21: The Price of Her Choice

21: The Price of Her Choice
POV – Ava

"She has chosen wrong."

Magnus’ words clung to me like a curse.

I stood frozen in place, still wrapped in nothing but Dante’s sheets, as the stranger’s piercing gaze raked over me.

I didn’t know who he was.

But the way Dante tensed, dagger in hand, told me everything I needed to know.

This man wasn’t just another enemy.

He was someone Dante feared.

The stranger’s smirk deepened, as if he could hear my thoughts.

“So, it’s true,” he murmured. “She is your downfall.”

Dante moved before I could react.

In the blink of an eye, he had the dagger pressed to the man’s throat.

“Aaron,” Dante growled. “You should have stayed dead.”

My stomach dropped.

Because Dante’s voice wasn’t just angry.

It was haunted.

Dante pov

Of all the demons from my past, he was the last one I expected.

Aaron.

A vampire older than me, more ruthless than most.

A ghost from a time I had spent centuries trying to bury.

And one I had killed centuries ago.

Or so I’d thought.

I pressed the dagger harder against his throat, but he didn’t even flinch.

His lips curled, unfazed by the blade at his throat.

“Relax, Dante.” His voice was too smooth, too amused. “I’m not here to fight.”

“I should gut you where you stand,” I snarled.

Aaron merely chuckled. “Then do it.”

I didn’t lower the dagger.

Ava stood too close, too exposed, too vulnerable.

I could hear her heartbeat—erratic, uncertain.

And that alone made me want to tear Aaron apart.

His black robes barely moved in the wind, his presence suffocating. But his gaze flicked past me—to Ava.

And that’s when I snapped.

I slammed him back against the doorway, my fangs descending, my rage boiling over.

His smirk remained. “Ah, there he is. The monster they fear.”

“I should pierce this dagger through you now,” I muttered.

Aaron sighed. “And yet, you won’t.”

His gaze flicked to Ava.

"Not when you’re so preoccupied with keeping your little pet alive."

Ava flinched.

My temper snapped.

I slammed him against the doorframe harder, hard enough to shake the walls.

“Say another word about her, and I—"

i raised the dagger higher this time, pointing towards his eye but he didn't even flinch abit.

Ava let out a shaky breath behind me.

And I knew.

I knew she had felt that shift in me.

The loss of control.

The darkness I had tried so hard to keep buried.

I needed her away from him. Now.

“Go inside, Ava,” I ordered, my voice low, controlled.

She hesitated.

I didn’t.

“Now.”

Her fingers trembled as she backed away, disappearing into the penthouse.

I waited until I heard the click of the bedroom door locking.

And then I turned back to Aaron, my grip tightening on the dagger.

“You shouldn’t be here.”

His smirk didn’t falter. “And yet, here I am.”

Ava pov

I slammed the bedroom door shut, my heart hammering against my ribs.

Dante had never spoken to me like that before.

The authority, the command—yes, that was familiar.

But the raw fury, the desperation?

That was new.

And it terrified me.

I paced the length of the room, wrapping my arms around myself.

Who the hell was Aaron?

And why did his words feel like a death sentence?

"She is your downfall."

I shook my head, forcing the memory away.

No. I wouldn’t let Magnus or Aaron or anyone else poison me against Dante.

I had chosen him.

I wouldn’t let myself doubt that.

Dante pov

I needed to kill him.

But I couldn’t.

Not yet.

Aaron smirked as he adjusted his robes, completely unbothered by the fact that I had nearly slit his throat.

“You always did have a temper,” he mused.

I took a slow, measured breath. “What do you want?”

His expression darkened.

“To deliver a message.”

I didn’t blink. “From whom?”

Aaron’s smile returned, but this one was cruel.

“From the ones who have been watching.”

The words hit me like ice.

I knew who he meant.

And that meant we were out of time.

I stepped back, lowering the dagger—but not my guard.

“Speak,” I said coldly.

Aaron adjusted his sleeves, his tone almost bored.

“The elders have decided.”

I stilled. “Decided what?”

His eyes flickered. “That she belongs to them.”

My blood ran cold.

Aaron leaned in, voice a whisper.

“If you keep her, Dante… you will start a war.”

Ava pov

The second I heard the front door slam, I rushed out of the bedroom.

Dante stood in the center of the room, shoulders rigid, jaw clenched, his hands curled into fists.

“Aaron’s gone,” I whispered.

Dante exhaled sharply, but he didn’t look at me.

Something was wrong.

My stomach tightened. “What did he say?”

Nothing.

The silence stretched too long.

Finally, Dante turned to me, his blue eyes stormy, unreadable.

“They’re coming for you, Ava.”

My breath caught. “Who?”

His voice was flat. Cold.

“The vampire elders.”

My pulse skipped.

“Why?”

Dante took a slow step toward me. Then another.

His fingers tilted my chin up, forcing me to meet his gaze.

And what I saw in his expression shattered me.

It wasn’t just anger.

Or fear.

It was resignation.

Because he had known this was coming.

And he had kept it from me.

“They think you belong to them,” he murmured.

My stomach dropped.

“Why?” I whispered again.

Dante’s jaw tightened.

And then, in a voice barely above a whisper, he said:

“Because, Ava… you are not just mine.”

“You are theirs.”