The Morning After
The silence between Olivia and Damon wasn't awkward. It was laced—with things neither of them had the courage to say out loud.
She was still wrapped in his shirt, sitting at the edge of the bed, her back to him.
Damon watched her from the shadows, shirtless, bruised from more than just last night.
"Say something," she whispered.
"You were incredible," he said after a moment.
She turned, surprised by the tenderness in his voice.
"But that's not what you wanted to hear."
"I want to know what we are," she said, voice barely audible.
He got up, walked over, and crouched in front of her.
"We are a mistake I'll keep making until I die."
Her heart squeezed.
"Then don't stop."
Elsewhere — Markus Plots
Markus Elden poured himself a drink, his expression ice-cold as he stared at the monitor. Olivia's face filled the screen—footage from the auction, from the stairwell.
"She's getting too close," a voice said behind him.
Rane.
"I warned you about letting her linger. Damon's influence is dangerous."
Markus downed his drink. "Let her play house. When the time comes, she'll choose blood over lust."
"And if she doesn't?"
Markus smiled. "Then we bleed her dry."
Back in the City — Olivia's First Strike
Olivia stood in her father's old office. It hadn't been touched since the funeral.
She ran her fingers along the desk, found the hidden compartment behind the second drawer.
Inside: an old leather-bound notebook.
She opened it—codes, contacts, accounts… and one name circled over and over.
"AURELIA VESPERA"
A woman. The same name Rane whispered after the auction. The one Damon refused to talk about.
Olivia's pulse quickened. Her father feared her. Damon avoided her. That meant power. Answers.
She snapped a photo of the page and slid the notebook into her coat.
Time to follow the blood trail.
Meanwhile — Damon Reunites with a Ghost
Damon waited in an alley behind an abandoned train station. At exactly 2:00 p.m., a tall woman in a crimson trench coat appeared.
"Aurelia," he said.
Her eyes were obsidian. Sharp. Ageless.
"You shouldn't have come," she said. "They'll be watching."
"I need answers."
She lit a cigarette.
"You don't want answers. You want forgiveness. But I'm not God, Damon."
"I need to know why Markus killed Olivia's father. And how deep she's already in."
Aurelia exhaled smoke like it was power. "Your girl is in more danger than you know. Markus doesn't want control—he wants a dynasty. The Bennett bloodline was never about politics. It's about inheritance."
Damon frowned. "Inheritance?"
Aurelia stepped closer. "They want Olivia's womb."
Damon felt a chill crawl up his spine.
"They'll make her the mother of the empire if they have to chain her to the next heir."
His fists clenched.
"Then I burn the empire down first."
At the Safehouse — The Trap is Set
Olivia returned hours later. Her eyes were darker. Smarter.
Damon could see it before she said a word.
"I found something," she said, holding up the notebook.
She told him everything—her father's codes, the name Aurelia, the bloodline.
When she finished, Damon only said one thing.
"We need to disappear."
Olivia blinked. "What?"
"Tonight. We go off-grid. We fake your death if we have to. As long as Markus thinks you're dead, he won't hunt you."
"No," she said sharply. "I'm done running."
He stepped closer. "Liv—"
"I want revenge, Damon. You want to save me, I get it. But I'm not some damsel. I'm Bennett blood. And I will cut the head off this family myself."
The air between them thickened with tension—and something else.
Pride. Respect. Lust.
He kissed her like she was a war he couldn't win. She pulled him in like he was the only war she wanted to lose.
Elsewhere — The First Kill
That night, Rane found himself alone in his penthouse. Relaxing. Unaware.
Until the lights cut out.
And a shadow moved behind him.
He reached for his gun.
Too late.
A garrote slipped around his neck. Tightened.
He gasped. Clawed.
"Compliments of Olivia Bennett," the figure whispered in his ear before twisting.
Rane's body slumped to the floor.
The message had been sent.
Blood for blood.