Kael was impossible to resist.
Even as suspicion poisoned my thoughts, my heart betrayed me every time his hand brushed mine or his voice dipped low when he whispered my name.
That evening, we sat under the lanterns of a quiet rooftop bar. The city stretched out beneath us, glowing and restless, but in that moment, it felt like only the two of us existed.
He leaned closer, his breath warm against my ear.
"You make me forget the world, Selene."
For a dangerous second, I wanted to believe him. To forget the photograph in my father's trunk. To forget the name Kane. To just be a girl, falling hopelessly for a man with shadows in his eyes.
But I couldn't afford weakness. Not now.
Hours later, after Kael kissed my forehead and left me at my door, I followed him again. This time, he didn't go to the warehouse. Instead, his car led me to an abandoned hotel at the city's edge.
The moment he stepped inside, I circled to the back, heart thundering. Through a broken frame, I saw him in a dimly lit room… with Morpheus Kane.
Kane's presence was suffocating, his voice smooth like oil, yet sharp as glass.
"You're getting distracted," he told Kael. "The girl is a weakness. An Aduke should never have been allowed this close."
My chest tightened. He was talking about me.
Kael's voice was rough, defiant.
"I can handle her. She trusts me."
A cold laugh spilled from Kane's lips.
"Trust? Don't fool yourself, Kael. The oath is heavier than love. And when the time comes, you will remember where your loyalty lies."
The oath again. Always the oath.
I pressed my hand to my mouth, fighting back a gasp.
And that's when Kael's eyes flicked to the corner — sharp, dangerous. Too close to where I crouched in the shadows.
My blood turned to ice. Had he seen me?
My pulse hammered in my ears as Kael's head turned sharply toward the window. His gaze swept the shadows like a predator scenting prey.
One second too long, and I'd be finished.
I sank lower, pressing myself flat against the crumbling wall, holding my breath until my lungs burned. Inside, Morpheus Kane's laughter filled the room, a cruel distraction.
Kael's eyes lingered, scanning, searching… then finally turned back to Kane.
For now, I was invisible.
The moment their voices rose again, I crawled backward, slow and silent, every scrape of gravel sounding like thunder in my ears. My legs ached, my palms bled, but I didn't stop until I reached the safety of the street.
Only then did I run.
By the time I reached home, my body was trembling so hard I could barely unlock the door. I collapsed against it, chest heaving, Kael's words echoing in my mind:
"She trusts me."
Yes, I trusted him. At least, I had. And he was using that trust like a weapon.
But there was something else buried beneath Kane's words — something that gnawed at me even harder than the betrayal.
The oath is heavier than love.
What oath? What promise could chain Kael Joshua to a man like Morpheus Kane? And why did it feel like my father's ghost was warning me from the grave?
I closed my eyes, whispering into the silence of my room:
"Father… I'll find the truth. Even if it kills me."