Chapter 11
Zion and I first connected when I was sent to live with Damon.
The Albrecht and Virell families had been enemies for generations-years ago, the Virells had used dirty tactics to drive his parents to their deaths, forcing the Albrechts to flee and rebuild their empire abroad.
Despite our family history, Zion took me in without hesitation. He needed a wife to inherit his parents’ fortune and fend off his greedy uncles, but his scarred face and cold demeanor kept scaring women away. I needed powerful backing against a brother who could discard me at any moment, along with the rest of the Virell family.
Turns out my precaution was justified. Two scarred, unwanted people-we made perfect allies.
After my face healed, I stopped avoiding social events. Before, I’d skip them entirely or show up wearing a veil, to the point where I’d almost forgotten what I actually looked like. Zion didn’t care about appearances-he’d walk into any gathering with his head held high, completely ignoring the “Beauty and the Beast” whispers that followed us.
What I didn’t know was that while I was on Zion’s arm at these parties, there was always one man sitting nearby, watching me from
the shadows.
Tonight I’d had way too much to drink. As I stumbled in the stairwell, a hand suddenly reached out to steady me. “The second miss has been pretty ruthless with the Virell family lately.”
That voice… I spun around, instantly sobering up. “Renric!”
He was dressed in an expensive tailored suit, looking nothing like the bodyguard I once knew. He’d blended perfectly among the
elite crowd.
“How the hell did you find me?” My hands clenched into fists.
“I work for the eldest miss,” he said, his eyes never leaving mine. “Naturally, I have to protect her interests.”
Of course. If the Virell family went down, the trust funds would tank too, and Celeste’s dividends would disappear. She might even end up buried in debt. No wonder the stock prices had been recovering lately-just when I thought I had them beaten, Renric had to
show up and ruin everything.
“Why do you always have to work against me?”
من
“I’m not working against you.” He stepped closer, backing me against the wall. “But if I hadn’t used helping her as an excuse, I never would’ve had access to their resources to track you down.”
His fingers tilted my chin up gently, “You’re even smarter than I imagined. Do you have any idea how long I’ve been searching for
you?”
I slapped his hand away hard enough to leave a red mark. He didn’t even flinch-instead, he actually smiled.
“It’s real… all of this is real… You’re alive. I knew I was right to keep believing.” His voice grew urgent as he grabbed my hands. “Elara, come home with me.”
“Let go!” I struggled violently, shoving him back. “Why can’t you just pretend I’m dead? Why won’t you leave me alone?”
Something in my words hit him hard, and his eyes actually reddened. “Trust me, I thought you were dead for a long time! Do you have any idea what those days were like for me?”
He pressed me against the wall, looking down at me with desperate intensity. “I never realized how empty a room could feel without you in it. I swore to myself that if God gave me another chance, I’d spend my life keeping my promise-I’d never let you get hurt
again.”
His breathing grew unsteady. “I tried to kill myself. Evander stopped me every time. I thought I’d just waste away until I could see you again, until I noticed someone was systematically targeting the Virells. That’s when I knew-it had to be you. You were the only one smart enough to pull this off.”
His hand moved to caress my face. “I don’t want to be your bodyguard anymore. I want to be someone you can never leave behind. I don’t care what happens to the Virells-I just want to take you away from all this.”
“Really?” I looked up at him, leaning closer. “Then listen carefully. The time when I loved you most is over. I don’t want you
anymore.”
His breath caught. “If you try to force me to go with you, I’ll kill myself. I promise you that.”
He stared at me with a complicated expression. I let out a cold laugh and walked away.
