My Billionaire Ex Wants Me Back

Chapter 2 The Devil's Bargain

Adrain

Her hand was cold in mine. The skin was soft, but I could feel her trembling beneath my touch.

I led her through the massive oak doors of Sterling Manor. The house that had never felt like home. The house where my mother had taken her last breath.

Victoria looked around, her dark eyes wide but defiant. She was wearing a simple white dress now, the wedding gown replaced with something more practical. Her hair was still pinned up, a few strands falling loose around her face. She was trying to hide her fear behind a mask of anger. I knew that mask well. I wore it every single day.

Three years ago, I watched my mother die. My father pushed her down the stairs and called it an accident. He told everyone she was drunk. But my mother never touched alcohol. She was terrified of what it did to people. To him.

I was fifteen when I realized my father was a monster. Twenty-two when I started planning his destruction. I needed help. I needed someone who had been hurt by my father too.

That was when I found Victoria.

I had been watching her for months. I knew everything about her. Her parents' death. Her aunt's debt. Her part-time jobs. Her burning desire for revenge.

She was perfect.

I went to her aunt. I offered her a deal. I would pay off her debts. I would save her from the loan shark. All she had to do was give Victoria to me.

The aunt was desperate. She said yes.

Now Victoria was mine.

"The staff will show you to your room," I said, releasing her hand. "Dinner is at eight. We will discuss our plan then."

"Wait." Her voice stopped me mid-stride. "Where do you sleep?"

I turned, raising an eyebrow. "Why do you ask? Are you planning to sneak into my bed?"

Her cheeks flushed red. It was the first real emotion I had seen from her since the cathedral. It was... captivating.

"No. I just want to know which parts of this house to avoid."

I walked back to her, closing the distance between us until I could see the flecks of gold in her dark eyes. She smelled like jasmine and defiance.

"Listen to me carefully, Victoria. This house is a battlefield. My father has eyes everywhere. Spies in the staff. Cameras in the walls. If we are going to make this work, you cannot avoid me. You have to cling to me like your life depends on it. Because it does."

Her breath hitched. I could see her pulse fluttering in her throat. She was scared. Good. Fear would keep her alive.

"You think I am the enemy," I continued, my voice dropping to a whisper. "But I am the only thing standing between you and my father. He killed your parents. He will kill you too if he gets the chance. Do you understand?"

She nodded slowly, her eyes never leaving mine.

"Good. Now let me show you to your room. We have a lot of work to do."

I turned and walked up the grand staircase, hearing her footsteps behind me. She followed like a shadow. A beautiful, angry shadow.

The guest room I had prepared for her was at the end of the east wing. It had a connecting door to my study. Accessible, but not obvious.

"When you need me, knock three times on this door," I said, pointing to the hidden panel. "My study is on the other side. No one else knows about this passage."

"Why are you helping me?" she asked, her voice barely above a whisper. "What did your father do to you?"

I turned to face her, letting the mask slip for just a moment. Letting her see the raw pain underneath.

"He killed my mother," I said, my voice flat. "She found out about your parents. She was going to go to the police. So he made it look like an accident. A fall down the stairs." I laughed, but there was no humor in it. "He told everyone she was drunk. But my mother did not drink. She never touched alcohol. She was terrified of what it did to people. To him."

Victoria's eyes widened. She understood now. The full scope of the monster we were dealing with.

"Your father killed my parents. And your mother. And he walked away free."

"For now." I met her gaze, letting her see the fire in my eyes. "But not for much longer. Tomorrow, we start. Tomorrow, we take the first step toward destroying him."

She walked closer, close enough that I could feel the heat radiating from her body. Close enough to kiss. Close enough to kill.

"What if I cannot do it? What if I am not strong enough?"

I reached out, my fingers brushing against her cheek. She flinched but did not pull away.

"You are the strongest woman I have ever met, Victoria. You survived losing everything. You survived being sold like property. You survived me. If you can survive that, you can survive anything."

Something shifted in her eyes. The walls she had built around her heart cracked just a little.

"One more thing," I said, dropping my hand. "Be careful who you trust. Even the servants. Especially the servants. My father has bought most of them."

"Does that include you?"

I laughed, the sound harsh and bitter. "I am the worst of them all, Victoria. Never forget that."

I turned and walked toward the hidden door, but her voice stopped me.

"Adrian."

I stopped. No one called me by my first name. No one dared.

"Why do you call me by my real name?" I asked, not turning around. "You barely know me."

"Because I want to remember that you are human too," she said softly. "That even monsters have feelings."

I did not answer. I could not. Because she was right. And that terrified me more than anything.

As I walked through the hidden passage into my study, I could still feel the ghost of her touch on my skin. The warmth of her body. The fire in her eyes.

I had spent years building walls around my heart. Years convincing myself that I did not need anyone. That I was better off alone.

But Victoria was different. She made me want to tear down those walls. She made me want to feel something again.

And that was dangerous.

Because in my world, feelings were weakness. And weakness got you killed.

I poured myself a glass of whiskey and stared at the photograph on my desk. My mother. Her beautiful smile. Her kind eyes.

"I will make him pay, Mother," I whispered. "I promise. I will make him pay for everything."

But even as I said the words, I knew the truth.

My father was not the only one I was trying to destroy.

I was trying to destroy myself.

And Victoria was the only one who could save me.

The question was would she even want to?