Chapter 10 - Reign of Shadows
The night wind whipped across the upper courtyard of the Grey Estate as three heavily armed mercenaries dropped over the outer perimeter wall, thinking they could slip past the guards undetected.
They didn't even make it ten feet into the courtyard before the floodlights snapped on with blinding intensity.
Aria stepped out from the shadows of the colonnade, moving with absolute, lethal grace. Before the first intruder could raise his rifle, she swept his legs out from under him and disarmed him with a single, fluid motion.
Behind her, the sound of heavy footsteps announced Cassius’s arrival. With a swift, powerful strike, he slammed the second mercenary against the stone wall, rendering him unconscious instantly.
The third intruder froze in sheer terror, dropping his weapon and raising his hands in surrender as he looked at the two figures standing before him.
"Tell whoever sent you," Aria said coldly, stepping into the harsh white light of the floodlamps, her eyes sharp as glass, "that if they ever step foot on our property again, they won't leave alive."
The mercenary nodded frantically, turned on his heel, and sprinted back over the fence into the dark.
Cassius walked over to Aria, wrapping an arm around her waist and pulling her close against his side as they watched the intruder flee into the night.
"You're getting rusty," Cassius teased quietly, a warm, genuine smile on his face. "I almost had that third one."
"Keep dreaming," Aria retorted, resting her head lightly against his shoulder while looking out over the sprawling empire they had built together from blood, betrayal, and absolute survival.
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The storm that had tried to destroy them years ago was long gone. In its place stood a kingdom carved out of shadow and fire, ruled by two people who would never let the world break them again.
Their reign had only just begun.
