Chapter 32 Thirty Two
Luciano’s POV
I didn’t go back to my room.
I didn’t sleep neither.
I stood on the balcony outside the private wing. Normally, this view grounded me. Tonight, it did nothing but remind me how easily everything I controlled could slip through my fingers.
Kamari was behind one of those doors. And she was barely alive because I failed her.
I lit a cigarette I never finished, crushing it out after the first drag. The taste made my stomach turn. Everything felt wrong—my skin too tight, my thoughts too loud.
Jasper approached silently, like he always did when he knew I was close to snapping.
“She’s sleeping now,” he said. I didn’t look at him. “Good.”
He hesitated. “The Armandis are asking questions.” That got my attention. I turned slowly, meeting his eyes. “About what?”
“Joselyn,” he said carefully. “She hasn’t returned. Her father’s men are… uneasy.” That was the exact feeling I’d expect from them after crossing boundaries that shouldn’t be crossed.
“She crossed a line,” I replied. “One I warned her never to touch.” Jasper studied me. “This will escalate.”
“I’m counting on it.” Jasper didn’t say anything for a minutue. He had been with me long enough to know when a war was inevitable.
“What do you want done?” he asked.
I didn’t answer immediately. My mind went back to Kamari’s face—pale, bruised, still somehow defiant even when she thought I wasn’t looking. Something inside of me want to infricate the same pain to Jocelyn.
“She doesn’t leave the wing,” I said. “No visitors without my approval. Double the guards.”
“And Joselyn?”
My jaw tightened. “She stays exactly where she is, I might change my mind tonight—Maybe kill her or something worst.”
Jasper nodded once. “Understood.” When he left, I finally went back inside.
The corridor was dim, quiet. I paused outside Kamari’s door, my hand hovering just short of the handle. For a man who had pulled triggers without hesitation, it was ridiculous how uncertain I felt standing here.
I went in anyway.
She was asleep, her breathing soft, uneven but steady. The sight of her like this—vulnerable, peaceful—hit harder than any scream she’d let out in that dungeon.
I sat beside her bed again.
“You don’t know it yet,” I murmured, keeping my voice low, “but you’ve changed everything.” Normally I let Joselyn treat all the girls I bring for pleasure anyhow she please but Kamari? Never.
My gaze drifted over the faint bandages on her arms, the marks I’d already sworn would never be repeated. Rage simmered beneath my skin, slow and dangerous.
I brushed a loose strand of hair away from her face, barely touching. She stirred slightly, a quiet sound leaving her lips.
Instinct kicked in immediately.
“I’m here,” I whispered. “Sleep.” She relaxed again, like she’d heard me even through unconsciousness.
That did something to me. I leaned back, rubbing a hand over my face. This wasn’t how it was supposed to go. She was never supposed to matter like this. She was meant to be leveraged just like her husband said…
And yet…I would burn cities before I let her bleed again.
My phone buzzed softly.
A message from an unknown number.
“You think you’ve won. You haven’t.” I stared at the screen, unimpressed. It was one of Joselyn’s father’s men Or maybe her father himself.
“You took what wasn’t yours.”
I typed back slowly. “Your fucking daughter touched what was under my protection.”
A pause. Then another message.
“This call for war, Luciano."I glanced at Kamari, sleeping peacefully despite everything. I silenced the phone and slid it back into my pocket.
Hours passed like that—watching her breathe, listening to the machines, thinking too much. Dawn crept in slowly, pale light bleeding through the curtains.
She shifted again, more this time, her brows knitting together as she surfaced from sleep.“Luciano…” she murmured. I was on my feet instantly. “I’m here.”
Her eyes opened, unfocused at first, then landing on me. Relief crossed her face before she tried to hide it.
“You didn’t leave,” she said, knitting her brows again.
“No.” She swallowed. “I thought you might.”I sat back down. “You’re going to have to stop thinking that.”
She looked away, fingers twisting slightly in the sheets. “I don’t want to be the reason your world falls apart.”
I leaned in, lowering my voice. “My world was already cracked. You just showed me where.”
Her eyes lifted to mine
“You scare me,” she admitted. “I know.” “But you also make me feel safe,” she added softly.
“I won’t lie to you,” I said. “Staying near me means danger. It might even cost you your life”
“And leaving you feels worse,” she replied. I stood, needing distance before I did something I couldn’t take back. “Rest,” I said again. “We’ll talk more when you’re stronger.”
She nodded but reached out, catching my wrist gently.
“Don’t shut me out,” she said. I looked down at her hand on my skin. “I don’t know how to let you in without destroying something,” I admitted.
Her grip tightened slightly. “Then let it break.”
I pulled my hand free gently and turned toward the door, my control hanging by a thread.
“I’ll be close,” I said. “When you need me just let me know"
As I stepped one thing was certain, I should let go off her, I should set her free. Holding her hostage after killing her husband meant nothing again as I was putting her life in danger.
And those words she kept on repeating was just for me to feel safe with her but something inside me tells me she is planning something more dangerous.
"You know letting her go would bring more trouble? She would probably go to the police and have the case reported.” I cletched my teeth. I hated the fact that I killed her husband– the fact that I didn’t turn a blind eye as I watched all he did to her that night.
Just as I was about to lit another ciger, Japer rushed towards me. His blood covered with blood and sweat. The war must have started already, but her safety was first.
"We are under attack sir.”