Page 37 of Monsters Wear Crowns (Crowned Monsters Duet #1)

The night felt too still. Too quiet. I sat in the back of Rafe’s car, my muscles tight with exhaustion.

The day had been endless. The breach, the damage control, the constant pressure mounting from every side.

Laura had held the line at Sinclair Solutions, but I knew the walls were closing in.

Moreau was pushing harder, and it was only a matter of time before something cracked.

My driver, Rafael, kept glancing in the rearview mirror. I noticed it immediately.

“Something wrong?” I asked, my voice sharper than I intended.

“Just being careful, Miss Sinclair,” he said, but there was tension in his words. He was watching for something. Or someone.

The hair on the back of my neck rose.

A black SUV suddenly cut in front of us, tires screaming against the pavement.

Before my driver could react, another slammed into us from the side, the impact throwing me hard against the door.

Pain shot through my shoulder as the world spun.

Metal groaned, and the car lurched wildly before righting itself.

“Stay down!” Rafael barked, pulling his weapon. The first bullet cracked the windshield.

My heart slammed into my throat. Glass spiderwebbed, but the reinforced windows held. Rafael returned fire, his shots sharp and controlled, but there were too many of them.

“Backup’s on the way,” he said through gritted teeth. “ Stay–”

The third car hit us from behind. Hard. The force wrenched my body forward, and the seatbelt bit into my chest. The car spun out, tires screeching, and when we finally skidded to a stop, the driver’s door was already being ripped open.

“Rafael–” I fumbled for my gun, but the back door flew open before I could reach it.

Rough hands grabbed me, dragging me into the night.

I fought hard, twisting and kicking, my elbow connecting with someone’s ribs.

One of them cursed, and I broke free for half a second before another hand caught my wrist. A blow landed against my side, and pain exploded through my ribs, stealing my breath.

“Let go of me!” I spat, my voice wild with fury.

But then a voice interrupted us. It was smooth and almost…amused. “Such a wild card, you are.”

My blood ran cold. I knew that voice.

They let me go, shoving me forward, and I stumbled but didn’t fall. My eyes locked on the man stepping out of the shadows.

Moreau .

He smiled like he owned the night. “Put her down,” he said lazily, and his men obeyed without hesitation.

I straightened, my breath ragged, my ribs aching. But I stood tall, my eyes burning with defiance. “You’ve just made a fatal fucking mistake.”

“Oh, I don’t think so.” His smile widened, and it made my skin crawl. “You see, I wanted to have a… conversation . And I thought it might be more productive without Rafe looming over your shoulder.”

“Fine, what do you have to say?” I sighed heavily, bringing a hand to my ribs.

He grinned like a cat, his blonde hair slicked back, highlighting his sharp cheekbones. “If you want this war to end, I am willing to drop everything. You just need to stop protecting Vaughan. ”

“What do you mean?” I asked, annoyance flaring. “What did he even do to you?”

His brown eyes flashed momentarily. “A lot, Miss Sinclair.” He paced around me slowly. “If you’re truly curious, I can explain it in another meeting. One where I can explain everything that happened with your mother.”

My stomach clenched at that. “How would I inform you if I were interested in such a meeting?”

Surprised flickered across his face. “Here I was, thinking you’d tell me to go fuck myself.”

I narrowed my eyes. “Well, you can go do that, too,” I corrected. “But I need to know about her.”

“Rafe hasn’t told you yet?” He raised a brow.

I hated that I did it, but I shook my head.

He snorted. “Those Vaughan men, taking and destroying.”

I wanted to rip that smug expression right off his face. But before I could answer, the distant growl of engines sliced through the night. Fast. Furious.

Rafe .

Moreau barely flinched. “Looks like we’re out of time,” he said, his voice almost playful.

“I’ll lay low and send a message in five days.

Respond with a simple yes or no, and I’ll make the meeting happen.

An alliance between us would be beneficial to you in several ways.

” He stepped back toward his SUV. “Give Rafe my regards.”

The car peeled away just as Rafe’s vehicles screeched to a halt around me. Doors flew open, and I was suddenly surrounded by Rafe’s men moving in tight formation, their guns raised, their eyes sweeping the space.

But the danger was already gone. Thankfully, Rafael was alright, just beaten a little.

And when Rafe finally reached me, his face was carved from stone. His eyes burned as they searched mine. “Are you okay? What did he say to you?”

I opened my mouth but hesitated. Because for the first time, I wasn’t sure if I could trust him with the answer.

The ride back to the mansion was suffocating.

Rafe hadn’t said a word since he pulled me into the car, his hand like iron around my wrist. The silence was broken only by the low, lethal orders he gave into his phone.

He was in that cold, efficient space again–the one that made him more weapon than man.

But underneath it… I could feel something else.

Fear .

I sat still, my heart still slamming against my ribs, the echo of Moreau’s words crawling through my head.

“Those Vaughan men, taking and destroying.”

I hated that they stuck. Hated that the sliver of doubt had found a home in my mind.

Because as much as I wanted to believe it was a lie, as much as I wanted to believe Rafe, I knew the way my father had used my mother.

I’d watched it eat her alive. And now, I could feel myself slipping into something just as dangerous.

My stupid, reckless heart was already latching onto him. And Rafe…he wasn’t making it easy. Because I didn’t feel that he was reciprocating in the way I wanted.

The car pulled through the mansion gates, and the second we stopped, Rafe was out. I followed, but the distance between us had already opened into a chasm. He paced the room like a storm ready to break, tension rippling through every step.

“You shouldn’t have gone into the office today,” he growled, his voice low and sharp. “I told you it wasn’t safe.”

My own anger flared hot and fast. “I’m not going to hide just because Moreau is trying to scare us. And in case you forgot, my presence was needed there today.”

“This isn’t about fear, Adela. It’s about survival .” He turned on me, his eyes burning. “Do you have any idea what could have happened tonight? ”

“I know exactly what could have happened!” My voice cracked before I could stop it, the weight of the night finally crashing down. “But I’m not going to live my life in a glass box. I won’t be my mother.” The words slipped out before I could stop them, and they hit the room like a gunshot.

Rafe stilled. His eyes went dark. “What does that mean?”

But I couldn’t say it. Not when everything inside me was still splintering. Not when Moreau’s voice still whispered in my head, planting roots I didn’t want to acknowledge.

“Rafe…” I swallowed hard, trying to keep my balance. “We need to hit back. And not just with fire this time. We need to take him apart. Piece by fucking piece.”

For a long moment, he just watched me. Then that slow, wicked smile curved his lips, the one that made my stomach flip even when it shouldn’t. “You really are perfect,” he murmured.

But the words cut more than they soothed.

Perfect wasn’t the same as loved . And I was starting to wonder if I’d ever know the difference.

He stayed up for a while longer, talking on the phone and with his men.

I showered and slid into the soft, white blankets.

When he finally came to bed, I couldn’t take it anymore.

I turned toward him in the dark, my voice soft but steady.

“You haven’t told me everything.”

A long silence. Then: “No.”

My throat tightened. “Will you ever?”

He didn’t answer. Instead, he reached for me, his hands rough, his mouth desperate, and I let him. Because even though my mind was screaming at me to pull back, I couldn’t. I knew that he had a way of silencing my questions with intimacy, but I just...couldn’t push him away.

Because the fire between us was the only thing keeping the fear at bay.

But I knew the truth.

This couldn’t hold forever. And when it finally broke…we’d both burn.

** *

The next morning came too soon. I woke tangled in Rafe’s sheets, my body aching in ways that had nothing to do with the fight from the night before.

The room was still dark, the early morning light just starting to creep around the heavy curtains, and for a moment, I let myself exist in the quiet.

His warmth was still on my skin, and the memory of his hands lingered like a brand.

But the bed next to me was empty.

Of course, it was.

I sat up slowly, the cold settling in as I reached for my crimson robe. The night had been a blur of heat and desperation–a language we both spoke far too well. But the silence that followed it? That was what kept me up after his breathing had gone steady.

He hadn’t answered me.

I didn’t know if he ever would, and it made me nervous.

I found him on the patio, his back to me, his phone pressed to his ear. He was already dressed in dark slacks and a black button-down, his sleeves pushed to his elbows as the morning breeze tugged at his hair. He looked every bit the dangerous and untouchable king of his empire.

But his voice was sharp. Low. And from the tension in his stance, the news wasn’t good.

“–if he’s moving product through those channels, I want every name attached,” he bit out. “No mistakes.”

I waited until he hung up, the quiet stretching between us as I stepped closer. “What happened?”