Page 7 — The Morning After the Storm
The storm broke just before dawn.
The city was a graveyard of silence, glass and rain glinting under the first pale streaks of morning light. Inside Adrian's penthouse, the world felt smaller — air heavy, metallic, pulsing with what had been said and what hadn't.
Eli sat on the edge of the bed, his hands trembling faintly, eyes fixed on the man lying unconscious beside him. Adrian's shirt was soaked with blood, his skin cold under Eli's fingers, but his chest still rose and fell — shallow, stubborn breaths that refused to stop.
Eli had never seen him like this.
Adrian Cole — untouchable, unshakable, every inch of him power and precision — was now pale and fragile, his mask cracked open.
He pressed a damp cloth against the wound again, whispering to himself more than to Adrian. "You're fine. You have to be fine."
It was strange — the quiet. The thunder outside had gone, but the echoes of the night still roared inside him. Adrian had burst through the door hours ago, drenched and bleeding, refusing help until his knees gave out. He hadn't said who hurt him or why — only that Eli had to lock the door.
And Eli had obeyed, even as the sound of sirens howled somewhere below.
Now, in the soft gray of morning, the house didn't feel like a fortress anymore. It felt like a cage.
Adrian stirred. His eyes fluttered open, unfocused at first, then sharp — that same guarded blue, dimmed but still dangerous.
"Eli…" His voice was hoarse, more breath than sound.
Eli leaned forward immediately. "You're awake."
Adrian's gaze swept the room, then fixed on Eli. "Did anyone come?"
Eli shook his head. "No one. Just… rain."
Adrian's muscles relaxed a fraction, but not his grip on control. "Good. Don't open the curtains."
"Adrian, you're hurt. Whoever did this—"
"It doesn't matter," he interrupted, his tone too calm to be comforting. "It's over."
But Eli wasn't convinced. "You keep saying that. But something's always 'over' right before something worse begins."
For a heartbeat, Adrian said nothing. Then he gave a faint, humorless smile. "You're learning."
Eli looked down, frustration burning through worry. "You keep locking me out of your world, but it's already swallowed me whole. Don't you get that?"
Adrian's jaw tightened. "That's why I tried to keep you out."
He tried to sit up, grimacing as pain lanced through him. Eli steadied him, hands warm against his cold skin. Adrian froze — not from the touch itself, but from the way it made the silence between them feel different.
Eli didn't look away. "You don't get to decide who stays or leaves anymore, Adrian. Not after last night."
Adrian met his gaze — and this time, his control cracked just slightly. Beneath the exhaustion and fury, there was fear. Real, human fear.
Finally, he said quietly, "They found out."
Eli frowned. "Who?"
Adrian leaned back against the headboard, his breath uneven. "The people in those files you shouldn't have seen. The ones who disappear when they cross the wrong line. I used to be the one cleaning their messes."
Eli's stomach turned cold. "Used to?"
Adrian nodded. "Until I stopped following orders."
"Why?"
Adrian looked at him then — really looked, as if the question dug into something buried deep. "Because three weeks ago, they sent me to find you."
The words hit like ice water. Eli froze, eyes wide. "Me?"
"They wanted you silenced," Adrian said, his voice steady now, his mask returning even as blood stained his sleeve. "You were a loose end. You saw something you weren't supposed to. But when I found you—" he stopped, exhaled. "—I couldn't do it."
Eli felt the floor tilt beneath him. "You were supposed to kill me?"
Adrian didn't deny it. "I made them believe I did. But last night… they learned the truth."
Silence swallowed the room. The storm had ended outside, but inside it was only beginning.
Eli stood, backing away a step. "You lied to me. All this time—"
"I saved you!" Adrian's voice broke through the quiet, sharper than the crack of thunder. "Every choice I made, every rule, every wall — it was to keep you alive."
"By making me a prisoner?"
"By keeping you hidden."
The words hung heavy, and for the first time, Eli saw what Adrian really was — not a monster, not a savior, but a man bound by guilt and the weight of too many sins.
Eli took a step closer. "So what now? You think they'll just forget?"
Adrian's eyes hardened. "No. They'll come again. And when they do, you need to run."
"I'm not leaving you."
"Yes, you are."
Eli shook his head, defiance sparking through fear. "You keep giving orders, Adrian, but I stopped listening the moment you bled on my floor."
Something flickered in Adrian's expression — the faintest trace of helplessness. "You don't understand what they're capable of."
"Then teach me."
For a long time, neither of them spoke. Rain dripped softly from the balcony rail, the city breathing faintly below.
Adrian's voice, when it came, was quiet. "You remind me of someone I used to be."
Eli frowned. "Who?"
Adrian's lips curved into a sad smile. "Someone who thought love could save him."
Eli's chest tightened. "And did it?"
Adrian met his eyes — and in that single, wordless look, Eli saw the answer.
No.
But maybe this time, it could.
A faint buzz cut through the silence — the phone on the nightstand lighting up with an unknown number. Adrian's entire body went tense.
Eli reached for it, but Adrian caught his wrist. "Don't."
"It could be—"
"It's them."
The ringing stopped. A single message appeared on the screen.
"You should have finished the job."
Eli's breath caught. Adrian reached for the phone, deleting the message without hesitation. His eyes were cold again, calculating.
"We don't have time," he said. "Pack what you need."
"Where are we going?"
"Somewhere they won't find us."
"But they already know—"
"Eli." Adrian's tone softened, almost breaking. "Please. Just trust me one more time."
And against all reason, Eli did.
He helped Adrian up, steadying him as they moved through the quiet apartment, the city outside just beginning to glow. Every shadow felt like a threat now. Every reflection a set of eyes watching.
When they reached the elevator, Adrian hesitated, his hand hovering over the button. "Once we leave," he said quietly, "there's no going back."
Eli looked at him, his heart pounding. "Good. I don't want to."
The elevator doors closed, sealing them inside. As it descended, Adrian reached for his hand — a brief, desperate touch, like a confession made without words.
And somewhere betwee
n the twelfth floor and the street below, Eli realized something terrifying — he wasn't just running from danger anymore.
He was running with it.