The dawn didn't break so much as it bled out, a thin, sickly gray line creeping over the horizon. The SUV’s tires screamed as they transitioned from the smooth highway asphalt to the jagged gravel of the estate’s private road.
**Zayne POV**
The gates swung open, the iron grinding like teeth. I didn't wait for Blake to park. My hand was on the door handle before we even cleared the fountain. The engine had barely died when I threw the door open, the morning chill hitting me like a physical blow.
I looked like a man who had crawled out of a grave. My jaw was dark with a week’s worth of stubble, my shirt was stiff with blood that wasn't all mine, and my eyes were burning with a feverish, desperate need.
I didn't see guards. I didn't see the house. I only saw the front doors.
"Zayne," Bla
