Words That Drove Her Away

Words That Drove Her Away

Several minutes later, Damien sat on the single settee in the living room, still in the loose grey hospital wear, the fabric wrinkled and damp where his tears had dried. The two letters lay open in his hands, and Lila’s phone rested on his knee like a dead thing.

Blade stood to the side, rigid and silent, waiting for an order. He did not dare speak until Damien gave him permission, and Damien had not spoken a single word since they returned.

Damien simply stared ahead, unseeing, as if trapped somewhere deep inside his own memories.

He had stopped crying a while ago, but the ache in his chest felt like someone was scooping out pieces of his heart with bare hands.
Not even in his darkest, most twisted nightmares had he imagined this truth, that Isabella and Lila were bound by blood. That the two great devastations of his life were connected.

What a cruel joke life had played on him.

He refused to love the mother, yet he fell shamelessly and helplessly for the daughter.

A bitter, soundless laugh tugged at his throat but never made it out. The world had always taken from him. He had grown used to that kind of loss. But this was different. This was annihilation wearing the face of the only girl he had ever wanted to keep.

Blade shifted, uncomfortable, and finally spoke in a quiet voice.

“Boss, what do you want us to do?”

Damien did not look at him. His fingers slowly curled around the letters until the paper crumpled under his grip.

What did he want?

To forget her.

To drag her back.

To burn down the world she had run into.

Or to let her go because she had already chosen a life where he did not exist.

He did not know.

For the first time in decades, Damien Wolfe did not know what he wanted.

He released a long, weary sigh and finally spoke, his voice low and rough.

“What did Lucien say?”

“He said he would do that, boss. He should arrive before this time tomorrow,” Blade answered quickly.

He hesitated, then ran his tongue over his lower lip before adding, “The men are still looking for Lila, boss, but nothing yet.”

Damien shut his eyes and let his head sink back into the seat.

“I need to meet her friend. She would know where Lila has gone.”

Blade nodded sharply.

“Get the car ready. I need to see Silvano,” Damien said.

“I got it, boss,” Blade replied before turning and walking out, leaving Damien alone with the letters, the phone, and the crushing weight of the truth he wished he had never learned.


Tessa could not stop her tears. They streamed down her cheeks in uncontrollable waves ever since she learned that her friend was missing. Asher looked just as shaken, although he tried to hide it. He sat beside her on the backless chair in the school courtyard, his hands clasped tightly between his knees.

Damien sat opposite them, and Blade stood silently behind him like a shadow.

“So you mean you have no idea where she might have gone?” Damien asked. His voice was gentle and surprisingly meek for a man like him.

He had changed out of the hospital clothes, now wearing a plain round neck tee and shorts, which made him look almost ordinary.

But nothing about his presence felt ordinary. The calmness in his voice only made the tension under his skin more noticeable.

Tessa shook her head as she wiped her cheeks with trembling fingers.

“No, sir. I have no idea. Lila has never done something like this before. She is always open to me and never hides anything from me.

So I cannot pinpoint where she could be.” Her voice cracked as she tried to speak through her tears.

Damien nodded slowly and murmured a quiet thanks. He placed the letters and the phone back into his pocket and prepared to stand up.

But Asher spoke before he could turn away.

“What did you do to her to make her leave like that?” he asked, his tone sharp and accusing as he met Damien’s gaze without hesitation.

“Asher,” Tessa hissed in a cautious whisper. She tugged on his arm. “What could he have possibly done to her when he just regained consciousness?” she reminded him softly.

Asher pressed his lips together but said nothing more.

Damien only smiled and rose to his feet.

“I will find her. You have nothing to worry about,” he said.

With that, he turned and walked away, Blade falling into step behind him as the sunlight cast their shadows long across the courtyard.

The moment they disappeared out of sight, Tessa’s composure broke again.

“Oh my Lila,” she sobbed as fresh tears poured down her cheeks.

Asher immediately pulled her into his chest and wrapped his arms around her, trying his best to comfort her even though fear twisted heavily in his own heart.

Later at Silvano’s estate, Damien sat in the courtyard with Silvano under the wide parasol. The warm afternoon air carried the scent of trimmed grass and expensive cigars. Silvano looked genuinely delighted to see Damien awake and moving again, his eyes crinkled with relief.

“This is so surprising, Damien. Were you waiting for me to come visit you at the hospital before you woke up?” Silvano boomed with laughter. He waved at one of his men standing nearby and ordered him to bring drinks.

Damien did not smile. He watched Silvano carefully, studying the man’s ease, his happiness, his unguarded mood.

“Sir, do you remember the story about your wife that you shared with me and Vladislav?” Damien asked suddenly.

The question dropped into the air like a stone. Silvano’s laughter faded, and his smile softened into something smaller, almost hesitant. He nodded slowly.

“Yes, Wolfe. I remember. I told you how much I loved her and how I could do anything for her,” Silvano said in a sincere tone.

Damien looked down at his hands for a moment before lifting his gaze again. His eyes were calm, but the storm inside him was impossible to hide completely.

“Then do you think I am a fool for admitting to being in love with her?” Damien asked quietly.

Silvano blinked, and for the first time his expression shifted from relaxed amusement to something more serious. He understood exactly where Damien was heading.

“But I begged her to talk to you,” Silvano said carefully. “I wanted her to make you see the intention behind what my daughter did.”

Damien shook his head before Silvano could say more.

“That is not why I am here, sir,” he said in a controlled voice. “She left me because she heard you say that I am still in danger because of her.”

Silvano’s entire face changed. His eyes flew wide open.

“Fuck. What?”