Ep--- 5
The morning sun slanted through cracks in the warehouse roof, dust dancing in the beams like restless ghosts.
Aria wiped dried blood from her fingertips, exhaustion turning her limbs to stone. She'd stayed by Raian's side all night, waiting for the fever to break.
Now, in the quiet aftermath, his breathing had steadied. His eyes — still sharp, still watchful — tracked her every movement.
"You shouldn't have stayed," he murmured, voice husky from fever and sleep.
"And you shouldn't be alive," Aria shot back, a shaky breath betraying her relief.
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Raian tried to sit up. Pain tightened his jaw, but he forced himself upright, refusing help. Even wounded, he carried himself like someone used to command — used to danger.
"You could have run, Aria," he said quietly, gaze locked on hers. "Why didn't you?"
Aria swallowed, searching for an answer that wasn't as terrifyingly simple as because I couldn't.
"I'm your doctor," she whispered. "It would've been wrong to leave you dying."
His eyes flickered, the faintest ghost of amusement crossing his face. "And what about now? I'm alive. You're free to go."
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The words hit harder than she expected. Raian watched her, unreadable.
"You walk out those doors," he continued, voice low, "and you might buy yourself a few days. Maybe weeks. But my enemies don't forget. You treated me — you know my face. You know too much."
A cold knot twisted in Aria's stomach. "So you're threatening me?"
"No," he murmured. "I'm warning you."
Their gazes locked, the warehouse around them dissolving into shadows and silence.
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From behind a stack of crates, voices rose — harsh, hurried.
"Boss," one of Raian's men stepped out, blood on his sleeve. His eyes darted to Aria, then back to Raian. "We need to decide what to do with her."
Raian's jaw tensed. "Speak freely," he ordered, voice steel.
The man hesitated. "Some say… let her go. Others say she's a risk. If they capture her, she talks. If she talks…" His voice trailed off.
Aria's pulse thundered in her ears. The reality crashed over her like cold water: she'd stepped into something far beyond medicine and morality.
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Raian's gaze didn't leave her face. "What do you want, Aria?" he asked quietly. "Walk away now — I won't stop you."
"And if I stay?" she whispered.
"Then you accept what I am. What my world is. You keep your eyes open, your mouth shut… and you never lie to me."
Silence stretched between them. Rain tapped softly on the broken windows, as if waiting too.
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Every part of her training, every rule she'd lived by, screamed to run.
Yet in the hollow space between fear and something unnamed, she realized she couldn't.
"I stay," Aria said, the words tasting like steel and surrender.
Raian's shoulders eased, but only slightly. "Then stay close. And don't give me a reason to doubt you."
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Outside, an engine rumbled to life. Raian's men began packing crates, burning papers. Aria stood rooted, her heart pounding louder than the rain.
"What now?" she asked, voice small.
Raian rose, his breath hitching with pain, but his posture unbroken. "Now," he said, "we move. Before they come again."
He stepped closer, so near she could see the faint shadows under his eyes, the fresh scar from her stitches.
"And Aria…" His voice dropped, raw, quiet. "You chose this. Don't forget."
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As Raian turned to give orders, Aria pressed a hand to her chest, feeling the racing drum of her heart.
She'd made her choice. And already, part of her wondered if it had saved her — or condemned her.
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Next: Raian takes Aria to a secret hideout, and shadows of his past come to life…