The Assassin Who Loved He

The safehouse smelled like blood and antiseptic.

Victor was unconscious in the back room, his breathing shallow. Lucien paced the living room like a lion trapped in a cage.

Arielle—no, Serena—stood by the window, one hand resting on the cold glass.

"I know who's behind all of it," she said softly.

Lucien stopped. "Who?"

"Victor whispered it before he passed out. Just one name…"

She turned, and for the first time, fear flickered in her voice.

"Kai."

Lucien frowned. "Who's Kai?"

Her jaw tightened. "He was my first mission. The first man I was ordered to kill after I faked my death."

"And you did?"

Her lips parted. "No. I spared him. I fell in love with him. And then he disappeared."

Lucien's fists clenched. "And now he's back?"

"Worse. He's the one pulling the strings."

---

Meanwhile – Downtown Rooftop, Midnight

A shadow moved through the city like smoke.

Tall. Lean. Eyes cold, mouth smirking.

Kai stood on the edge of a skyscraper, looking down at the world beneath him.

"She's changed," he murmured. "More polished. More dangerous. But still mine."

A voice in his earpiece crackled.

"She survived the trap."

"I expected her to." His voice was calm, deadly. "Next time, I won't just test her."

Pause.

"I'll break her."

---

Back at the Safehouse

Lucien's voice was low. "So let me get this straight. You spared a man meant to die, disappeared, and now he's trying to kill you?"

"I don't think he wants me dead," she said. "Not yet."

Lucien's eyes darkened. "Then what does he want?"

She looked at him, expression unreadable.

"Me. Broken. On my knees. At his mercy."

Silence.

Then Lucien walked to her, grabbed her jaw gently, and stared into her soul.

"Listen to me, Serena—Arielle—whoever the hell you choose to be... you will not break. And I won't let any bastard take you back into that cage."

His voice shook. "You're mine now."

---

Later That Night

Victor stirred.

Arielle rushed to his side.

His lips moved. "He's watching… waiting… he's already inside."

"Inside what?"

Victor gripped her arm with the last strength he had.

"The company. Your tech. Your empire."

Lucien's company. Saint-Claire Enterprises.

It was already under attack.

---

The Next Morning – Lucien's Corporate Headquarters

The building was chaos.

Screens flickered. Employees screamed. Files vanished.

Their financial servers had been breached—by someone who knew the internal security systems better than the designers.

Lucien's jaw was like steel. "Pull every trace. Find the source."

Arielle was already typing beside him. Her fingers flew.

Then—she froze.

The hacker had left a message in the code.

A phrase only one person would ever send her.

"Do you still dream of me, little ghost?"

Her chest squeezed.

Kai.

He didn't just want to kill her.

He wanted to make her doubt herself.

And it was working.

---

That Night – Arielle's Apartment

She found a letter on her bed.

No signs of a break-in.

Just a black envelope.

Inside, a photo—her, at sixteen, holding hands with Kai in a dirty motel, smiling like she'd never known violence.

And a note:

> "You owe me a kill.

You took my heart, now give me your soul.

I'm coming for you, my little ghost.

Don't run this time.

— K"

---

Elsewhere – Rooftop Again

Kai watched the city burn beneath his feet.

A figure appeared beside him—masked, silent.

"The others are ready," the figure said.

Kai smiled faintly. "Good. When I take everything she built, she'll come crawling back."

"And if she doesn't?"

Kai's voice turned ice-cold.

"Then I'll make her bleed until she remembers who she used to be… with me."

---

Back with Arielle and Lucien

Lucien stared at the letter.

"This man's obsessed."

Arielle nodded. "And smart. He's always three steps ahead. He was raised in a mercenary camp. He doesn't sleep. Doesn't stop."

"Then neither will we."

But something about the photo haunted her.

She remembered the Kai who used to trace scars on her back with trembling fingers.

The Kai who whispered promises at midnight and kissed her like they were already dead.

He loved her once.

But now?

He wanted to destroy her.

And the worst part?

A piece of her heart still remembered the warmth in his voice.

And that piece was her weakness.