicks up as a slow heat coils in my chest, dark and consuming.

Power is a seductive thing, but power with her?That’s something else entirely.A kingdom built on blood and loyalty, on whispered secrets and bodies left in our wake.And Aoife, sharp, clever, deadly, will be right beside me.

Desire coils low in my gut, thick and insistent.The thought of her, dangerous, untouchable to everyone but me, sinks deep into my veins like a drug.My cock hardens at the idea of her by my side, dripping in power and mine to ruin.

Ruairi has no idea.He thinks he can control her.But I see her.I see ambition coiled around her spine like a serpent ready to strike.

She’s the storm that unmoors kingdoms, the ruin men carve altars for.And I’ll kneel first, knowing I’m the one who lit the match.

Ruairi

The light overheadflickers once before plunging me back into darkness.I exhale sharply, pressing my hands against my thighs, trying to anchor myself with something solid, something real, as the void stretches around me.

I don’t know how long I’ve been down here days, maybe.Weeks.It’s been long enough that my body no longer flinches at the sudden shifts between light and dark.Long enough that the cycles have begun to blend together, stretching time into something shapeless.Long enough, that exhaustion seeps into my bones, dragging at the edges of my mind.

They’re trying to break me.

I know that.

What’s worse is Aoife orchestrated this.