Chapter 26 The Don's Useless Son

Chapter 26 The Don's Useless Son
Darius moved first, as if the decision had already been made.

“This way,” he said, turning down a narrower corridor before Elodie could properly refuse. His tone was light, almost polite, the kind that dared her to argue and look foolish for it. “If you’re looking for Noah, he’ll be here soon. He’s with my father.”

Elodie hesitated.

Every instinct in her body whispered no, but the name Noah anchored her in place. She followed, steps careful, heart beating just a little too fast. The hallway changed as they walked—less decorative, more functional. The walls darkened, the lamps fewer and farther between, their light throwing long shadows that stretched and twisted at their feet.

Darius stopped in front of a heavy door and opened it without ceremony.

The room inside felt… wrong.

It was a meeting room, she thought at first—long table, high-backed chairs, tall windows covered by thick drapes that swallowed the night outside. But the air was stale, carrying the faint scent of old smoke and something metallic underneath. No warmth. No welcome.

“Sit,” Darius said, gesturing lazily.

Elodie chose a chair near the edge of the table, keeping distance between them. Darius didn’t sit right away. He stayed standing, leaning back against the table with his arms crossed, watching her the way someone watched an animal they’d already decided belonged to them.

Minutes passed.

Silence pressed down on her shoulders.

Darius’s eyes never left her—not even when she shifted uncomfortably, not when she folded Noah’s coat tighter around herself. His gaze was slow, deliberate, tracing her face, her hands, the line of her throat. It wasn’t hunger exactly.

It was ownership.

“He should be here by now,” Elodie said at last, breaking under the weight of it.

Darius smiled.

“Oh, Noah?” he echoed, like the name amused him. “He’s efficient. But even efficient men get… delayed.”

She swallowed. “You said minutes.”

“I did.” His smile widened. “And I meant it. Minutes are flexible. Like promises.”

Something in his tone curled her stomach.

Another stretch of silence. Darius finally pulled out a chair—then dragged it closer to her instead of sitting across the table. He turned it, straddling it backward, resting his arms on the backrest as he leaned in just enough to invade her space.

“You know,” he said casually, “my father doesn’t let just anyone into this house.”

Elodie didn’t respond.

“And Noah,” Darius continued, eyes gleaming, “he’s interesting. Brilliant. Dangerous. The kind of man who plans five steps ahead.” He tilted his head. “But even men like that make sacrifices.”

Elodie’s fingers tightened around the fabric of the coat. “If Noah’s busy, I can go back to my room.”

Darius laughed—soft, breathy, clearly entertained.

“Why so eager to run?” he asked. “You look safer here than anywhere else.”

She stood abruptly, chair scraping the floor. “I want to see him. Now.”

Darius didn’t move. He only looked up at her, that same infuriating smile still in place.

“Relax,” he said. “If Noah loved you as much as you think he does, he’ll come.”

He leaned back, eyes dark with something she didn’t want to name.

“And if he doesn’t,” Darius added lightly, “well… I suppose you and I can keep each other company a little longer.”

The door behind them remained closed, and Noah still hadn’t come.

The air in the room thickened the longer Noah didn’t come.

Elodie stayed standing. Sitting felt like surrender.

Darius noticed. Of course he did.

“You’re tense,” he said, voice almost gentle, like he was commenting on the weather. He rose from the chair slowly, deliberately, the scrape of wood against marble loud in the quiet room. “You shouldn’t be. This house doesn’t bite unless invited.”

He circled the table, steps unhurried. Elodie turned with him, keeping the distance tight, refusing to let him get behind her. Her back brushed the edge of the table; there was nowhere else to go without making it obvious.

“You don’t look like you belong in places like this,” Darius went on. “You look… borrowed.”

Elodie lifted her chin. “If Noah isn’t coming, I’m leaving.”

Darius stopped in front of her.

“Still Noah,” he mused, eyes glinting. “You say his name like it’s a shield.”

He reached out—not to touch her, but to pluck a loose thread from the sleeve of the coat Noah had given her. The intimacy of it made her stomach twist. He rolled the thread between his fingers, then let it fall.

“You know,” he said quietly, “my father trusts Noah because Noah understands balance. Loyalty. Control.” His gaze dipped, then rose again. “You’re… a variable.”

Elodie’s breath hitched. “Where is he?”

Darius smiled again, but this time it didn’t reach his eyes.

“Close,” he said. “Far. Depends how you define it.”

He stepped closer. Too close.

Elodie could smell him now—expensive cologne layered over something sour beneath. He leaned in slightly, not enough to touch, just enough to make the threat unmistakable.

“You should learn something about men like Noah,” Darius murmured. “They don’t save people. They choose them.”

Her heart pounded. “Move.”

Darius chuckled softly, clearly delighted. “You think he didn’t know you’d end up here? In this room?” He tilted his head. “Or with me?”

Elodie shoved past him, and Darius let her.

She barely made it two steps before the door opened.

Relief surged—sharp and blinding—until she saw who stood on the other side.

Not Noah.

Two men stepped in first. Big. Silent. Sanz Egale guards. Behind them, Edgar appeared in the doorway, his expression unreadable, eyes flicking briefly to Elodie before settling on Darius.

“Don Marcellan requests your presence,” Edgar said evenly. “Both of you.”

Darius’s smile sharpened, victorious. “See? I told you he wouldn’t keep us waiting forever.”

Elodie turned toward the door, pulse screaming in her ears—just as Darius’s hand closed around her wrist.

Not rough, nor gentle. But it was certain.

She looked down at his fingers around her skin, then up at his face.

And for the first time, Darius dropped the act completely.

“Noah will come,” he said softly, just for her. “The question is—what will be left for him to take back?”

The guards stepped aside.

And Elodie was pulled forward, deeper into the mansion, just as the door shut behind them with a sound that felt final.