Page 108 of Goldflame
Voices drift from Adrian’s office—my cousin’s inflection rising and falling in what sounds like annoyance.Adrian’s deeper tones respond, equally tense, so I slow my steps, feeling the sudden sting of caution.
I pause outside the cracked door and listen.
“—came by again today, asking for you,” Lorenzo says. “I told her to leave, but she’s getting more persistent.”
“I’ll talk to her,” Adrian responds, his voice tight. “We can’t have her around here.”
The words freeze my blood.
Her?
My legs are now wobbly from more than just amazing sex last night. The only “her” I can think of is Lady Harrow. What if Valentine finally broke and told her Adrian is alive? If she knows, it’s only a matter of time before she weaves her poisonous web around Julian, manipulating him as she’s always done.
But no—that makes no sense. If Lady Harrow knew her son was alive, she wouldn’t waste time with casual visits. She’d make sure Julian knew immediately, creating some story about how Adrian and I faked his death to run off together. Julian would already be at Lorenzo’s gates, armed and murderous, ready to start armageddon.
So who, then? What woman is Adrian talking about?
“The pictures Julian is demanding—” Lorenzo starts.
“I told you, that’s not happening,” Adrian cuts him off. “We’ll find another way to appease my brother.”
Julian’s name only adds to my confusion.
Enough of this.If something involves Julian, I need to know.
I push the door open without knocking, both menturning toward me with identical expressions of surprise.
“What about Julian?” I demand. “What pictures?”
They exchange a look that grates against my nerves—men deciding how much truth a woman can handle.
“Tell me,” I say, crossing my arms. “Now.”
Lorenzo sighs, leaning back against Adrian’s desk. “Julian paid me to take you off his hands, remember? Part of our arrangement involves providing evidence that you’re being… properly dealt with.”
“He’s demanding degrading photos of you,” Adrian says flatly, his jaw clenched tight. “To confirm you’re being broken as he requested.”
This news shouldn’t surprise me. It shouldn’t hurt. Yet it does—a final, killing blow to whatever lingering affection I had for the boy I once loved. Julian isn’t just lost; he’s become the monster he always feared. He doesn’t just want me gone—he wants me humiliated, degraded, my dignity stripped away for his pleasure.
Julian is the one who really died.
I swallow away a lump in my throat and step forward. “I’ll do it. Let’s give him what he wants. Buy ourselves more time.”
Adrian’s response is immediate. “Absolutely not.”
“It’s just pictures. They don’t have to be real?—”
“I said no.” His voice drops to that dangerous rumble that leaves no room for argument. “I won’t have images like that of you existing anywhere. Not even as a ruse. Julian would spread them throughout the Consortium and they’d become public property. Traded and displayed like your mother’s were.”
“My mother’s pictures?” My voice is weak and deflated.
His expression softens. “Lucian documented everything. Julian doesn’t know—I made sure of that—but the photos circulated among certain members. It was… part of his power play. Evidence of his dominance. Most are gone by now, so I pray you never stumble upon any.”
The thought that my mother’s humiliation is preserved somewhere, passed around like trading cards, makes my knees weak. I stumble slightly, and Adrian rushes forward to catch me, his arms strong and stable around my waist.
“We’ll find another way,” he says, pulling me against his chest. “A way that doesn’t sacrifice your dignity.”
“But Julian will?—”
