Chapter 3 - Shadows in the Marble
I didn't kill Julian Vance that night. Death was too quick, too merciful for a man who used his power to crush vulnerable women.
Instead, Marcus and I left him broken on his Italian marble floor with two shattered knees and a ruined reputation. By four in the morning, my tech specialists had emptied his offshore accounts, leaked his private communications to the press, and handed his blackmails directly to the federal prosecutors he had bribed for a decade. By sunrise, Julian Vance was a ruined ghost waiting for an arrest warrant.
When I returned to the estate, the rain had stopped. The morning sun was beginning to bleed through the gray clouds, casting long pink hues across the snow-dusted grounds.
I walked upstairs to the guest suite. The door was slightly ajar.
Nomi was sitting on the edge of the large bed, fully dressed in a fresh sweater, her knees pulled tight against her chest. She hadn't slept a second. When she heard my footsteps, her head snapped up, her eyes wild with anxiety.
"Tristan," she breathed, standing up so fast she winced, clutching her bruised side. "What did you do?"
I walked into the room, stepping past the plush rug, and stopped a foot away from her. I pulled off my coat and tossed it onto a chair, revealing the light smudges of dust and dark stains on my cuffs.
"Julian will never come near you again," I said softly. "Neither will anyone else."
She stared at me, her lower lip trembling. "Did you... did you kill him?"
"No," I replied truthfully. "I stripped him of everything that made him feel powerful. His money, his title, his protection. He will spend the rest of his life in a federal penitentiary."
Nomi stood frozen, staring at me as if seeing me for the very first time. She didn't flinch. She didn't back away. Slowly, hesitantly, she reached out her hand, her fingertips lightly brushing against the sleeve of my dress shirt.
"Why?" she whispered, her voice breaking. "Why would you risk everything for me? I'm nobody to you, Tristan. My brother owed you three million dollars when he overdosed. I'm just a debt you're collecting."
The raw pain in her voice hit me harder than any bullet ever could.
I reached out, gently wrapping my hand around her face, my thumb tracing the soft line of her cheekbone, avoiding the faint bruise near her jaw.
"Look at me, Nomi," I commanded, my tone thick with unspoken emotion. "Look at me and listen carefully."
She looked up, her warm brown eyes swimming with tears.
"Your brother’s debt was canceled the day you walked into this house," I said, my voice dropping to a low, intense rumble. "I kept you here because I was selfish. Because for fifteen years, this house was just a cold concrete vault filled with blood and money. And then you walked in with your sarcastic mouth, your terrible coffee, and your laugh... and suddenly, this place felt like a home."
A tear spilled over her eyelid, running over my thumb.
"I didn't go after Julian because of a debt, Nomi," I whispered, pressing my forehead gently against hers. "I went after him because the thought of anyone causing you pain makes me want to rip the world apart."
She let out a shaky breath, her good arm coming up to wrap tightly around my waist, pulling herself against my chest. She buried her face into my shirt, her whole body shaking as she finally let go of the terror she had been carrying alone for months.
May you like
I wrapped my arms around her, holding her tightly enough to feel her heartbeat, but soft enough to protect her aching ribs. I closed my eyes, resting my chin on her hair, smelling the sweet scent of vanilla and rain.
"I've got you," I murmured into the quiet room. "You're safe now."
