Chapter 86 The estate under siege
Lina's POV
Pathy stood at the doorway. Her chest rose and fell rapidly, like she had sprinted through the entire estate before coming here. A few strands of her dark hair had fallen loose from her usual neat style, and her hand still gripped the doorframe as if she needed it to steady herself.
She wasn't this way when I met her earlier.
Not once.
Pathy was composed. Controlled.
Now she looked… shaken.
Kailen noticed it instantly.
The relaxed posture he’d been carrying vanished. His body straightened, every muscle tightening with sudden alertness.
“What happened? he asked. His voice was quiet, but there was a sharp edge beneath it. Pathy looked straight at him.
For a second she didn’t speak. Her eyes alone said everything.
Danger.
It had reached the estate.
Then she said it.
“The estate has been invaded.”
The words hit the room like a bomb.
Silence followed.
Kailen’s jaw tightened.“Carlino,”he muttered under his breath.
He didn’t even hesitate. He already knew.
Only one man would have the audacity—and the power—to invade his territory like this.
Carlino.
Kailen turned fully toward Pathy, his mind clearly already moving ten steps ahead.
“Get the kids out,”he ordered immediately.“Use the passage behind the east wing.”
Pathy nodded once.
“The underground tunnel?” she asked.
“Yes,” Kailen said sharply.“Take them through it and get them to the forest route. Do not stop until you’re clear.”
Then he turned toward me.
“And you," he said.
His eyes locked onto mine.“You’re coming with me.”
I blinked.“What?”
“I said you’re coming with—”
“I’m not leaving." The words slipped out before I could stop them.
Both of them looked at me.
“I’m not going anywhere with you," I continued, my voice sharper now.“This is your war, not mine.”Kailen’s expression darkened.
“Lina—”
“You dragged me into this mess,”I snapped.“Now suddenly I’m supposed to run around your estate like one of your soldiers?”
The slap came so fast I didn’t even see it.
Crack.
Pain exploded across my cheek as my head snapped sideways. My hair fell across my face.
For a moment the room spun.
My hand flew to my face, my ears ringing.
“Do not,”Kailen said coldly, his voice cutting through the air,“mistake my patience for weakness.”
My cheek burned where his hand had struck me.
“If I say you’re moving,”he continued, stepping closer,“you will move. You have no other choice.”
His eyes were dark now. Dangerous.“Do not take my kindness as an invitation to back answer me.”
Anger burned in my chest, but the look on his face warned me not to push further.
Kailen turned back to Pathy.
“Move,”he ordered.
Pathy nodded once and disappeared down the hallway without another word.
Kailen grabbed my wrist.
“Let go—”
“Walk," he said, his tone was vicious.
And then he dragged me out of the room.
Pain shot through my collarbone as my body jerked forward. The burn mark Kailen had branded earlier throbbed viciously with every step. I clenched my teeth.
The moment we stepped into the hallway, the atmosphere hit me.
Chaos.
Guards were already moving fast through the corridors. Footsteps echoed against the marble floors as men rushed past us carrying rifles.
The two guards stationed outside my door immediately split.
One followed Pathy down the opposite hall.
The other fell in behind Kailen.
My mind barely kept up as Kailen pulled me forward.
Kids.
The word echoed in my head.
Get the kids out.
Kailen had said it so casually.
Kids?
My eyes flicked toward him. He had children?
The thought shocked me more than the invasion.
Another loud sound cracked through the air.
Gunshots.
Distant, but unmistakable.
My stomach twisted.
Kailen didn’t even slow down. He reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone while walking.
He dialed quickly and lifted it to his ear.
“Malder.”The call connected.
His voice was sharp.
“He’s invaded my grounds.”
A pause.
“Leave there now,”Kailen continued. “Take the path that leads into the forest.”
His tone hardened.
“And listen carefully. Don’t take men with you.”
He turned a corner, dragging me with him.
“If you do,”he said,“he’ll find you.”
Another pause.
Then Kailen ended the call without another word.
Before I could even process that conversation—
A figure appeared ahead of us. Damien. He stepped into the hallway like he had been waiting for us.
For a split second our eyes met. We held our gaze for two seconds. But Kailen spoke first.
“Get the men ready,”he ordered immediately.
Damien nodded once.
“Weapons?" he asked.
“Everything.”
Kailen didn’t hesitate.
“Guns. Ammunition. Explosives." His voice turned colder.“Bombs if we have to use them.”
Damien’s brows furrowed slightly. “You’re planning a full counterattack?”
Kailen’s eyes darkened.“I know we won’t bring all of them down,”he said calmly.“But we will take most of them down.”
Another gunshot echoed through the estate. Closer this time. Damien turned his head slightly toward the sound.
“He’s outside,”Damien said quietly.
My chest tightened.
“Carlino is outside.”
The words sank like stones into my stomach.
Carlino.
For a moment everything inside me stilled.
This was the closest I had been to him since Kailen took me. Something inside my chest softened before I could stop it. A strange, quiet warmth that had no place in a moment like this. I hated it instantly. This was war. Men were shooting each other outside. Soft feelings were useless here. Especially for a man who had literally bought me like property.
My jaw tightened.
No.
Whatever that feeling was, I buried it deep where it couldn’t reach the surface again.
Kailen turned back to Damien. “Increase our men on the west perimeter,”he ordered.“They’ll try to breach from there.”
Damien nodded.
“And… send a unit to his house.”
That made Damien pause.“His house?”he repeated.
Kailen's expression turned vicious.
“Yes." His voice dropped into something darker.“Bring me his wretched father.” The hallway fell silent for a moment.
Damien studied him carefully.“That will escalate things," he said.
Kailen smiled. It wasn't a pleasant smile. “Good, exactly what I want. Escalation. What's a war without escalation.”
Another loud burst of gunfire exploded somewhere outside.
The sound echoed through the entire building now.
This time even I flinched.
Kailen tightened his grip on my wrist.
“Stay close," he said without looking at me.
I glared at the back of his head, rolling my eyes.“As if I have a choice.”
He ignored the comment and continued walking.
More guards rushed past us toward the entrance of the estate. Weapons loaded. Voices shouting. The entire building had turned into a battlefield within minutes. My heart hammered violently in my chest.
Carlino was here.
Right outside.
Kailen is going for Carlino's father?
Something told me tonight was about to change everything, the person who held the ace card was going to lose it.