Page 59 of Haunted (Blackwood Brothers #1)

EPILOGUE

MIRA

Ten months later…

I stand beside Xavier in the preparation room, watching as familiar faces gather for this year’s reimagined Hunt.

The energy feels different—charged with anticipation rather than the tension I remember from last October.

These aren’t strangers being hunted by monsters anymore.

We’re all willing participants in this twisted celebration.

“Nervous?” Xavier’s voice carries amusement as he adjusts his red mask, the same one that haunted my dreams a year ago.

“Excited,” I admit, surprising myself with the honesty. A part of me died somewhere between that first night and now. What remains craves the darkness Xavier showed me.

Across the room, Cora adjusts her silver silk dress. At the same time, Dominic, Liam, and Ryder check their weapons—pleasure devices rather than hunting tools this time. She catches my eye and grins, no longer the mayor’s shame-filled daughter but a woman who owns her desires.

The carnival crew adds an electric element to our group. Sofia commands attention in crimson, her confidence radiating as Tyson circles her. I’ve heard the stories about their defiance of her father’s arranged marriage.

“Look at them,” Xavier murmurs, following my gaze to where Cade positions Lily against the wall, his massive frame dwarfing her delicate beauty. “He’s been obsessed with her since the carnival arrived in Willow Creek.”

Alice laughs at something Lars whispers in her ear, the sound bright against his dark intensity. Their dynamic fascinates me—how she matches his calculated control with fierce independence.

But it’s the threesome in the corner that makes my breath catch. Flora stands between Colt and Nash, both men’s hands possessive on her skin. The way they move around her speaks of perfect synchronization. This goes beyond what any of us experienced during the original Hunt.

“Twenty-four hours,” Xavier says, his fingers trailing down my spine through the black silk. “No rules except what we make ourselves.”

Knox’s laughter echoes from where he prepares Bianca, Vane murmurs something dark to Lia, and Landon traces patterns on Sadie’s exposed shoulders. Even Julian and Elliot are here together a year later.

“Time to begin,” Tyson announces, his voice carrying the same commanding presence I’ve witnessed at his carnival.

The horn sounds, and Xavier’s grip tightens on my hand.

“Ready to be hunted again, angel?”

I nod, my heart racing with anticipation rather than fear. This time, when I run, it’s not from terror but from desire. My bare feet slap against the cold stone as I sprint through the familiar maze, the black silk dress flowing behind me like tendrils of obsidian smoke dancing in my wake.

The passages that once felt like death traps now feel like foreplay. Every turn, every dead end, every hidden camera—they’re all part of our game now. Xavier’s footsteps echo behind me, deliberate and unhurried. He knows these walls better than anyone and knows exactly where I’ll end up.

But that’s the beauty of it. I want to be caught.

My lungs burn as I take a sharp left, remembering this path leads to the chamber where Vane first caught Lia. The memory makes me smile rather than cringe. We’re all different people now—willing participants in our own destruction and rebirth.

A glimpse of silver silk catches my eye as I round another corner. Cora’s laughter rings through the stone corridors, followed by three distinct male voices. Dominic’s sophisticated tones, Liam’s measured words, Ryder’s playful banter—they’ve found their rhythm together.

“Having fun, Mira?” Cora calls out as I pass their alcove. I catch a flash of her radiant smile and see how she moves between her three men like she belongs there—because she does.

“The best,” I call back, meaning every word.

A year ago, I would have been horrified to see my best friend fucked by three men seeking revenge against her father. Now I understand what I couldn’t then—sometimes being caught is exactly what we need.

Xavier’s presence grows stronger behind me. I can feel him closing the distance, his red mask a beacon in my peripheral vision. Every nerve ending comes alive with anticipation.

I take another turn, my breathing ragged now, not from fear but from want. The woman who entered this maze last October died here, replaced by someone who craves the darkness. Someone who found love in the most impossible place.

“Getting tired?” Xavier’s voice echoes off the walls, closer now.

I laugh, the sound echoing through the maze. “Never.”

Because running from Xavier isn’t about escape anymore. It’s about the inevitable moment when he catches me and reminds me exactly who I belong to.

The familiar sound of lapping water reaches my ears before I see the chamber. My heart pounds as recognition floods through me—the pool room. The place where Xavier first fucked me, where I surrendered everything I thought I was.

I pause at the entrance, my chest heaving from the chase. The ethereal LED lights dance beneath the dark water’s surface, casting the same hypnotic patterns that mesmerized me a year ago. But this time, there’s no fear. Only anticipation.

Xavier’s footsteps echo closer in the corridor behind me. He’s giving me time to choose, just like he did before. Run deeper into the maze or face what waits in the water.

A smile curves my lips as I step onto the cold marble tiles surrounding the pool’s edge. The black silk clings to my skin, and I can almost feel Xavier’s eyes on me as he approaches the chamber entrance.

“You remember,” his voice rumbles from the doorway, approval evident in those two words.

“How could I forget?” I turn to face him, my back to the water. “This is where you taught me who I really am.”

His red mask catches the underwater lights as he moves into the chamber with predatory grace. “And who are you, Mira?”

“Yours.” The word comes without hesitation, without shame. “Completely yours.”

I reach for the dress’s zipper, sliding it down slowly while Xavier watches. The silk pools at my feet, leaving me naked before him. Everything feels different now. Last time, I was trapped. Now, I’m choosing.

Giving him a teasing wink, I turn and dive cleanly into the dark water. The familiar sensation of weightlessness surrounds me as I swim toward the center of the pool.

The chains rise from the depths exactly as they did before, but this time, I don’t fight. I lift my arms willingly as the metal wraps around my wrists, pulling my arms above my head.

“Good girl,” Xavier’s voice carries across the water. “You know exactly where you belong.”

The restraints hold me positioned as he enters the pool, water rippling around his powerful form as he approaches. This time, there’s no struggle, no internal war between duty and desire.

“Welcome home, angel.”

Xavier’s hands find my waist beneath the water, his touch sending electricity through every nerve. The familiar weight of him between my thighs feels like coming home, but this time, there’s no hesitation and no internal battle.

“One year,” he murmurs against my throat, his mask discarded somewhere on the pool’s edge. “One year of having you, and I still can’t get enough.”

His confession sends heat spiraling through me despite the cool water. The chains hold me exactly where he wants me, but unlike that first night, the restraint feels like safety rather than captivity. I arch into his touch as his fingers explore me with intimate familiarity.

“Xavier,” I breathe, wrapping my legs around his waist as much as the ankle restraints allow. “Please.”

He doesn’t make me wait. The thick head of his cock presses against my entrance, and I gasp as he fills me completely with one powerful thrust. The water amplifies every sensation, every ridge, and vein as he moves inside me.

“You feel perfect,” he groans, his forehead pressed against mine. “Always so perfect for me.”

I want to touch him, to run my hands through his dark hair the way I did this morning in our bed. But the chains force me to simply feel, to experience every stroke without the distraction of my own need to please him in return.

“Harder,” I whisper, surprising myself with the demand.

His answering thrust steals my breath. Water sloshes around us as he drives into me with increasing intensity, his hands gripping my hips to control the angle. The pool that once represented my surrender now feels like our sanctuary.

“Tell me,” he commands between thrusts. “Tell me what you are.”

“Yours,” I gasp, the word torn from me as pleasure builds. “I’m yours, Xavier. Always yours.”

His rhythm changes, becoming more demanding and more possessive. Each stroke pushes me higher as the restraints force me to take everything he gives me.

“Come for me,” he growls against my ear. “Come while these chains hold you where you belong.”

I cry out Xavier’s name, the sound echoing off the chamber walls as my release shatters me.

Xavier follows moments later, his own climax powerful as he buries himself deep inside me. The chains keep me positioned perfectly to take everything he gives, our bodies moving together in the intimate dance we’ve perfected over these twelve months.

As the tremors fade, Xavier’s hands become gentle on my skin, stroking softly as we both catch our breath.

The water laps quietly around us while he reaches up to release my wrists from the chains.

My arms fall to wrap around his neck immediately, finally able to touch him the way I’ve been craving.

“Perfect,” he whispers against my lips before capturing them in a kiss completely opposite of his earlier dominance. This kiss speaks of tenderness, reverence, and something deeper than mere possession. “You’re absolutely perfect for me, Mira.”

His words warm me more than any physical touch could. When he kisses me again, it’s with infinite care, as if I’m precious rather than an object to be conquered. The contrast to our heated passion moments before makes my chest tight with emotion.