Chapter 41

Seraphina

The library was quiet, a sanctuary I needed to disappear into. The only sound was the soft rustle of pages turning and the occasional tapping of keys from other students glued to their laptops. I sat near the back, hiding behind stacks of textbooks and notepads, working through the mess that was my life.

I wasn’t here to study. I wasn’t even here for the books.

I was here to think.

The texts from my contact had only confirmed what I’d feared. Genovese wasn’t just playing a game for power. He had been building a system of control for years, using the daughters of mafia families as his tools. I wasn’t his first pawn, and I wouldn’t be the last.

I’m not his pawn, I reminded myself, clenching my jaw. He used us, manipulated us, but I wasn’t going to let it end like it had with my parents. Not with me. Not again.

The phone in my hand buzzed again, the familiar ping cutting through my thoughts. I glanced at it quickly—We know who he’s targeting next. Keep your eyes open. He’s moving fast.

The words landed hard in my chest. Genovese was already making his next move. My next move, too.

I shoved the phone back into my bag, the pressure mounting in my head. The only thing I had left to figure out was how to stop him without losing everything. Without being taken again.

A shadow fell over my desk.

I didn’t look up, didn’t need to. I knew who it was before he said a word.

“Seraphina.”

Damon’s voice slid through the stillness of the library like a blade cutting through velvet. The fact that he was using my full name rather than any of their pet names concerned me. His presence was like a storm breaking the calm, his energy radiating toward me. I could feel his eyes on me even before I lifted my head. I could see it all over his face, he was stressed.

I pushed back in my chair, trying to find some space between us—physically, mentally. “What do you want?”

There was amusement in his tone, but it was too sharp, too knowing. “You don’t think I’d let you hide in here forever, do you?”

I glanced up at him then, his dark eyes locking onto mine. It was like he could see right through me, through the walls I’d carefully built around myself. The irritation flared inside me, but I kept my expression neutral.

“Is that what you think?” I asked, narrowing my eyes, my voice a little too cold. I was good at hiding my emotions, but Damon had a way of making me feel exposed.

He didn’t respond right away, just stepped closer, standing in my personal space with an air of quiet confidence that only added to the growing tension. His gaze never wavered, locking me in place.

“You’re not fooling me, Seraphina,” he said, his voice low, the words feeling like a promise. “You don’t belong here. Not really. Not with the way you’ve been acting. Not with what’s really going on.”

I felt a sharp sting in my chest, but I didn’t let it show. The last thing I wanted was to let him know how much he’d hit the mark. He was pushing the right buttons, but he wasn’t going to get the satisfaction of watching me unravel.

“You don’t know anything about me,” I said, my tone hardening, letting the walls go up again. “What I’m doing, not that it’s any of your business, but I'm trying to have some peace and quiet from the constant yapping at the house.”

Damon leaned in a little closer, his scent—smoke and something darker—washing over me. His breath brushed my ear, his voice rough and intimate. “It is my business, Seraphina. Because you are lying to me, and you won’t get away with it, not without consequences.”

My pulse spiked, but I kept my face impassive, my mind already calculating. I could feel his proximity like a magnet pulling me in, but I couldn’t let him win. I wasn’t about to let him think he had any hold over me.

“I’m not lying, Damon,” I said evenly, keeping my voice as steady as possible. “And you have no idea what you’re up against.”

There it was—the challenge between us. The same one I’d felt from the first moment we met. He was testing me, seeing how far he could push. But he was wrong if he thought I was some fragile, helpless girl in need of saving.

Damon raised an eyebrow, a smirk tugging at the corner of his lips. “Maybe not. But you’re definitely hiding something, and I’m not going to let you keep it from me for long.”

The words landed heavily, making me shift in my seat. For a moment, I almost let myself show my hand. But then I remembered who I was—what I was—and how I’d been trained to play this game. I wasn’t helpless.

“You want to know what I’m hiding?” I asked, my voice turning ice-cold. “I’m hiding the fact that I don’t need anyone’s help. Especially not yours.”

Damon’s smirk faltered for just a second, his eyes flicking to mine, narrowing. He was close now—too close—but I wouldn’t let myself flinch.

“I think you’re lying to yourself,” he said softly, and there was something about the way he said it—something that made my chest tighten—before he stepped back, his gaze lingering just a moment longer. “I’m not going anywhere, Seraphina. Not until you realize you can trust me.”

I exhaled, watching him walk away. But I knew, deep down, he wasn’t wrong. I had been lying and running. But I wasn’t running from him.

I was running from the truth.