Chapter 16
I followed Adam and Nolan outside, my heels clicking against the marble floor. The night air hit my face as we stepped onto the grand porch where rows of guards stood at attention. Their rigid postures betrayed their fear.
Adam’s presence filled the space, darker and more menacing than the shadows around us. The temperature seemed to drop several degrees. Even I shivered, and not from the cold – this was a side of my brother I’d never seen before.
Nolan broke away from us, stalking between the lines of guards like a predator sizing up prey. His green eyes narrowed as he studied each face, lingering just long enough to make them squirm. Some couldn’t meet his gaze, others tried too hard to appear innocent.
“Someone here,” Adam’s voice cut through the silence, low and lethal, “has betrayed
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my trust. Has endangered my sister.” His words carried across the porch, each syllable dripping with barely contained rage. “When I find out who fed information to Salvatore…” He paused, letting the tension build. “I will ensure your bloodline suffers for generations to come. Your children, their children, and their children. after them they’ll curse the day you chose to cross me.”
The guards shifted uncomfortably, several swallowing hard. One man’s hand trembled. so badly he had to clench it into a fist.
“The Thorne family has a long memory,” Adam continued, his tone growing colder with each word. “And an even longer reach. There won’t be a corner of this earth where your descendants can hide from what’s
coming.”
“If anyone wishes to confess now,” Adam’s voice softened to an almost gentle tone that somehow made it more terrifying, “I’ll grant you a quick death. Your family will be
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spared – they can live their lives in peace.” His eyes swept across the guards. “This is a one–time offer.”
My stomach churned. The brother who used to so kind now spoke of death and bloodlines with such casual authority. The guards remained frozen, no one daring to step forward. Sweat glistened on more than a few foreheads despite the cool night air.
Adam gave a slight nod. “Very well.” He turned to me, placing his hand on my lower back to guide me inside. Nolan fell into step behind us, his footsteps nearly silent on the polished floor.
Once we were in Adam’s office, he closed the door and faced me. “Nolan will stay with you today. I don’t want you alone until we handle this.” He moved behind his desk. already pulling out his phone. “I’m reaching out to my contacts – we’ll find out how Salvatore learned about you.”
I sank into one of the leather chairs, my mind still reeling from everything I’d
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witnessed. Adam paused his typing and looked up at me, his expression softening for the first time tonight.
“Emma, it’s been nine years.” He set the phone down. “We haven’t had a chance to really talk yet. I’ve missed you, more than you know.” He leaned forward, resting his elbows on the desk. “Once I deal with
Salvatore – permanently – we’ll have time to catch up properly. There’s so much to discuss.”
I nodded, unable to find words as I tried to reconcile this new version of my brother with the one from my memories.
I watched Adam stride out of the office, his footsteps fading down the hallway.
A warm presence settled next to me. Nolan perched on the edge of the desk, close enough that I caught a hint of leather and cologne. His green eyes found mine, softer than they’d been out on the porch.
“I’ll protect you with my life, Miss Thorne.”
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His voice carried absolute conviction. “No harm will come to you while I’m around.”
The intensity in his gaze made my breath catch. “Because Adam asked you to?”
A low chuckle rumbled from his chest as he shook his head. His lips curved into a crooked smile that sparked something in my memory – a flash of recognition I couldn’t quite place.
“No.” He leaned closer, those striking eyes dancing with amusement. “Don’t you remember me at all?”
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