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DAMIAN
Ipush open the door to my office, and my eyes immediately fly to the naked girl bent over my desk. She’s like a sacrificial offering in the dim light, her brown hair spilling down her back. My brother Nikhil stands nearby, smirking like he holds the keys to the kingdom.
And if her being naked wasn’t enough of a hint, her hooded eyes, separated lips, and pink cheeks would be a key indicator of what happened in this room before we walked in.
“Make sure you get someone to clean this room before Monday,” I mutter, averting my gaze. It’s far from the worst thing I’ve ever seen. I’ve put eyes on naked women throughout my entire life, and there’s nothing special about this one. Cassius, on the other hand, chuckles beside me, gawking at her like she’s some kind of toy. Then again, that’s all women are to my brothers.
Cassius no stranger to women in various states of undress, but Nikhil? This is something new. He’s been acting differently lately, and that’s something I’ll have to talk to him about.
“Damian.” Nikhil’s voice is almost monotone, but I can hear the slight mischief in it. “I’m happy you could join us.”
The girl begins to scramble against him, but Nikhil holds her down easily enough, and when he bends down to whisper something in her ear, she stops moving altogether. I don’t have a clue what he said, but it hardly matters.
“Where’s the spy you were going on about?” I snap. My time is valuable, and this feels like a waste. If there’s anyone who knows how much I hate my time being wasted, it’s him.
“Ah, yes.” Nikhil grins, and for a moment, I wonder if my brother has lost his goddamn mind. He’s always been the cunning strategist, always serious. But lately…things have been different.
I need to talk to him about that.
“Her name is Anna Tryst,” Nikhil says, a wicked smile playing on his lips. “She was in the wrong place at the wrong time.”
My gaze falls back to the girl. She shivers, and I can practically see her skin prickling with goosebumps under the weight of my gaze. She’s like a cornered animal—frightened, yet defiant.
“Speak plainly,” I demand, my patience wearing thin.
“She overheard you, Damian. When you and Cassius…took care of that loose end.”
My blood runs cold at the implications. If she knows our secrets, there can only be one outcome. “Kill her,” I order without pause, my words sharp as a knife.
“Wait,” Cassius interjects, stepping forward with desire clear in his eyes. “Look at her, Damian. She’s beautiful. We can’t just kill her. It’d be such a waste.”
It’s times like these when I’m grateful that I’m the eldest. “Beauty doesn’t buy her life,” I snap.
“Before you decide,” Nikhil says, “I think you should look at her a little bit closer.” My mouth opens to speak, but something in the way Nikhil watches me makes me reconsider. He wants me to see something in her face, a message hidden beneath the surface. “She wouldn’t still be alive if she weren’t special.”
With a heavy sigh, I step closer, examining the girl’s features.
I look over her carefully. She’s not a common beauty; there’s something different about how she looks, yet she’s stunning nonetheless with gorgeous green eyes, skin kind of on the tanned side and beautiful, vibrant hair. The girl’s defiant eyes pierce through me, and suddenly I feel like the air has been sucked from my lungs. She bears a striking resemblance to someone I lost—someone I loved deeply. The ghost of that love lingers in the curve of her lips, the tilt of her chin.
“Damian,” Nikhil murmurs, gauging my reaction. He doesn’t say the name, but he doesn’t need to. It’s written all over his face. I didn’t think it could ever be possible to see her again, even in another’s features. “Still want her dead?” he asks, his voice taunting yet cautious. He knows how much those memories hurt me, how deep that wound still runs.
No, I don’t.
Anna’s gaze remains locked on mine, unflinching and fierce. She doesn’t beg for her life; she stands her ground, just as Mikayla did all those years ago.
“Answer me, Damian,” Nikhil presses, the tension between us palpable.
My heart hammers inside my chest, torn between the darkness that urges me to silence this girl and the ache that begs for a chance to explore this haunting connection. The room seems to close in on me, suffocating my thoughts and clouding my judgment.
This isn’t like me. I’ve always been the calm-minded brother, ready to do whatever it takes. But not with that face…not with her.
“Damn you, Nikhil,” I grind out through clenched teeth, voice too low for him to hear. My fingers curl into fists at my sides, knuckles turning white with the strain. But I can’t bring myself to give the order. “Let her live,” I grit out.
I don’t have a choice. All of those years ago, I made Mikayla a promise. Even if she’s dead, I can’t go back on it.
Nikhil nods, his expression unreadable. I can’t shake the feeling that he’s won some kind of twisted game, but it doesn’t matter. As I look away from the girl who looks so much like Mikayla, I swear I see a flicker of gratitude in her eyes. But it’s gone just as quickly as it appeared, leaving me to wonder if it was ever there at all.
The air is thick with temptation as I watch Nikhil bend down. He whispers something inaudible to me, but the intent is clear when he glances up, his eyes piercing my soul.
