Don't Shoot the Messenger

Don't Shoot the Messenger

Jason’s POV

Being with Emily felt like walking on dangerous ground. I feared one wrong move could ruin everything, and sometimes I almost proved that fear right.
But here we are, closer than ever. Telling her about Amara pulled us together. She may share Amara’s face, but Emily is all her own. My feelings for her are intense, and soon I will ask her to be mine forever.

I know, I know. It’s only been a few months. But it feels like a lifetime. And that’s what matters.
I was stepping into my jewellery store when my phone beeped. A message from Lucas flashed on the screen. “Meet me at home.”
I couldn’t help but roll my eyes. Why couldn’t Lucas ever just take a damn break? We’d just finished a meeting, and now he wants me to meet him at home. Sometimes, I wonder who’s really in charge here.
I almost ignored his text, but then another message came through. “Don’t ignore this. It’s important. Go home.”
“Okay… this has to be serious,” I muttered to myself. Maybe there’s news about Marco or Helena.
I turned, heading back to the car, the weight of the moment pressing down on me.
“Back to the house. And be quick,” I ordered the driver and the two men with me, my voice sharp with urgency.
In no time, we pulled up to the house. We rushed inside, but what I saw stopped me in my tracks. Chills crawled down my spine, a sick feeling twisting in my gut.
“Jace!” I roared, yanking him away from Emily, my hands trembling with fury.
My anger erupted before I could even think. I threw a punch with everything I had, reckless, furious. In that moment, I didn’t care if I killed my own brother.
My fingers wrapped around the cold steel of a gun, pointing it straight at his head, ready to pull the trigger. But then Lucas burst through the door, calling my name.
I didn’t hear him. I couldn’t. How dare he, how dare he lay his hands on my woman? That act alone deserved death, and I wasn’t going to stop, not even for my blood.
“Aurora has been taken.” That was all it took to freeze me in my tracks.
I lifted my gaze to Lucas, searching his face, desperate to find any hint of a lie. But the sheer terror on his face was enough... There was no doubt.
“My sweet daughter... she’s been kidnapped.”
I felt my world shatter. Kidnapped? The word echoed in my mind, but all I could feel was the burning rage consuming me. Without thinking, I raised my gun and fired at Lucas. He barely managed to dodge, the bullet grazing the air where he’d just been.
“Hey… don’t kill the messenger,” Lucas shouted, his voice cracking under the weight of my fury.
But I didn’t care. My focus was on one thing, revenge. No one touches my family.
Then, a hand gripped me, warm and steady, but it only made the storm inside me grow fiercer. Comfort wasn’t what I needed now.
“What are we going to do?” Emily whispered, her voice trembling with fear, but beneath it, I could hear the raw desperation, the panic clawing at her throat. The silence that followed was suffocating, thicker than the air around us, a weight pressing down on my chest.
I shoved past her, my body moving on instinct, fury surging through me.
I stormed over to Lucas, grabbing him by the shoulders, my grip tightening.
“Tell me everything,” I demanded, my voice low but sharp, every word cutting through the tension.
“She had guards with her. How did this happen? And who dared to touch my daughter?”
Lucas staggered back, his face pale, eyes wide with fear. “I... I don’t know anything,” he stammered, his hands shaking. “I got a call from one of the guards; he was barely holding it together, sounded like he’d been shot. He asked for backup, and when we got there… Anna and three other guards were dead. Aurora… Aurora was taken.”
The words hit me like a blow to the gut.
“Anna is dead?” Emily screamed, her voice cracking, and the tears spilt from her eyes like a dam breaking. She collapsed against the wall, her hands trembling as she wiped her face, but the grief was unmistakable.
I stood there, frozen for a moment, the weight of the news sinking in, but my mind couldn’t process it. Anna. Gone. And Aurora… taken.
I couldn’t think straight. My daughter was out there, somewhere, at the mercy of god-knows-who. The thought of it churned my stomach, making every second feel like an eternity.
When I looked over and saw Emily break down, my heart shattered even further. I couldn’t stand seeing her like that, so I rushed to her, pulling her into my arms, trying to offer comfort, but it felt so damn inadequate.
I tightened my grip, needing her to feel some semblance of safety in this madness.
“And the guard who was shot?” My voice was rough, every word laced with urgency. “Where the hell is he? Is he alive?”
“In the hospital,” Lucas replied, his face a mix of guilt and helplessness.
“Good,” I muttered, a cold fire burning in my chest. “We’re going to the hospital. He’s going to tell me who the hell took my daughter.”
“I’m coming with you,” Emily said, her voice determined, but I could hear the underlying fear.
“No.” The word left my mouth before I could stop it, firm and final.
Her eyes locked onto mine, her expression pleading. “Jason, we need to do this together.”
I shook my head, my grip on her tightening for a moment before I let go. “You stay here. It’s too dangerous. I can’t risk you as well.”
Our gazes locked, an intensity passed between us, and in that moment, she understood that pushing me further would only make things worse.
She nodded, her lips trembling, and I leaned down, pressing a soft, lingering kiss to her forehead before pulling away. Without another word, I turned to my brother.
“This is your lucky day,” I said, my voice colder than I meant it to be, each word dripping with disdain. “I’ve given you more chances than you deserved, just because we’re blood. But this... this is the last one. I need you gone, Jace. Never come back here.”
I motioned to the guard, my voice unyielding. “Escort him out.”
Jace opened his mouth to protest, but I didn’t give him the luxury of speaking. My hand shot out, and the sound of the gunshot filled the room before he could say another word. The bullet grazed his arm, a warning, but enough to make him shut up.
With him out of the way, I turned to Lucas, my face hardening.