Page 115 of Forbidden Empire

He was tailing us, his car close enough I could feel his presence at my back. I answered, quick and sharp, put him on speaker. Esme’s gaze flicked to me, both of us hanging on for every word.

“Boss, we’re just a mile out. Are you suited up?”

“We’re ready,” I said. “Any changes to the plan?”

“None.”

“Good.” My pulse kicked up. “What about our inside source? Rhea still oblivious?”

“She doesn’t have the faintest clue what’s coming for her.”

A low, satisfied hum escaped me. “Perfect. This should be interesting. Stay sharp.”

“Always,” Ares answered. He hesitated, just for a heartbeat, and in the silence I felt everything between us. All the years. All the blood and loyalty. We never said what we meant, not out loud, but it lived in every pause.

“Alright,” I said. “We’ll pull off at the spot and take the back way through the trees. Quiet.”

“Affirmative.”

Ares hung up. No goodbye. No hesitation.

The sense of danger that lingered in the car between me and Esme thickened instantly, rolling in like a storm.

It was suffocating. Heavy. A warning neither of us could ignore.

I wanted to make her stay behind, keep her safe, but the idea alone was a loaded gun.

One pull of the trigger and the soft, open Esme I’d finally gotten to see would vanish, maybe for good. She’d walk away and never look back.

I wasn’t willing to take that risk—not with her.

So I kept quiet, letting the tension fester, letting her see how serious this was. We were about to cross a line, and there was no room for mistakes or second thoughts. Our lives were on the line, and that wasn’t something either of us could pretend away.

This was the life I’d chosen. Getting my hands dirty wasn’t an accident—it was survival. You learned fast, or you got buried.

Zeno knew it. Thal, too.

We all had something to gain from this scheme.

Our business would thrive off the bones of Rhea’s empire, splitting her assets between us. But Esme?

All she had was vengeance, that cold, sharp promise lodged in her heart. Was that worth the risk, the danger that could easily swallow her whole?

I wanted to roar at her, grip her shoulders, and shake her until she saw sense, pin her to the bed and leave her there, seething, while I walked away to deal with it myself, only to come back, gather her in my arms, and fuck away all the bitterness until she forgave me.

But I knew none of that would work. No amount of shouting or rough hands could change Esme’s mind. She wouldn’t forgive, not for this.

This was a path she had to walk, pain and all, to reach that jagged place of satisfaction. If I tried to stop her, it would destroy us both.

So I kept it all locked up inside, the words burning my throat.

When the driver finally slowed and the tires crunched off the dirt road, dust swirling in the headlights, relief crashed through me. I wanted it done.

Over. For the first time, the future didn’t look like a threat.

It looked like a fucking promise. I glanced at Esme, unable to offer her one last chance to escape. There was no turning back.

“Esme, you know you can change your mind. It’s not too late.”