Ch. 20: Peace Wrecker

The morning light spilled through the cabin window like something out of a dream.

Kael blinked awake to the feel of Riven's fingers tracing slow circles across his bare back. They were still tangled under the same blanket, skin on skin, warmth radiating between them like a second fire.

No nightmares.

No panic.

Just… this.

He tilted his head up. Riven was already awake, staring at him like he was something fragile and golden.

"Mornin', angel," Riven whispered, voice still thick with sleep.

Kael smiled. "We're really here."

"We are."

Riven leaned in, kissed him soft—like a promise wrapped in breath—and Kael melted into it. For the first time in years, the world felt far away. Unreachable.

Until the phone rang.

The sharp, shrill sound sliced through the stillness like a knife.

Kael flinched. Riven cursed softly, untangling himself to grab it from his jeans tossed across the floor. He glanced at the screen.

His face changed.

Kael sat up. "Who is it?"

Riven stared at the screen like it might explode. "Leo."

Kael blinked. "Your ex?"

Riven didn't answer. Just swiped to decline the call.

Kael's stomach twisted. "Why would he be calling you now?"

"I don't know."

The phone buzzed again. Same name.

Riven answered this time, voice tight. "What?"

Kael couldn't hear the words on the other end, but he saw the way Riven's jaw clenched. The way his knuckles went white.

"Say that again," Riven hissed into the phone.

A pause.

Then Riven stood, pacing. "Don't come near him. You hear me? You don't get to do this—not now."

Kael's blood ran cold. "Riven. What's going on?"

Riven turned, eyes wide. His voice shook now—not with fear, but rage. "He's in the city. He says he's coming to find you."

Kael froze. "Me? What the fuck for?"

"He says you're the reason I left him. That I 'used him until I found someone prettier to break.'"

Kael's chest caved inward.

Riven hung up without another word and dropped the phone on the table like it burned him.

Kael stood. "Is he dangerous?"

Riven didn't answer right away.

Kael repeated it, louder this time. "Riven, is he dangerous?"

Riven looked at him—and the silence said everything.

"Not like... fists," Riven said slowly. "But he knows how to fuck people up. Their heads. Their reputations. He gets off on control."

Kael's mind raced. The warmth they'd built, the softness, the safety—it all felt like glass already spidering with cracks.

"He's coming here?"

"I don't know," Riven said. "But he's pissed. I shouldn't have answered—fuck, Kael, I never wanted to drag you into this."

Kael wrapped his arms around himself.

He felt sick.

Not because he feared Leo—but because for the first time, he saw fear in Riven.

"This... this changes everything, doesn't it?" Kael whispered.

"No." Riven stepped close, cupped his face. "No, Kael. He doesn't get to win. Not again."

"But if he shows up—"

"Then I'll deal with him."

"You say that like it's easy."

"It's not," Riven admitted, voice cracking. "But I'd rather burn everything down than let him touch you."

Kael looked up at him. "What did he do to you?"

And finally, Riven broke.

He stepped back, running a hand through his hair. "He made me small. Like my opinions didn't matter. My love didn't matter. Everything I gave, he twisted."

Kael moved to him, gripped his arms.

"You're not small anymore," he said. "You're not his to ruin."

Riven met his eyes. "Neither are you."

But Kael knew this wasn't over. The quiet between them wasn't peace anymore—it was the space before a storm.

And Leo?

Leo had just stepped onto the battlefield.

—