Scarred Seductress

Even Kill?

“Leo! Leo!” Selene yelled frantically, her heart thundering against her ribs as she covered the empty hallway in seconds, searching every corner for any sign of him.

Her lungs begged for air, the smoke and fire intensifying across the building, blurring her vision entirely. She didn’t care. The heat was scorching, her body trembling at the edge of collapse, yet her feet still carried her forward. Tears streamed down her face. She had promised herself to be calm, to be calculating on this journey of revenge—but there she was, letting Marina push her into making an impulsive decision. Now she was paying for it.

“Leo, baby, where are you?” she cried, loud and bitter, more tears spilling as she tasted their saltiness.

Revenge was important—but Leo?

He was her everything.

“Leo, please… I love you, okay? Where are you?” Selene cried loudly, pushing, coughing, hurrying through every corner.

“Selene!” A man’s voice echoed across the building. Quick footsteps closed in from behind as Damien seized her arm, yanking her toward him.

“What the hell do you think you’re doing?”

“Get off me!” Selene yanked herself free, sobbing, about to stumble away when Damien caught her arm again.

“We have to leave… it’s too stuffy in here… you could suffocate—”

“I’m not leaving without my son!” she screamed, shoving him hard in the chest.

“Your son is—”

“Samantha!” Ava’s voice cut through, snapping Selene’s gaze in that direction.

Damien blinked hard, confused eyes darting to the girl scurrying toward them, then back to the woman before him. The color drained from his face.

“We found him! We found him, Samantha!” Ava squealed.

Selene crumpled to the ground, her fingers clutching her chest as she exhaled in relief.

“Leo is safe… he’s out there, he’s fine,” Ava mouthed and lowered quietly, helping Selene back to her feet.

“I’m sorry—it’s my fault, Samantha…”

Selene’s eyes snapped wide as it finally clicked what Ava had called her. Ava’s eyes widened too.

“What did you call her—”

Selene’s hand crashed against Ava’s cheek, cutting Damien off.

“I’m sorry, ma’am, I—”

“For the last time, Ava, my name is Selene,” she snapped. “How many times do I have to tolerate you mistaking my real name for some stupid character I played in a damn movie? I could let your stupidity slide any other time—but not on serious occasions like this.”

“I’m sorry, ma’am…”

Damien drew in a quiet breath, easing the sudden tension shooting up his spine, though a sick curl of unease still tugged low in his stomach.

“We need to leave, ma’am…”

Selene brushed past Ava and Damien, hastening her steps as she scurried out of the building, brushing off the anger rising inside her as soon as her eyes settled on Leo—safe in the arms of a paramedic.

“Baby…” she whimpered, rushing over and taking him into her arms, wrapping him tight. Down to her bones, she had feared her quest for revenge had cost her Leo. She had made peace with the truth that it could cost her life—but Leo was never meant to be dragged into it. Whether she burned the people who hurt her or lost everything herself, Leo was to stay out of it.

“I’m sorry, Mama…” Leo whimpered.

“It’s okay, baby,” she whispered, kissing him.

Marina scoffed and tore her eyes away, scanning the entrance anxiously, waiting for Damien to come out. She knew the truth and wouldn’t deceive herself—Damien had gone back in because he couldn’t stand the thought of Selene getting hurt. She knew it. But right now, she wouldn’t think about it. She would deal with Selene later. She just needed him safe.

“Where are you, Damien?” she muttered restlessly and was just about to tear her eyes away when she caught a glimpse of two men slipping away suspiciously in hoodies.

Something inside her spiked, and she bolted after them.

Unnoticed by her bodyguards, she chased alone, determined to get her hands on them. Of course someone had started the fire on purpose to sabotage the big day—there was no way in hell she was letting it slide.

One of them turned and saw her bolting toward them, Marina catching a clear glimpse of his face. He alerted the other, and they took to their heels, deserting an already exhausted Marina and leaving her feet faltering to a slow, disappointed stop.

“Are you okay, ma’am… who were they?” Selene’s voice cut through as her figure closed in quickly, her hand reaching out to touch Marina.

Marina yanked her hand away, glaring hard as memories of Damien scurrying to save Selene without hesitation crossed her mind, a bitter ache pressing down on her chest.

“I just want to know if they’re behind all this so we can get our kids—”

“You don’t have to do anything, Selene. I’ll take care of my own business from here.”

“But it’s my business too, Marina—”

“It’s Ma’am to you,” Marina snapped.

Selene forced a small smile and continued, “My son almost lost his—”

“It’s not about your worthless brat, you hear me?” Marina cut in. “Every child in this school comes from a lineage of power, and your son comes from nothing. So it’s barely about him. Even if he had died today, I bet it wouldn’t have mattered to the world.” Marina sneered.

Selene tucked her face away and bit down hard on her lower lip. Marina’s words clawed something raw inside her. She wanted to slap her—hit her so hard in the face she’d need surgery to look human again—but it wasn’t time.

“So take your bad-luck brat out of this school.”

“I’m sorry if I offended you in any way, ma’am.”

“You think I don’t know what you’re up to?” Marina jeered, chuckling dryly.

Selene forced a smile and tried to speak when Marina cut in again. “You want power. You want a man like Damien… you want my place.”

Selene faked a look of surprise, then quickly replaced it with a pleading one, shaking her head.

“I would never—”

“You think I burned a whole family to get here only to let a dumb b***h take my place?” Marina spat, a mischievous smirk curving her lower lip.

Selene’s heart tightened.

“I’ve come way too far to let anyone take my place, Selene,” Marina hissed. “So how about you save yourself the tragedy of ending up dead in a ditch and do your research. Ask around about how every woman who tried to take Damien from me ended. Every one of them.”

She crashed into Selene, shoving her hard as she walked away.

“What do I need to do to prove that all I want is to be on your side, ma’am?” Selene spoke.

Marina’s feet faltered to a stop. She turned and met the eyes of a chill, composed Selene—the calm she still maintained unsettling her. In the past, whenever Marina cornered any woman hovering around Damien and said those exact words, she would bolt in no time. But this one…

“Yes, I want power, Marina,” Selene said calmly. “You’re not wrong about that.”

Marina tore her eyes away. Of course.

“But not in the way you think,” Selene continued, stepping closer slowly. “I don’t want Damien. I would never risk my boy’s future to get dragged down as a homewrecker. I just want you on my side as the young mistress of the Morettis. That alone is enough to scare all my enemies away.”

Marina shook her head, chuckling. Who in their right mind would buy that? She knew women like Selene too well.

“But I won’t force you,” Selene added. “I’ll let you think about it, ma’am. Think about whether you need someone willing to pay any price to be on your side—as long as it secures my son’s future.”

Selene bowed slightly and forced a small smile, ready to walk away when Marina spoke.

“Any price?”

She paused.

“Even kill?”

Selene looked up and met Marina’s icy, manic, mischievous gaze. A slight rush of excitement shot through her spine.

Finally.