Page 64 of Fractured Devotion (Tainted Souls #1)

The air is sharp against my skin as I walk the narrow street.

I don’t know what time it is.

But it doesn’t matter.

I’m not leaving this night unfinished.

The last words I spoke to Irene still hang in my chest, but they feel distant now, fading as I move through the sleeping city.

I know where I’m going.

Alec.

He sent me a message earlier. A short one. Just a room number, a place not far from the clinic.

I keep walking.

Every step feels heavier, like I’m dragging the ghosts of the last twenty-four hours behind me.

I find the door, and my hands are steady as I knock once.

He opens it immediately, his face shadowed by the dim light.

He doesn’t ask questions.

He just steps aside and lets me in.

The room is plain with bare walls and a single lamp casting everything in soft amber.

I walk past him and stand by the window, staring down at the empty street below.

“You look different,” Alec says softly.

“I feel different,” I reply.

He watches me, his gaze heavy with something unspoken.

“Did you get what you needed?” he asks.

“I got more than that,” I answer, my voice steady but thick.

He lets out a ragged breath, stepping further inside.

“It’s not safe. You need to lay low for a while,” he says, his voice tender but steady. “Rourke’s already stirring the waters. They’re starting to dig and asking questions. Reyes has been scrambling all day to keep them off your trail. Mara too.”

I nod, letting the weight of his words settle. “They’ll keep digging,” I say. “It’s what they do.”

He sits down in the worn chair by the table, his posture tense.

“There’s more,” he adds. “Word’s spreading about the killings, have you heard? The ones tied to Miramont. Two board members dead in under forty-eight hours.”

“Yes, I saw it on the news.” My breath stills, but I keep my face calm. “Any suspects?” I ask, knowing full well who sits at the top of my mind.

“No names yet,” he says. “But some people are whispering, and others are terrified. It feels targeted. Too precise to be random.”

I keep my expression neutral, but inside, my thoughts coil tight.

Kade.

I hate how quickly his name surfaces in my mind. How easily I can imagine him slipping through shadows and making the necessary cuts.

I push the thought down, locking it away. “You’re laying low here?” I ask, shifting the focus.

He nods. “For now. It’s safe, and it’s close enough to keep an eye on the aftermath, and far enough for peace.” A faint smile tugs at his lips. “And if you ever need a safe place… or a friend, you know where to find me,” he adds, his tone soft but steady.

I arch a brow, amused despite everything. “Is that an invitation or a warning?”

He chuckles under his breath. “Maybe both. Especially considering the company you tend to keep.”

I tilt my head, sensing where this is going.

“You mean Kade,” I say, watching him closely.

His expression tightens, just enough to confirm it. “He’s not good for you, Celeste,” Alec says, his voice firm and serious.

I let the words hang in the air for a moment before offering a slow, teasing smile. “Are you jealous, Alec?” I ask, my tone light but laced with meaning.

He meets my gaze, steady but unflinching. “I just don’t want to see you dragged down by someone who thrives in the dark.”

“We all thrive in the dark at some point,” I reply, my voice soft.

Silence settles again, heavier but not uncomfortable.

After a beat, I speak, my voice in a more sincere tone. “Thank you,” I say.

His brows knit. “For what?”

“For helping me remember,” I answer. “Even if I know jealousy played a part in it.”

He lets out a long sound, half-laugh, half-sigh. “Maybe it did,” he admits. “But it doesn’t change the fact that you deserved to know.”

I nod, feeling the truth in his words.

For tonight, that’s enough.

I move toward the door, ready to leave. I know we’ve said everything we need to.

For now.

I linger by the door, unsure whether to leave or stay.

After a moment, I move to the worn chair across from him before sinking into it. The cushion sighs under my weight.

Alec doesn’t press me, but his gaze follows every shift of my body, watchful and patient.

“How’s Reyes holding up?” I ask, breaking the stillness.

His face softens a little, his posture easing.

“Stretched thin. He’s working around the clock trying to keep Rourke from digging too deep and taking him off questions that’ll point in your direction.” Alec says. “But he’s smart and careful. He’ll hold as long as he can.”

“And Mara?” I press.

A flicker of a smile crosses his face. “Still Mara. Cool, calm, and probably hiding ten steps ahead of us all. But even she’s rattled after everything that went down.”

I let that settle.

“They all think this will settle on its own,” Alec continues. “That Rourke will cover it up, or the board will reshuffle things discreetly. But we both know this isn’t the kind of storm you can clean up with paperwork.”

I nod slowly, my eyes tracing the cracks in the wall.

“It won’t settle,” I say. “Not for them.”

His gaze holds steady. “And what about you? After all this? After the dust is settled?

I meet his eyes, my voice steady but firm when I say, “Then I’ll figure out what’s left of me.”

We sit in the growing stillness, the weight of our words thick between us, neither of us pretending there’s a simple way out.

Alec drums his fingers lightly against the table in a steady, thoughtful rhythm.

“They’ll try to pin this on you,” he says. “Or on anyone they can reach. When the bodies keep piling up, they won’t care about accuracy.”

“I’m aware,” I reply.

His gaze sharpens, watching me too closely. “But you aren’t surprised,” he adds.

I lift a shoulder, keeping my voice light. “Nothing surprises me anymore.”

But inside, I’m tightening.

Because I can feel the suspicion beneath his words. The unspoken question neither of us is brave enough to ask aloud.

Do you know who’s doing this?

And worse.

Are you protecting him?

I meet his stare, calm and collected, keeping every sharp thought behind my teeth. “I don’t have to be surprised,” I say instead. “I just have to be ready.”

Alec leans back, watching me with something heavier in his eyes.

“You’ve changed,” he says, not as an accusation, but as a fact.

“I had to,” I reply.

“But what happens to the part of you that doesn’t come back?” he asks softly.

I don’t answer immediately.

Instead, I study him—the man who once tried to save me, who still might, even if it destroys him.

“Maybe that part never really existed,” I murmur.

He watches me for a long moment, then nods. “If you ever need out of this, you know where to find me,” he says again, steady and firmly.

I offer a small, tired smile. “You’ve always been the escape plan, Alec.”

“And you’ve never taken it,” he replies, with something close to fondness.

“Not yet,” I say.

Then, I stand, smoothing my coat as the night calls me back.

Alec rises, too, but he doesn’t try to stop me. “Be careful,” he says, his voice low.

“Always,” I reply.

At the door, I pause, my hand resting on the handle. “You’re a good man, Alec,” I say, glancing back.

He gives me a small, wry smile. “And you’re not as heartless as you want to be.”

I leave without another word, stepping into the cold air, my chest tighter but lighter at once.

Some doors aren’t meant to be closed.

I keep walking.

And I don’t look back.