Safe Between Monsters

CHAPTER 10

WINTER POV

The room felt colder after I showed them the message.

Not physically.

Something else.

Something dangerous.

Dante didn’t speak right away.

He just stood there, staring at my phone like he could see Marcus through the screen. His jaw was tight, his shoulders rigid—every inch of him coiled like a man holding back violence by sheer force.

Kai wasn’t even trying to hold it back.

“That’s it,” he said, pacing once before dragging a hand through his hair. “I’m done playing defense. We find him. Tonight.”

Luca was quieter.

Which somehow made it worse.

“He’s escalating faster now,” he said, eyes still on the photo. “He’s not just watching anymore. He’s documenting. That’s a shift.”

“A shift to what?” I asked, my voice barely steady.

Luca looked at me.

“To ownership again.”

My stomach twisted.

Dante finally moved.

He handed the phone back to me—but his fingers brushed mine for a second longer than necessary.

Grounding.

Or maybe claiming.

“Sit,” he said.

I hesitated.

Then… I did.

This wasn’t like before.

This didn’t feel like control for the sake of control.

This felt like something else.

A decision.

A plan.

They didn’t leave.

All three of them stayed in my room.

Kai leaned against the wall near the door, arms crossed, like nothing was getting past him again.

Luca stood by the window, scanning outside like he expected Marcus to appear out of thin air.

And Dante…

Dante stood in front of me.

Close.

Not touching.

But close enough that I felt it.

“You said something earlier,” he said.

I frowned slightly. “What?”

“That you don’t want to be in another cage.”

My chest tightened.

“I don’t.”

He nodded once.

“Good.”

That… wasn’t what I expected.

“Because what happens next,” he continued, his voice low and steady, “only works if you choose to be part of it.”

I blinked. “Part of what?”

Kai let out a quiet breath. “Here we go.”

Luca turned slightly, watching us now.

Dante didn’t look away from me.

“Marcus doesn’t see you as a person,” he said. “He sees you as something he lost.”

“I know that.”

“He won’t stop,” Dante continued. “Not because he wants you back—but because he can’t accept losing control.”

My throat felt tight.

“So what do we do?” I asked.

Dante’s expression didn’t change.

“We take his control away.”

The words sent a chill through me.

“How?”

Silence.

Then—

“We dismantle him,” Luca said quietly.

“Financially,” Dante added.

“Legally,” Luca continued.

“Physically,” Kai finished with a dark smile.

I stared at them.

“You’re serious.”

“All the way,” Kai said.

“This isn’t just about stopping him from texting you,” Dante said. “This is about making sure he can’t reach you at all.”

“That sounds like…” I hesitated.

“Like what?” Kai asked.

“Like ruining his life.”

Dante’s gaze didn’t waver.

“Yes.”

The word landed heavy.

Final.

My heart pounded.

“People like Marcus don’t stop with warnings,” Luca said softly. “They stop when they lose power.”

“And we’re very good at taking power,” Kai added.

I looked between them.

Three men.

Three different kinds of dangerous.

All focused on one thing.

Me.

“Why?” I asked again, quieter this time. “Why go this far?”

Dante stepped closer.

This time… closer than before.

“Because he came into our house,” he said.

His voice dropped slightly.

“And because he touched what’s ours.”

My breath caught.

“There it is again,” I whispered. “That word.”

“Ours,” Kai repeated, almost amused.

I shook my head. “You can’t just—”

“You said no to him,” Dante cut in.

I stopped.

“You stood in front of him,” he continued. “You didn’t run. You didn’t fold. You chose yourself.”

His eyes locked onto mine.

“And now we’re choosing you.”

The room went quiet.

My chest felt too tight.

Too full.

“I didn’t ask for that,” I said, but my voice wasn’t as strong as before.

“No,” Luca said gently. “But you didn’t reject it either.”

I didn’t answer.

Because I couldn’t.

“What do you need from me?” I asked finally.

Dante didn’t hesitate.

“Everything you know about him.”

I let out a slow breath.

“That’s… a lot.”

“Then we take our time,” Luca said.

“No,” Dante said.

We all looked at him.

His expression was colder now.

Focused.

“We don’t have time.”

“Dante—” Luca started.

“He escalated today,” Dante cut in. “He’s watching her in real time. That means he’s getting closer.”

Kai nodded slowly. “He’s right.”

My stomach twisted.

“So what do I do?” I asked.

Dante’s voice softened slightly when he answered.

“You tell us everything.”

And I did.

I told them about the apartment.

The locks.

The cameras.

The way Marcus used to track every movement.

The punishments.

The rules.

The way he’d smile while taking everything away.

I didn’t look at them while I spoke.

I couldn’t.

But I felt them listening.

Every word.

Every pause.

Every crack in my voice.

When I finally stopped…

The silence was heavy.

Different now.

Darker.

Kai was the first to speak.

“Yeah,” he muttered. “He’s dead.”

“Kai,” Luca warned.

“What?” Kai shot back. “You heard her.”

“I did,” Luca said quietly. “Which is exactly why we don’t rush this.”

Dante hadn’t said anything.

I looked up.

His face was unreadable.

But his hands—

They were clenched so tight his knuckles had gone white.

“Dante?” I said softly.

His eyes snapped to mine.

And for a second—

I saw it.

Not anger.

Not control.

Something deeper.

Something personal.

“You said he locked you in,” he said.

I nodded slowly.

His jaw tightened.

“Yeah.”

Silence.

Then—

“So did mine.”

The words hit like a punch.

I blinked. “What?”

Kai straightened.

Luca went completely still.

Dante didn’t look away.

“My father,” he said. “Before he became who he is now.”

My breath caught.

“He believed control was protection,” Dante continued, his voice colder now. “That locking something away meant keeping it safe.”

My chest tightened.

“That’s why you…” I trailed off.

“Understand him?” Dante finished.

I nodded.

His expression hardened.

“I understand how he thinks,” he said. “Which means I know how to break him.”

The room felt different now.

Not just dangerous.

Personal.

This wasn’t just about me anymore.

This was about something deeper.

Something buried.

Something unresolved.

“Then teach me,” I said quietly.

Dante studied me for a long moment.

Then—

“Are you sure?” he asked.

“Yes.”

His gaze dropped briefly to my lips.

Then back to my eyes.

“This won’t be easy.”

“I know.”

“You won’t like everything you learn.”

“I don’t care.”

A pause.

Then—

A slow nod.

“Good.”

Kai smirked slightly. “She’s got teeth.”

Luca’s hand brushed mine again.

Soft.

Steady.

“You’re not alone in this,” he said.

For once…

I believed him.

Later that night…

After they finally left my room—

After the house went quiet again—

I sat on my bed, staring at nothing.

My head was full.

Marcus.

The fight.

The training.

Dante’s confession.

Everything was changing too fast.

I wasn’t just running anymore.

I wasn’t just surviving.

I was learning.

Adapting.

Becoming something else.

My phone sat beside me.

Silent.

For now.

I knew it wouldn’t last.

It never did.

But this time…

When it buzzed—

I didn’t flinch.

I picked it up.

New number.

Of course.

I opened the message.

You’re making this harder than it needs to be.

Come back before they turn you into something you’re not.

I stared at the screen.

Then slowly…

I typed back.

My fingers didn’t shake this time.

Too late.

I hit send.

And for the first time—

I wasn’t afraid of what came next.